RFI 89 Nissan rear diff

Malamute

Adventurist
I have a slight noise in the rear end of my 89 Nissan (in trailer form now). The brakes were hanging up from sitting for about 10 years, I had help and we stripped all the brake parts out, now the axles turn with far less resistance, however, theres a slight ticking sort of sound coming from the rear end/axles/something inside with slight intermittent resistance when turning. It concerned me to think of taking it cross country. It later occurred to me it may be something to do with a limited slip diff of some sort. Would that sort of noise and feel be consistent with a limited slip diff that Nissan may have used? I thought rear ends turned smoother than this one, but its been a long time since I had one apart or messed with them. The diff lube is full, the truck sat for about 10 years before being turned into a trailer.

When hearing and feeling the ticking, my first thought was maybe rust spots in the bearing races or a chipped tooth in the pinion gear, and take it apart and put new bearings and seals in it, and remove the ring gear when its apart. The parts were over half what a trailer axle cost, so i shelved that idea, and an axle isnt in the budget for now. I'm not physically able to do much mechanical work without help, and dont want a project on the side of the road in the middle of the country.

So, is it anything to worry about, normal feel and sound for an older Nissan diff, or right to be concerned about it? I recall my Detroit Locker in the old F250 made a clicking sound when turning slowly, but this probably isnt a Detroit Locker. This sound in the Nissan diff wasnt quite the same.

Is it possible to know if it has a limited slip or other special diff from the VIN?
 
That occurred to me, but I wasnt sure it was the gears, and its something I cant do alone. Help is only available intermittently (and hasnt been available for a couple weeks). I was either going to take it along on this trip if it seemed it may be normal sounds, or leave it and deal with it later in the summer. If I wait, Id likely just save up and get a replacement axle and be done with it rather than spend any more time and money on this axle.
 
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