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$400 Pioneer (Wilbur)


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Hey, I'm still jealous of your truck. And you got a Detroit out back, don't you? You probably have more money tied up in parts for your long arm set up than that Aussie cost me...

 

I'm thinking of possibly joining you guys at Badlands in June, if that's okay. Not a member on that board (yet?).

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Hey, I'm still jealous of your truck. And you got a Detroit out back, don't you? You probably have more money tied up in parts for your long arm set up than that Aussie cost me...

 

I'm thinking of possibly joining you guys at Badlands in June, if that's okay. Not a member on that board (yet?).

 

perfectly alright :D

 

and while we're there, maybe I can fire up a generator and plasma cut the dents off your truck for souveniers :clapping: jk man.

 

lookin good. you ever get the center caps?

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Hey, I'm still jealous of your truck. And you got a Detroit out back, don't you? You probably have more money tied up in parts for your long arm set up than that Aussie cost me...

 

I'm thinking of possibly joining you guys at Badlands in June, if that's okay. Not a member on that board (yet?).

 

lol. yes to everything you said.

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Hey, I'm still jealous of your truck. And you got a Detroit out back, don't you? You probably have more money tied up in parts for your long arm set up than that Aussie cost me...

 

I'm thinking of possibly joining you guys at Badlands in June, if that's okay. Not a member on that board (yet?).

 

perfectly alright :D

 

and while we're there, maybe I can fire up a generator and plasma cut the dents off your truck for souveniers :clapping: jk man.

 

lookin good. you ever get the center caps?

 

Don't go crazy with the cutter, but yeah I wouldn't mind losing the bottom edge behind the rear wheels. After or while I make my new rear bumper I was going to take a cutting blade on my grinder to them. Then the bumper will wrap around like your (are planning to) doing. And no, the center caps never arrived yet. So you did actually send them? You have a tracking number?

 

Cheers!

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:fs1: :headpop: :mad: :( :wall: :doh: :grrrr: :fs2: :cry:

 

$^*@%$@&$^*(@)#

 

15 minutes into installing the Aussie I broke my breaker bar, found out the passenger hub is bad, and pretty sure the passenger side ball joints are bad. All while attempting to remove the hub nut. Don't know if the ball jounts and hub were bad before (looking back, I believe they were and have been for a while), or if I just broke them.

 

Don't know if I can remove the hub nut without snapping the axle shaft. I know my current tools won't cut it. Have to invest in either:

3/4 breaker bar, 3/4 drive socket and longer pipe,

 

or

 

BF impact ratchet.

 

At least the socket I have for it is meant for an impact ratchet.

 

Hub alone is $75 with a 1 year warranty, add ball joints and I might just say to heck with it and see if I can get whole axle cheap

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Well, I started at noon today. Was back home before 1 because of the above mentioned problems. After checking the web I decided to go to Harbor Freight and bought an electric 400 ft/lbs impact wrench. By 3 I was back working on the truck. The impact worked, but it took a few minutes to bust the nut loose. I then still had to remove the hub. Technically I didn't need to remove the hub nut, as I could pull the hub with the axle attached as one unit. But the bearings are bad, so I had (have) to replace the hub anyway. It has 1/8" play every direction. Up/down, forward/rearward, in/out. I removed the brake backing plate while I was at it.

 

Other side was easy. That hub has been off twice already this past year, and applied liberal amount of grease before putting it back on.

 

By 7 I finally had the differential carrier out and on the bench. Couldn't do the install in place because the ring gear was too fat for the center shaft to come out. By 8:45 the Aussie was in, and by 9 it was back in the axle.

 

By the time I had everything back together, tested, filled with oil and cleaned up it was 11 o'clock.

 

3 hour install my butt!

 

So tomorrow I still have to get a new hub and install it (gotta tear that side apart again), and some time this year I will do away with the vacuum lines and build my own posi-lock.

 

Pictures to follow, but not today.

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Installed a new hub today. Easy peasy lemon squeezy 45 minute job. I like it when a plan comes together. Or at least when everything goes according to plan for a change. Test drive and almost no more front end vibration/shimmy/shake that I've been experiencing for a few thousand miles now. Passenger ball joints need to be replaced as well, but after inspecting them very carefully I decided they can wait a few months till it warms up enough outside to do the job at home.

 

So now she's locked in front and ready to go again.

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Locker install pictures:

Locker:

 

Stacked together:

 

Broken breaker bar:

 

The (new) ultimate tool:

 

Carrier ready to come out:

 

Carrier out. Had to remove because the ring gear prevented the center shaft from coming out.:

 

Back in the axle with the locker installed. Now just to put everything back together again:

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According to the install instructions, if you can install brakes you can install a lunch box locker. The only special tools I needed that I didn't have were a set of feeler gauges to check clearances (needed for warranty claims) and an impact wrench to get the hub nut off on one side. Besides that, a good socket set, pry bar, punch to remove the spring pin holding the center shaft in (I made one out of a screw driver by cutting off the blade part) and reinstall it afterwards, torque wrench, RTV silicone (or differential cover gasket), hammer, jack and jack stands.

 

Out of the 11 hour or so ordeal, the actual installation of the locker itself in the carrier was less than 2 hours. A lot of time was wasted by pondering my options after breaking the breaker bar and finding an impact wrench on a Sunday afternoon. Next time I see Murphy I swear I will kill him.

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I got mine directly from Torq Masters, http://aussielocker.com/. They make them for the rear as well, at least the D44, D35, and 29 spline 8.25. Don't know about the Ford 8.8. Cost me a total of $262.99 shipped to my door.

 

The reason I didn't get one for the rear is that I have no way of unlocking it. I can use the CAD to unlock the front even in 4wd. I drove a Suburban with a locked rear axle for more than 7 years, and turning a corner from a stop sign in the snow was always an adventure, pretty much guaranteeing a fish tail, no matter how easy you took it on the gas.

 

After I upgrade my rear axle (D35) I will look into a selectable locker for it.

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Rims are here!

 

Next week or so I will (attempt to) mount the used 33x12.50s on them, install them on the truck, finish my lift (add 1.75" spacers in front, soa in back), play with the back until it sits nice (I got stock 4 leaf packs minus 3 broken leafs and 1 overload I sold to build whatever packs I need) and my drive shaft works (hopefully) and then have until June to play with bump stops and cut off wheel. I hope to have the whole kit and kaboodle working nicely together before then, though, so I can try the new combination out a little closer to home first.

 

The only thing that worries me is the D35 out back.

 

BTW anyone knows if an 87 Comanche D35 has C clips?

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BTW anyone knows if an 87 Comanche D35 has C clips?

 

Yes, up to '90 or '91 was the change over.

ERRR NO!

 

A D35 is a non c-clip axle upto mid 1989, than it went to c-clips (if you have an '89 the only way to tell is to pull the cover). So a 1987 D35 does NOT have c-clips.

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