lukc22

As I plan to re-gear and lock, I am trying to gather info on what are the downsides of lunchbox lockers... I have no experience with lockers, so I have no basis to go off of.... its a toy that needs to be streetable to get to the trails, but by no means is it a DD.... I am leaning towards 4.56 gears so I will be ready when i wana step up to 35's... I am still between locking both or locking front and LS the rear.... Any/all comments or suggestions are welcome.... thanks guys

VTJeep

Lunchbox is cheapest and "easiest" in that they don't require user input and theres no electronics/hydraulics to worry about. A few of people use the Powertrax No Slip (LSD) without complaints. They are nominally more expensive than a lunchbox and will give you the added benefit of no ratcheting on pavement. Basically the biggest downside is a lunchbox will eat tires quicker than a LSD/selectable.

lukc22

Good input... Thanks.... I dont know anything about the "ratcheting"... Ive heard lockers in other vehicles "click" while turning.... Im guessing the ratcheting is different.... and bad?

VTJeep

Clicking and ratcheting are the same thing. When turning the tires will have a different radius meaning the outer tire wants to travel faster/farther than the inner tire. With an open differential the tires are allowed to move at different speeds. When locked, both tires are forced to turn the same rate. This causes the inner wheel to actually spin/slip a little bit. This force is applied to the locker and is what causes the noise. The noise itself being the teeth of locker disengaging enough to allow slippage, but not fully separating. Its not bad, just an inherent quality. The benefit of the Powertrax design is the lack of ratcheting/clicking when turning.

Check this out- real stuff begins almost 3 min in, but its a great video...

Fred/N0AZZ

For a non DD like mine and yours I chose a full case locker they are much stronger and quieter not like a lunchbox. I have Detroit Lockers in both differentials in mine and could not be more well pleased as far as function, strength, quiet plus quality I have the same gears also.

Dumajones

This is what a lunchbox locker sounds like..This is a Aussie in the rear axle. At time 0:48 and time 1:00,1:25 you can hear the ratcheting.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HF6t...ature=youtu.be

Big David

They don't eat tires faster. They do however make you fishtail in a curve if you apply power. There is a learning curve to them. If set up correctly, they will be invisible in the front in 2wd. In 4wd it will be difficult to turn the wheel & in some cases impossible. You are bound to have a sore shoulder. But the upside is a unbelievable amount of traction.

My 8.8 is welded & I DD it for 6 months. If you looked at the front or rear tires you could not tell a difference. I have more tire wear in one day of wheeling than in 6 months of daily driving.

denverd1

winter driving can be an issue for lunchbox locked axles. With some experience, you can drive a lunchbox locked rig in snow/ice but you have to be careful with the skinny pedal or you'll spin out and the locker will do more to hurt your traction than help.

Not sure where you are, but I'm in Texas. don't snow much around here! For my trail rig thats never a DD a lunchbox made sense for me until I upgrade gears. Then I'll be more inclined to drop more money on a selectable locker or a better auto locker/LSD that will see a lot more miles. the lunchbox was a temporary solution. cheap and it works, I'm very happy with it.

as mentioned, you can do the front first if road manners are a big deal. I have no problem running mine (rear) on pavement and its ratcheting letting me know its unlocking properly.

AussieLocker

Feel free to give us a call anytime about the Aussie Locker lunchbox locker.

Also, we're having a Black Friday sale!

Rockhead

That's a great video Dumajones.
I second Denverd1. I live in VA but have spent a lot of time (40 years on and off) winter driving in NY. IMO, the best setup for winter driving is a limited slip in the rear and the front open.
Now I have lunch box lockers front and rear; Aussie in the front and a Lock Right in the rear. Both name brands have been fine. Like Denverd1 said, driving on ice and snow with an auto locker is something to get use to.

gleason51

I have 4.56s with 35s and I am really happy with the set up. Also, I have a Spartan auto locker in the rear. It was a white-out and solid ice this morning driving to go hunting, and it did just fine. It just definitely takes a while to get used to it though!

bryweb

Lunchbox Lockers are a great way to get more traction on a budget, In the front you will not know they are there until you are locked in 4 wheel drive, but it will make your steering fight you a little when locked and accelerating.

In back you will feel it going around corners if you give it gas, because the two tires will be locked, so the inner tire (that has to go a less distance around the corner will chirp) IF YOU ARE ACCELERATING, or you will hear it ratcheting if you are coasting around a corner because it is allowing one tire to take the longer radius around a corner.

If you drive in the snow/rain you will be getting more fish tailing in 2wd because both tires will lose traction accelerating, not just one tire. So it requires a little more finess.

They range from $200 for Lokka (who use to make Aussie before they branched out to manufacture their own lockers in the USA) to $350-400 Lockright's that tend to be a little more quieter and have a little better street manors.

Any time you lock axles you put more pressure on the axle shafts, so you will be prone to breaking axles a bit more if you are heavy on the gas.

Lunchbox carriers just replace the "Spider gears" the gears that turn the axle shafts and they are the cheapest bang for the buck.

Then you have Full Carrier Lockers that replace the whole guts of the axles (except ring & pinion) like the Detroits Locker $640 - These are probably the strongest lockers but have many of the same pros and cons as lunchbox lockers. But you have to setup your gears again which usually needs to be done by a pro and will cost $300-500 per axle. So it is easier to justify if regearing at the time as well.

Then you have Limited Slip like that can come stock or be found in the Detroit TruTrak $460 - which great on the street, and in most cases great on the trails, typically one wheel is engaged, if it feels that wheel slipping it uses clutches to engage the other wheel so both are locked, the problem is is one wheel is off the ground and is not making any torque the clutches may not engage (lunchbox and Detroit lockers don't have that issue)
plus again you have to setup your gears all over so add another $300-500 an axle.

The the most expensive but most peoples favorite is the "Selectable Locker" like in Rubicon Stock, or ARB Lockers, OX Lockers, and E-Lockers, but these will run around $900-$1100 an axle by the time you buy the carrier, air compressor or linkage, etc, plus again you have to setup your gears all over so add another $300-500 an axle. Basically it is like stock axles, open with just one tire in front and one tire in back engaging, but when locked in all for are locked and pulling you up the hill, through the mud, or over the rocks.

AussieLocker

We have a FAQ page on our website that addresses many common questions on auto lockers:

https://www.torqmasters.com/faq-page

Auto lockers are a budget friendly way to get the traction you need offroad and have the streetability to be daily driven. A rear locker works best in turns when you coast, jabbing the throttle while turning will give you a chuga-chuga effect - this is more pronounced with a manual transmission. A front auto locker is basically invisible in 2WD. We don't recommend driving at highway speeds in 4WD, with a front locker, in Icy conditions, around town is fine. A rear locker is fine in any road condition. I prefer to lock both front and rear for maximum offroad performance.

For clarification on Aussie Locker & Lokka. These are two completely separate companies with different locker designs, exclusions in the warranty, materials used and model offerings. Aussie Locker has worked hard to support their customers, and has a reputation as such, since 2003.

One very important thing to consider when comparing auto locker companies - check out the fine print in the warranty. For example, if you have fuel injection and your stock hubs on your front axle, and you drive on pavement - you just voided the Lokka warranty. If you have larger tires or high horsepower, you just voided the other brand warranties. Aussie Locker has none of these exceptions because we stand behind our products and our customers. We are also a supporter of this forum for tech support, monetary support and to offer deals and new product announcements..... like our latest post in the Vendors section for our Back friday sale and our new dana 60 TORQ locker.

Feel free to give us a call anytime if you have questions: 585-723-14 89, PM me here, or shoot me an email Cora@Aussie Locker.com

~Cora

VTJeep

Interesting info on the warranty limitations. Good to know!

bryweb

Cora,

A few simple questions;

1) Did or did not Lokka manufacture Aussie Lockers until a few years ago?

2) I don't see anything that says Lokka does not warranty the items you stated, could you point out where to find this fine Print? http://lokka.com/site/warranty

3) Looking at the link above I see Lokka has a 3 year warranty and you folks only have a 2 year warranty?
4) A Dana 30 Lokka costs $199 shipped to my door (free shipping), yours is $259 plus you charge for Shipping correct?


Now with all that said, yours is a manufactured here in the USA and that is a big plus and enough for many to buy it, but lets be clear on the facts.