Need opinion on this free wheeling set up..pic

[Gary Turman]

I want front free wheeling hubs without the look of lock out hubs. I had the teeth milled out on my front hubs. I carry an extra set in case 4 wheel drive is needed. Sure it will take me a few minutes to change out but usually that would be planned. I did this on my M38-A1 several years ago without problems. Any opinions on if this can cause any problems down the road...here is a pic of what I did...

[Bill Eldred]

I doubt it will cause any problems, but this really does not help anything. Might give you a few more miles to the gallon per tank full. But the axles and the differentual is still turning and causing wear. So the question is why is this important on a vehicle that get drive only about 2500 miles a year? Unless you use it for a daily driver.

[Gary Turman]

Bill, please explain to me how the axles and differential are still turning. The whole purpose of lock out hubs is to prevent this. It is still turning even though you don't have it in 4 wheel drive if you don't have lock out hubs. The turning wheels turn everything all the way into the transfer case. Lock out hubs prevents all this saving wear on the differential and drive shaft, even the transfer output shaft bearing.. There is also noticable less drag.

[justifier]

Gary,
you are correct,

its a good idea to have the milled out ones and still keeping original look

[maeserik]

I use lock hubs on my m38, frontaxle like an ±mb

with hubs unlocked, jeep steers much lighter, fronttires lives longer, we do mostly normal traffic on hard surface.

replacing the hubs with the original is not a big job, but for me the look on the front wheels doesn't matter !

The jeep needs for driving not for showing !

[wanderingwillys]

I like the thought but I would have done one more thing - When the hubs there being bored out I would have gone ~.090" over your clearence number and then turned an light interferance fit oilite bushing for the splines of the stub shaft to ride on...

That way there is no spinning steel on steel...

Did you do the machine work yourself?

Matt

[Gary Turman]

What do you do about the hub nuts Sarn't Major? [/quote] I tightened them and then backed off to where they just let it spin freely then put the cotter pin in.

[Martin MB in UK]

maeserik..... who sells free wheel hubs for willys MBs. Over here in the UK we cant get them for love nor money,???

[Martin MB in UK]

Sorry, not free wheel hubs, but lockable hubs is what I meant to say.....

[Larry E Long]

Sorry, not free wheel hubs, but lockable hubs is what I meant to say.....

Give Ron a try here at the Gee. If he doesn't carry them then give Walck's 4WD a call. He's got them.

Larry

[Derek Eddlestone]

I thought we were sticking to jeeps

Set of free wheeling huds to fit the Dodge weapons carrier and m37.

Derek.

[mxreid]

Gary... I have been using this type of hub since back in the mid 60's.
It works great. Like mentioned above, just turn out the hub a little more and add a bronze bushing. Like you say... with a speed wrench, it only takes a min to change back over to the splined hub. To this day I carry a set of them in my CJ-3B jeeping rig (splined & turned out with bushing) in case of a broken Warn hub. I also have them on my restored MB. No one can even tell they are on it!!!
Later, Mike

[Rod Rushton]

Years ago i did that mod on my MB - and used the plastic pouring spouts from a 1 gallon Duckhams Oil tins for the bush. I did the same mod on my WC53 Carryall in the early 1980's. I went down to the Ardennes in December and when I arrived in Bastogne decided to change them back as we were due to drive off road. The temperature had dropped to ZERO degrees F- (about - -18 degrees C) and there was 2 feet of snow, and I nearly froze as it took me nearly 3/4 hour to to the job, which would take just a few minutes in normal weather - Boy was it COLD!

Now I invested $60 in a set of Selectro's for my GPW, which I had shipped over with my Overdrive from Herm, and I don't think they are too obtrusive.

[tamnalan]