"Locking Hubs" Educate me please

[BoureeOne]

I think the biggest issue he was or is having , is thinking that the front hubs and the transfer case shifter have anything to do with each other... Your transfer case shifter should have markings on the handle, 4 of them, 2H, N, 4L, and 4H... Understand this, no matter what you do with the front hubs, locked or unlocked, the transfer case is going to do just what the shifter handle says... In 2H, only the rear drive shaft is going to send power to the rear axel. N, no power is going to be sent to either axel. 4H, power is being sent to both the rear axel and the front axel ( notice I am saying axel and not wheels ), even thought the power is being sent to the front axel ( which means the front drive shaft is turning, and the front axels are turning inside the axel housing) the front wheels will not have power to them until you lock the hubs. Same thing for 4L. So yes, you are correct, you can have basically 2 wheel low if you put the shifter in 4L, and you do not lock the front hubs. As stated, always leave the front hubs unlocked when you are in 2H. Good luck. Hope the light just got brighter....

 

[carne]

thanks to all

 

[DJs74]

The lever inside only controls the transfer case. In 2 hi you only have power to the rear driveshafts/axles. 4 hi and 4 lo powers both the rear and front driveshafts/axles. In order to put any power to your front tires, the lockout hubs have to be turned to LOCK.

Edit: the reason you always have power to the rear tires is because there is no lock/free in the rear... The rear axles are permanently locked and engaged to the rear tires. Up front... You have the option to be locked or free with the locking hubs. They have splines that slide in and out to engage the front tires

DJs74

 

[carne]

well, what I am trying to convey is - if I move lever to 2W, it takes off normal. If I move lever to 4WLO, the way it lurches forward tells me it is in 4WD - that tells me even tho the hubs are in the free position they are actually LOCKED therefore not installed correctly - Riiiiight?

 

[DJs74]

well, what I am trying to convey is - if I move lever to 2W, it takes off normal. If I move lever to 4WLO, the way it lurches forward tells me it is in 4WD - that tells me even tho the hubs are in the free position they are actually LOCKED therefore not installed correctly - Riiiiight?

Negative! The reason it lunges is because you've lowered your gear ratio by putting it in 4 Lo. You only have true 4 TIRE DRIVE if the front hubs are locked.


DJs74

 

[bronconut73]

Wow......

 

[DJs74]

Wow......

I'm trying... I don't know what else to say


DJs74

 

[carne]

Thanks for that un-needed "Wow" - if you read back I've been told 2 DIFFERENT THINGS or at least thats the way I see it - a guy said I have only 2W 4LO and 4HI, Somebody else said I have 2W, 2WLO, 2WHI 4LO and 4HI - .nothing new, always seem to get conflicting replies here - I got you DJs74 thank you

 

[DJs74]

Carne, let's start from scratch...

First, the inside lever and transfer case.
2 hi = rear driveshaft and rear axles powered up and powering the rear tires

4 hi = transfer case is active and transferring power to both the rear and front driveshafts /axles and your gear ratio is the same as when in 2 hi

4 lo = same as 4 hi however your gear ratio is much lower (for crawling)

YOU ONLY GET YOUR FRONT TIRES TO SPIN, PULL, BE POWERED OR ACTIVATED OR WHATEVER YOU PREFER WHEN YOU LOCK THE FRONT HUBS. TO DO THAT, YOU TURN THE DIAL INDICATOR TO LOCK WHICH LETS THE SPLINED HUB (inside! you cannot see it) SLIDE TOWARD YOU WHICH THEN LOCKS THE FRONT WHEELS/TIRES TO THE FRONT AXLE WHICH IS ALIVE AND PULLING IN 4 hi and 4 lo.

You could have something going on inside the hub causing a problem or maybe broken or worn out but there's not a whole lot going on in there except the splined pieces, a spring which is always pushing outward and the rotating dial / cap. To see if the front hubs are locked or free, you can jack the front of the Bronco up and try to turn the tire... If locked, you will not be able to spin the tire. If free, the tire should spin free.

Hope this helps

DJs74

 

[bronconut73]

Sorry Carne.

That was a dick move on my part.
I was just kind of stunned. I have read some of your other posts.....
Just didn't know.....

Again

Sorry eb brother.

 

[Joker11]

Everybody wants to help. Not everybody is concise.

So let's us back up a bit.
Let's make sure you understand the front hub mechanism first.

Let us just say they are not backwards. Let's say they are not broken. For simplicity.

When you turn the hubs to the "on" position, the front wheels are locked into synchronizing spin with the axle.
This means if the front driveshaft is spinning then your axles are spinning.
This means if the axle is spinning, your tires are spinning.

In the "off" position, the wheels are no longer locked in synchronization with the axle and can spin freely.
Do you get that part?

 

[bronconut73]

Everybody wants to help. Not everybody is concise.

So let's us back up a bit.
Let's make sure you understand the front hub mechanism first.

Let us just say they are not backwards. Let's say they are not broken. For simplicity.

When you turn the hubs to the "on" position, the front wheels are locked into synchronizing spin with the axle.
This means if the front driveshaft is spinning then your axles are spinning.
This means if the axle is spinning, your tires are spinning.

In the "off" position, the wheels are no longer locked in synchronization with the axle and can spin freely.
Do you get that part?

Well stated Joker.

Carne,

Lay under the eb looking at the front axle u-joints and front hubs while you are reading this.
You are not likely to find a better explanation.

Again Sorry Bud.

 

[Scoop]

Thanks for that un-needed "Wow" - if you read back I've been told 2 DIFFERENT THINGS or at least thats the way I see it - a guy said I have only 2W 4LO and 4HI, Somebody else said I have 2W, 2WLO, 2WHI 4LO and 4HI - .nothing new, always seem to get conflicting replies here - I got you DJs74 thank you

carne, slow down and take a breath!

Everybody has been saying the same thing only saying it a bit differently. As 'bowsher said, 2W and 2WHI are one and the same. Ford intended for the Bronco to have 2WD(HI), 4WD(HI) and 4WD(LO). In addition by using the hubs locked or unlocked you can get 2WD(LO). Not to confuse things more but the TC also has a neutral position and your's being a 71 with a "T shift" TC actually has a position for 2WD(LO), but in 71 there is no detent for this position and it's hard to find. By using the hubs you can get every configuration mentioned.

 

[savage]

Here is a break down of a stock ford locking hub. carne, you can jack up the front and put your hub into the lock position and spin the tire if the axle spins with the tire its locked , if it does not, put it in free position and spin it, if the axle spins with the tire it not put together right .

 

[Scoop]

well, what I am trying to convey is - if I move lever to 2W, it takes off normal. If I move lever to 4WLO, the way it lurches forward tells me it is in 4WD - that tells me even tho the hubs are in the free position they are actually LOCKED therefore not installed correctly - Riiiiight?

This only tells you that it's in low range.

 

[Lawndart]

http://4x4abc.com/4WD101/hubs.html

 

[broncodriver99]

........

 

[patterdale]

MmWhat they all said+ the hubs could be stuck in one position or the other regardless of the position of the knob. That could cause some confusion. The hubs are not specific to one side or the other and cannot be put on backwards. It's nice to have a forum like this where you can ask questions and expect good info in return without much judgement. You aren't stupid at all and now you are even smarter than you were before. Yup, you have the t-case in 4 lo or high and the hubs unlocked you have nothing but 2 wheel drive. That will give you 2 lo. Later 4wds had some auto locking hub setups that you just shifted the t-case. There also was a full time 4 option where the manual hub was replaced with parts that kept the hub engaged all the time and all the driver had to do was shift the t-case. These options were for drivers who couldn't plan ahead for their needs or didn't want to get out after they got stuck in rear end deep mud or snow.

 

[stout22]

In the past (several years ago) I have seen stock hubs installed incorrectly so that the "Lock" "Unlock" indicators were incorrect. It seems that the hub was clocked wrong so that things didn't line up properly. Like I said it's been awhile so I can't remember all the details but if I remember correctly when the red part of the hub was turned the arrow and the indicator did not completely line up in either the "Lock" or "Unlock" position. I may have just added to the confusion.

 

[CraigS]

Now that we're piling on confusion.
No one has mentioned that when turning the hub from lock to unlock or back (left to right/right to left) you're actually pushing the hub splines in/out, out/in.