Question about metal in rear differential

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Hello all, I've been following the board for ar least 10 years and appareciate all the information. I keep all my vehicles at least 15 years so oil is very important to me. I generally use Amsoil or Mobil 1. My pickup is an 05 Silverado, 150,000 miles, 5.3, 4L60E, 8.625" 10 bolt rear end. It's been an excellent vehicle for me and I plan to keep it 500,000 miles as I believe the iron block LS engines are some of the best ever made. I live in Texas so I currently run Amsoil Signature 10w30 with either a Wix XP or Amsoil EA15K32 filter.

I know it's well overdue but I finally pulled off the cover and drained the rear differential fluid. The fluid itself was mostly black with a hint of amber. There were no large shavings but what appeared to be shiny sand on the magnet and cover. I cleaned the gasket off and cleaned everything else as good as I could. I put it back together with a Fel Pro gasket and Amsoil Severe Duty 75w90. There were no noises or anything like that from the axle, I just don't really know what's normal. The job was pretty easy so I've considered running it 10,000 miles and changing it again to ensure the cleanest oil possible. The whole job only ran a little over $40 plus my time. I can be a bit OCD about these things
 
I don't think it's uncommon to find metal paste stuck to the magnet. The time to worry is when it feels gritty when rubbed between finger and thumb.
 
Originally Posted By: 4WD
That was first change of gear oil?


That was the first change of gear oil for a self described OCD?
 
That would be me - 3rd gear oil (Delvac 1) in my GMC with 68k and next fill on the shelf ...
 
Originally Posted By: Gebo
Originally Posted By: 4WD
That was first change of gear oil?


That was the first change of gear oil for a self described OCD?


Yea, crazy huh. Out of sight out of mind. I should have been more clear. I'm OCD about oil changes, buying the best oil and filter, etc. I've mostly owned front wheel drive cars so it was less of a concern
 
The first time is always nasty.
My Dodge I changed at 3000 miles and it was nasty silver looking yucky stuff. Since it's always been new looking.
Dodge requires 15,000 mile rearend oil changes with Synthetic 75w90 which is crazy but it always looks new compared to the 1st one.
 
Originally Posted By: 4WD
That would be me - 3rd gear oil (Delvac 1) in my GMC with 68k and next fill on the shelf ...


Since is put it off for so long I'm kinda going the other way now. Making sure I've got the cleanest oil possible in there. This is the first time I've ever done it, so there was fear of the unknown. Now that I know it's pretty easy I feel much more comfortable about it.
 
Well, with this information, I wouldn't be concerned in the slightest. I get goop on my magnet at 50K miles and I always used either Amsoil or RL.

I'd go 50K and change it again with the Amsoil. You may want to ask around and see if anyone thinks it would be better to go with a higher viscosity.
 
10-4 ... to minimize my OCD claim - I'm an early changer on rear ends - almost always get the metal flake look on first dump and swap in an easy to use (drain/fill/level) aluminum cover ...
 
The biggest fear gets overlooked - some housings dump from the cover - but fill from the heavy casting.
You should always soft break that fill plug plug before you "loose the juice" ...
 
Originally Posted By: Gebo
Well, with this information, I wouldn't be concerned in the slightest. I get goop on my magnet at 50K miles and I always used either Amsoil or RL.

I'd go 50K and change it again with the Amsoil. You may want to ask around and see if anyone thinks it would be better to go with a higher viscosity.


Yea, I was wondering about that. Being in Texas I think maybe 75w140 would give me a better margin of protection. To be honest the Amsoil 75w90 looked fairly thin for that grade of oil
 
Actually, if it were me, I'd run that gear oil about 5K and swap it out for a thicker grade. That way you have cleaned all the leftover gunk out. Yeah, I know how much it cost per quart. In that big ol' truck of yours, I'd run the 75w140.

I realize that contradicts my 50K comment above but that first comment was based on rational thought. My last comment was based on my heart.
 
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I did my first rear diff gear oil change just a few days ago with 20k miles on the car, it was somewhat nasty. No shiny silver dust but some black that got stuck on magnetic drain plug.
The oil I chose was Schaeffer 293 Supreme Gear Lube SAE 75W-90, it appers to meet/exceed more light and heavy industry standards vs Amsoil, many claim they've seen diff temperatures drop as much as 20 deg after the change, and... it's cheaper than Amsoil. Oil is PAO based.
 
Schaeffer is a great product. I forgot about them. Sorry...
blush.gif
 
Someone used the words Metal Paste ...+1 that is normal first dump. I have 9k on a new silverado and will switch to 75w-140 M1, IMO If you pull trailers it is protection against high/heavy loading conditions.
 
I have noticed a considerable jump in both VI and cost with the M1 "140" ... thinking PAO ...?
 
Originally Posted By: smithrob9999
Originally Posted By: Gebo
Well, with this information, I wouldn't be concerned in the slightest. I get goop on my magnet at 50K miles and I always used either Amsoil or RL.

I'd go 50K and change it again with the Amsoil. You may want to ask around and see if anyone thinks it would be better to go with a higher viscosity.


Yea, I was wondering about that. Being in Texas I think maybe 75w140 would give me a better margin of protection. To be honest the Amsoil 75w90 looked fairly thin for that grade of oil

..... and they shears and thins.
80/85W 140 would be more shear stable .. translating into lesser shiny stuff, if any.
 
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