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I just happened to run across these hubs. That the box is included suggests they might not have much wear.
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/item/227114210208748
“Fits jeep/ Willy’s great condition in original box asking 50 obo”
UPDATE: This post has been updated with more pics. Also, there is currently a Kelly Hub brochure on eBay.
In May of 1957, DA Ruben L. Beck filed a patent for a new hub design. Beck was a dreamer and like many dreamers, some saw him a genius while others thought him just plain crazy. Beck’s goal was to create a simple, but effective, four-wheel-drive hub.
Beck had already made an early impact in the jeep world, when he founded D.L. Beck Manfucaturing in Middleport, Ohio, a company that made hardtops (see Beck hardtop history here).
Beck sold his hardtop company to Hubert A. Kelly, in the 1950s but Beck and Kelly remained in contact. The date of the sale, thought once to be 1951, is less clear after this document hit eBay in 2014. It indicates Beck was still selling hardtops in 1954.
No matter when the sale occurred, Hubert took control. It wasn’t long after the patent filing that Mike Kelly, Hubert Kelly’s descendent, remembered seeing the hubs for the first time. He thought that was about 1958. I asked that he review the patent and Mike sent me the following notes:
“The Kelly Self Locking Hub I knew a was little different than the one pictured in the patent drawing. The housing was larger in diameter and had reliefs milled along the outside to allow clearance for the mounting bolts. The internal parts looked very similar to what I remember. I’m pretty sure the final Kelly product was a Beck design. I don’t recall anyone else working on it.
The hubs were manufactured in Charleston West Virginia. We already had an large machine shop there on Broad St. So moving production from Ohio to West Virgina was only logical. I know the assembling the hubs could be “interesting” if you weren’t watching what you were doing. Putting the internal workings together with the ball bearings being under spring pressure woke up more than one man who wasn’t paying attention.”
UPDATE: **SOLD** Was $150.
Original box, too!
“Selling (2) two Willy’s Jeep WL-2 Locking Hubs–Warn Mfg. Co.
In original box; asking $150 for the pair.”
With Steve’s help, I have obtained some rare images of the disassembly of a Sears & Roebuck Allstate Locking Hub. Accompanying them is a rough guide.
Here, the bolts are being removed:
Here the bolts have been removed. Now, the big ring must be removed.
You need to get a hold of the ring and flexing it inward to get it out of the channel.
Here is the cap being pried out:
The ring holds in the four rectangular blocks that engage in the cams inside the cam to switch from locked to unlocked. After that, you’ll need snap ring pliers to remove the ring with the two small holes that you can see in the center around the spline.
Here’s another angle:
Here the parts are getting cleaned:
Shows a box with all the parts from both sides (two assemblies):
I wasn’t aware that Kaiser Willys put out a series of Commercial and Jeep Sales Bulletins, but I now have examples of at least four of these that I will publish over the next week or so. It’s unclear how many were published or how long this lasted.
This particular example, dated October 08, 1954, welcomed Warn Locking and Automatic hubs to the Willys Special Equipment Line. To the best of my knowledge, it was the first time Willys included hubs in its Special Equipment line. As of 1954, Warn was likely the largest producers of hubs. Free-Lock quickly became the second largest producer of hubs, but that wouldn’t be until 1956 (See Free-Lock Hubs history for more info). To the best of my knowledge, Free-Lock was never added to the Willys Special Equipment Line.
David shared a link to these recently listed hubs. They are the nicest example of these hub that I have ever seen. They are currently listed at $999.
View all the information on eBay
“New Old Stock
Spicer 10 Spline Locking hubs in excellent new condition.
Hard to find.
Comes complete with gaskets, sticker, and instructions.”
UPDATE: This post originally highlighted Paul’s Warn hub counter display model. Now, this post will highlight several different demo or display hubs with sections removed for dealers. Anyone seen images of other examples?
1. Cutlas Selective Hub: You can see a brochure for this early Cutlas hub here. This was on eBay (last priced around $450), but sold away from eBay. See more pics of this here: https://www.ebay.com/itm/175866727203
2. Dualmatic 2-lever Watson-style Display Hub: This hub has a Dualmatic sticker, but is the type sold under the Watson brand (Watson-branded hubs & Dualmatic hub lever variations). This display hub was also on eBay, though I don’t remember the price. It probably sold off ebay as a package with the Cutlas hub above. See more pics here: https://www.ebay.com/itm/175866718846
Bill Falconer scored a set of extremely rare “summer”-type hubs that are stamped F.E.G. Even better, he was able to get the original box that accompanied them, which included some additional information.
When I first published the post about the various Summer Hub models, I included a photo of an F.E.G. hub, but the only reference I had was that photo. I could finding nothing else about them. Thankfully, the New Hampshire Fish and Game, which owned these hubs originally, bought from a Willys dealership in Colebrook, New Hampshire (which has since been bulldozed), kept the information it had. So, now we know a little more.
According to the Box’s information, these summer hubs were $20. F.E.G also offered a locking type for $65. Unfortunately, the part showing how to order the hubs was torn from the box.
So, what does “F.E.G.” mean? In researching these, I found a company called F.E.G. out of Mexico that has a subsidiary parts maker, HOWEVER it appears the company wasn’t around in the 1950s. Thus, I am at a dead-end on the company’s history. I suppose it’s possible that F.E.G. are just someone’s initials.
UPDATE: **SOLD** Was $175.
These are very hard to find hubs which I believe were manufactured by the Dana-Spicer Corp
“Original vintage late forties – early fifties Willy’s Jeep Locking Hubs
10 Spline Dana 25 Axle
Appear to be in working order.
Will need good cleaning, lubricating, and new gaskets.
Have been in my garage in dry storage for more than 25 years.
I’m cleaning up and they need to go.
I have a Paypal account and will ship if you pay shipping.”
These hubs have seen some serious wear on their faces. Evidence suggests it was Husky that private labeled this hub for Allstate (more on Husky history here).
What is interesting to me is that the back side of this hub looks identical to the backside of the early Husky, Dualmatic, and Free-Lock hub, too. I don’t have enough information to compared the eternals of each of these, but I suspect that some of the Husky and Dualmatic hubs reflect evolutions (or copies) from the early Free-Lock hub.
View all the information on eBay
Bottom of an early Husky hub (with more splines, but same underside design with the lock ring):
This version of the Husky hub, also appears to be identical on the backside (also private labeled with Allstate). See the rebuild of this hub here:
