ECO Hubs Who needs 3:07 gears?

[hike]

Had one of the clamps strip today oddly just a tiny sliver of thread came out, almost like too large of a tap drill used. Not saying that's the case but that's the behavior I've seen from that. Made a mod to the clamp with a nut on the other side (I will also deform threads "Bubba threadlock" so it can't separate and get into the wheel bearing).View attachment 909075

Better to await a replacement? Where this is going a 'Bubba threadlock' could be challenging in the future; replacing inner or outer bearings; repacking inners; replacing CTIS seals, wheel seals. When on the road choices must be made, when at home better to wait?

 

[Xengineguy]

Had one of the clamps strip today oddly just a tiny sliver of thread came out, almost like too large of a tap drill used. Not saying that's the case but that's the behavior I've seen from that. Made a mod to the clamp with a nut on the other side (I will also deform threads "Bubba threadlock" so it can't separate and get into the wheel bearing).View attachment 909075

I don’t like that fix, I will be glad to send you another lock ring. The problem with the threads is that they are formed threads not cut.
That makes them stronger and tighter more consistent. However they have a false start sometimes. If you engage the false start and
continue it will destroy the threads. If the Allen starts to bind at all, back the Allen out plus 1/4 turn then reinstall.
There is a note in the instructions about this. And printed in the newer instructions.
I do have thicker lock ring in the works now. Just to make me and everyone feel better. They have bigger pinch bolts also.
The laser shop I use can now cut 1/2” material pretty good with their new laser. Not perfect but good enough to use. They are still learning the new machine.
The original thick lock ring was great, however the availability and price became a big problem.

 

[aw113sgte]

Better to await a replacement? Where this is going a 'Bubba threadlock' could be challenging in the future; replacing inner or outer bearings; repacking inners; replacing CTIS seals, wheel seals. When on the road choices must be made, when at home better to wait?

I could, but there is no reason to remove the bolt. The clamp can be installed and removed with nut and screw in place, just loosened.

I don’t like that fix, I will be glad to send you another lock ring. The problem with the threads is that they are formed threads not cut.
That makes them stronger and tighter more consistent. However they have a false start sometimes. If you engage the false start and
continue it will destroy the threads. If the Allen starts to bind at all, back the Allen out plus 1/4 turn then reinstall.
There is a note in the instructions about this. And printed in the newer instructions.
I do have thicker lock ring in the works now. Just to make me and everyone feel better. They have bigger pinch bolts also.
The laser shop I use can now cut 1/2” material pretty good with their new laser. Not perfect but good enough to use. They are still learning the new machine.
The original thick lock ring was great, however the availability and price became a big problem.

Yeah I was very careful about the false start/cross thread not sure what happened on this one, the other 5 did fine. Everything else went together great.
Haven't done a real test but drove around the neighborhood and it already felt way better in terms of smoothness and not winding the engine out.

 

[Xengineguy]

Eco Hubs new web site. Ecohubs.net. Check it out, lots of good info. Also email Ecohubs78@gmail.com for any
questions etc. We take PayPal, credit cards, and other forms of payment (contact me for other forms of payment)
Thank you for your support. Mike

 

[Ned81]

I could, but there is no reason to remove the bolt. The issue


Yeah I was very careful about the false start/cross thread not sure what happened on this one, the other 5 did fine. Everything else went together great.
Haven't done a real test but drove around the neighborhood and it already felt way better in terms of smoothness and not winding the engine out.

I had one do the exact same thing. On mine, the Allen bolt didn't seem to go far enough in before it started to tighten. I was able to use a longer Allen bolt that went past the stripped threads and did tighten up.

 

[Xengineguy]

I had one do the exact same thing. On mine, the Allen bolt didn't seem to go far enough in before it started to tighten. I was able to use a longer Allen bolt that went past the stripped threads and did tighten up.

That’s the reason all split collars are shipped with the Allen’s installed. To make sure there isn’t a problem with the threads.
The false start is a problem. I will gladly send you another split lock. When the new lock rings are available, this problem should be gone. ( Bigger allen and different threads thicker lock also).

 

[Xengineguy]

Hi everyone wanted to remind folks we have a new web site https://www.ecohubs.net/. And a promo code for free shipping!
Use “Steel Soldiers “ as the coupon code . Good for a week or so….
Thanks everyone.

 

[Subby808]

Placed an order the other day. Excited to try them out. Will post results and thoughts once I have them installed and tested.

 

[aw113sgte]

Was a little concerned about the small m5 cap screw that was the only thing keeping the wheel nut from loosening, so I did a modification:

From fire truck to MTV

Cut some isolaters for the box to frame interface from HDPE. Hopefully box to be mounted this week. Removed the air over oil pump and about 8 hydraulic lines I won't need (suspension cylinders, feed and return from aoo pump). Did have some issues with the spare tire cylinder locking up but...

www.steelsoldiers.com

 

[MatthewWBailey]

Just bought a 4x4 set of these. X engine guy can I get the thicker lock rings? Based on all the posts here, hoping this will be a win. Driving around at 70mph on 75mph roads is a noisy hassle. Now I need someone to buy my 3.07 pumpkins and find a set of 3.90 's to replace them. Any ideas?

 

[Xengineguy]

Just bought a 4x4 set of these. X engine guy can I get the thicker lock rings? Based on all the posts here, hoping this will be a win. Driving around at 70mph on 75mph roads is a noisy hassle. Now I need someone to buy my 3.07 pumpkins and find a set of 3.90 's to replace them. Any ideas?

Just bought a 4x4 set of these. X engine guy can I get the thicker lock rings? Based on all the posts here, hoping this will be a win. Driving around at 70mph on 75mph roads is a noisy hassle. Now I need someone to buy my 3.07 pumpkins and find a set of 3.90 's to replace them. Any ideas?

Hi Matthew, The thicker lock rings are available no problem. All the new sets ship with the thicker ones now. I haven’t had any problems with the thin ones. Other than a few being stripped out when installing the Allen screw. I also have a new lock plate in the works now to provide a positive lock between the tube splines and the wheel nut. (Delta Lock) The split lock will still be used but only to hold the
lock plate against the wheel nut. The turning forces will be shared by the lock plate and the split lock…. The new Delta Lock will be available in a week or two….
Yes you can use the Delta Lock with any Eco Hubs with thick or thin split locks.

 

[MatthewWBailey]

Hi Matthew, The thicker lock rings are available no problem. All the new sets ship with the thicker ones now. I haven’t had any problems with the thin ones. Other than a few being stripped out when installing the Allen screw. I also have a new lock plate in the works now to provide a positive lock between the tube splines and the wheel nut. (Delta Lock) The split lock will still be used but only to hold the
lock plate against the wheel nut. The turning forces will be shared by the lock plate and the split lock…. The new Delta Lock will be available in a week or two….
Yes you can use the Delta Lock with any Eco Hubs with thick or thin split locks.

Ok super. that sounds great to me. Can't wait to try it out. I spent a fortune on those 3.07 gears from Midwest so I'll try it with those in there first. I really don't pull weight and my 4 wheeling is just trail driving. I'm not a Moab king.

 

[GCecchetto]

Hi Matthew, The thicker lock rings are available no problem. All the new sets ship with the thicker ones now. I haven’t had any problems with the thin ones. Other than a few being stripped out when installing the Allen screw. I also have a new lock plate in the works now to provide a positive lock between the tube splines and the wheel nut. (Delta Lock) The split lock will still be used but only to hold the
lock plate against the wheel nut. The turning forces will be shared by the lock plate and the split lock…. The new Delta Lock will be available in a week or two….
Yes you can use the Delta Lock with any Eco Hubs with thick or thin split locks.

Guess I'm waiting to remove and reinstall the other 3 hubs until I can get my hands on the new lock setup. How much for a set of 4?

 

[Xengineguy]

The new lock set will be available to all my previous customers at a very minimal price. It will be an option on all future kits. The program is written and a few samples
should be available soon. Don’t worry we will fix you up. Once again we have had no problems with the current system.
This is more of a feel good fix. But I like it! Redundancy is not a bad thing.

 

[GCecchetto]

I know this is the Eco Hubs thread, but since we had some lengthy discussion here about my feelings that an exhaust brake was critical for mountain driving when you have Eco Hubs installed I thought I would post a follow up. So, back to the exhaust brake conversation. Since I have now installed my new PacBrake, Switch, solenoid, and associated air lines, I've now gotten focused on changing the way the exhaust brake functions to make it something that is useful in a truck that is now capable of cruising 75mph on the highway.

There was a previous post that identified that there is a "target gear" setting in the TCM. I have the Allison software, but can't use it as it needs to be activated. Way too expensive to buy, $1100 and then $590 each year to keep it active. So I'll have to find a commercial Allison tech here locally to change the target gear. Where this gets exciting though is that there is even more useful changes that can be made in the ECM with CAT ET, which I also have. These improvements require that you also have the ECM setup for cruise control. Here's what I (I means my daughter who is a computer genius have done and it makes the exhaust brake function exactly how I want it to and essentially the same as the exhaust brake in my 2014 Ram.

In CAT ET you go into the cruise control menu and set the cruise control to "Latched". There is also a setting called something like "auto retard threshold" The lowest value this can be set to is 3 mph. We had to shut the truck down and restart for all of the changes to take a affect. Now with these changes you have three different exhaust brake modes based on the status of the cruise control.

Exhaust switch on/cruise control switch off - in this mode the exhaust brake engages when you lift your foot off of the accelerator pedal. The downshift to the target gear happens in this mode.

Exhaust switch on/cruise control switch on but cruise not set - in this mode the exhaust brake engages when you press the service brake and stays latch on whether you are on the brakes or not until you depress the accelerator pedal. The downshift to the target gear happens in this mode.

Exhaust brake switch on/cruise control on and set - in this mode with the cruise set when you are coasting with your foot off of the accelerator pedal, the ECM automatically modulates the exhaust brake to maintain your set speed. When your speed reaches the threshold value you set over the set cruise speed the exhaust brakes engages and stays latched until your speed is back withing the threshold range you set. In my case the threshold is set at the minimum 3 mph value. In this mode, the trans does not downshift to the target gear.

Hope you find this info useful. For me this is a MASSIVE improvement in the exhaust brake function and will be even better once I have the target gear changed.

 

[Lostchain]

Isn’t the default gear 3? Are you try to go to 2?

 

[GCecchetto]

Isn’t the default gear 3? Are you try to go to 2?

Yes the default is 3rd. I want to change it to 5th or 6th. You can always downshift with the key pad if you want a lower gear and the trans isn't yet wanting to downshift.

 

[aw113sgte]

I know this is the Eco Hubs thread, but since we had some lengthy discussion here about my feelings that an exhaust brake was critical for mountain driving when you have Eco Hubs installed I thought I would post a follow up. So, back to the exhaust brake conversation. Since I have now installed my new PacBrake, Switch, solenoid, and associated air lines, I've now gotten focused on changing the way the exhaust brake functions to make it something that is useful in a truck that is now capable of cruising 75mph on the highway.

There was a previous post that identified that there is a "target gear" setting in the TCM. I have the Allison software, but can't use it as it needs to be activated. Way too expensive to buy, $1100 and then $590 each year to keep it active. So I'll have to find a commercial Allison tech here locally to change the target gear. Where this gets exciting though is that there is even more useful changes that can be made in the ECM with CAT ET, which I also have. These improvements require that you also have the ECM setup for cruise control. Here's what I (I means my daughter who is a computer genius have done and it makes the exhaust brake function exactly how I want it to and essentially the same as the exhaust brake in my 2014 Ram.

In CAT ET you go into the cruise control menu and set the cruise control to "Latched". There is also a setting called something like "auto retard threshold" The lowest value this can be set to is 3 mph. We had to shut the truck down and restart for all of the changes to take a affect. Now with these changes you have three different exhaust brake modes based on the status of the cruise control.

Exhaust switch on/cruise control switch off - in this mode the exhaust brake engages when you lift your foot off of the accelerator pedal. The downshift to the target gear happens in this mode.

Exhaust switch on/cruise control switch on but cruise not set - in this mode the exhaust brake engages when you press the service brake and stays latch on whether you are on the brakes or not until you depress the accelerator pedal. The downshift to the target gear happens in this mode.

Exhaust brake switch on/cruise control on and set - in this mode with the cruise set when you are coasting with your foot off of the accelerator pedal, the ECM automatically modulates the exhaust brake to maintain your set speed. When your speed reaches the threshold value you set over the set cruise speed the exhaust brakes engages and stays latched until your speed is back withing the threshold range you set. In my case the threshold is set at the minimum 3 mph value. In this mode, the trans does not downshift to the target gear.

Hope you find this info useful. For me this is a MASSIVE improvement in the exhaust brake function and will be even better once I have the target gear changed.

Great info! I haven't seen the cruise control menu in cat et, I'll have to look for it. I do have access to Allison software, but how does target gear work? If I say target gear is two, does it always try to hit gear 2 when engaging the brake? Does it care about engine redline? I'm happy with the brake except I hate how aggressively it downshifts, rpms feel too high. I've heard some other trucks have thrown rods during pac brake use, although don't have much data on it.
Seems like I want target gear at 1, but be able to set an rpm limit lower than what it currently is so it will brake in all the gears, but not have the motor wound out quite so much?

 

[GeneralDisorder]

If you increase the target gear, you won't get much braking effect on medium and lower speed descent since the trans won't downshift and raise engine RPM to where the PAC brake is most effective. I assume you can manually shift it but what's the desire to not have this automated by the computer?

It doesn't go straight to 3rd. It goes to the next lowest gear that's acceptable for the engine RPM. So if you are in 7th then the trans will first go to 6th, and then 5th and 4th etc - but only as conditions are safe to do so - as engine RPM drops down to the acceptable limits of the next lower gear for maximum braking effect.

 

[Lostchain]

Great info! I haven't seen the cruise control menu in cat et, I'll have to look for it. I do have access to Allison software, but how does target gear work? If I say target gear is two, does it always try to hit gear 2 when engaging the brake? Does it care about engine redline? I'm happy with the brake except I hate how aggressively it downshifts, rpms feel too high. I've heard some other trucks have thrown rods during pac brake use, although don't have much data on it.
Seems like I want target gear at 1, but be able to set an rpm limit lower than what it currently is so it will brake in all the gears, but not have the motor wound out quite so much?

I’ve worried about this myself, I monitored it in CAT ET and I feel like when it was REALLY screaming, it was around 2600 rpm at the top, is that bad for the engine? I dunno, but the redline is set at 2800 in Cat ET