:banana:Hey everyone.. So I have been searching the forum for more information on Lockers but cant seem to find the disadvantages of lockers? how the ride is with lockers. Is it worth putting lockers on a weekend 4wheeling rig? how much stress does this put on other components? and the difference between lockers such as the detroit locker and the powertrax locker..
Ok, so that's a lot of questions, with lots of answers, and lots of opinions too. A differential locker won't affect how the truck rides at all. The disadvantages come in how the truck steers - when a locker kicks in, it prevents your differential from acting like a differential, and that can be potentially dangerous depending on what your truck is doing at the time. The other disadvantage comes in noise - some lockers are very noisy, with lots of clicks and bangs as they engage and disengage. A special case is a locker in the front differential - a locker in the rear will sometimes scuff and chirp the tires when you're turning, a locker in the front will actually make it
hard to turn when it engages, so there's that to think about too.
The differences between specific locker types - start with the selectables, like ARB, Eaton, Toyotas E-locker. These you can turn on and off at will, lots of folks prefer them for that reason, especially in your front differential. Then you've got the automatic lockers. These engage when they sense torque on the driveline, which basically means if you're on the skinny pedal, your rear tires are locked. Some are more forgiving than others and allow a small amount of torque before they engage, others lock up tight right away. Grizzly and Detroit are the strongest automatic lockers out there, built to take the abuse of extreme wheeling. Cheaper than those (and also weaker) are the "lunchbox" lockers, designed to be installed in your driveway without needing a professional to reset your ring and pinion. These are the Lockrite, Aussie, Spartan, and others. There's also limited slip devices, which aren't true lockers, but do add some traction benefits.
Still reading? Opinion time - I run a Spartan automatic in my rear and a TrueTrac limited slip in my front. I'm happy with the Spartan so far - it takes a little getting used to on the road, but it's definitely usable in a DD/weekend wheeler truck like mine. I like the LSD in front because it adds traction without placing as much stress on my precious CV shafts, and was cheaper than an ARB selectable. I might switch to an ARB in front once I won the lottery
. Whether or not it's worth putting in a locker in a weekend wheeling rig is entirely up to you - if you're frequently getting stuck or lifting wheels and losing traction, maybe you need one. If you're not getting stuck, you don't need one.
