Pulling the diff itself apart was problematic as well, but knowing it was thrashed, i got it done. The small hardware we thought we wouldn't be loosening again so used red-locktite ended up snapping or stripping...Back to the drill bits!
Well **** we found the bombsite.
Couldn't get any of the gears out (yet) so pulled some of the piece i could get out for a closer look.
With this knowledge it was time to look into the upgrades. By the skin of my teeth I got the order in Monday for Cyber Monday discounts at Strange Engineering. Unfortunately my 3rd member has smaller bearing (OEM size) case and cant house 35 spline axles. I was set on trying the Strange S-trac differential, so new center section it is.
Strange Thru-bolt Pro Aluminum Housing w/ 3.50 gears and S-trac diff.
Also picked up the corresponding 35 spline Alloy axles. Went back with 1/2" studs, as it became problematic to make 5/8" fit. If i end up regretting this, i'll eat some crow and upgrade to 5/8" later on.
I really wanted to try the S-trac as in principle it's the same as the Trutrac that I have, but instead of 4 sets of pinion gears it has 5, and they're all 9310 material so significantly stronger. Online research shows strong evidence of surviving in heavy stick cars. If not, it carries a lifetime warranty...
Sorry for the long winded response, I'll post more updates when it starts going back together!