Rear axles difficult to spin

[Xtreme Cartz]

I picked up a 94 ds non running and after fixing the engine issue I then tried to address a problem with the rear end. When I pushed the cart it felt like the brakes were dragging so I jacked it up and removed the rear brake drum to clean and adjust. This is when I noticed the axle shafts were still difficult to spin by hand even with the brake drums removed. I drained the rear end fluid which looked normal with no metal chunks or signs of water.

What goes bad inside the differential to cause this problem?

[KillerCC]

Pull the axles and check the outer axle bearings. They'll be pressed onto the axles. Hopefully you'll find your problem there rather then in the pumpkin. There's a retaining snap ring at the end of the axle (behind the hubs) that needs to be removed in order to remove the axles. Then a slide hammer or a dead blow hammer will help pop the axles from the rear diff.
Hope this helps.