you just kept driving with that noise and then the trans grenaded? What’s the cost of pulling the transfer case apart and replacing that thrust bearing?
there's the rub..I did not wait until the tranny left me on the side of the road... I looked at all alternatives.. to remove the C6 Clutch cover is a huge ordeal.. either remover the tranny from the top..after removing the bed.. or remove the tranny from the bottom of you have a tranny jack that can support @1600lbs and the correct size vehicle lift. Then I thought , let's just get the plasma cutter out and and start nuking all the huck bolts and the cross member which sits behind the clutch cover, which btw does not grant enough space to remove the cover, let alone disassemble the clutch pack... after @2 weeks of consulting the LMTV Gods on this forum as well as FB groups... I said F-it.. retran is the only sure bet with the least number of downsides..
from a numbers standpoint .. a used pot luck tranny/TC that may last 10 minutes or 10 years was $3k-$5k. plus transport. The real problem was ,even though the R&R of the tranny is relatively straight forward according to the TM, the tranny jack was the issue and the larger problem was finding a competent tech/shop that was willing to do the install.. Alex Wilson advised , while he was at Acela, they get @$3k for install.. so a rough estimate is about @$7-@$10k... for a big gamble tranny. Smart money said go with a retran from MTP Drivetrain in Louisiana for $10k and have Daytona CAT/RingPower do the install which they did for @$4k.. which included a complete PM on the 3116, balance the driver shafts, new US made Spicer U-joints, complete air brake inspection/service , replace the pumpkin oil (f/r) and the biggie... use very pricey Transynd (@$600) in the tranny/transfer case... they did a great job and had the truck back to be in @4 days .