Manual hub swap question

[jballard81]

Evening!
Found a set of mile marker manual locking hubs on a 96 ranger at the boneyard this AM.

I didn't have the right tools or effort (it was 35 degrees with sustained 25+MPH winds) to take the hub apart any further to get the spindle nuts. I currently have automatic hubs on my 94 with the dana 35TTB. Is this the correct right conversion kit? https://shop.broncograveyard.com/D35-Hub-Conversion-Kit/productinfo/82001A/

I ask b/c I read the tech thread about it and that says i need:

• 95-27997 – Dana 35 Manual Hub Conversion Kit

which anywhere i look is $84... while the one on bronco graveyard is $30.

Thanks in advance!

 

[SenorNoob]

Unless their listing is very wrong, yes. That's what you want. Do you have the socket? If not their price on it is pretty cheap. Combine shipping and save.
https://shop.broncograveyard.com/D44-Spindle-Nut-Socket-2-1_4/productinfo/296252/

 

[4x4junkie]

×2, that kit looks to be correct.
Also ×2 on the D44 hub socket. It doesn't fit the inner D35 nut, but fits the outer nut much better than the one with the prongs on the end and won't slip off when you try to tighten it down (the inner nut only needs 15 INCH-lbs anyway, which you can get it that tight just with your fingers (or if needed, a flat screwdriver in one of the slots, then lightly bumping the handle on the end with your palm).

 

[jballard81]

So in my infinite wisdom, I decided to take the van out of the hub in order to better clean out the old grease.
Cleaned everything up and applied a very light amount of grease, but for the life of me, I can't find the right alignment to get the cam to go back into the housing.
The Internet tells me that the cam should have 3 lugs that are slightly different than the others and those need to line up with the housing splines. But I can't see any difference. I've patiently tried rotating the cam a fraction and trying again until I've made a couple full rotations.

I'm sticking the cam in the freezer for a while now. Thought I would post here to see if anyone has advice.

This is a pic of the cam just sitting at an angle in top of the interior splines.

Thanks;

 

[Curious Hound]

So in my infinite wisdom, I decided to take the van out of the hub in order to better clean out the old grease.
Cleaned everything up and applied a very light amount of grease, but for the life of me, I can't find the right alignment to get the cam to go back into the housing.
The Internet tells me that the cam should have 3 lugs that are slightly different than the others and those need to line up with the housing splines. But I can't see any difference. I've patiently tried rotating the cam a fraction and trying again until I've made a couple full rotations.

I'm sticking the cam in the freezer for a while now. Thought I would post here to see if anyone has advice.

View attachment 139213
This is a pic of the cam just sitting at an angle in top of the interior splines.

Thanks;

The operating handle needs to be oriented correctly. It's a trial and error kind of thing. It has a little 5-sided nub on the back, if I recall. Let me dig up my video link. It may help you.

The part you really need is at the 14 minute mark.

 

[jballard81]

excellent video and thank you. Also, i commend your lighting. I'm working at my own desk with multiple lights and it still isn't nearly as bright as your setup. I need to work on that.

So the mile marker hub appears to be very similar, but slightly different as well. apparently there is a very slight ingress point in the hub body and you have to move the cam around until you find just the right spot. I've also lightly sanded both the leading edge of the cam as well as the entry point to the splines on the hub itself. while that helped, I get hung up about half way to where it needs to be. Everything i've read says NOT to push it in when that happens.

It's possible that the cam or housing has developed a slight oval, but i haven't found a perfect alignment yet. I'm still freezing the cam for ~20 min then attempting fitment for a while. To get the cam out, once i removed the spirolizer ring, i had to pound it about 8x pretty hard against a wood block for it to come out. I originally thought it was due to old sticky grease. But now i'm starting to think it's ovaled out some and I haven't found the magic alignment yet.

in your video it seems like once you got it aligned, it slid back into the housing pretty easily. did you have to debur or hit anything with sandpaper?

 

[Curious Hound]

excellent video and thank you. Also, i commend your lighting. I'm working at my own desk with multiple lights and it still isn't nearly as bright as your setup. I need to work on that.

So the mile marker hub appears to be very similar, but slightly different as well. apparently there is a very slight ingress point in the hub body and you have to move the cam around until you find just the right spot. I've also lightly sanded both the leading edge of the cam as well as the entry point to the splines on the hub itself. while that helped, I get hung up about half way to where it needs to be. Everything i've read says NOT to push it in when that happens.

It's possible that the cam or housing has developed a slight oval, but i haven't found a perfect alignment yet. I'm still freezing the cam for ~20 min then attempting fitment for a while. To get the cam out, once i removed the spirolizer ring, i had to pound it about 8x pretty hard against a wood block for it to come out. I originally thought it was due to old sticky grease. But now i'm starting to think it's ovaled out some and I haven't found the magic alignment yet.

in your video it seems like once you got it aligned, it slid back into the housing pretty easily. did you have to debur or hit anything with sandpaper?

I had one a few months ago that acted as you describe. I've had others. But this was the worst. Patience is mandatory. And, yes, I did some light sanding and deburring. I actually had trouble getting that one apart when I started. It was a used hub I had purchased. It was covered in grease, dirt, grit, etc.