It’s hard to tell. When I look at new gears, this chamfer isn’t there. I’m not having noise and the drive and coast sides look otherwise normal. I don’t see excess wear on either side. It pretty symmetrical but there is a slight burr on the outer edge of the heel where the chamfer is which is sharp. That part seems like damage but I don’t see any other evidence. I also can’t tell what would cause such a weird markingProbably that way from the factory. If it's not making noise or other problem and you don't see any excess metal in the oil then ignore it
Even then, it’s the wrong angle for the pinion teeth right? What could even make that mark if there’s contact? I didn’t see any evident damage on the pinion but I didn’t remove it to find out so just looking in there with a flashlight, it looked ok. I had the usual fine metal sludge in my oil I grabbed with a magnet but no large chunks or shavings. I put a Banks cover on so I’ll check it out if I hear any noise going on. It’s fairly symmetrical but as there was some residue on the gear areas that don’t touch, this looked like it has contact and I’m just not sure with what or when.check the pinion for damage. its on the coast side of the ring gear (only used in reverse) so i doubt it will give you much issue. usually the gear mesh isnt that far out to be worrisome as long as the pinion is healthy.
Bought with 60k in 09’ so been with me for most of its life. I changed fluids but never took the rear cover off. It hasn’t been touched since factory as far as I’m aware.the only way to be 100% sure is to do as Jesse said and throw some marking compound on it. you can have a heel/toe pattern pretty far off and not have issues (matter of fact, when you setup gears, heel/toe location is a secondary consideration to other factors). almost seems like a factory blem? did you buy this truck new? whats the history on the rear end?
From the look, same year axle, same feature. I’m guessing factory. Thanks for providing that - gives me some peace of mind.Only found one other thread on another site where someone has the same issue. Looks as if everyone else says its not an issue unless it's making noise
differential ring gear photos for comment - Dodge Diesel - Diesel Truck Resource Forums
3rd Gen Engine and Drivetrain -> 2003-2007 - differential ring gear photos for comment - Hi forum. Attached are two photos of my rear differential ring gear. The first attachement, Bessie1.JPG, highlights with a red circle a worn area on ring gear that I don't think is from manufacturing. The...www.dieseltruckresource.com
Agreed, but I’ve been towing 20k for the last 2 years with it for vacations/etc and some daily driving. I did have a whine not long before tear down but I’m guessing that was a cracked flex plate issue I’ve found and resolved. We’ll see when I get it back on the road next week.Ya know....if it wasnt a problem before you took the cover off, its not going to be a problem once you put the cover back on.....just sayin'
It's surprising how quickly fluids can discolor under use. Add to that the fact that you drained and cleaned the center section and installed a new clean cover, but the axle tubes and both hubs were filled with old oil which mixed in fairly quickly with your new fluid after some use. It only takes a little bit of old oil to mix with the new and discolor. You could continue flushing, but what you did is more than most have done without issues.Did a little over 1200 miles with the banks diff cover and it seemed to do well. Obviously it's just seat of the pants but hey, we know it couldn't hurt. However, to my point above with the wear, the banks cover comes with a sight glass. I would have never been the wiser before but my new diff fluid is pretty darn black now. What do you all make of that? Is that normal? 1K of the 1200 was towing 20k up and down steep grades in 98deg weather.