The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Locking Hub help

Guys, I have a 60 model K10 4x4 that is equipped with the factory locking hubs. They are worn out and need replacing. Do you know anybody that sells replacements for these hubs? Thanks

I'm assuming you have a NAPCO. If you do there are a variety of hub types depending on the year and size. Jim Carter does sell some hubs, they may have what you need. You might also try the NAPCO site, go to the links on this site to find it. Also, periodically someone sells NAPCO hubs on Ebay. Depending on where you buy, be prepared to spend about $200 to $500. Another route is rebuilding. Jim Carter has some parts, there is also a guy that sells on ebay (NAPCO rebuild kits), he has more rebuild items than he shows on Ebay, so if you contact him, he might be helpful. I've dealt with him, his parts were good & he is very helpful.

I recently had the brakes done on my '66 K-10. During the process the mechanic told me my front hubs were showing quite a bit of wear. He told me that Chevy Duty (chevyduty.com) sold replacement hubs for '60-'66 K-series trucks. I did not check it out due to my finances. You might check their catalog, online store or call them. Best of luck with you hubs. Post if you find some that work for you. I may followup with replacing mine.

They're probably Mile Marker Selectro hubs...check out their site, with the right part #, any Mile Marker dealer can probably get them.

I checked on the Mile Marker Selectro hubs. They will fit my truck, but they go for $300 a set. No way...

That's the price my friend. Jim Carter's has 'em for $290.00 plus shipping. The originals (Not Napco) are virtually unobtainable except through eBay. I picked up an NOS one for 125.00 last week. But it's the first one I've seen in 9 years. If you want to play, you gotta pay.

I sorry, but I think it's just a ripoff. When you can buy locking hubs for later models for $50-$100 a set, and they are almost identical in design and function to the old ones, there is something wrong. If the old ones were some special design maybe I could see it, but they are so simple. I think that the people at Mile Marker make a good product, but they know they are the only maker of these old type hubs, and they are going to stick it to you.

crabbjw,
do you have a dana 44 front axle or the older NAPCO axle with the drop out center section. I think you have the dana 44, and should go to your local parts store and do some digging. I went to Orelly's and bought a set of WARN's top of the line hubs for my 61 for under $150. Milemarker also has the same hubs. If your parts store doesn't have them, check JC Whitney or some place like that. Its basically the same hub used on many later Chevys, as well as a bunch of toyotas and probably fords. Check my webshots for pics and let me know how it goes. Unless you are going 100% original, you do not have to pay over $150!

Big61, I have a Spicer 445F front axle. At least that is what my shop manual says. The ident numbers on the dif say 44 5F, so i'm not sure if it is really just a Dana 44. I'm going to check your pic and see if yours is like mine. Thanks for the help!

The price isn't so much of a question of complexity, as it is one of limited demand. The more of an item that can be sold, the cheaper that item will be to produce in mass quantities. It costs the same amount to set up the equipment to make 50 uncommon hubs as 50,000 standard Dana 44 or 60 hubs.

Big61fourby, your axel is a 3/4 ton. Mine is the 1/2 ton. My locking hubs slide into the hub on what looks like a 40 or so spline and are held in by a lock ring. Maybe there are later model lockers that will work, but all that I have seen have less splines. I had my truck up on stands so I could engage the 4x4. I could remove the lockers and see the axel turning, but when I slid the lockers in, the hub wouldn't turn. I know that the locker was all the way extended, but it acted like it didn't go in far enough. I thought maybe the locking gears were worn down. I you ever seen this before?

You have an internaly splined hub. Those came in newer 70's trucks. 60 truck should have a external hub that is held on by bolting to the spindle.

I have has problems in the past with the springs in your type of hubs. First off have you used grease in the hub? They are not susposto use grease and many won't engage/disengage with alot of grease in there. Secondly try bending the springs to they eather engage or disengege more...witch ever is not working. Over time the springs fatigue and loose their arch.

crabbyw, i didn't realize that yours is 1/2 ton, so yes, your is different. if you have access to a 61 manual supplement, it has some 4x4 info. yours is internal mount. If you don't, let me know, and i can scan it and get it to you, although it might be a while, as i'm roadtripping to Alaska this week. You might look into the possibility of a different hub of a later model Dana 44? I realize some came with disk brakes, and spindles may not be the same, but just something to think about.

Crabbjw, Spicer and Dana are/were the same company since the late 1940's. Chances are it's a Dana 44 axle, but you may want to take the hubs into a local 4x4 shop to check. They should have a set of Warns to compare with.

The 1/2 ton Warn hub is the M-8, the early versions have M-8 stamped on the brass disk in the middle. The later ones do not. It is an internal mount hub, unlike the 3/4 ton ones that are secured by bolts to the outside of a hub (just like the ones on old jeeps and Scouts. The M-8, being an internal mount hub is secured inside the hub with a spiral snap ring. The modern 67-80? hubs will not fit, they can be made to fit, but it requires turning off about 3/4" of the outside of the hub and cutting a internal groove to secure the new hub and cutting a seat for the hub itself to go into, AND you have to get the right spline count for the axle shafts. I looked forever on the net to find one, I got lucky. I emailed Jim Carter and he told me a guy in Pryor, OK had some, I got mine from a Internet wrecking yard for 50$