Yes.

 

Wait a sec...when I engage 4wd, aren't my front wheels are locked?

When I turn sharp on gravel, the inside wheel with claw stones up and crabs like crazy to catch up with the outside wheel. Is the outside wheel not driving at this point?? That can't be...or there would not be a traction difference and the inside wheel would not rip up the gravel.

On hard pavement, it won't turn without danger of snapping a driveshaft or worse. I don't see how a locker will improve this.

...what am I missing??

 

the outside wheel is driving faster and the inside one is not because it doesnt have as much distance to travel thats why it crabs up the ground.
lunchbox lockers will ratchet when no torque is applied allowing the tire to catch up without crabbing the ground. I;m not sure what your asking, i got confused reading through this thread...

 

but if its a daily driver and you do a lincoln locker your rear tires are gonna eat up alot faster. thats why lunchbox lockers ratchet.

 

Me too...

If the lunchbox locker is disengaging and not applying torque...then, by definition, it ain't locked.

I understand how my Detroit Locker works in the rear diff. I don't get why I would want a differential that UNLOCKED up from unless it is to drive on the street...or on rocks, which affect the front axle just like pavement.

For my needs, snow, mud, farm fields, hunting trails, etc., I want both fronts driving. I don't want them unlocking. If I'm on pavement or other hard surface, I'll just use 2wd.

I guess this is what I'm getting at - if you're rock crawling, it seems like a locker up front is the only solution. If not - if you're a mud puppy or live in the snowbelt, leave the front end alone.

Am I all screwed up on this???

 

well i do street and off road, so i want the locker to disengage while taking corners (coasting) so it wont eat up my tires, that means not applying the skinny pedal at all, as soon as u give the slightest amount of gas the locker will kick in and start chirping the tires, i can turn corners on wide open throttle all day and not spin or slide anywhere.

i can climb up poles in forward and reverse with lunchbox lockers. i have aussies. if you put a lunchbox locker in your front since you want both fronts pulling, it wont unlock on you. unless ur driving the roadds and coasting around turns. if your offroading going around a turn its not going to unlock because your going to be giving it gas. i love my lockers, haven't failed me yet...

 

Are you using it like full-time 4wd? I mean, does the locker engage during DD use...highway, etc?

Also, if you have a locker up front that is disengaging and engaging upon application of gas pedal, I'd be concerned how the car would react on snow. With a conventional front axle (locked if in 4wd, no drive at all in 2wd) the front end is predictable. I've driven in snow and ice most of my life. In my experience, it is not like any other road or off-road condition. Predictability is safety on snow.

 

Yes! you've got a lot of it wrong if I'm following you right. First, a manual locker will lock when both tires are pointed in a straight line or when torque is applied. So it will lock when you step on the skinny petal or in some cases when you are using low gears to slow you down. ( as in compression braking ) This is the reason I'll never use a manual locker in the front again. Try driving down a 50+ degree rock face where you have to turn at the bottom before you go over the edge of a drop off and you'll understand why it is nice to be able to turn the locker off so you will be able to turn!
The reason your Cherokee kicks up gravel in 4 wheel drive in a tight turn is because it is a 4 wheel drive and doesn't have a differential in the transfercase like a AWD to split the torque between the front and rear diffs. If you had a full time transfercase you could drive it in the gravel without kicking up gravel.

 

it only disengages when turning, while driving straight it is locked. i only put my jeep in 4wd when off roading, in 2 wheel drive i cant even feel the locker in the front. but if you give it gas while turning it will engage itself. its something u have to get used to, i cant even feel it there anymore. Are you wanting a locker that will never disengage? maybe get a selectable locker (not cheap though)

 

No, I'm happy with the setup I've got. The only thing I'd like to change is to have Warn lockouts in front.

I have a Detroit in back and stock in front. It is unstopable around the farm and in snow...until the snow is so deep I can't get bite. On rocks, I'm with you - very important to be able to turn!

The problem with any type of automatic lock/unlock function in front in winter driving is you have one front on dry pavement and the other front on snow/ice all day long.

The Detroit can be dicey in the rear because it is always locked until one wheel goes faster than the other...then it rachets. If you're just cruising down the road and hit an ice patch with one wheel, you can easily disengage then re-engage...then it will push you to one side or the other. Gotta stay on top of that. In the front axle, that seems to me to be impossible. I would choose a selectable diff in front if I thought I'd encounter both situations.

 

A Detroit locker doesn't ratchet! But yes you do need to know how to drive in the snow.

 

A automatic locking PowerTrax No-Slip doesn't ratchet/click in a turn (unlocked) either. Driving with ANY traction enhanced diff (in the rear) on ANY slick surface takes getting used to.

 

Depends on what you mean by rachet...the Locker in my diff sure rachets - when it releases going around a corner you can hear it.

 

Agreed...but in Michigan, this is daily driver stuff. We go down the expressway at 70 in snow. I don't know anyone that hasn't spun out into a ditch at least once in their life...and usually it takes three or four before you realize there are better ways to spend a cold winter's evening than waiting for a wrecker. And when you spin out...everyone spun...so the wreckers take five hours to get to you.

 

Do you have a Detroit full case locker aka soft locker or a Detroit lunch box locker. The lunch box type will ratchet but the soft lockers use springs that you can't hear. The version I had in my rear 14 bolt did ratchet but it was the military CUCV version and was not the new soft locker type. I have heard of some Detroits making a slight click but the one in my front 44 is quiet when it disengages.