ARB locker issue

[seymouj]

My ARB's have been installed for a couple years now and have worked flawlessly until now. After being parked for a couple months, when I turned on my rear locker (d44), air was blowing out of the axle vent, enough so that the compressor couldn't keep up. After driving it all day, I tried it again and it worked like normal.

On the Rubicon last weekend (first wheeling since then), it worked well all morning, then did the same thing again (Of course it decided to not work at an obstacle where someone broke down and traffic backed up and by the time it was finally my turn to go through, there was an audience and I had to do it minus one locker in front of everyone). Later it worked again and was intermittent the rest of the trip.

When it does engage without blowing air out, it does not leak and works well.
Last night I pulled the cover and everything looks normal, plenty of oil, nothing broken.

I have read of people having issues with the diff not venting and pressure building up and oil filling up the air lines causing the locker to not work, but I seem to have the opposite problem.

After all this typing, my question is, does this just sound like I need a new O-ring? If so, why would it work sometimes and not others?

I'll probably pull it out tonight, anything else I should check?

 

[CRASH]

My ARB's have been installed for a couple years now and have worked flawlessly until now. After being parked for a couple months, when I turned on my rear locker (d44), air was blowing out of the axle vent, enough so that the compressor couldn't keep up. After driving it all day, I tried it again and it worked like normal.

On the Rubicon last weekend (first wheeling since then), it worked well all morning, then did the same thing again (Of course it decided to not work at an obstacle where someone broke down and traffic backed up and by the time it was finally my turn to go through, there was an audience and I had to do it minus one locker in front of everyone). Later it worked again and was intermittent the rest of the trip.

When it does engage without blowing air out, it does not leak and works well.
Last night I pulled the cover and everything looks normal, plenty of oil, nothing broken.

I have read of people having issues with the diff not venting and pressure building up and oil filling up the air lines causing the locker to not work, but I seem to have the opposite problem.

After all this typing, my question is, does this just sound like I need a new O-ring? If so, why would it work sometimes and not others?

I'll probably pull it out tonight, anything else I should check?

You've got a blown O-ring, or a leaky bulkhead fitting. Check the bulkhead fitting, especially the compression fitting base that screws into the bulkhead fitting from the bottom. Make sure it's tight. Sometimes they loosen up, and can get moved around by air pressure or the hard line touching the case, or vibrating.

I would go ahead and order new O-rings anyway. It's always a good idea to change them every two-three years. It could be intermittent depending on the position of the O-ring in relation to the case and the "lollipop" that the air line is affixed to. When you change the O-rings, make sure you clean the area very well with a dust free rag and brake cleaner. I use engine assembly lube to assemble the O-rings, making sure to never twist or spin them onto the carrier.

CRASH