[Formulajones]

I mentioned earlier, the pattern is sort of a last check to see if it "looks" okay. It's not a tell all or certainly not a final say. The naked eye isn't going to detect that the pinion depth could be off .005" or even .020" with a grease pattern. You can be off several thou on settings, have a noisy gear set, and never see that on a gear pattern check.

What has to happen before the pattern is checked is setting up pinion depth and back lash correctly, and as I mentioned, most don't have or use a pinion depth gauge (the good ones are $500 or more) and it's critical to get pinion depth spot on, and that measurement is generally scribed right on the face of the pinion gear. Once pinion depth and back lash are set correctly, only then will I even bother looking at a pattern, but the pattern won't sway me from the gauge settings.



Those gears, most of them I've done anyway, are already lapped in at the pinion depth and back lash settings that come with that gear set.