Fulcrum plate advice

[aquifer]

While getting the transmission ready for a rebuild back in September, I pulled the axle tubes, axle shafts, and side gears out. I labeled drivers and passenger side for everything, including the fulcrum plates, but I did not label the fulcrum plates with respect to their orientation in the side gear or which side of the drive shafts they came from.

Fast forward to today when I started putting the shafts and tubes back on the transmission. I used the following picture as a guide, and continually flipped and turned the fulcrum plates until I had a consistent gap reading on both sides, which ended up being .0015”, which means there is virtually no wear. This is also what I would say from visual observation.

My question is: Is that what I should have done to try to make sure the fulcrum plates are oriented properly? I wish I would have labeled their orientation, but I didn’t. Believe it or not, it made a difference in the gap as I re-oriented them to find a consistent gap. I am 100% confident that I have the passenger axle on the passenger side, and the passenger fulcrum plates on the passenger side, as well as the side gear. So the only variable is the orientation of the fulcrum plates themselves, not which side of the transmission they go on.

Does this sound reasonable, or do I need to check something else before I button things up?

Here’s the gap I’m talking about:

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[67rustavenger]

Good job getting the clearances figured and set on the passenger side fulcrum.

That said, it appears that your fulcrum plates are beyond the wear limit.
See the text regarding the grooved fulcrum plates in the image you posted.

You'd get better responses in the performance forum regarding transmission issues.
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[WrennMetallWerks]

This may be loose guided advice depending on how serious of a rebuild you are trying to do.

When I did this for Bugformance I was taught to look for excessive wear, glazing , cracks, chips and scrapes. If none are present they are good to be reused on ether side. Often we would have bins full of plates and gears and would do a good inspection and go to work. Some may say that is not enough but it worked well for us and has worked well for me many of times. Good luck and never give up learning and pursuing your passion.
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[67rustavenger]