that is true for a selectable locker, ie. ARB, ox, or e-locker.

a spool replaces your spider gears and connects both axle shafts together permanently.

a locker can either replace your whole carrier (detroit locker), or just the spider gears (aussie locker). when the axleshaft speeds need to differentiate, the locker has teeth that can disengage from eachother, permitting that the locker isnt under load.

so sorry to burst your knowledge bubble, but you need a bit of education on the differences of either.

 

I agree. Mine is a DD and we get a lot of snow here too. I never really thought about it making snow driving squirly. I thought it would help, but not if its locking when you dont want it to. Selectable would be really nice, but thats a bit more money and a harder install.

Exactly. Thanks for clarifying. Also, Abovetimerline, locking one hub is a locking hub which connects or disconnects you axle shaft to the differential. That's not a locking diff.

 

i locked my rear end first with a full detroit. i was kinda new to the MJ scene and didnt know how locking the front would work with not having lockouts. with that being said, i think its a horse a piece whether you lock the front or rear first.

case in point: i went wheeling with bmyohn along with some other folks. he has an aussie in the front and open rear, i at the time was open in front, detroit rear. both rigs are setup up kinda similar, main difference is wheelbase (XJ to MJ) and he has 35s while im on 33s.

obstacle we both attempted



obviously getting the front tires up the wall was the hardest part. he pretty much walked the front right up while i had to apply way more throttle. after the wall, there was another small ledge that get the front over. i couldnt get my front up it. he could, however his rear end wasnt able to climb up the remainder of the wall because he is open. so to sum it up, we both ended up needing a winch in the same spot backing up my statement that locking front or rear is about equal.

 

imo, if you looking for most traction you'd prolly wanna do the front first. as stated before, most of your weight is in the front. and to whoever said weight transfer plays a big portion. it does to a degree, but realistically how weight transfer do you have when your going though a mudhole? the more traction you have with the pulling tires (front) the better off you are as opposed to the rear tires that are pushing. i would say if you do alot of winter driving though, i would look into a selectable locker in the frontend. on that note i did a aussie in the back a few months ago, and doing a selectable in the springtime, thinking a ox locker is gonna be the ticket for me.

 

I like to watch videos on youtube like that.


I dont know how this got posted to this thread... crazy

 

Auto lockers, but they do open.

 

I know exactly what it is,I have manual hubs on it and leave it unlocked so it is not a locker and will drive as if it was not,by doing so that wheel has nothing to do with traction just follows where ever I point it and does not try and push me in the ditch. I know what lockers are and how they work.

 

I personally run lockers front and rear in my rig now, but back when I was starting out... I ran one in the front, and a factory LSd in the rear.


My theory was it is easier for the jeep to pull it slef up the hill, then push it. Not sure if my thinking is right.. but that is the logic I used.

 

Well I intalled my rear locker first, that was this year in February. It worked great in the snow and it really dug in but, on black ice and really slick mud like red clay, i could turn it around on a dime cause now i had both rear wheels brake free and if the terrain had a tilt at all like a road with a high crown you had to be quick to pull your foot out of the throttle pop it in 4 and ease back in to it. Then it would grab and straighten out. So i started to drive in part time on the road in the ice more and take it out to go around the corners. So I think driving habots need to change when you install a locker. I just installed my front locker a few weeks ago and haven't really had a chance to go test it out yet. This is a great thread, it will be interesting to hear the different opinions and experiences. Thanks for thinking of it! Heres a before and after video of mine.
http://videos.streetfire.net/video/B...ker_637399.htm
VOTED!

 

Here we dont get snow, ever!!! But we get plenty of rain, so we have a lot of fun mud wheeling

Best part is after you get beck on the road, splashing mud to avery car on your side hhehehehehehe!!!!!!!

PS the day we get snow on the caribbean, then the world is coming to an end

 

That's cool. I didn't know if you had a locking differential in front because all you were saying is you were locking your hubs which does not necessarily mean you have a locking differential. Manual hubs is something I would like to add when I put a locker in front on mine. That way I choose when its locking or not (without having a selectable) and I can still drive it home in case I break a shaft or blow up the front diff.

 

Yah! That sound a little "Dukes of Hazardish!" lol. Let us know how the front locker works for you!

 

i think locking the front first is more beneficial than the rear. mainly because the d30 is much stronger than the d35 c-clip.

but for everyday driving, in 2wd with the rear auto locked, not selectable, it gets a little crazy when in rain or snow. harder to control on a sloped (crowned) surface, as mentioned.

but for the front, if driven daily should get a selectable locker, so when in 4 hi, you can have the open diff in the snow, otherwise your not turning when you steer. and on the trail you can lock it when needed and run open most of the time.

then later, lock the rear too.
as mentioned, just the front or rear makes about the same difference on an obstacle. but locking the front will help the tires climb a flat surface rather than the rear just pushing the front wheels up, or rather into it.

i vote the front first. but selectable, and only if you have 31 to 33's and the non disconnect d30.
you can lock the vac disco axle if you have stock to 31's, but that's it with those puny 260 joints. you'd be pushing it with 33's.

 

Thats what I'm thinking. What do you think about running a non-selectable locker (i.e. Detroit) with manual locking hubs for the snow and in the event of breakage??

 

If you lock the rear you can do donuts! and that pretty cool