I just went through the same misery myself. The tool you will need can be bought at any Napa autoparts, auto zone, Kragen, pick up place. If you live near an Advanced Auto or a Kragen, they have loaner tools available. Call them for the details. The Napa part number is 2467, figure on paying $20 if you buy it. Kragen has the Power Built Spindle nut socket (p/n 648474) 4 lug x 2 1/4" inner. You can also buy the Ford tool ( p/n T59T-1197-B ). No idea what that thing will cost!
Check this place out too
http://www.mytoolstore.com/kd/kdbrak12.html
One other thing you might want to consider as well is changing the spindle nuts. The OEM come with an inner spindle nut (the one with the pin on it), a lock washer (keyed washer with a bunch of holes) and the outer spindle nut (basically the jam nut). I replaced my spindle nuts with the ratcheting spindle nuts from a 1994 F-150. I ordered the parts from the local Ford dealer. (NOTE: NEVER, EVER, EVER take your vehicle to Wayne County Ford in Honesdale PA (NE PA) for serivce)
You can buy the part at the ford dealer for about $23 each. Order p/n E7TZ-1A134-A . You can also buy the same part at Napa but they cost $28 each. The work like a champ and no more fiddling with getting the pin in the washer holes!! Buy the Napa spindle nut socket for doing this replacement.
One other thing... when replacing the nut, pre-load the wheel bearings to 50 ft/lbs, back off one quarter turn ( 90 degrees ) then torque to 16 ft/lbs. These torque specs came from the dealer.
When you use the ratcheting spindle nuts, you can use ANY manual hub!!! WITHOUT $50 + for a spindle nut conversion kit ( p/n WAR-32720 ). Ofcourse you are going to drop that much for the replacement ratcheting spindle nuts anyway. But the ratcheting is SOOO much easier!! Believe me!
Credit for this "discovery" goes to these guys
http://www.4x4wire.com/jeep/tech/axle/d44nut01/
Look at
http://www.clemson4wheel.com/ they have a spindle nut conversion kit for $18
I bought the Mile Marker Supreme Stainless Locking Hubs (p/n 104). They are VERY similar to the Warn premiums. The center dial is gold colored zinc cast (Warn is just *** metal that is painted over) and has one seal in it to keep out the elements and water (Warn has two seals).
The outer body ( the visible outside) is stainless steel (Not sure what Warn uses). The inner body has an aluminum base and steel gears (same for Warn). They take 3/4 (closer to 7/8) of a turn to engage (Warn is 7/8 turn to engage).
The Mile Marker and Warn are VERY similar except in price! Set the two side by side and Mile Markers are nicer looking! Functionally they do the same thing, so the only thing left is cosmetics and price!
Check out
http://www.tellico4x4.com/catalog/product_...oducts_id/12859 they have the Mile Marker 104's for $50 and that is a great deal!
Look at this site for a good comparison
http://www.off-road.com/chevy/reviews/mm-vs-warn/
Keep in mind the reviewer is talking about the Mile Marker 101. It has stainless steel outer body and center dial. The inner hub body / base assemble is cast iron and steel gears. This thing is indestructable!! You'll pay around $120 for these guys. The Warns will run you about $95. I would defintely recommend using a fused manual hub for this thing!
You'll also need the spindle conversion kit #95-32720 from Mile Marker unless you are using the ratcheting nuts. Buy the Power Built Spindle nut socket (p/n 648474) if you are using the spindle nut conversion kits. This socket is ALOT easier to deal with OEM spindle nuts.
If you are set on getting Warn hubs, look into the Warn hub fuses. In a nutshell, the hub gear strips before you explode your drive axle saving you LOTS of money! you can carry extra gears for a few bucks each versus hundreds of dollars for a busted axle. The fuse links are not a real advertised product so you might want to contact Warn directly. Look at this English/British site that gives a picture of the fuses
http://j33p.org/feature.cfm?ID=3
Good luck!
