Seem like we have a winner. You should do it for him and make a little side change..Agreed, but the pattern is going to be the pattern if they actually use a dial and reinstall to the original backlash if done correctly. Otherwise you're going to run into NVH issues and likely wear the gear set prematurely. If I'm being honest, unless it's extreme high mileage or has existing problems such as needing a seal, I wouldn't even remove the pinion. Just measure backlash before removing and reinstall to previous specs with as much preload on the drive side as possible. Once a gear set is worn, that's where it wants to ride.