[Remmy700P]

The carrier bearing is enclosed in a flexible bushing that has approximately .375"-.500" of play in it during normal operation. Flexing the driveshaft around within these tolerances will not tell you if the actual internal bearing is failing. I would imagine that you would hear a grinding, squealing sound if the bearing was the culprit.

I actually haven't heard of anyone having one of these bearings fail on them. Usually, the symptom is driveline vibration that can be traced back to a degraded bushing.

What condition is the bushing in? What makes you think the bearing is failing?

 

[Remmy700P]

The support bearing is making a whining noise at speed above 20 mph. It would come and go so finding what the noise was took time but I put the truck on jackstands after driving for a while and could listen under the car with the drivetrain moving. The whine / hiss sound is the center support bearing. The best price I can find on a OEM part is about 129 and the aftermarket parts prices are really all over the place. The lowest price DEA CENTER BEARING in the 30 dollar range with Tezuka being around 110. Anyone heard of Tezuka? I also found National and Timken both about 85. Any thoughts on the quality of any of the above.

I would be leery about going aftermarket on this part. I'd try TSer mustang @ Findlay and see what kind of pricing he can get for you.