Any idea at how to free up a stuck locking hub. I cannot turn the screw on the outside. A new one cost $311.00. OUCH. I don't want to change to Warns.

 

Try this. Its for auto-lock hubs, but might work on the manuals. Its Guzzle's writeup on lubricating the auto hubs. Welcome to guzzle's 4x4 Autolock Hub Lubrication Maintenance Web Page

 

Trevor, thanks, I have already been there. I just cannot get the **** to free up. Dang thing is stuck in Auto position. I am having a problem with the 4X4 and want to manually lock the hubs to see if the system itself is working before I go any deeper. I have been told that the system will not lock, if the locking hub is frozen.

 

just throwing this out there but can you spray it with some lub?

 

Yea, but you're not going to like the answer.

First of all, the o-ring that seals the dial in the hub seems to be made of cheap-**** neoprene. Not Buna-N or Viton. Over a period of time, it looks like road dirt / oils will seep into the dial and make the o-ring begin to swell. If not excercised on a regular basis (monthly?) dirt / dust will pack around the already swollen o-ring and begin to bind it up. At some time it will totaly seize up.

I am afraid in my thinking that the ring is made of neoprene, if you try to soak it in tranny fluid, spray with WD-40 or silicone, two things will happen. One, the neoprene will swell even more from the petroleum stuff in all these. Two, all of the above will tend to attract more dust / dirt only to make conditions worse.

I have been able to remove the dial but only by drilling a small hole in the **** and inserting a tool to push the nylon disk located below the dial far enough to allow the dial to unlock.

The next BIG problem in trying to replace the o-ring is that it appears to be a METRIC SIZE! Not easy to find and very costly for experimentation.

On top of all that, the older hubs used a round o-ring and the newer ones went to a flat type of o-ring with a groove on one side! I am thinking that this transformation happened sometime in 2001.

If I every get past the ring thingy, I will still have to figure out how to patch the darned hole that I drilled in the ****! It is apparent that the cavity behind the **** has to stay dry with no contamination leakage from the outside world.

 

Maybe just a dab of black silicone would do it until you could score a replacement?

 

I am a little afraid to spray lube in it. I got the left one free and it now operates like it should. I don't want to spend that kind of money, but winter is getting close and at times I prefer to lock them down than depend on the auto feature.

 

I was thinking of Black RTV but it would have to be on the front as the nylon disk below the **** actually touches the **** on the backside in the AUTO position.

 

I did this dance with my hubs for two winters before upgrading to the Warns. I would take the hub off the truck, either bathe it overnight in ATF or partially tear it down to "un-stuck" it. After countless times of doing this, I gave up and switched them out. No longer have the auto lock feature but I don't mind getting out to lock up the hubs. At least I know I won't have issues anymore.

 

So ATF will free it up?

 

It did in my case. However, I think that Guzzle is right on with his comments on the o-rings and swelling. Mine would free up but after a month or two, it would get stuck again. Thats why I went with the warns.

 

I have got it off and torn down. Still cannot move it. With my med condition, I bought the truck with the auto hubs so I would not have to get out if I needed 4WD. Warn does not make a set of autos for the truck. The ones that they do require you to back up to make them release. Not for me. I have had them before and had them to unlock on me backing up.

 

Paul, are they auto or manual hubs??
if manual, shoot me a pm. i have a spare in the garage that still works ya can have for shipping.

 

I have one that was working when I took it off to put the Warns on. If your willing to pay the shipping, it's yours.

 

USPS flat rate shipping box (shoe box size) is only $8 and change to ship.