Eaton detroit locker installation

Very tight axle housings might require a spreader, which bolts onto the axle housings diff cover plate bolt holes and spreads the housing open ever so slightly; enough to pull the carrier out. Since the Ring Gear had to be removed, we found that we could grab the carrier in the vice without touching the bearings or spider gears.

This setup was good access for use of the breaker bar to back off the ring gear bolts. The Spider Gear and thrust Washers that the axles slide into were next to be removed. The passenger side slid right out. For some reason they would begin to come out but would seize up and not budge. An old 30 spline axle shaft made a good battering ram to pound out the spider gear.

I would guess the axle sat for a long time and had moisture in the axle housing. What did this mean to the PowerTax No-Slip install? The carrier and Coupler are supposed to be close tolerance. The good side was a close tolerance fit, the scored side was not and it wobbled in the carrier. Not good. A quick end to a fine dollar lunchbox locker that really should be up front. So Now What? This is where the trail takes a left turn.

These were my options:. If you want to continue reading about how to install a PowerTrax No-Slip, follow this link. The first thing we had to do was pull the old wheel bearings off. We were going to reuse them and the shims so using a big gear puller, we successfully pulled the bearings off both sides without tearing up the shims too much. We kept them separate to identify which went on the left and which went on the right as well as the shims, left and right.

We also got of the micrometer and compared the two carriers, the open and the Detroit Locker, to figure about where the ring gear bolting surface was on both. We were trying to guess at about where the shims might have to be moved to get the ring and pinion gears to mesh as well as possible.

The two carriers were close in measurements from the driver-side end to the ring gear bolting surface close enough so our first attempt at putting it in was to put the shims back where the were on the open carrier and tap the bearings on using a large socket, tapping on the inner bearing race.

Smearing some grease on the inside of the bearing races helped them go on easier. We then bolted on the ring gear to the book specified 55 lbs of torque. Since we lacked any real measuring devices, we found that the Detroit was too wide to get back into the axle housing. A second time getting the carrier in the axle housing and it was a snug fit and the backlash seemed to be about what we would expect it to be on a professionally setup axle, judging by past pro installations we had done for us.

We bolted in the bearing caps to the book specified 60 lbs of torque and smeared some grease on the ring gear to get a pattern. We rolled the drive shaft forward to roll the gears through the grease. We examined the grease and put it back together. We cleaned up the axle housing seal surface with a razor and some break cleaner. The axle bearings were also clean up and greased even though the wheel bearings are lubricated by the gear oil.

We also cleaned the outer seal surfaces and put a little silicone sealant on the outer axle seals to ensure a good seal. The axles were slid into the Detroit and the retaining plate re-bolted to the brake backing plate. The brake drums were re-installed and the tires put back on, hand tightened. A liberal coating of gasket silicone was placed on the axle housing and the cover plate bolted down.

We broke for lunch to allow the silicone to set up a little before pumping in the gear oil. After about 45 minute we pumped in some gear oil and plugged it up. We lowered the Jeep and tightened the wheel lugs.

A quick test of the locker was to jack up one tire as it was being backed out to see the other grab. It did. Our first run out was around the neighborhood. The Detroit was quiet, yet noticeable. Throttle in a turn will push the vehicle towards straight ahead. Shifting through the gears will cause the short wheel based CJ-7 to jerk one way or the other a little. Knowing it was going to happen, made it easier to predict and compensated for.

The gears were quite, no odd sounds. After a short run, when we got back, we felt for any heat build up of the axle housing and that was minimal. Seems fine so far. The following weekend I took the Jeep over to a friends house for a little backyard 38 acres worth wheeling through mud and trails. Through some low, swampy areas of the property, it was very noticeable the Detroit locker was back there powering the Interco Super Swamper SSRs. With minimal effort, the Jeep climbed through some very sloppy mud.

Its good to finally have a Locker in the Project CJ First, the gears are temporary. With a TA transmission and its 6. When time allows, the gears will be swapped and the PowerTrax will be installed up front at that time.

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The Eaton Detroit Locker can enhance traction in a variety of vehicles. Units are currently available for front- and rear-axle applications, including c-clip style axles. Loading Content..