I'd had just engaged 4WD low and pulled off the track to drive across a paddock. The front got through OK but the rear right sunk to the axle. The front hubs hadn't engaged and I was stuck. I had to get snatched out by a Toyota

The hubs were serviced in April at the GTG - I can only think that the front wheels had not rotated enough times to engage the auto hubs. Once the front wheels stopped turning the hubs would not engage. The front drive shaft was spinning, but no drive.

At this point I was really wishing I had Warn manual locking hubs!

Anyone done the Warn front hub conversion? If so, do the hubs lock as soon as the selector is turned to lock?

 

you would think the front would sink before the rear. And that toyota thing is some serious embarrassment bro

 

Am def investing in a pair of Warn 'premium' locking hubs as the next thing I buy for the truck. Money well spent if it stops me having to be rescued by a Toyota again!

See:
http://www.riffraffdiesel.com/mm5/me...731-TRANS-WARN
From Clay, USD$219, but postage $$$

Edit anyone interested in F250 manual hubs see:
the Warn 38826 hubs from surplussalesaustralia ebay here:
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Warn-Prem...item2ebc0be96d
$195 + $15

or the popular cheaper alternative, the Mile Maker 30 spline also available from the same seller:
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Mile-Mark...item2ebd810642
$100 + $15

Isn't it amazing that there is a part available for our vehicles here in Oz for pretty much the same price as our US bro's pay? !!!

I've got a pair of Warn hubs coming

 

oh i remember when somebody was having a crack at me about my hubs not working and how a bit EXTRA EFFORT would get my hubs working fine .

Geeez wot happened simon i seen all that EXTRA EFFORT brian put into servicing your front hubs,they not working BUGGER.

Love it....

Only way too have true reliable 4x4 in our trucks is a set of warn locking hubs or get out and lock the factory ones in once you get off hard stuff.

Oh how i love it when somebody gives me the expert run down and then it blows up in their face..

 

[quote=SSSimon;12063507]I'd had just engaged 4WD low and pulled off the track to drive across a paddock. The front got through OK but the rear right sunk to the axle. The front hubs hadn't engaged and I was stuck. I had to get snatched out by a Toyota

Simon,
You have given that helpful Toyota driver bragging rights at the pub for the next 10 yrs or so, on how he recovered a heavy *** F Truck.

 

the Warn pics are different from Clays to fleebay. And is the fleebay one hub or a set ????

 

Yes laugh it up, knew you'd enjoy it!

I don't think I'm the first or last F250 driver to only learn that their front auto locking hubs didn't when they get bogged.

Really surprised just how USELESS the Ford auto-locking hubs are!

I remember after we did the rebuild we did a test, they did take a fair few wheel revolutions backwards and forwards before they both locked up.

The Warn hubs to get are the 38826, listing says '38826', 'picture is for illustration purposes' and 'pair'. Will post a pic when they arrive.

 

You know - for a thing like that I'd want a dedicated toy just for getting silly with - including taking a welding rig and "SPIDERING" the diff gears.

Don't take me wrong, I feel your pain!

But when I saw the caption: "Stuck my truck in a mud hole" I assumed you did it on purpose...

I was wondering why you did it when I looked in here


CHEERS from the states!

 

Greywolf, all's well that end's well. At least I got a ****** out of the hole so I was on my way without too much hassle.

Bryan warned me off the auto-locking hubs. Yes I should have listened and had a think about the likely scenarios.

What I didn't realise at the time is that the real problem with auto-locking hubs is that you can never be sure when the auto-locks actually engage. So you face a choice of putting your truck into 4WD well before you need it in order to give the hubs enough time and wheel rotations to engage the hubs - which is a bad thing to do on a hard surface. Or doing what I did, put it into 4WD at the edge of the road and then getting stuck before both the auto-hubs engage.

So on the one hand with auto-hubs:
plus- you don't have to get out to engage the hubs;
minus - you risk winding up your trans by engaging 4WD on a hard surface before you need it, or you risk getting stuck if you dont;
minus - they only engage when the wheel is turning, so once bogged you'd have to jack up each front wheel and spin it to engage the hub.

On the other hand you have the manual hubs:
plus - they engage pretty much soon as you turn them to lock. You will never be driving in 4WD with unlocked hubs (unless you particularly want to - e.g. can be good for reversing a trailer on a hard surface to be able to use 4WD low with the hubs unlocked)
plus - if you do get stuck in 2WD you can engage the front hubs without lifting the truck (could easily happen on a boat ramp)
minus - you have to get out to lock/free the hubs (which can be done well before you are near the mucky stuff).

So, having actually experienced the pain of getting let down by fully functioning well maintained auto-hubs, I'll be fitting up my Warn manual hubs tomorrow AM. They have have arrived and all looks good for an easy fit-up. The hardest thing will be modding the hub caps to suit the manual hubs.

If I really wanted to keep the auto hubs I figured out a couple of mods that could be done to let me know the hubs were engaged:
1) have a separate air switch to engage the hubs without using the 4WD switch - this would have to be done at very low speed in 2WD (cause the hub and half shaft splines would be dog-clutching the undriven diff and front half shafts);
2) put something like a bike speedo on the front drive shaft. The bike speedo has a magnet and sensor. You stick the magnet somewhere on the drive shaft or diff pinion and the sensor on the diff housing close enough to pick up the magnet going past. This way when you drive slow and flick the air-switch to engage the auto-hubs you will see a speed reading coming off the front drive shaft & so know that both front hubs are engaged. Running like this would be like running in 2WD with the manual hubs locked.
3) Instant 4WD when you select 4WD as the auto-hubs are pre-selected.

Will post pics of the install of the Warn manual (aka free wheeling) hubs tomorrow.

 

I was recently rescued by a chev pickup! Front bogged down and highway tires.

Just visited your country and back to Canada. Enjoyed a bit of Perth / Fremantle and the out back in the kalgoorlie area. Your winters are like cool summers here. But it will be -30 or 40 come Nov. Dec. so hope I get sent your way again then.

 

Perth and Freo are beautiful cities. Hope you enjoyed ya stay m8

 

Don't know which is worse, being rescued by a Chevy, or being rescued by a Toyota. Rescued is the main thing I guess!

I've now fitted the manual hubs. As expected, a very easy mod. Just unclip and slide out the auto hubs, then slide in the manual hub inner, insert circlip, then bolt up the outer part.

I then plugged the air feed line from the pressure reservoir to the hub air switch, and detached the air line from the hubs at the air switch. So now the air line for the hubs is just venting behind the air filter.

I figured that you could actually quite easily change the auto hub air switching as, in stock form, the air switch is controlled electrically.

A 3 position 6 pole switch could easily be inserted on the dash to give 3 settings (with the correct wiring):
1) on - lock the hubs without 4WD (only do this when stopped or moving slowly because of the dog-clutch affect);
2) auto - same as stock - on with 4WD (there would still be a dog-clutch affect but the transfer case should be driving the front half shafts at a similar speed to the hubs);
3) off - allows 4WD (Low) to be used with the auto-hubs unlocked (good for backing trailers uphill)

 

And finally, I should have cut holes in my hub caps, or run open hub caps

When I got bogged I would have had the option of switching the stock hubs from 'auto' to 'lock'. Even if that didn't get me out of the mud hole it would have made the recovery easier.

Lesson learned - do not run closed front hub caps on a 4WD F truck!

AND - do what Bryan said - turn the Auto hubs from Auto to Lock well before you need 4WD!

 

Hey Simon,
What are those flares on your truck. Did you put them on, or are factory fitted? I am looking for some exactly like the ones you have. I think the 16 x 10 rims will stick out a bit far so I need to cover them up a bit. Let me know please mate.

 

Sorry Wallsy, flares courtesy of the the PO, flares, mirrors, doorhandles all colour matched: