That sounds more like it, There are not a lot of places actually rebuilding( machining the face and installed hardened tips). The thing is you don't know with parts today who made them? Are you getting parts directly from the source or were they just reboxed and sold. It used to be you bought it from the source that built it, you had a contact to deal with that could answer any questions. Today you get someone who may have never worked on the part(s) they sell nor have any clue on how they should work.

Mooser's posi pictured above is a fully polished and tuned posi as yours is from Tom. That is the way they should be build over the common spring/plate stuffed into a rough casting posi most sell. It's the difference between a fast production part and a custom built one and it's a big difference. Mooser did a nice job with that posi I recall him asking me some questions along the way.

 

There were more than a few questions that both you and Tom helped with on that diff, along with I forget how many pattern (and sanity) checks along the way LOL
Thanks again for the help on that build
M

 

Removed the rear axle today. Ended taking the rear crossmember out along with the rear. Separated crossmember from axle. Crossmember needed a little bit of cleaning since I had seeds in there. Separated the rear and allowed to drain. Found clip at bottom in one piece. Checked the passenger side yoke and it does have chamfer. Looked at the driver side and looked the same. I was wrong when I said there was no chamfer. I had taken a quick look and not in very good light.
I have looked at the ones being sold by our supporting vendors and others and mine looks close.
I will take a close picture tomorrow and post and see what you think.

 

Measurement from the end face of the yoke to the side of the snap ring s/b .185"-.190" IIRC, Gary will be along to correct that I'm sure
M

 

Those would be good dimensions to get with a rebuilt or new axle. They are still under what GM set them at but would work, instead they are all over the place. 170, 173, 178, 180 no consistency at all at least with all the axles I bought and inspected. Many were returned most likely to be resold, I don't know.
Things to know with this dimension, if the posi is correctly tuned and balanced then 190 would be too tight and would require a trip to the surface grinder. 185 maybe down to 180 would be close but every posi setup is different. For a stock setup posi these dimensions can result in axle end play into the 030" range which is lousy for a rebuilt posi and diff. Sometimes the endplay is much more.

 

Closeup of axle

Another closeup

Crossmember and rear removed from car

Main gear - your thoughts

 

Looking ahead for when I put my rear together, I called my local Chevy dealer parts dept and gave him the part numbers I found doing a search on this forum.
89021671 is obsolete with no replacement number for this type of oil.
1052358 is obsolete but replaced by part # 88900330.
He did give a number that replaces the gear oil which includes the additive. The number is 88862624 at about $23 /qt. at this dealer.

 

All you need are 2 bottles of GM limited slip additive, a cover gasket, side seals, CR pinion seal, and 2 qt of 90 wt or 85-140 gear oil. I wouldn't buy any of it from a dealer. NAPA will have the seals and gasket, summit has the additive and oil you can find at any parts store. You do not need "special" oils with their own additives- the GM additive and conventional gear oil is it.

Looks like you have a very nice shop to work in, take your time and you'll be fine.

 

OK, so what's the plan now?
Reinstall the snap ring?
Get a new one?
Is the groove OK.
Why did it come off?

 

I had ordered new snap rings, side seals, pinion seal and gasket from Corvette Central and they arrived today. When I checked the snap rings, they are about half the thickness of the original. I removed the old seal from the driver side and installed the original snap ring. Putting the thinner snap ring would have given me , I believe, more play. The yoke with the new seal does not move and gives me a total of 20 thousands from the end of the yoke to the center pin. I replaced the passenger side using the original snap ring. and I have a little play. The distance between the end of the yoke by the snap ring and the center pin is 26 thousands with the yoke pulled out. With the yoke pushed in, I could not get a 2 thousand feeler gauge in between.
The groove was fine.
Why did it come out? I believe I may have shocked the drive shaft when I was banging away to remove the shock mount. Or, since I am the 5th owner of this car, who knows what was done to the car before I bought it.
I ended up getting the additive from the dealer. When I totalled the cost of the additive and shipping from Summit Racing, there was not a lot of difference in my total cost and I have it now and not waiting for the additive.
GTR1999 , the shop is a 40x64 pole barn which my wife and I built. Full concrete floor. Thanks for all of the info you have supplied.