Half-Shaft Play: How much?

[VictorH]

I'm trying to track down some rear end noise. It's worse once the car is all warmed up and has gone 20+ miles, more noticeable at low speeds like 20mph and less and sounds like drive-line, intermittent, speed sensitive clacking.
I just checked ALL the bolts in my rear-end. Nothing is loose including the axle nuts. The only thing I notice is that both half shafts (both are stock) have a little bit of vertical play, (grab the shaft and try to move top-to-bottom, I'm NOT talking about back and forth axial play). Almost enough that I can make it "clunk" just a bit by hand.

Is that normal? The question is, should there be no play at all, like a wheel bearing, or is a "little" play normal?
Car is mostly street, no drag-race, no launches, but has seen some track use (by some I mean about 6-7 track events since new, which is just now about a year).

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[nj888]

I'm trying to track down some rear end noise. It's worse once the car is all warmed up and has gone 20+ miles, more noticeable at low speeds like 20mph and less and sounds like drive-line, intermittent, speed sensitive clacking.
I just checked ALL the bolts in my rear-end. Nothing is loose including the axle nuts. The only thing I notice is that both half shafts (both are stock) have a little bit of vertical play, (grab the shaft and try to move top-to-bottom, I'm NOT talking about back and forth axial play). Almost enough that I can make it "clunk" just a bit by hand.

Is that normal? The question is, should there be no play at all, like a wheel bearing, or is a "little" play normal?
Car is mostly street, no drag-race, no launches, but has seen some track use (by some I mean about 6-7 track events since new, which is just now about a year).

I have the exact same play on the half shaft and I have a squeak/cluck were you able to figure out the clunck.

 

[First Stang]

I believe this is the sound I've been researching in this forum. I have it and it's most noticeable at low speeds when you suddenly surge the gas and let go. The "cluck" happens right after the car has surged forward. Among my other suspicions is the exhaust connections being too tight that it makes a noise (like a geologic fault line) with the smallest amount of body flex. Another is a loose bolt that is causing a panel to rub the threads. I will follow this thread and post if I find anything.

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