I just bought this truck and have been getting it running a bit at a time. Most recently, I replaced the red ***** on the hubs, reassembled them, and ran into a problem testing them. I locked the hubs, put the shifter in 4WD Low, and drove a few feet. When I try to unlock the hubs, they won't unlock, and the shifter won't move.

I don't know what to do and would appreciate any help.

 

You've got it in a "bind".

 

Any thoughts on how to get out of the bind?

 

Jack up the front and try to unlock. I'd almost bet the front and rear gears don't match.

 

I will give it a try. Does this mean I can't use my 4WD until I fix something else?

 

I jacked up the rear, the tires spun a bit and freed something up (maybe the transfer case). This freed up the 4WD shifter and allowed me to turn the hubs to Free. Now, I just need to figure out what I did in the first place to cause it to lock up.

 

I always (usually only need to with my Bronco) back up about 15 feet. That seems to loosen up the hubs.

 

Did you reassemble the lock in/out correctly and did you re-install them with them in the locked in or out position? You can do that ya know?

If everything is correctly assembled and installed properly.....next question, is it parked on pavement or a concrete driveway? And does it have any roll pressure on it?

With in idling and in drive, keep constant steady pressure on the transfer case stick while trying to pull it (transfer case lever ) out of gear, and just bump the throttle a small bit.

Then try the same thing with it in reverse, and you might unbind the drive line. Driving on hard packed surface (pavement/driveway) can cause that.

Until figured out whats wrong do NOT drive it on pavement!

 

All good points. #1 cause of locking these old trucks up is someone new to the old technology. They just don't work the same as newer vehicles.

 

Technically, as per the factory manual, you're supposed to place the transfer case in 2wd before you disengage the hubs,
but even this does not always work, in that case just drive in reverse 10-15 feet and this will allow you to disengage the hubs as well as the shifter.

 

I assembled the hubs correctly, and they appear to be working fine now. The problem was the lockup. I will what the manual says and then try backing up if that does not work. Both are a lot easier than jacking up the read end. And, it sounds like I need to keep it out of 4WD on dry pavement.

Thanks for the great information.

 

Yes Yes and a big NO 4wd on pavement great way to really break stuff.