Lockers

lunkerslayer · Jan 6, 2018

Has anyone put in those lunchbox type lockers in thier trucks
My other dakota had lsd (trac loc) in the rearend this dakota has oed rearend which on a 4 wheel drive pick up in the snow is no better then having a two wheel drive pick up. The slip discs in the trac loc were wore out so at the time I had the local mechanic rebuild the trac loc in the rear end it was over a grand withn parts and labor.
So been looking at these other types of ways to put posi lsd syle rearend in without spending huge amounts of money. Aussie, powertrack,lockrite, and Spartan are just a few examples of the types of lunchbox lockers I can get for my dakota.
So any gear heads here have any experience with a lunchbox type lockers? This truck doesn't get many miles in a year maybe around 3000 or so it mostly used for hauling around my ice fishing stuff or 4 wheeler on a trailer. The most it get driven in during the winter months. It's also its second vehicle so it is not a daily driver

Wild and Free · Jan 7, 2018

Wow did you get hosed on the re-clutch job unless he rebearinged the entire diff assembly pinion and all. I have rebuilt tons of them and the clutch kit is only around 40 bucks. The trick is to re-stack the clutches the right way so they actually act like a limited slip. They come from OEM with a light stack so they don't chatter or pop in corners so they don't have drivability claims when customers don't like that, but if the clutch discs are stacked the correct way they will act like a true locker on pavement and will actually snap a bit on hard dry corners.

lunkerslayer · Jan 7, 2018

Yes he rebuilt the rear end new bearing kit
He had to take the carrier gear assembly out to stack and compress the discs to get the spider gears in place. Then to adjust everything so they work together for smooth operations maybe I did get hosed but here in devils lake you don't have many options for mechanics that want to work on a 20 year old vehicle. Nobody here would even tackle a engine swap and transmission rebuild for my dodge dakota had to bring it up no Langdon. Nobody wants to work on anything anymore like a big projects like this and if they do they want to charge lots
This is the reason i want to go this route no need to take out the carrier assembly at all
So you work with these types of lockers

Davey Crockett · Jan 7, 2018

Is this a dodge issue or have my outfits had the same wear outs without me knowing ? I have never heard of this before but I can imagine it. With Chevys on the hoist I spin one tire by hand while the other spins opposite direction and try to stop the one I'm spinning and watch for momentum on the other side. Even with high miles there isn't much. Or maybe that test doesn't mean anything ? How did you notice/measure the slippage other than bad traction while driving ?

- - - Updated - - -

Or are you talking about newer electronic trac lock ?

lunkerslayer · Jan 7, 2018

I'm not sure what you are asking Davey, dodge lsd is called the trac lok system it's the same as posi traction chevy uses. It's clutch plates that are used to transfer energy to the other tire using these plates that have grooves running from side to side of each individual disc rings. The rings are placed on the inside of the carriers main spider gears then a tool is used to pull the discs together on both left and right spider gears. This allows the mechanics to install the smaller side gears the ones on the top and bottom in the carrier gear set up. The discs are under extreme tension so when your tire right tire spins real fast the energy is transferred to the other tire. Once the rears tires are no longer spinning less energy is needed allowing for normal driving.
I see that open differential is much better candidate for the locker since the carrier spider gears are not under load. I think I am going to do it since I will need to change the rear seal anyways. I thinking either the Spartan or powertrax which are essentially the same price around 400$.

Wild and Free · Jan 8, 2018

You would be better off re-stacking the current lsd in it now or finding a complete locker type carrier. You might want to dig deeper on this one usually can't put an insertable or "Lunchbox" locker into a LSD carrier, they are designed to be used inside a standard open carrier housing.

lunkerslayer · Jan 8, 2018

That's what I have is a open differential in this dodgen my other dodge was the one with lsd

So which locker wild and free do you have the most experience with which one do you prefer over the others

Wild and Free · Jan 8, 2018

AHH gotcha, I thought you had a lsd currently. The Powertrax you listed above is a good option then. The locker type like that will get your attention when they do ratchet on dry pavement during slow tight corners lol and especially more if you have a heavy load or trailer on back.

lunkerslayer · Jan 8, 2018

They powertrax make two different styles lockrite and no slip which is like a hundred more. I will need to investigate more on lockers, the front end is a Dana 35 ifs which some have indicated that even though the transfer case isn't sending power to the drive shaft it's always connected spinning all the time. In the past solid front ends used lock outs to disengage the driveshaft completely from the rest of the gears. Then they went with a vacuum style system and now a electronic hub style. But as far as I can tell my truck has no such thing as a full disengage to the front drive shaft. Some call it a Dana amc m35 27 spline open differential
Which there isn't much illustration on the m35

SLE · Jan 8, 2018

I feel like your other Dakota must've had something else going for it other than a rear locker that made it a better off-roader. Tires, wheel base, weight, or something else. I have a E-locker in my current truck and to be honest, I have yet, in 75k miles, to find a time where locking up the rear has significantly helped at all over having it disengaged. this is in terms of mud, ice, snow, or limited traction situations. I've tried many times to simply pull the knob for the e-locker only to have to switch to 4wd anyway. food for thought, it doesn't seem to make much of difference on my truck and when it's time for the next one, I doubt it will be something I will pay extra for. If it comes with a certain package fine, but I'm not gonna specifically ask for it.

lunkerslayer · Jan 8, 2018

No this dodge dakota has the open differential in the rear end having open differential in a 4 wheel drive would allow me to use less front axel assist. I like my dodge dakota it good enough for what I need it for also with all the spinning to one tire the don't wear evenly when rotation is done. Powertrax locker is a locker that can be used without taking the carrier assembly out completely
Sle Elocker that is a factory set up in your pickup which I guess is a newer vehicle

Wild and Free · Jan 13, 2018

lunkerslayer · Jan 13, 2018

Wild and Free said:

Who he just needs a push us that's a jeep with quadra trac all 4 wheels spinning I wish instill had my old jeep Comanche.

2400 · Jan 14, 2018

Have you thought about a Detroit TrueTrac "locker"? It's gear drive, has no clutches to wear out or chatter, you do not need any special sort of lube and it will last forever.

I have one in the front of my Willys and am putting one in the rear of my van. In the rear of my Willys I've got a spool which is NOT what you're looking for.

Over the years I've run mostly Detroit Lockers in the rear axle of my pickups and Detroit Truetracs in the front. Makes it a "real" four wheel drive and will take you lost farther before you get stuck.

http://www.eaton.com/Eaton/ProductsServices/Vehicle/Differentials/detroit-truetrac/index.htm

lunkerslayer · Jan 15, 2018

2400 the lunchbox type lockers you don't need to remove the carrier assembly out completely. Thanks for the post

2400 · Jan 15, 2018

lunkerslayer said:
2400 the lunchbox type lockers you don't need to remove the carrier assembly out completely. Thanks for the post

Yup, I know that I was just giving you another option that has worked well for me. About half of the guys I know that have put a lunchbox locker have moved on to one of the ones I mentioned.

lunkerslayer · Jan 15, 2018

Your buddies experiences with the lunchbox locker did anyone have the no slip powertrax locker

2400 · Jan 15, 2018

lunkerslayer said:
Your buddies experiences with the lunchbox locker did anyone have the no slip powertrax locker

A couple of them loved it, it was cheap, easy to install and worked. A few others weren't real impressed with it, they didn't like the way it locked up and a couple had an axle shaft break under hard use.

If I was planning on keeping the vehicle for a long time I'd rather spend a little more for a better unit. I think the TrueTrac is a better unit for about the same money as the Powertrax. Are you planning on a gear change at the same time?

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