david85
Full Access Member
I might ramble a bit here, so apologies in advance.
Many of us are tempted by the thought of a used Ford E-Locker, since they could prove to be a much more cost effective option than going to a brand new aftermarket E-Locker. Used parts are usually cheaper, after all. And we've all probably seen videos and forum discussions all over the web that let the secret out; it's backward compatible on the sterling 10.25. So no need to perform a full axle swap!!!
One problem though. The aftermarket E-Lockers that I have seen are not what I consider to be a very good design. The Eaton E-locker shown below uses a cam mechanism to perform the actual lockup. The result? A locker that can in theory unlock when changing from forward to reverse or vice versa. These folks seem pretty proud of it and downplay this problem, but I wasn't convinced. Which is why I never did buy an aftermarket E-Locker, even before finding out the factory Ford unit existed:
Air lockers are usually direct acting, meaning the actuator directly engages the splines to lock the spider gears. Better than the Eaton E-Locker shown above, but now you have to run air on board. Which can be nice anyway, but it's one more system that adds to the cost if you don't already have it in your truck.
Ox lockers have a mechanical cable actuator and a shift fork. It looks pretty robust, but adding two more shift levers to the floor seems a bit much.
As luck would have it, one of these mythical Ford E-Lockers showed up on marketplace 5 min from my house. So naturally, I jumped at it. Does it use a cam-lock mechanism like the Eaton? Don't know. In fact, I couldn't find any photos on the web of somebody taking one of these things apart. Plenty of conversions done, but no details on how it actually works. No exploded drawings showed up on image search, either.
So what to do? Pull mine apart, of course!
First off, remove the eight metric bolts. Note the red thread locker:
Next, remove the top and we see the three pinion spider setup. Pretty simple stuff so far:
The 3-pinion shaft also acts like a locator dowel for the two halves, so no need to worry about centering issues of the carrier. Simply scribe the case before taking it apart to maintain the factory clocking.
More to come...
Many of us are tempted by the thought of a used Ford E-Locker, since they could prove to be a much more cost effective option than going to a brand new aftermarket E-Locker. Used parts are usually cheaper, after all. And we've all probably seen videos and forum discussions all over the web that let the secret out; it's backward compatible on the sterling 10.25. So no need to perform a full axle swap!!!
xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media
One problem though. The aftermarket E-Lockers that I have seen are not what I consider to be a very good design. The Eaton E-locker shown below uses a cam mechanism to perform the actual lockup. The result? A locker that can in theory unlock when changing from forward to reverse or vice versa. These folks seem pretty proud of it and downplay this problem, but I wasn't convinced. Which is why I never did buy an aftermarket E-Locker, even before finding out the factory Ford unit existed:
xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media
Air lockers are usually direct acting, meaning the actuator directly engages the splines to lock the spider gears. Better than the Eaton E-Locker shown above, but now you have to run air on board. Which can be nice anyway, but it's one more system that adds to the cost if you don't already have it in your truck.
Ox lockers have a mechanical cable actuator and a shift fork. It looks pretty robust, but adding two more shift levers to the floor seems a bit much.
As luck would have it, one of these mythical Ford E-Lockers showed up on marketplace 5 min from my house. So naturally, I jumped at it. Does it use a cam-lock mechanism like the Eaton? Don't know. In fact, I couldn't find any photos on the web of somebody taking one of these things apart. Plenty of conversions done, but no details on how it actually works. No exploded drawings showed up on image search, either.
So what to do? Pull mine apart, of course!
First off, remove the eight metric bolts. Note the red thread locker:
You must be registered for see images attach
Next, remove the top and we see the three pinion spider setup. Pretty simple stuff so far:
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
You must be registered for see images attach
The 3-pinion shaft also acts like a locator dowel for the two halves, so no need to worry about centering issues of the carrier. Simply scribe the case before taking it apart to maintain the factory clocking.
More to come...