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Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2018 6:17 am
by Bermo
Could anyone guide me on how to troubleshoot the front diff lock actuation? Is there a way to manually disengage the front diff lock?

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2018 10:07 am
by Jimm391730
Is there a way to manually disengage the front diff lock?
Remove the locker slave cylinder and manually move the locker mechanism (assuming it is free to move). You should be able to lock it with pressure, a spring should return it to the unlocked position - the slave only activates the "lock" (through a spring, in case the splines are not yet lined up) and when released, a separate spring should push back against the slave as it releases.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Mon Feb 26, 2018 11:57 am
by Bermo
Thanks, will give that a go.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2018 7:44 am
by Bermo
I removed the slave cylinder that locks the front diff, I could see the springs and everything looked OK as far as I could tell. I remounted it and drove the truck forward and backwards and was able to engage and disengage the front diff. That is, I flipped the lever and I felt the diff lock engage and the light came on. When I returned the lever the light went off and I could feel the diff lock disengage, as in, I could steer again. So, miraculously, everything seems normal, I can drive around OK and can steer as normal. The only odd thing is that when I jacked up the front axle and turned one wheel the other wheel still turns in sync with it as though it was locked. But when driving the wheel are obviously not locked because I can steer easily. Strange?? Tonight I will drain the oil from the diff, look for metal and fill it with new oil.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2018 11:06 am
by Jimm391730
The only odd thing is that when I jacked up the front axle and turned one wheel the other wheel still turns in sync with it as though it was locked. But when driving the wheel are obviously not locked because I can steer easily. Strange??
I'm sorry to suggest that the bevel gears in the diff may be damaged (or the shaft that they ride on is bent, I've seen that happen with exec I) in that bevel gears have enough drag that with hand pressure they seem "locked" but with engine force and truck weight they turn with more than hand force. Support both ends of the axle, when you look into the drain hole try to see if the bevel gear shaft ends seem to rotate in the same plane (meaning that one end of the shaft does not seem farther forward or backwards from the other end).

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2018 11:33 am
by Bermo
Thanks Jimmy. Would that be a full diff replacement or just part? Looks like I will have to get it to a shop and get the diff taken apart. I'll have a look through the drain hole ss you suggested and see what I can see. I think the oil may have leaked although I never saw any oil on the ground, but as others have said, it can just go into another part of the drive train. There is oil on the exterior of the diff.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Tue Feb 27, 2018 1:42 pm
by Jimm391730
Well, you have to pull the diff out to both evaluate it and replace what is needed. Execution II improved the bevel gears shaft bearing area and improved lubrication, compared to Exec I. As long as no really big metal pieces damaged any other parts (like be getting wedged in between the pinion and ring gears) if this is the issue then you may only need to do the Exec II upgrade; in this case the cost of the parts is much less than the cost of the labor to fix it. While someone is in the diff it is usually a wise investment to replace bearings and seals - again, the cost of the parts is small compared to the labor.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Wed Feb 28, 2018 1:08 pm
by Hotzenplotz
Bermo

As far as I can tell, Dale at Haflingertechnik or Greg at SGB would be the closest ports o call to you.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Tue May 08, 2018 7:09 am
by Bermo
I drained the oil from the front diff and this is what I found. Very fine steel filings, and some larger pieces of gold coloured filings. Is this normal wear? Only about 1 litre of oil drained out, but at least 2 litres went in on refill. There were black streaks through the old oil, fine iron filings I imagine. The gear oil was 80W90 GL-5.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 6:16 am
by Bermo
My front differential was stripped down and the following reported:

One of the pinion bearings has seized, and the inner gear has seized to the shaft and picked up. Also all the seals were leaking oil, so needs a set of seals.

Repair is underway.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Mon Aug 13, 2018 9:25 pm
by VinceAtReal4x4s
Sounds like someone ran it without oil or not quite enough.

Re: Scary lock-up on motorway

Posted: Tue Aug 14, 2018 11:27 pm
by Lewis
(note to self)... check all my fluid levels again tomorrow :|