why lockers?

[BeefStew42791]

I have read a lot about guys putting lockers in their differentials to convert them, obviously, to locking differentials. Has this been at the expense of a limited slip? and if not why doesn't anybody go for a limited slip? I understand the concepts and functions of both, I'm just wondering if there's something I'm missing.

 

[Jason]

Limited slips allow just that, a limited amount of slip between sides. In severe off camber terrain or ditch crossings they will often not have the holding power needed and will then leave you stuck. Lockers will not.

Most people who have or want lockers do not actually need them though. They just want to be "hard-core".

 

[BeefStew42791]

but with a locker in the same situation make you spin anyway? and plus when your on the street with a locker doesn't that make your rear tires wear faster?

 

[Jason]

but with a locker in the same situation make you spin anyway? and plus when your on the street with a locker doesn't that make your rear tires wear faster?

Tires will wear faster yes. The lockers will not allow for one wheel to spin at a different rate then the wheel opposite it. When you lift one completely off the ground, the lockers will allow you to keep moving.

 

[Dishtowel]

If you have to ask 'why would you want a locker', you havnt been in a situation where you could truly use one.

In serious mud as soon as one tire has less traction than the other an open diff with let you down, hard. Limited slip will let you down as soon as there real traction difference, such as one side being in a real mud hole and one tire is on traction.

If you ever exceed your flex limit (pick up one tire) at crawl speed you will need a locker because your limited slip likely wont do it, open diffs will very quickly leave you frustrated as the guys with lockers walk past you and make it look easy as pie. I know, I've done/witnessed both.

Having a locker is probably the single biggest offroad improvement I would recommend. Having said that, I still like my open diffs in my daily driver, some dudes say that they experience worse tire wear with a locker, some dudes claim no difference in tire wear. I couldn't tell you, cause my tires live a life of abuse regardless of the diff.

 

[BeefStew42791]

ok..then correct me if I'm wrong but in my dad's 98 chevy if there is wheel spin on one wheel torque and power is drawn to the tire with traction. Is this not a limited slip? and if it is then I don't understand why a wheel being in the air matters, since the wheel on the ground will still have power going to it..

 

[84projectFORD]

Tires will wear faster yes. The lockers will not allow for one wheel to spin at a different rate then the wheel opposite it. When you lift one completely off the ground, the lockers will allow you to keep moving.

not true. on high traction areas like asfault (sp?) where both tires alway have traction around a corner the binding of the locker will cause it to unlock allowing that inner tire to spin at a different rate than the outside until you go straight again or you give it a good amount of gas to power around the corner and it will lock back in. If your not ready for it, sometimes that locking back in of the locker will send your rearend side ways. in dirt there is not enough traction to cause it to unlock nor have i ever seen a spot where there is enough bind to cause a locker to unlock.

limited slips work in the same manner but have clutches inbetween the locking unit essetially so when you run into alot of torque on one tire such as one tire being off the ground and the other on the ground the clutches cannot hold enough to put equal power to both tires and instead slips letting the power go to the tire off the ground like a open diff.

 

[BeefStew42791]

limited slips work in the same manner but have clutches inbetween the locking unit essetially so when you run into alot of torque on one tire such as one tire being off the ground and the other on the ground the clutches cannot hold enough to put equal power to both tires and instead slips letting the power go to the tire off the ground like a open diff.

ok then what is the setup on my dad's truck?

 

[84projectFORD]

ok..then correct me if I'm wrong but in my dad's 98 chevy if there is wheel spin on one wheel torque and power is drawn to the tire with traction. Is this not a limited slip? and if it is then I don't understand why a wheel being in the air matters, since the wheel on the ground will still have power going to it..

your dad has whats called a gov lock in the rear end. this works in opposite of aftermarket lockers. it is always unlocked untill you have a traction problem then it locks in. here is a vid that will describe how your dads rear end works http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbMZ9vcYVSg this is of the G80 (gov locker).

 

[BeefStew42791]

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

ok then am I right that sounds like a more desirable setup?

 

[Dishtowel]

not true. on high traction areas like asfault (sp?) where both tires alway have traction around a corner the binding of the locker will cause it to unlock allowing that inner tire to spin at a different rate than the outside until you go straight again or you give it a good amount of gas to power around the corner and it will lock back in. If your not ready for it, sometimes that locking back in of the locker will send your rearend side ways. in dirt there is not enough traction to cause it to unlock nor have i ever seen a spot where there is enough bind to cause a locker to unlock.

Your talking about a 'auto' locker. Different beast than a Selectable locker, and different than a Lincoln locker. What he said is true for selectables and lincoln's.

ok..then correct me if I'm wrong but in my dad's 98 chevy if there is wheel spin on one wheel torque and power is drawn to the tire with traction. Is this not a limited slip? and if it is then I don't understand why a wheel being in the air matters, since the wheel on the ground will still have power going to it..

As said above, this is a different style. Not terribly common, and often not desired by the 4x4 community because of how/when it engages.

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

ok then am I right that sounds like a more desirable setup?

Lookat what the aftermarket guys build for the market. There is manymany people in the aftermarket world trying to make a $buck$. I dont mean to sound rude, but just lookat what is being done, it's a consumers market, people demand/develop/buy what they want. There is a reason people buy lockers and not limited slips. There is a reason the 4x4 community dosn't use the G80 style lockers.

 

[84projectFORD]

ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

ok then am I right that sounds like a more desirable setup?

hahaha figured a vid would help more than me trying to describe it. yes if you are about 50% on road and 50% off road and are in lots of high loss of tration situations. it can cause some tire wear if you are constantly throttling it around corners but just ease into it and it wont be as bad as you would think. if you dont do alot of off roading then that locker can become annoying around town. some of them you can hear unlock and others dont always unlock around corners causing the tires to churp

 

[Jason]

not true. on high traction areas like asfault (sp?) where both tires alway have traction around a corner the binding of the locker will cause it to unlock allowing that inner tire to spin at a different rate than the outside until you go straight again or you give it a good amount of gas to power around the corner and it will lock back in. If your not ready for it, sometimes that locking back in of the locker will send your rearend side ways. in dirt there is not enough traction to cause it to unlock nor have i ever seen a spot where there is enough bind to cause a locker to unlock.

limited slips work in the same manner but have clutches inbetween the locking unit essetially so when you run into alot of torque on one tire such as one tire being off the ground and the other on the ground the clutches cannot hold enough to put equal power to both tires and instead slips letting the power go to the tire off the ground like a open diff.

I can tell you 100% this is NOT how it works with the ARB air-lockers I have used. When those things are engaged, you are not spinning shit without the other side regardless of surface.

 

[84projectFORD]

Your talking about a 'auto' locker. Different beast than a Selectable locker, and different than a Lincoln locker. What he said is true for selectables and lincoln's.

As said above, this is a different style. Not terribly common, and often not desired by the 4x4 community because of how/when it engages.

i do agree on the selectables and did forget about those, but i do have to disagree on the lincoln locker. it tecnically is not a locker but more of a spool as it does NOT unlock at all and if it does something broke.

 

[84projectFORD]

I can tell you 100% this is NOT how it works with the ARB air-lockers I have used. When those things are engaged, you are not spinning shit without the other side regardless of surface.

easy there, i did forget about those as i stated above and do apologize.