Nitro 5.29 Gears or Sierra 5.29 Gears?

Need opinions???? Along with experience with any of these gears?

 

Can't go wrong with either, but it appears Nitro has a longer lead time at the moment. I had nitros on order last year and ETA kept getting pushed back so I went with Sierra and never looked back. Had the sierras installed in October and haven't a single issue after a few road trips and wheeling weekends. Dirty Deeds just said Sierra is a better gear in another thread so you could take that for what it's worth too.

 

I have the Nitro 5.29 gears. I'm running 37s and have about 20 thousand miles on them without any issues. I can't tell you anything about whether there is noise or not because I'm running DD exhaust. No complaints and the company was quick to respond to questions. *edit* I also got mine before there was ever an issue from "lead time". Apparently everyone wants them, so their backed up.... just like King shocks

 

How much were the gears themselves?

 

Check out Revolution for another option.

 

I believe they were ~$1300. The net price to me for gears and install was $2700 or $2800 including the gear oil, I don't recall the exact number. The install also included lockers front and rear so probably would've been slightly less without the lockers. If you call Sierra directly, you can get a direct price, but IIRC the price was more than what my installer charged me for the materials.

 

Current experience with Nitro lead times.

Ordered my 5.29s direct on January 24th, just got shipping notification yesterday, with an expected delivery date of March 17th.

Cost was $1,425 for gears only.

Hope that helps.

 

I feel like I've read the average install of front and rear was around $1000. If you're mechanically inclined then the install of the rear is easy yourself. You can even pull the third member out yourself, have it installed for a significant cost saving versus dropping the truck off and reinstall the third member yourself.

 

I carry both brands. I’m heavily leaned towards Sierra due to their higher quality. But have had really good success with hundreds of sets of gears from both companies.

Keith 760-877-4234

 

I ran nitro gears on my 3rd gen Tacoma and never had any issues. Looking to regear the tundra soon so interested in opinions as well.

 

I have Revolution 5.29s with REM polishing and they're as quiet as the stock gears. Never been in a truck with anything else, but rumor has it Nitros are louder for some reason.

 

This is true.

 

People over at ih8mud are laying into Nitro pretty good. I’d do your research before you buy..
https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/nitro-gear-axle-group-buy.1259866/

That being said, I don’t have a dog in this fight; so take it as you will.

 

Are there reputable installers someone would recommend shipping the diffs to have done? I can’t really find anyone local who is proficient at this stuff.

 

I just had my sierra’s installed and they are quite as a mouse so far. Couldn’t be happier!

My installer even mentioned that he usually installs nitros and they are pretty noisy. It was his first experience with sierra gears and he said he is going to start recommending them

 

I feel like people have used these guys, but maybe someone with experience with them can chime in..

https://eastcoastgearsupply.com/

 

Where are you located?

 

New Hampshire

 

Nah. Sorry. Don’t know anybody.

 

I'll assume you are in southern NH, so I'll share my research for central MA. Mitchell Differential (http://mitchelldifferential.com/) in Shrewsbury, MA seems to be the go-to. I'll let you know after next week when I get my truck back. Elias 4wd is another reputable name and you can call to ask if they do it. The other off road shops I called in the area send their diff work to Mitchell. Feel free to mention that you know they are doing a 19 Tundra on Monday - who knows, maybe they'll give us a discount.

 

Do you have any insight as to why the nitros are louder? I am currently waiting on a prebuilt 3rd and clamshell from east coast gear supply with nitro 5.29's and when i asked if they were going to be noisy they told me on the tacomas it is typical to see hear some noise but they dont typically hear any in the 10.5 tundra rear. That is totally opposite of what i am reading lol. Im worried about longevity but being that ecgs is local to me they only offer nitro for the tundra. Thank you sir

 

Thanks. Central NH. And it would be more of a hassle to try to find rides both ways to leave a vehicle. I’m open to just shopping the diffs to a reputable installer and save everyone the time of having to disassemble everything to get the diffs out to work on them.

 

Been waiting for almost a year for Nitro Gears I ordered last spring. They finally showed up and I dropped the truck off and had them installed. The off-road shop that installed them said they do a lot of gear installs and it seems to be a mix bag between most brands as far as wether they're noisy or not. They said in most cases if they get a set thats noisy that they have good success in getting a warranty replacement set from the manufacturer. Regardless, I had mine installed and did the heat cycling on the way home. I'm running 35" tires and Keith Carty from Dirty Deeds recommended I run 5.29s with 35" tires and I'm very glad I listened to him. I could tell I had gotten the power back as soon as I put it in drive. The truck was very eager to go like it had been with stock size tires. Running 35" tires and a lift it always felt like I was hauling a trailer behind me and you could tell from the exhaust note that it was more labored than it used to be.
After the gears It's an all round more pleasant drive, it actually accelerates in 6th gear on the highway without dropping down to 5th. Don't have a lot of miles on it yet, but I can already tell that I wouldn't have been as happy with 4.88s based on the way it performs now. If there's any increase in RPMs with this setup, it doesn't seem obvious to me, truck is way happier now and I can feel the power difference down low. I'm getting through the 500 miles taking easy but as soon as I get through it I cant wait to try it in Tow/Haul!
I you must run bigger tires (to me, its 35" or nothing) then spend the extra money on gears, completely worth every penny, changes everything about how the engine /transmission operates.

 

Went to Nitro's IG and asked about lead time on 5.29s. Two different people chimed in. One dude said he just now got gears he ordered on Black Friday. Another says he ordered Taco gears last Thanksgiving and hasn't heard a thing yet....

He also said they got bought out by DPI Offroad who also took over Just Differentials.

 

I’ve got the nitro 5.29’s through Keith and had them installed nearby. Mine are for sure louder than stock but I just turn my radio up louder.

 

Thats so odd. Mine are definitely quiet as stock. The shop did warn me it was possible to get a loud set, but regardless they are running smooth and quiet.

 

Are you running Nitros? Where did you go in SD for install?

 

I'd go Sierra. Their customer service is better overall especially if you have an issue during install or a warranty claim . If you order through West Coast Differentials talk to Mike at Ext. 110. He is a Toyota expert!

 

They’re not obnoxiously loud and if I didn’t know ahead to listen for a change, I probably wouldn’t have noticed. I would imagine the average truck owner with mt’s wouldn’t notice.

Correct, I bought them through Keith and he set me up with a shop in Escondido. I believe it was called “On Point Auto” or something like that.

 

Thanks for the mention!!

a lot of guys hear ‘rpm sill go up’ and see thst as a bad thing. But it’s nit. A little more rpm means you’re stepping on the throttle a lot less. And that’s what the truck wants. Less load.

the bigger tires make the truck think you’re pulling a trailer. Do it goes into different load tables. This causes the weird shifting.

anybody wanting gears, please give a call. 760-877-4234

Keith