Warn Hub lockouts on Dana 60
 

Little background.... we did a solid axle swap on a 96 f250. Dana 60 from a 97 F350. Completely redid the axle inside and out/ calipers/ rotors/ bearings/ spindles/ gears/seals/ shortened front drive shaft and new joints.


The issue I'm having is with the warn lock outs. They are constantly acting locked out! Even when in free position. They are the same lockouts out of the Dana 50 TTB but the part numbers for both axles are the same from Warn. I have the spindle conversion kit on there.... I have the .125 inches of play in the hub and the springs are fine. I cleaned a lot of the grease out after over greasing the hubs the first completed install.

When in the hubs are in the free position... i pull it into 4hi they shafts are locked together, and the truck is in 4wd... not any different when in the locked postion. I can hear it humming when going down the high way and can feel it. It has dropped my gas milage quite a bit just like driving in 4wd would.

IN OTHER WORDS THE DAM THINGS WILL NOT UNLOCK!

I have installed warns in numerous axles, taken them apart 4 times now on this one and can not figure it out. There are only a few parts, I completely understand the function of each part and how each mechanism works to achive the axle shaft lock when in the lock postion.


My biggest concern is I do not want that front shaft spinning at highway speeds or for that case at all when the hubs are in the free postion., this is not a full time t case on these years of trucks. When rotating the pinion flange after I took the front shaft off, the fellow at the driveline shop even commented that the shafts felt locked together when in the free postion.


I would appreciate any help you could recommend!!!!

put both hubs in free, transfer case in 2 wheel, and get under the truck and see if the front driveshaft will spin. if it does, the hubs are unlocked.

I have done that about 6 times in the last two nights... they are locked....

What do you mean by "spindle conversion kit "

that was poorly worded... spndle nut conversion...required for the 250/350 with warn hubs... also stated in the intall manual for the hubs....90 bucks for 4 large nuts and 2 dinky alignment washers/ services both sides. I pulled them off my old axle since the retaining nuts on the 350 axle were not the correct ones

ok. did you try taking the hubs off and see if it is the hubs or in the axle?

I took the hubs out 3 times last night, first to double check my torque on the spindle nuts and backing nut, second to completely remove all the grease, third time to remove the snap ring that holds the inner portion of the hub to the outer housing. I tried free spining the pinion yolk each time to see if they were locked and each time they were.... the only time they were not was when the hubs were not installed, or if one was removed from one side... The axle shafts are fine....

when u greased the hub did u take the dial apart? if so u may have the timing on the dial wrong check by only pulling just the dial off the hub and check to see if ur shaft are free if not free ur hub gears are stuck

I'm not sure if you are talking about.. the knob you simply turn to lock or unlock cover?...is this the"dial". All that is is a piece of fixed plastic that spins and at the same time it pushes the inner spring in or out. The spring then pushes the gear back and forth to engage the inner mechanism with the splines of the drive shaft. This then makes the outer hub housing fixed to cause the (wheel hub- where your wheel bearings/race/seals are) to roatate around the spindle at the exact same rate as the axle shafts.

It really is simple and that is why I'm confused as ***** on why they are not working! The hubs are identicle on the 350(D60)/250(D50) same as the spindles and bearings....at least for this year swap year

Sounds like you verified the knobs "action" works, moves in and out when rotating knob from free to lock.

Can you manually unlock the hub, doing so before putting the cap on it? Doing so allows the hub to spin without the axle turning with it?

Problem arises only after the cap/knob is put on?

That is correct. If I put them in and leave the inner locking gear out I'm fine, I can insert the inner locking gear and as long as it does not get pressed into the hub completely by the spring I am fine. Once the spring and cap go on and press the inner gear in that is where I have an issue.

Any chance you're putting the axle gear in backwards?

i thought of that... the inner gear is symetrical though. It does not matter which way I put it in. The gear that rests on the axle splines can not go in backwards....technically it can but an idiot would have to try really hard to make it work.... this is the one I removed the c clip retainer from to see if there was movement, that did not help and now I put it back on as it should be.

One thing that had me thinking was if the axle shafts themselves were sticking out too far. I don't believe they are but I though it was odd that the D50 uses the outer c clip and the D60 does not need one, therefore allowing the axle to have a little play in and out. Say a .25 in.

When we took it all apart we were able to just pull the shafts out of the housing after the spindles were removed. I do not recall a newer model 60 front end using a c clip inside the pumpkin or outside the hub (like the D50) to hold the shafts in. I'm not sure if this makes a difference or not but I am wondering if this may be an issue.....


anyone have an entire micro fiche of a 96-97 dana 60 front end? or know where to get one for free?

are you putting the spring in the axle or in the cap?
if i remember correctly, the spring goes into the axle before the gear goes in to push the gear out when in free. if the spring is on the outside it will always push the locking gear in causing the hub to be always locked.

I'm 99% sure that this is the issue, based upon the OP's statement from below:

Once the spring and cap go on and press the inner gear in that is where I have an issue.