1980 Enticer Drivetrain/ Lower gear play on drive axle

Restoring a 1980 Enticer 340 that was my uncles he bought new, has now passed on to me.But it needs a lot of TLC. The speedo side bearing went and I got the sled in parts. I purchased a 300 enticer for parts as the drive axle and bearing flanges are the same. When reinstalling the drive axle I have aprox 1/4 to 3/8 inch play on the drive axle after the spacer and gear are put in. This seams odd not be able to be tight once nut and washer is installed. I checked the 300 enticer also and even though it is a single tooth gear I have the same play. Is that normal? Looks like the gear will float a little on the shaft and stay aligned with chain tension. Is this correct?

Please Advise

Hey Lutzy - did you ever solve this problem? Was it normal for the lower gear to float on the driveshaft? I just took apart my enticer to replace the drive axle bearings - when assembling it I have a similar issue - about 3/16" play with the lower gear on the drive axle. I read a couple of forums on SRX and SRV's and both mentioned that float was normal on the lower gear on the driveshaft... I am just suspicious that this is correct. Let me know if you know...
Thanks!

From my experience, this is normal.