D44 Eaton Locker Install

[FINOCJ]

Thought I'd keep a small thread for work on the Eaton locker install:

Differential work has begun....I went with the pull the entire axle housing out to make things easier method. Using the HF engine hoist yet again for a bit of help getting the axle up on the stands....
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_144923.jpg

Here is the Trac-Loc that is in it (and OEM I assume):
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_145833.jpg

it still works, at least to the point that when one wheel is turned, the opposing side wheel also turns in the same direction. So there is at least a minimal amount of friction on the clutch packs. I even took a quick video of it on the bench showing the entire unit turned when I turn one side and no movement of the spyder gears.

https://youtu.be/B0qBeRICVaI

[FINOCJ]

Continuing on....
Ok - measured backlash at quite a few points around the ring gear - consistently getting 0.009" (with variation of +/- 0.001).
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_161525.jpg
Some gear patterns - these are all as it sits right off the jeep with who knows how many miles...
The convex side of the tooth:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_163235.jpg

And two for the concave side of tooth as they are harder to get decent photo:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_163649.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_163638.jpg
And a few more...trying a different spot or two and also more/less paint marker.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_165521.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_165552.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/16/P_20190316_165406.jpg

[Patrolman]

Looking good! It is a fair amount of work, but you are doing it the right way. On the stands makes things so much easier. Are you planning new gears for the locker?

[FINOCJ]

No new gears...keeping the oem 4.88s. Just changing the differential case which comes with new side gears.

[FINOCJ]

From some experienced hands - suggestion was to use less gear paint, and then put it mostly on 1 tooth and run the ring gear all the way around and back to have a more minimal paint marking that is easier to read (but its harder to photograph).
A few more pics of gear pattern - this is what I am going to try and match when I put it back together. Centered between top and root and a bit towards the toe:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_162722.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_164139.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_163850.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_164249.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_164318.jpg

[FINOCJ]

Also got the axle shafts pulled...
Step 1 - remove the little disc/cover to open up the access through the flanged axle end to get to the mounting nuts:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_181548.jpg

Step 2 - you can then remove the nuts (I need to find the torque spec for these when reassembling, but this really helped to put the impact gun on):
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_184330.jpg

Step 3 - I wasn't able to just hand pull the axle shafts out, so I put the drum on backwards with a few of the lug nuts leaving some room for the drum to slide, and with a couple of bumps it came right out.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_181439.jpg

Step 4 - With the axle shaft (and flange) removed, the brake backing plate with all the hardware can be slid right off the mounting bolts...and you can then order all the stuff you need for rebuilding the brakes...I'd like to put 11" on the rear, but will probably just fix up these 10"ers - it doesn't looks like the have been adjusting properly so they probably haven't been helping much....The 11" I have on the front do most if not all the work.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_181940.jpg

With brake backing plate removed:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_182311.jpg

And just because I had never looked down an axle housing...
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/17/P_20190317_182427.jpg

[Jim]

I like the drum-on-backwards trick.



On my `68 Ford wagon, with a STUBBORN axle shaft removal, the shop grabbed a 10' chain, wrapped one end behind the axle flange and then went to the back yard of the shop to return with a head from a 4-cyl motor - with the other end of the chain wrapped around it. Grab head, swing until the chain is tight. Not once or twice but ten or twenty times - with blue flame on the axle housing near the bearing location. `glad yours came out easy!

[FINOCJ]

The tapered (2 piece) D44 from 69 and earlier are notorious for needing lots of encouragement to get the hub off to pull the shaft. This later 1 piece design is both stronger and easier to remove.

[FINOCJ]

I like the drum-on-backwards trick.

Can't say I came up with that myself...but it is useful trick that was passed along to me. I was going to buy an HF slide hammer for this, but figured I'd give this method a try first and it worked. If I need to pull the unit bearing race that is pressed into the axle housing, I may still need to pick up the slide hammer. I don't intend to change the unit bearings and thus would normally leave the race in place, but the seal inboard of the unit bearing race looks like it might need to be replaced, and that would require removing the race. These unit bearings are grease packed for lubrication and thus the differential fluid does need to be kept out of the area. TBD...

[FINOCJ]

Update...pulled the differential case out....

Remove the carrier bearing caps - I did mark these (as well as noted previous marks) to keep them in the exact same orientation when they go back on...
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/18/P_20190318_165750.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/18/P_20190318_170211.jpg

Prying the case out of the housing...this was a bit tricky as I didn't want to damage anything (especially the ring gear teeth). This is one of those things that looks easy on the vids and turns out to be surprisingly a PITA.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/18/P_20190318_171626.jpg

The empty housing:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/18/P_20190318_173338.jpg

And the differential case....
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/18/P_20190318_173348.jpg

So next up I need to remove the ring gear....and is there any way to remove those old bearings from the Trac Lok case without damaging them, or the shims behind them?

[Java]

Great progress! :thumb:

[FINOCJ]

Got the ring gear separated from the Trac Lok case....used some door hing pins to gently knock the ring gear down and off the case...It was not a very tight press fit.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/18/P_20190318_183011.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/18/P_20190318_183302.jpg
Was going to polish up the ring gear mounting surface on the new Eaton case and pull the ring gear up tight on the mounting surface, but may have run into a an issue with the Eaton case (seems to have a bent tab on the exterior that I don't think serves much purpose)...will have to call them tomorrow and see...Its still good to make some small progress...

[dieseldoc]

Looks good.
You need a case spreader.
The d30 is even tighter.

Looking good. Nice wear paternity you have

[cnstaco]

Lots of good info in this post. Thanks again!

[FINOCJ]

Be a week or so before I make any more progress as I am traveling out if town. Looking forward to putting it all back together.

[FINOCJ]

Okay - back home after a couple weeks in Montana. Decided I should probably replace all the bearing and seals while I have the differential apart...I am not excited to pull the pinon out and get it reinstalled to the exact correct depth, but at the same time, it will be nice to have essentially a completely rebuilt rear axle that should never need attention again. I ordered this Richmond gear kit with Timken bearings and all the spacers, seals and new ring gear bolts and pinon nut - should arrive today:
https://www.jegs.com/i/Richmond-Gear/836/83-1033-1/10002/-1
I will also get new unit bearings for the axle shafts when I get that far along putting it all back together - those will be another challenge to get pressed on and off.

Last night made a tool/wrench to put on the yoke so that I can hold the yoke while impact gun removes the pinon nut - kind of crude and simple but cheap as it came from my scrap pile - just 3"x3/16 flat stock:

https://beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/01/P_20190401_211521.jpg https://beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/01/P_20190401_211506.jpg

After removing the pinon nut, I will need to drive the pinon gear out through the inside of the housing without letting it fall to the floor damaging the teeth. Will also have to massage the pinon seal out as well and then clean out the housing...

[FINOCJ]

After using my yoke wrench, impact socket, heat and some aggression to get the pinon nut off, I put a small puller on the yoke to remove it:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/02/P_20190402_182041.jpg

After removing the yoke I used a drift to drive out the pinon gear:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/02/P_20190402_182944.jpg

Although I don't have picture - I drove the outer pinon bearing out from inside the case, pushing the seal and oil slinger with it.
Next up was getting the pinon bearing races out - the first one was a PITA. As there are two races, I couldn't fit the appropriate race driver through either race to drive the other one out. So I had to drive the first one out with a drift on the small little exposed lip of the race:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/02/P_20190402_184431.jpg

Then I was able to drive the second race out with a driver:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/02/P_20190402_195447.jpg

A completely empty case - starting doing a bit of cleaning:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/02/P_20190402_201408.jpg

All the pieces: I now have to measure all the different spacers/shims - both the ones between the pinon shaft and housing and the ones between the races and the housing.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/02/P_20190402_201322.jpg

[FINOCJ]

Made some more progress...little by little...
Got the 3 remaining bearings pulled off - the 2 side bearings on the case and the inner pinon bearing on the pinon gear shaft http://earlycj5.com/xf_cj5/index.php?media/bananatool.2728/full. Used a bearing splitter on a puller set-up (and a little heat):
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/04/P_20190404_191206.jpg

used my yoke wrench to protect the top end of the pinon from the puller screw drive - it was all I had handy http://earlycj5.com/xf_cj5/index.php?media/embarrassed.2795/full .
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/04/P_20190404_173550.jpg

Also swapped out the stator ring that had the broken stop tab on the new eaton locker:
The broken tab:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/03/19/3926.jpg
Just have to remove the snap ring and lift top and stator ring off to replace:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/04/P_20190404_201138.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/04/P_20190404_201607.jpg

Time to measure all the different shim thicknesses....and then try to get the inner pinon bearing driven on the pinon shaft and inner pinon bearing race with the appropriate spacers under it for pinon depth.

[Brian]

I'm digging it!

[Patrolman]

Great work!

[dieseldoc]

Looks good sir. You will be pleased when you get it done

[FINOCJ]

Going to work on mounting the new ring gear and some pinon stuff, but a friend has been working on a similar jeep axle and is using the same bearing kit I am.
He gave me the heads up that there might be some issue with the new carrier bearing shims (from Richmond gear) fitting properly on the case. Thanks to his heads up, I found this issue:
The new shims do not sit all the way down on to the case (this is the oem trac lok case):
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/06/P_20190406_170844.jpg

And since for me its more important that it fits on the new eaton locker case - better but not perfect:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/06/P_20190406_170919.jpg

I went and and compared the new shims to the old shims - inner diameter is the same. And the old shims fit pretty nicely at first glance:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/06/P_20190406_171656.jpg

Upon closer look, the old shims have a crease or fold in them that allows for them to conform to the radius curve. I don't know if that is original or if someone just forced flat shims with too small an ID down over that radius curve and they bent to fit? You can see the crease better in the upper one...need to find shims with slightly larger ID. I think I will start with contacting Richmond gear and see what they say, and I can also contact JEGS which is where I bought the Richmond kit from.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/06/P_20190406_171606.jpg

[FINOCJ]

I did get the ring gear on to the new Eaton case for some test fitting...Still need to finalize these with red loc-tite.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/07/P_20190407_192410.jpg

Also located and drilled the 1/2" hole in the top passenger side of the case where the electrical wiring will go.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/07/P_20190407_192355.jpg

[Java]

Looks great, and good idea changing so much while you're already there. :thumb: Are you going to paint the axle too?

[FINOCJ]

Looks great, and good idea changing so much while you're already there. :thumb: Are you going to paint the axle too?

No plans to paint the axle housing - it wouldn't match the rest of the jeep then!

[Jim]

What's the verdict on the radius'd shims?




I'll second the nudge for some axle black.

The finishing touch to a job well done






(says the guy with the driver's side windshield hinge that's rusty - bother's me but I guess just not enough).

[FINOCJ]

Been at jury duty for the last couple days...probably 3 more to go. Been trying to keep my regular job taken care of at night. But making a bit of progress:

Put the new replacement pinon depth shims in that go under the inner pinon bearing - I tried to match the previous .025" shim pack:
https://beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/10/P_20190410_191644.jpg

https://beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/10/P_20190410_191655.jpg

Then drove in the bearing cup...I put the cup in the freezer, but never seems to help much.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/10/P_20190410_195355fa7d88553155d3ef.jpg
https://beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/10/P_20190410_195355.jpg

I the got the lower pinon bearing on the pinon gear shaft...I put the pinon gear shaft in the freezer and heated the bearing up in our mini toaster oven...dropped right on!

https://beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/10/P_20190410_195622.jpg

Now its time to put the pinon gear in and test for rotational torque and the appropriate amount of pre-load spacers:
For the first attempt, I am trying to replicate the .070" pack that was in there previously with a .072" pack (closest I could get with what was included)
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/10/P_20190410_203301.jpg

Then had to drive in the upper pinon bearing cup, slide the pinon gear up and through from the inside of the case and put the upper pinon bearing and yoke on. I heated both the bearing and the yoke so they would slide on just a bit easier.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/10/P_20190410_210841.jpg

Then torque the pinon nut to 100ft-lbs without seals or oil slinger etc just to check rotational torque. Put the yoke wrench to use again:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/10/P_20190410_211520.jpg

I still need to actually test the rotational torque - looking for something in the 12-20 inch-lbs range I believe. But I will need to check the FSM specs on some of this. If the torque is too low, the preload is too small and the bearings will not stay properly seated in the cup and the pinon/ring gear mesh will be inconsistent and probably damage the gears. If the preload is too large, the bearings will be bound too tight and will wear improperly and prematurely.

[Jim]

.I put the cup in the freezer, but never seems to help much.

A $2 chunk of dry ice from the grocery store might be the ticket.



`liv'n vicariously with you on this project. Ring & Pinion alignment is on my mind as something I don't wish to tackle and respect those that do.

[FINOCJ]

What's the verdict on the radius'd shims?

Not much new there...Richmond gear says their records indicate a 1.88" diameter is correct for D44 and they don't have anything else that would work...I think there is a slight difference between the older 19 spline/tapered shaft D44 found on most all willys/cjs up until 1970. Then the 30 spline, flanged D44 started (which is what I have), and it may require a slightly larger spacer. Yukon gear does show a 30 spline specific kit - so maybe they have the proper shims with that kit, but no specs are provided and I haven't been able to talk to a person there yet (jury duty is pretty limiting). A friend found a set of shims at 1.94" - they didn't work on his oem carrier, but they just might work on my new eaton carrier (as you can see in one of the previous posts, the 1.88 don't work on my oem carrier, but are very close on the eaton carrier). 0.06" might just be enough - otherwise its hope Yukon gear can help or try to machine my existing shims out somehow.

[FINOCJ]

`liv'n vicariously with you on this project. Ring & Pinion alignment is on my mind as something I don't wish to tackle and respect those that do.

I have always thought this was over my head as well...it certainly helps to have the right tools and some very knowledgeable old cj mechanics helping walk me through this. Also, setting up an R&P from scratch is much harder than rebuilding one as getting pinon depth is probably the hardest part - and with a rebuild I just assume it should stay the same (hopefully - we'll see I guess). Although things are not always exactly the same, its a great starting point helping minimize the number of trials in the trial and error aspect. Of course, there are some unique tools that help speed that up as well...But, by the time you buy all the correct tools, spend lots of your own time on it, you could probably have paid a shop to do it for about the same (of course there is the debate as to who would do a better job - a shop or yourself). Besides, there were a couple shops I inquired about that didn't want to touch my old jeep...and a few that would have been happy to do it. In my case, I decided I wanted to try, it was a rebuild instead of a new from scratch set-up (and originally I had no intention of removing the pinon) and I had some of the tools from my transmission and transfer case rebuild. Its been enjoyable so far...

[FINOCJ]

Ok - got my first hiccup (try and retry)...measured the rotation torque of the pinon, and it came out very low...less the 5in-lbs. When checking the specs in the FSM, it needs to be between 10-25in-lbs. I will need to remove a bit of the shim pack on the pinon shaft shoulder (between the bearings) which will increase how tightly the pinon bearings are squeezed together. This shim pack determines pre-load on the pinon bearings...and with it too low, the bearings won't stay seated in the cups under normal driving conditions, and the pinon gear will move around damaging both itself and the ring gear.
So, I reduced the shim pack from .072" to .068" (the original was .070") and now the the rotational torque is 15-17in-lbs. It did require pulling the yoke, driving the the pinon shaft out, then changing the shim pack and re-installing into the housing and re-fitting the outer pinon bearing and yoke (heat is my friend for these)...but if only 1 redo - I'll take it!
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/11/P_20190411_213452.jpg

[dieseldoc]

Looks good James.
Nice your learning the set up as a solid spaced unit.
The crush sleeve they use now suck.

[FINOCJ]

While waiting to get the set-up bearings to finish the locker install, I took care of the rear brakes. They are the oem 10" self adjusting brakes - and the self-adjusters were completely frozen so I don't think they were functioning at all. When disassembling, I found the shoe clip for the self-adjuster had a broken tab - probably not critical, but decided to fix it anyway:
the two clips - the one on the right is missing a tab in the center:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/14/P_20190414_153608-1.jpg

repaired - of course I did get it painted as well:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/14/P_20190414_161230.jpg

Here are the self-adjusting levers (as called by the FSM - #11 in the exploded view). It says very specifically on p311 in the FSM that the one that has the 'R' on it goes on the primary shoe for the driver rear, and the one with the 'L' on it goes on the primary shoe for the passenger rear (something about that bothers my slight OCD...but that is also how they were when I took them off):
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/14/P_20190414_173850-1.jpg

And the finished product - ready to bolt on when the locker is good to go. If anyone sees anything wrong let me know (the driver is on the left and the passenger is on the right - both are rear brakes):
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/14/P_20190414_191739.jpg

[FINOCJ]

Thanks to an ecj5 member, I got some set-up bearings to finish this up. Of course, it doesn't just go back together easily. My original trac-loc case has .040" shims on the bolt side and .049" on the tooth side (I am assuming this includes the .015 for preload as well). Normally, one would start by putting the case in bearings and cups and all, without any shims to see roughly if the total amount of shims what amount of spacing was needed for zero preload - seems to be close enough around .080. I then removed and reinstalled with the shims as before...It was a lot of dead blow hammering to get it in and when it was eventually in, there was no backlash - it was too tight. Then trying to get the case back out was a complete PITA...I was about to give up. It took a lot of hammering on a small prybar to get it out, and when it came out, there were some metal shavings from the little circular edging at the ends of the carrier tubes. So I kind of feel like the preload was a bit too much - at least for test installs and removal. Can always add back in a bit more preload on final assembly. And of course I was wondering how much shim to remove on the bolt side to create some backlash.

Allright...time for the idiot moment. After getting the case out yesterday evening I called it a night and just left it on the workbench. When I went to change the shims today I realized I had the shims packs on the wrong side of the case - arghhh! The .040 should go on the bolt side and the .049 on the tooth side (fortunately I am trying to keep good written records of what I had and what I have done). So, I still removed .010 from the total (on the tooth side) to reduce preload a bit and allow it to fit in and out easier, and went with a test fit of .040 on the bolt side and .040 on the tooth side. I was thinking that would still have too little backlash but...

So, with .040 on the bolt side and .040 on tooth side, it was much more reasonable to get the case into the carrier, and now I am getting .008+/-.001 for backlash - which is fine and close to the .009 with the old case and same R&P. Now for a pattern test...seems pretty close to what I had before: centered between the top and root and a bit towards the toe. I took this quick so they are not the best pics - but I think they compare favorably with the old pattern posted a bit back

https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/25/P_20190425_174111.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/25/P_20190425_174143.jpg

[FINOCJ]

ok...went ahead and finalized the install. I used .040 shim on the bolt side and .050 on the tooth side (although I test fit it with .040 on the tooth side, I added an additional .010 for preload). Then heated and drove on the new bearings (if I have to take this apart, getting these bearings off without damage will be difficult). The extra preload definitely made it a bit more difficult to get the case into the carrier, but I got it in and it did not seem to do any damage. I rechecked backlash, and still just over .009" so that should be fine for this used R&P.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/25/P_20190425_200456.jpg

[Jim]

Great progress!!

[FINOCJ]

Getting it finished up today....
Finished up the pinon seal and yoke. Axles and brakes installed:
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/27/P_20190427_161648.jpg

Then repaired, painted and installed the diff cover...Let everything sit overnight (mostly to let the RTV set-up), and then see if I can get it back under the jeep. I also have a bit of wiring to finish up as well.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/27/P_20190427_191246.jpg

[Brian]

Sweet!

[Jim]

Today's a good day!

[Java]

Looks great! :thumb: Hope the rest of the job goes as well.

[FINOCJ]

Okay - putting stuff back together - not sure you need photos of that....but I did get the wiring roughed in. I mounted the relay and 'suppression diode' up on the inside of the firewall where my 2 fuse blocks are. Since I had fuse blocks (both always hot and keyed 12V) - I simplified the wiring harness a bit using my fuse blocks instead of their inline fuses and breaker. I also decided to use my own rocker switch as it was easy to mount in place of their large rectangular plastic switch. As I didn't want to drill a new hole in the face of the dash, I am mounting the rocker sideways just under the dash (it also has a little red LED) in an existing hole. Its pretty close to the parking brake handle - see how well that works for now.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/04/30/P_20190430_201807.jpg
Although nothing is clean and tidy with the wiring yet...I just wanted to see if the locker would lock...and it does! As I am working solo...I had to put the tires back on the rear, and with only one side jacked-up, I can spin the tire about a 1/8-1/4 of a turn and the locker clicks in either direction (when the locker is on). When off, the tires spin opposite when both are lifted. Time to finalize all the little stuff.

[Spieg]

Looking good James. :thumb:

Given that very bad things can happen to the e-locker if switched on at the wrong time, I opted to use 2 switches on mine. the primary switch is mounted where it is easy to use while driving, and a second switch that powers the primary switch is located in a hard to get to location (so it can't accidentally be activated). Can't tell you how many times I've looked over to find that my dog has bumped the primary switch when I wasn't looking... the second switch has saved me some expensive repairs.

[FINOCJ]

Interesting idea - I am a bit worried about accidentally bumping the switch which is a downside of the electric locker I guess. But it is so easy to engage with a flip of a switch. No air compressors or hoses needed (ARB), no mechanical cables binding (Ox) - although I generally like mechanical connections. This is one reason I set up the rocker switch sideways so that'on' or engaged is towards the driver. I am more likely to bump it or knee it from the right (its to the left of the driver) - thus pushing the switch to the left - and that would turn it off. Don't want to accidentally turn it on at a bad time. I may eventually find a better location - this dash hole was already there and I didn't want to drill a hole in the dash just yet as I am just testing for functionality. I'd like to find a good safe spot for it. Or maybe I could use one of those rocker switches with the cover:
https://cdn.sparkfun.com//assets/parts/6/9/9/0/11310-01b.jpg

[newracer]

I'd for sure go with a covered toggle switch. They are more secure and you can pretend you are arming a missile when flipping the cover open.

[Jim]

I opted to use 2 switches on mine.

I went that route with my in-cab winch switch. My dash switches aren't likely to get bumped but I added an "Winch Enable" switch in the row apart from the In/Off/Out switch.

And then there's this (that you could probably make out of material in the garage):
https://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/YS8AAOSwkfxb-DFl/s-l1600.jpg

[FINOCJ]

Well...jeep went on a liquor run...so far so good. Cruised around the block and did some brake self adjusting stops. Then decided it was time for some beer! First time in 2 months the jeep has been out of the garage.
https://beamingpix.com/images/2019/05/05/P_20190505_183300.jpg

[Brian]

Awesome dude! :steer:

[FINOCJ]

Couldn't find a reason to switch on the locker at any point on the short jaunt to the store....looking forward to getting it out where I can test it a bit. I want to let the R&P get re-aqainted again before putting too much stress on stuff. Also, going to pull the axle shafts back out at some point and get new axle bearings/races and seals. Going to let NAPA do the press work on those.

[Spieg]

Nice! Glad you got it rolling again.
Clearly you must be shopping at the wrong liquor store... there's a nice one in Rollinsville. :steer:

I'd probably not use the locker much at first. Maybe wait until after the first oil change/gear inspection (500 miles?).

[Jim]

Maybe wait until after the first oil change/gear inspection (500 miles?).

I like that thinking.

Does the locker manufacturer list any recommended steps with a new install?






edit1.2: You could sit back with that cold one...

[Java]

:thumb: Must feel great to have it working again! You did nice work, great attention to detail.

[FINOCJ]

I like that thinking.

Does the locker manufacturer list any recommended steps with a new install?

.

Nope...for their detroit auto locker, the manual says they need no break in usage or time. Of course, I think with those units, the side gears and case/carrier all remain the same, and everything should go back together with the exact same fit and same clearances. With the e-locker, the side gears are all new, and although the R&P are the same, they have slightly different mating fit and clearance than before (although I tried to match the previous set-up as much as possible). So, I think the mating wear surfaces are going to need to some time together before stressing too much. As Brian mentioned, SOP for new R&P is 500 miles of low stress use (mostly you need to keep the gear oil temp low while surfaces work harden) and then change the gear oil. So, good excuse to drive to work today and over the next few weeks - 40 mile roundtrip. As the skiing is so good, I don't see getting out on any jeep trails over the next few weeks anyway. Maybe i can do the axle bearings when i do the gear oil change in 500 miles.

[Getaklu]

Glad to see out and about.

[dieseldoc]

Sweet man! Now go use it!
My buddy with the super 44 swap loves his Elockers!
And I must say I love mine!

[FINOCJ]

Been driving my jeep around town quite a bit...all seems to be working well so far. Decided it was time to work on replacing the axle shaft unit bearings and seals.

Used a slide hammer with little attachment on the end that would go through the center hole of the race and inner seal, then open it up behind them and pull them out with the hammer mechanism. Worked perfect...
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/05/21/P_20190521_175649.jpg
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/05/21/P_20190521_175226.jpg

Here is a pic of the races...The one on the right shows what I think is some unusual wear. You can kind of see how dull and slightly grainy the surface appears as compared to the shiny smooth one on the left. You can't feel any difference, but you can certainly see it. It only goes about 2/3 the way around the race....not sure how much of an issue that would become, but happy to replace them.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/05/21/P_20190521_201647.jpg

This is one of the reasons to change them out. Plus the leaky seals... and then just good peace of mind knowing that this should take care of the rear axle for a long time. I would guess that with no full float set-up on my flanged axle, it is kind of the most critically important piece of the jeep in terms of keeping the jeep rolling (even when being towed out of a bad spot)...basically, you can't even tow the stupid thing if something in the rear axle disintegrates and blows up - it would be more like dragging a really heavy and non-functional sled.

[Jim]

oof - good to have that right race out of there.

Nice to have the job done!



I'll be yanking the bearing and spacer/retainer in the morning to take the axle to Napa for a sleeve. Tomorrow eve will likely be inner race removal to wrap-up the job.

[FINOCJ]

I went with new retaining plates and got the local NAPA machine shop to remove the old bearing and press on the new ones - haven't really had much chance to see if it is all good, but the old timer at the machine shop immediately asked if they were jeep axle shafts...gave me some confidence they knew what they were doing.
https://www.beamingpix.com/images/2019/05/24/P_20190524_075224.jpg

[Jim]

If you want to do it yourself with common tools...

I used to use a bench grinder to grind through the retaining collar and roller retainer then inner race. The kick when using a grinder is that you will not grind into the axle itself (though care is needed) as the collar / race will "pop" open when you get close to the end. An angle grinder cut-off disk is an option - though more care is needed as it cuts faster than the grinding wheel route.

To install, if you don't have a press, hammer and punch is what I've used.


Cut off disk removal route:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ia-uNxQvjL0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLRZeCWut4M

[FINOCJ]

If you want to do it yourself with common tools...

I used to use a bench grinder to grind through the retaining collar and roller retainer then inner race. The kick when using a grinder is that you will not grind into the axle itself (though care is needed) as the collar / race will "pop" open when you get close to the end. An angle grinder cut-off disk is an option - though more care is needed as it cuts faster than the grinding wheel route.

To install, if you don't have a press, hammer and punch is what I've used.


Cut off disk removal route:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ia-uNxQvjL0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLRZeCWut4M

It wasn't so much the cutting them off that was worrying me...although cutting the lock ring off was said to be the hard part... Pressing the new ones on was the part that was supposedly difficult: I have driven a lot bearings on shafts etc using hammer and brass drift or old bearing races and various improvised tools, but those that are very familiar with this specific d44 ecj5 axles suggested it was essentially impossible to drive the unit bearing and/or lock ring on - a press was needed. I decided not to find out the hard way and just paid...