1987 Ranger 4x4 locking front hubs

[TheOldRanger]

I just bought a 1987 Ranger 4x4 with manual locking hubs that I am working to get back on the road. The hubs came off with the wheels when I took them off to inspect the wheel bearings. The Haynes Repair Manual shows a "retainer washer" for one lug bolt on the outside of the hub. Does anyone have any informations on what that is/was in the original production?

Thanks!

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Basically it's a thin spring type washer that goes over one stud to prevent the hub from coming off with the tire. They can be a pain to re-install so they get "lost". Not a big deal, just put the hub back on. If it doesn't want to go on easily then rotate it one stud and try again. Repeat as necessary.

 

[adsm08]

The retainer washer might show in the Haynes manual, but its intended purpose was for factory assembly only. Brake drums get them too, they keep the piece from falling off while the vehicle is on the assembly conveyor. They are almost impossible to remove without destroying them, which is probably what happened to it.

Like Floored said, just put the hub back on. If it doesn't go nicely you can turn it one stud at a time until it does, or if you get the holes lined up you can just spin the hub until it drops. Also, get good at slapping it back on there (not that it's hard) because the hub is going to come off with the wheel pretty much every time.

 

[4x4junkie]

Not if you do this to them:
http://www.therangerstation.com/Magazine/Dec 05/offroad.htm

 

[Jim Oaks]

Holy cow! I've never actually seen one of those. Makes me think that those hubs haven't been off in a really long time, or maybe never.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Not if you do this to them:
http://www.therangerstation.com/Magazine/Dec 05/offroad.htm

Why do three? Wouldn't one work as the studs would hold once the wheel is on.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Why do three? Wouldn't one work as the studs would hold once the wheel is on.

It might break the flange of the hub if the screw was to the bottom and the weight of the wheel came down on the outside of the hub.

Mine are just on there loose, they generally stay put if you support the wheel as it comes off the truck.

 

[adsm08]

Not if you do this to them:
http://www.therangerstation.com/Magazine/Dec 05/offroad.htm

That always seemed like a lot of work for very little benefit.

 

[4x4junkie]

It might break the flange of the hub if the screw was to the bottom and the weight of the wheel came down on the outside of the hub.

This.

One time I posted that link, someone chided me for not using five screws

That always seemed like a lot of work for very little benefit.

Well, if you don't mind dirt & grit getting into your bearings each time you take the wheel off (and then the possibility of having to replace the O-ring after it got pinched between the hub & rotor because the hub was shifting around as you're trying to put the wheel back on, forget about the grease now showing up all over your wheels due to the broken O-ring, too), then yeah I guess there wouldn't be much benefit to this mod that takes about 15 minutes to do after the wheel is off.

 

[adsm08]

Well, if you don't mind dirt & grit getting into your bearings each time you take the wheel off (and then the possibility of having to replace the O-ring after it got pinched between the hub & rotor because the hub was shifting around as you're trying to put the wheel back on, forget about the grease now showing up all over your wheels due to the broken O-ring, too), then yeah I guess there wouldn't be much benefit to this mod that takes about 15 minutes to do after the wheel is off.

I have been driving my truck for 17 years, doing all my own work. I have yet to experience any of these ill effects you have listed. Then again, I pretty much know from the moment I crack the first lug nut that the hub is coming off too and land the wheel accordingly, rather than let it go so that the hub is going to land grease side down the grass.

Also, I don't put the hub back on with the wheel. I take it out of the wheel and put it on by itself and then place the wheel over it. The mod might only take 15 minutes, but I have less time than that tied up in just putting my hub back on the truck over the course of the last 10 years, which represents at least two sets of rotors.

 

[4x4junkie]

I have been driving my truck for 17 years, doing all my own work. I have yet to experience any of these ill effects you have listed. Then again, I pretty much know from the moment I crack the first lug nut that the hub is coming off too and land the wheel accordingly, rather than let it go so that the hub is going to land grease side down the grass.

Also, I don't put the hub back on with the wheel. I take it out of the wheel and put it on by itself and then place the wheel over it. The mod might only take 15 minutes, but I have less time than that tied up in just putting my hub back on the truck over the course of the last 10 years, which represents at least two sets of rotors.

No one is forcing you to do the mod.

I simply prefer to be able to take the wheel on & off like you would on any other vehicle without having to worry about the locking hubs falling off (and it sounds like that is what the OP wants as well).

I've seen my fair share of split O-rings on trucks with hubs loose, most likely because their owners weren't familiar with this issue at first and were just slapping it back on there carelessly. With the hub attached, the O-rings are in no danger of coming out of place and getting damaged.

 

[Curious Hound]

I went for years without the mod on my f150 and initially on my Ranger. Never had a problem. But when I heard about the mod, I did it and I find it handy. It's completely a matter of personal preference. The big o-rings can be ordered from McMaster-carr. Just a few dollars for a lifetime supply.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[wildbill23c]

The hubs on my 84 B2 and my 88 B2 weren't attached either. Never bothered me sliding the hub back on after removing the wheel. I guess if you had to take the wheels off several times a day it may be worth doing that mod, but for the occasional removal and install I don't see it really being much of an issue.