"Old" vs. "New" Dana 20

["Bill Thebert" <bthebert@domain.elided>]

Tom Mandera:

I have a couple of questions about your recent experience with the "old"
Dana 20 ("old" being identified as having the fill plug on the passenger
side -- up against the exhaust pipe if you happen to have duals):

First to clarify the problem -- the thing you're calling the "shift lever
housing" is also the "bearing retainer" for the front output shaft.  I
think that this is what the shop manual will call this part -- "front
output shaft bearing retainer" or some such.  The problem was that the
inboard side of the extension that supports the levers and the lever pivot
pin was too THICK, and interfered with the passenger side of the T-19
transmission.  At Curt Cleavinger's suggestion, you ground about 1/4" of
thickness off from this extension, in order to allow the transfer case to
pass alongside the transmission.  (Correct me if I'm wrong in any of this.)

Here's the question:  Can you tell if these front bearing retainers (with
the extension for supporting the shift lever(s) ) are interchangeable
between the "old" and the "new" Dana 20's?  Could you have simply taken the
bearing retainer off the "new" (and busted) Dana 20, and bolted it onto the
"old" Dana 20?  I understand that you might need to re-adjust the shim pack
for proper preload on the front output shaft bearings, but if the
attachment bolts on the two bearing retainers are similar, might this not
have saved a whole bunch of grinding time?

Clearly, if the "old" case is all one has, grinding is the only option to
make the thing fit the T-19.  You were in an unusual position having pieces
of both side by side.  Which is why I ask for your observations in this
regard.

Bill Thebert