I am thinking it's time for an axle change. I currently have 331s and have gone to 33" tires. What do you guys think about a ford 9" I want to go to 410"s and lockers front and rear. A local shop is trying to talk me out of ARB air lockers. He says the O rings go and it"s $400 to change them. Do any of you guys have experience with these? I just think D 60's are more than I will ever need and D 44's are not that much better than stock D 30 and AMC 20 My wife likes to drive my Scrambler to work and I'm afraid a Detroit locker will scare her on a wet road, please help.
Axles
- Thread starter Bob C
- Start date
taildragger
Bow Hunter
- City
- Norman
- State
- OK
if your not thinking of running anything more than a 37in tire then i'd say that a ford nine inch is a great axle. They should actually be about the same strength as a dana 44 if i remember right, but you can shave them a lot and really beef them up if you wanted to. As for the ARB, i haven't heard many of the old timers who have been four wheeling before i was born say much about them. I have heard that they also have a tendency to get the air lines cut at bad times (just rumours though, i've only seen one ARB blow up) I personally like the detroits the best. I have one in my jeep that is around 20+ years old and has never had a problem, its not bad on wet roads as long as your easy on the gas during turns (then again i learned how to drive a jeep as my first car with lockers in it) So for lasting 20+ years i'd say that its worth the noise on the road
but thats just my opinion
but thats just my opinion
BobC,
I've had experience with
Lock right (good for the money, kind of sloppy/jerky on the street with the same character or actually worse than the older Detroit with popping/banging let-goes. The cross shaft is a weakness. You must get the extra hardened cross shaft. Oversteers in turns under power and understeers when you let up. You get used to it and adjust.)
Detroit (the newest incarnation works great. Minimum noise, almost transparent, bullet proof. A good choice on any surface)
ARB (I have a pair on my CJ8's D44/D60's and they are the Cadillac of lockers because of the on-off feature. My air lines leak a little bit (it is called the AIR LEAKER you know), forcing the compressor to cycle on every 1/4 hr. or so while wheeling. I don't think this has any relation to the 5 roll overs suffered by my Jeep? HMMM? HMMMM? 8<)
I've never had any other problems with them, but have heard and seen people with bad 'o' rings and pulled or fried air lines. You really do get 4 wheels turning the same speed while in use. Only electric, OX, spool and Lincoln lockers can claim this.)
Trac-Loc (the most common limited-slip around. Transparent on slippery surfaces. The poorest performer; slips too quickly; not much help. Maybe O.K. for glare ice. Expensive to rebuild. Only last 60-70K street miles before rebuild. Don't even think about this one.)
Power Lok (the best, IMHO, of the limited slips. The amount of grip (preload) on the cone clutches is adjustable by adding more cones. I like it especially on the front axle on slippery surfaces. Had one on my CJ8 for years and never had trouble. In fact I attribute the "just slip at the last minute" for me never breaking a front D30, even as much as I beat it up on The Hammers, Rubicon, Ershim, etc. for years. It was like a fuse slipping just before the D30's torque resistance was reached. My friend Mark has an ARB on his front D30 and he's broken maybe 10 front axles, mostly at the outer U-joints)
The Ford 9" is a good axle choice, especially if not used much on the rocks. I say this because the pinion position is one of the lowest exits on the pig making it more vulnerable than almost any other axle because it hangs so low. Get one off a Lincoln Continental or Big Ford car. Be sure to get a 35 spline. I think it would be fine in NY with 4.10 (if you have a 1:1 high gear, 4.56 or 4.88 if you have overdrive and 33-35's) and a Detroit even on ice and snow. If you're concerned about driveability woes, go with a pair of Power-Loks. forgiving/transparent on the street.
regards, as always, jefe
I've had experience with
Lock right (good for the money, kind of sloppy/jerky on the street with the same character or actually worse than the older Detroit with popping/banging let-goes. The cross shaft is a weakness. You must get the extra hardened cross shaft. Oversteers in turns under power and understeers when you let up. You get used to it and adjust.)
Detroit (the newest incarnation works great. Minimum noise, almost transparent, bullet proof. A good choice on any surface)
ARB (I have a pair on my CJ8's D44/D60's and they are the Cadillac of lockers because of the on-off feature. My air lines leak a little bit (it is called the AIR LEAKER you know), forcing the compressor to cycle on every 1/4 hr. or so while wheeling. I don't think this has any relation to the 5 roll overs suffered by my Jeep? HMMM? HMMMM? 8<)
I've never had any other problems with them, but have heard and seen people with bad 'o' rings and pulled or fried air lines. You really do get 4 wheels turning the same speed while in use. Only electric, OX, spool and Lincoln lockers can claim this.)
Trac-Loc (the most common limited-slip around. Transparent on slippery surfaces. The poorest performer; slips too quickly; not much help. Maybe O.K. for glare ice. Expensive to rebuild. Only last 60-70K street miles before rebuild. Don't even think about this one.)
Power Lok (the best, IMHO, of the limited slips. The amount of grip (preload) on the cone clutches is adjustable by adding more cones. I like it especially on the front axle on slippery surfaces. Had one on my CJ8 for years and never had trouble. In fact I attribute the "just slip at the last minute" for me never breaking a front D30, even as much as I beat it up on The Hammers, Rubicon, Ershim, etc. for years. It was like a fuse slipping just before the D30's torque resistance was reached. My friend Mark has an ARB on his front D30 and he's broken maybe 10 front axles, mostly at the outer U-joints)
The Ford 9" is a good axle choice, especially if not used much on the rocks. I say this because the pinion position is one of the lowest exits on the pig making it more vulnerable than almost any other axle because it hangs so low. Get one off a Lincoln Continental or Big Ford car. Be sure to get a 35 spline. I think it would be fine in NY with 4.10 (if you have a 1:1 high gear, 4.56 or 4.88 if you have overdrive and 33-35's) and a Detroit even on ice and snow. If you're concerned about driveability woes, go with a pair of Power-Loks. forgiving/transparent on the street.
regards, as always, jefe
- City
- Silver City
- State
- NM
I agree with all on the Detroit in the rear. I'm going to go to a Detroit soft locker now and wish I had from the beginning.
Right now I've got the Detroit TrueTrac front and back. It worked extreamly well in the front, I was quite impressed with it. Instead of a clutch system it uses a pinion gearest system, they first had a 2 pinion gearest design but it is now made with a 3 pinion gearest, which provides 50% increased torque capacity and worked well for me in the front.
HOWEVER, it failed in the back a couple times and worked at others. Who knows why but it didnt work near as well as it did in the front.
I've never herd of a Power Loc.......who makes it?
Right now I've got the Detroit TrueTrac front and back. It worked extreamly well in the front, I was quite impressed with it. Instead of a clutch system it uses a pinion gearest system, they first had a 2 pinion gearest design but it is now made with a 3 pinion gearest, which provides 50% increased torque capacity and worked well for me in the front.
HOWEVER, it failed in the back a couple times and worked at others. Who knows why but it didnt work near as well as it did in the front.
I've never herd of a Power Loc.......who makes it?