Because many of the new gear sets that feature a 9.5" or 10" diameter ring gear have a different mounting distance than a standard 9" Ford gear set, Mark Williams Enterprises has developed a new pinion support assembly that accommodates these gears in a 9" Ford housing. The new M-W support eliminates the need to use a spacer ring and/or multiple shims, simplifying set-ups. The support housings are CNC machined from aircraft quality aluminum and fitted with a low friction angular contact rear bearing and a heavy-duty tapered front bearing. All M-W pinion supports are factory pre-assembled, with the bearing preload set through use of a solid, hardened preload spacer (rather than a crush sleeve or shims). This spacer is individually machined to provide the proper required preload for each assembly. Supports are available for use with either 28-spline or 35-spline pinions and they are compatible with M-W yokes and couplers. The support housing is drilled to accommodate the 7/16" studs used in M-W thirdmember cases, however special reducer bushings can be used with 9" Ford cases that have 3/8" threads. M-W thru-bolt aluminum cases require little to no modification to clear the larger ring gear. Mark Williams Enterprises offers a variety of other pinion supports, as well as modular aluminum housings, axles, spools and yokes—everything needed for a “bulletproof” rear end.