In this video I give step-by-step instructions to the DIY and home mechanic on how to convert your 2005+ Ford super duty to the Dynatrac Free Spin Kit. If you find this video helpful please Like and/or share!
Hey Jess! Great video, bud! I wanted to give you and the others watching a couple tips to help with the install. At the 16:00 mark you use the tube and square stock to support the unit assembly. An easier way to mount those wheel studs is to simply run the bolts on the stud with your ratchet. once you have them all snugged in a little bit, you can wedge your pry-bar between the studs to hold the hub in place and then tighten the bolts down to suck the wheel studs all the way in. also, brass hammers and brass drift pins are cheap at Harbor Freight. those will prevent damage to the components you want to hammer on. Otherwise, it looked like a cold February install. I like the mod you did to the lug nut cover at the end. Nice touch!
Thanks Justin! The reason I didn't set the studs by tightening the bolts was to avoid stressing the threads. Basically I was being cautious. Thanks for the tip on the brass hammers and drift pins though! That will come in handy. Glad you enjoyed the video!
I was about to say the same thing, only use some washers or an over sized nut as a spacer on the nut side, and use an impact to seat them. You won't hurt the theards
@5:27 Dude, didn't the $2k+ kit com with 4 new hub to knuckle bolts!?! If not, that's just crazy. Personally, IMHO just like U-bolts I'd NEVER reuse the old ones because of age, torque stress, etc. It's not worth the risk to me. Great video BTW! Awesome channel.
Thanks man. Yeah I probably should have replaced those while I was in there but I'm about 45,000 miles since the install and have had no issues. Glad you enjoyed it though! I've got a couple other videos I should probably edit and upload... just isn't a priority at the moment.
I don't know that there was any one thing in particular. At the time they were well reviewed and came well recommended from a couple of trusted sources. Price was considered but wasn't the first consideration.
I want to do the Dynatrac Free Spin on a Dodge to stop the whole front end from turning in 2WD. Didn't you already had locking hubs? What were the issues? Mainly to delete the unit bearing?
Carl Harris Thanks for watching! My pickup had the factory hubs that don't actually have the 'free' setting, only 'auto' and 'lock'. In the auto setting they are actuated by the vacuum system which is prone to issues that cause the front end to remain engaged. Which was what was happening in my case. I did want to replace the unit bearing as well, but I was mainly deleting issues caused by the vacuum system failure.
Carl Harris Thanks for watching! My pickup had the factory hubs that don't actually have the 'free' setting, only 'auto' and 'lock'. In the auto setting they are actuated by the vacuum system which is prone to issues that cause the front end to remain engaged. Which was what was happening in my case. I did want to replace the unit bearing as well, but I was mainly deleting issues caused by the vacuum system failure.
Sure thing! is there something specific you'd like to know? So far the free spin kit has worked flawlessly. I've seen a small bump up in overall fuel economy and a slight reduction in interior cab noise. I'm very happy with the kit.
The original hubs had +/-215,000 miles. So far I've seen a 1.5-2 mpg increase overall. I would not use that small of an increase in mpg's as a reason to buy the kit, overall reliability was the main reason for the change, but it is a nice little bonus.
Makes sense. I have over 265000 on the original Ford units, but yeah, the vacuum locking system sucks and never has worked longer than 100K. Thankfully it has a manual override. Now, did you check to make sure your axle wasn't spinning in 2wd before you installed these Dynatracs? That can seriously hurt fuel economy.
Yes. On mine I noticed that when I would switch out of 4wd my front driveline would still spin, which can be the source of all sorts of problems if it isn't remedied. I found that in order to fully disengage the hubs, because the vacuum system wasn't doing it's job, I had to pull the hubs out completely. Meaning I had to unscrew the cap and pull the hub. The manual override wouldn't do it because the spring in the hub wasn't strong enough to overcome the slight bind on the hub caused by weak unit bearings. It was a pain but I didn't want to cause other expensive front end problems by being lazy. Now I no longer have to do that with the Dynatracs.
