jeepguy93

I'm a noob I guess hahaha I'm wondering what a locker does in the diff and what a rear spooled axle does..

Pistol-McGee

A locker lets the tires move at different speeds if they need to, but still locks them when needed. A spool is completely locked, no differentiating speeds. so youll be dragging a tire around a corner if you use one on the street

DUDE454

Ya, when you take a corner a locker will disengauge and a spool will not. So when you take a corner with a spool you will skid the inside tire. Spools are usualy for offroad only vehicles because on the road they eat up tires.
A regular diff (called an open differential) only has one tire spinning at a time and that is the tire with the least resistance. So it will always be the outside tire in a turn. The problem is if you have one tire in the air, it has the least resistance and it will get all the power.
These vids will help to visualize

billulsund

This is a very common question that gets asked here often. You could search this site and find several threads discussing the many different types of lockers. You can click here to view one of the most recent locker discussions on here. In that thread the OP was asking about what a locker is and if he needs one and I thought I gave a pretty decent breakdown that I will re-post for you here.

"If you get stuck and have to use your winch a lot then you probably need lockers. The cheapest lockers you can get are often called "lunchbox lockers" and the most common are the lockright, spartan, and aussie lockers. They operate automatically so when you are going straight the locker will engage locking the left and right axles together, but when you turn in will disengage allowing the tires to spin at different rates. They are not that difficult to install and do not require you to know how to set up gears. I can install one in about an hour. If you feel like you need lockers that is a great place to start. The more expensive option would be a selecable locker like an ARB, OX, or Eaton. They operate on either air pressure, a cable, or electricity. They can be turned on and off on the fly so when off it acts like an open differential and when on it locks up the differential. Selectable lockers are "full case lockers" meaning they replace the carrier in your differential so you will need to have your gears set up by a professional when installing one and they run around $700 each where lunchbox lockers cost around $250 each. The advantage of a selectable locker is a stronger carrier, and the ablity to turn the locker off which helps with cornering and snow wheeling. The only other option is a spool which permanently locks the differential. I would only reccomend a spool for your rear differential as it will reduce your turning radius and increase tire wear, but either of the above options are generally considered better than going with a spool unless you only plan to drive the Jeep offroad. I am not even going to get into Limited Slip Differentials because for wheeling you are better off with a locker."

jeepguy93

I will be more daily driving wheeling weekends but a lot of snow bwheelin so which would be best??? Can I getta link to one

billulsund

I suppose if buget is not an issue I would go with a selectable locker. They are better in the snow because if you are on a sidehill you would not want both tires to spin because that can make it easier to slide sideways down the hill. They will also be good for road driving as you can turn them off and then it is like having no locker at all. The main choices are ARB, OX, and Eaton. These lockers run around $700, but unless you know how to set up gears you will need to have it installed by a professional. If that is too rich for your blood I would reccomend an auto locker like a Spartan, or Aussie. They run around $250 and you can install one yourself. For street driving you should notice no difference in handling but will hear a clicking from the locker when you take corners. They are not as strong as the selectable lockers, but are great entry level lockers if you are not ready to pony up the big bucks.

OttawaXJ

They tell you to google because that exact question brings up for 40 000 pages of explanations

billulsund

That seems like an unessary post. Everyone knows about google. I am of the opinion that if all you have to say is to use google then you are better off not posting anything at all. I prefer to just answer the question. Maybe someone will answer the question in a new way that makes more sense than the answers provided in the previous 40,000 posts. Plus if everyone just answered the repetetive post questions instead of telling people to use google then maybe it would be easier to find answers using the search function on here. I know I have searched for anwers here before and had to waste time reading through a bunch of posts that tell the OP to use google without of providing any helpful information. If you absolutely insist on teaching people about google you could at least google it yourself, make sure the results will point the OP in the right direction, and then give them a www.lmgtfy.com link to the results. It is still not the most helpful response, but better than just telling someone to google it. Sorry for the rant, just my $0.2.

jeepguy93

I loved that response haha hours on google or 15 mins on here I think I know the correct choice thanks for all the help