Outer Limits 4x4 Board

I have a few issues with the front end of my 80. Just got back from a trip. few rough road little bit of sand dune driving...

The front diff centre came loose from the diff housing (pinion came loose at same time) 12 nuts all loose.

Also i have iron man adjustable bushes fitted and beleive they have moved (diff rotated more backwards)

I have a 4wd systms front lokka fitted. i think this may have caused pionion to came loose (from the load - effecting the crush tube)? once the backlash was out of wack it made to centre come loose from the housing? Maybe incorrect drive shaft anlge (castor bushes loose) may have contributed


Anyway just wondering if anybody had any ideas particular as to how the centre came loose in the housing? I am going pull the diff out and see what its done. Might be time for air locker i think and replace the bushes with bonded ones (either 4wd 1 or ARB 2 degree - as i have a two inch lift)

who installed the lock right? sound to me like the pinion nut wanst punched and there was no locktight used
seems strange to me

Hard to tell without looking at it but is sounds to me like the lock rite may not have been installed properly. Has the centre pulled out of the housing or were the nuts loose on the studs? If the centre was set up properly and everything was tightened back up, you’d be going to rip a centre out. I have seen it done, but conditions were at the other end of the spectrum. Tip - if you aren’t confident in setting centres up, take it to someone who is, it will save you cash and frustration in the long run.

Cheers

ive heard of loose studs before / but very unlikley to be all 12 studs, i would be saying the the pinion nut for sure, you should have felt a vibration or some thing when driving

rob

the 80 series axle housing is a bit light-weight, they were chasing better on-road manners, so the pressed steel axle housing can twist and flex under extreme loads. the 8mm studs aren't super strong and the combination can lead to them stretching and coming loose.

the best mods you can do to stop it happening again are to fit and airlocker or detroit and (prevents spreading of the hemisphere, much stronger) replace the 8mm studs with 10mm. it can be done with the axle still in the vehicle but you need a good eye.

the pinion coming loose does occur with lockrights especially if they are set up with excessive side clearance and/or if the ratchet teeth are wearing out on the shoulders. the clicking/banging is the equivalent of hitting the end of the pinion with a decent sized hammer, eventually something will let go. also if the diff has rotated, the front driveshaft vibration may have caused or contributed to pinion bearing failure.

it will need to come out and be overhauled. if it has been driven any sort of distance (like into the thousands of km) the gears will probably need replacing. it could well be that the best place to start is with a complete centre from a wrecker.


as for the bushes, for 2" lift I would try it without any castor correction - especially if it is a constant 4WD model. the factory rubber bushes provide by far the best ride, articulation, service life and are less likely to cause cracks and tears to other suspension components. the difference i caster with a 2" lift should be barely noticeable on-road.

cheers
DD

The studs holding the centre do come losse, but only in the 3 to 6 o clock area normally, and spit out the gasket.

We have drilled them out and fitted 10mm rear studs to many, as sand driving, big housing flexing does seem to make it happen sooner.

We also fit solid pinion spacer to the cruiser diffs, makes them as strong as they can be, but lokka, or detroit, any of those types of lockers are just trouble for other drivetrain components.