8.25 noise

Pulled both axles today. Bearings look to be OK. Spinning the pinion after axle removal and the tight spot is gone, turns easily for the full rotation of the ring gear. Still thinking there's an issue with the axles / bearings. Gonna reinstall one axle at a time and check for the binding on the ring gear travel. Maybe that will show which one is the problem. Don't really know what else to try at this point.