A Couple of Front Dif Questions

I did search and found someone asked my first question but the thread got hi-jacked and never answered. So here it is again.

Are the carrier bearings on a 30 spline super 30 ARB the same bearings that will come in a D30 overhaul kit?

Also,

Last weekend I was wheeling in same deep mud/water and was stuck in one hole for a while. When I got to the end of the trail it was the end of the day so as always I went to pull the front drive shaft for the ride home. I always pull the front shaft to cut down on vibes from a not so favorable pinion angle. When I was under there I noticed that the front pinion seal was leaking. The next day I pulled the cover and found that there was water in the oil so I cleaned it all up good and put in some new oil but I found a good amount of play in the pinion bearings. It makes a noticeable humming noise when I drive it around the block, but the pinion stayed dry. Now, will I do any damage by driving it even without the front shaft? It wouldn't be long or high speed rides. Nobody around me has the bearings and I wont be able to replace them til mid week. This is my DD so I'm kind of stuck.

TTT

unless you have manual lockout hubs, everything in the axle is turning, even without the front ds....so my answer would be yes....but, im no expert....

Are the carrier bearings on a 30 spline super 30 ARB the same bearings that will come in a D30 overhaul kit?

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No, the Super uses bigger bearings. All the new ARB carriers for D30/D35/D44 have bigger journals for the carrier bearings so they can use the bigger side gears and bigger axles for the Super kits. In other words, even a standard D30 ARB carrier (27 spline) uses the bigger ID bearings.

...a good amount of play in the pinion bearings. It makes a noticeable humming noise when I drive it around the block, but the pinion stayed dry. Now, will I do any damage by driving it even without the front shaft? It wouldn't be long or high speed rides. Nobody around me has the bearings and I wont be able to replace them til mid week. This is my DD so I'm kind of stuck.

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Driving it with play in the pinion bearings is VERY BAD for the ring and pinion.