Warn hub issues

[Ggg]

When I drive in 2wd my left lockout will rotate from "free" to "lock". I will hear a buzzing sound of the hub trying to engage. I will hear an occasional hard bang when it does engage and the slack in the front drivetrain gets taken up and the axle suddenly starts turning.
I have searched the net and can't find any reference to this issue. I have been wheeling for a long time and have never heard of this problem.
My front axle is a 94 Ford D60 with detroit locker and alloy axles. When driving in 2wd the front driveshaft does not turn. If I jack the Jeep up and rotate the tires by hand nothing happens to the lockout. If I drive with the outer chrome lockout removed and leave the inner splined assembly still in the axle there are no issues. This only happens when the hub is fully assembled.

 

[superj]

Re: Warn hup issues

Sounds like something is worn or missing from the hub assembly

 

[Ggg]

Re: Warn hup issues

I have taken them apart and it's all there. I even pulled the same Warn premium hub off my superduty and compared them, all looks the same, The Jeep axle has a different spline count so I can't just swap hubs.

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

Does the left hub knob engage by hand with very little effort?

 

[Ggg]

Same effort as the other side, and same as my other truck with the same hubs.

 

[superj]

Maybe they gave you two of the same sides? Are they both supposed to turn reverse direstion to the forward direction of the vehicle?

 

[BaconYJ]

My only thought is that there is the slightest amount of friction and after thousand of wheel rotations the hub slowly moves to where it is trying to engage itself. My warn hubs have done the same thing Ggg is talking about, I have just gotten into the habit of checking and rechecking them every couple hours or so of driving.

Bacon

 

[BaconYJ]

Is it only the right or left hub that tries to reengage? Might be there is a tiny amount of play in the hub and when you turn which ever direction it causes a shift to apply some friction to the hub causing it to try and engage.

Bacon

 

[Ggg]

As far as left or right hub they are the same, so it doesn't matter which side they are on. It only takes about 300' of driving for the hub to go from free all the way around to lock. So far it has only been the left hub acting up.

 

[jps4jeep]

I had this happen in my CUCV, I just ended up replaced the hub since the part was only a couple bucks cheaper and had to be ordered, they had a pair of hubs in stock.
I am not positive of the name, but I and the local part guy called it a "cam lock spring" Its the spring the keeps the female drive puck from engaging the male (locking the hub to the stub) over time these will fatigue, it will fatigue quicker if you don't engage or disengage 100% (you turn it 98% to unlock would apply).
Like mentioned I just replaced, but this was also at least 10 years ago, so prices and availablility of parts may be a little different.