To front auto, or not?

[chicago]

I have a similar thing running on the 60 serires forum....
With the Rubicon trip fast approaching, I have to tear into the front axel to replace an inner axel seal. So in typical Cruiser head fashion, things began to snowball...
I now have a set of 30 spline longs en route, and Im kicking around the idea of throwing an aussie locker in the mix as well.
Ive heard from others that steering bind isnt all that bad with the Aussie units, but I was wondering what you all here think? People DO report difficulty turning when bound up occasionally, and the preferrence is for the Aussie vs. lock rite or detroit.
Would it be a benefit on the Con, or a hinderence secondary to the lack of turning. I DO plan on RAM assist, but i dont think I can pull it all together in time for the run.
Additionally, this is the long term route that I plan on going for a front locker...I will NOT be doing the ARB.

Thanks all,

K

[rusty_tlc]

If your going to go that way anyhow do it, as long as you can get it done in time.

We want you along to stack rocks.

[locrwln1]

If you have Longs, go for it. It will be tough steering on the slabs, but once you get your hydro assist, you'll be good to go.

The only thing you will have to stay on top of is keeping your hubs and other bolts tight, that is where your breakage will move to if you don't stay on top of them. Also your steering knuckle bolts/nuts. Your pre-flight and post-flight maintenence schedule is more important and neccessary. Auto lockers are rough on front axles.

Jack

[rusty_tlc]

Originally Posted by locrwln1

If you have Longs, go for it. It will be tough steering on the slabs, but once you get your hydro assist, you'll be good to go.

The only thing you will have to stay on top of is keeping your hubs and other bolts tight, that is where your breakage will move to if you don't stay on top of them. Also your steering knuckle bolts/nuts. Your pre-flight and post-flight maintenence schedule is more important and neccessary. Auto lockers are rough on front axles.

Jack

What about the 2low mod? If he could disengage the front it would unload the locker and let him turn, the he could put the front back in.

This is the only reasonable justification I can see for the 2-low mod.

[chicago]

Originally Posted by rusty_tlc

What about the 2low mod? If he could disengage the front it would unload the locker and let him turn, the he could put the front back in.

This is the only reasonable justification I can see for the 2-low mod.

Apparently the 62 with the vac. switch is not as simple as the manual t case for the mod..
Apparntly you could d/c one of the switches on the t case and that would have the same effect. Im getting some input on the 60 serires board on this very topic.

K

[chicago]

Originally Posted by locrwln1

If you have Longs, go for it. It will be tough steering on the slabs, but once you get your hydro assist, you'll be good to go.

The only thing you will have to stay on top of is keeping your hubs and other bolts tight, that is where your breakage will move to if you don't stay on top of them. Also your steering knuckle bolts/nuts. Your pre-flight and post-flight maintenence schedule is more important and neccessary. Auto lockers are rough on front axles.

Jack

Thanks Jack!
Im learning the maint. stuff from Rusty's issue on fourdice.
Sooooo, you think Ill be okay on the con with it, without ram?
General concesus is that its not as bad as you'd think...


K

[locrwln1]

Originally Posted by chicago

Thanks Jack!
Im learning the maint. stuff from Rusty's issue on fourdice.
Sooooo, you think Ill be okay on the con with it, without ram?
General concesus is that its not as bad as you'd think...


K

You should be fine, just remember that Mike D runs his 40 with manual steering and a front auto locker across the Rubicon/Fordyce. So I think you will be fine. Plus there are a ton of rigs that run auto lockers.

Jack

[chicago]

The locker is on its way!
CHRIST ON A BIKE I spent a LOT of frickin money on this rig this week that I wasnt expecting to....

Im starting to feel pretty guilty!

K

[locrwln1]

Originally Posted by chicago

The locker is on its way!
CHRIST ON A BIKE I spent a LOT of frickin money on this rig this week that I wasnt expecting to....

Im starting to feel pretty guilty!

K

Just remember, there are no cheap hobbies...

Besides, what else are you going to do with your money?

Jack

[rusty_tlc]

Originally Posted by locrwln1

Just remember, there are no cheap hobbies...

Besides, what else are you going to do with your money?

Jack

Hookers and Gin?

[chicago]

Originally Posted by locrwln1

Just remember, there are no cheap hobbies...

Besides, what else are you going to do with your money?

Jack

True...
Julie had to buy a "posing suit" for her show last weekend...new, those things run anywhere from 800.00 to 1500.00!
The rhinestones on them FALL OFF to boot! She ended up having to buy a used ONCE suit and it still cost 500.00.
I bought an ENGINE for 800.00.
What I SHOULD be doing is SAVING my money...but what fun would that be! Now I have to work more to pay for the cruiser AAAAAAAND save money. Hell, I could DIE tomorrow...who knows.

I HATE the waiting for parts part of this gig!

K

[chicago]

Originally Posted by rusty_tlc

Hookers and Gin?

home remodel supplies and Jack Daniels!

Dont want anything to do with hookers!

Actually...After the engine tranny and t case install...EVERYTHING that I really WANT will have been DONE.
I guess Ill have to sell it at that point...

Well see!

K

[rusty_tlc]

Originally Posted by chicago

home remodel supplies and Jack Daniels!

Dont want anything to do with hookers!

Actually...After the engine tranny and t case install...EVERYTHING that I really WANT will have been DONE.
I guess Ill have to sell it at that point...

Well see!

K

I was joking.

[chicago]

Originally Posted by rusty_tlc

I was joking.

Yeah...I know!

K

[locrwln1]

Originally Posted by chicago

Actually...After the engine tranny and t case install...EVERYTHING that I really WANT will have been DONE.

K

Famous last words...

Jack

[chicago]

Originally Posted by locrwln1

Famous last words...

Jack

Yeah...tell me about it!
Seriously though...the only other plans are front winch and bumper, and an internal roll cage.
I WAS gonna do the winch and bumper AFTER the rear bumper, but the power draw from the weight with the 3FE halted that plan. The last thing it needs right now is more to bog it down MORE!

K

[chicago]

Front end is torn down, axels are out, diff is out, everything is clean and ready for assembly, but I dont have all the pieces yet. Still waiting on a rebuild kit and HD seals from Marlin, and the Aussie is en route.
I do have one question...the center pin (for the spider gears) wont come out cuz the RING GEAR is in the way...WHAT THE EFFFFFFF am I going to do about that?
Any ideas?

K

[locrwln1]

Originally Posted by chicago

I do have one question...the center pin (for the spider gears) wont come out cuz the RING GEAR is in the way...WHAT THE EFFFFFFF am I going to do about that?
Any ideas?

K

Time to remove the ring gear. You have to do the same thing to some d44's when installing an auto locker. Sorry.

At least the pinion is set up, so you don't have to worry about that. Get some gear marking compound, do a test run, take pictures. Now you know what the pattern should be. Take everything apart and take the ring gear off, install the locker, put ring gear back on, put everything together, adjust the diff to match the pattern you had before and you should be good to go.

ORRRR, you get to take it back to the gear guy and let him re-set the gear pattern. You could take it apart, install the locker, re-assemble it and take it back to the gear guy for the final adjustments. Just a thought.

Jack

[chicago]

Originally Posted by locrwln1

Time to remove the ring gear. You have to do the same thing to some d44's when installing an auto locker. Sorry.

At least the pinion is set up, so you don't have to worry about that. Get some gear marking compound, do a test run, take pictures. Now you know what the pattern should be. Take everything apart and take the ring gear off, install the locker, put ring gear back on, put everything together, adjust the diff to match the pattern you had before and you should be good to go.

ORRRR, you get to take it back to the gear guy and let him re-set the gear pattern. You could take it apart, install the locker, re-assemble it and take it back to the gear guy for the final adjustments. Just a thought.

Jack

AHHHHH CRAP!
That is what I thought...Not as simple as i wanted it to be.
I got on the horn today and called "totally off road"..."totally getting SCREWED" is more like it. They wanted 350.00 to throw that motha in. Then I called Driveline service of Reno...250.00...BETTER. Then i called my guy down in Carson who set up the diffs in the first place...150.00.
I didnt think about doing the install myself and then bringing it down to have him re set everything. Thats a good idea! Then I could TRY it, and if I screw it up, Im not at a huge loss...

Thanks,


K

[locrwln1]

Originally Posted by chicago

Then I could TRY it, and if I screw it up, Im not at a huge loss...

Thanks,


K

Exactly.

Jack

[Bbumbl40]

Keith, I managed to do mine. It's really not hard, it's just time consuming.

[chicago]

Originally Posted by Bbumbl40

Keith, I managed to do mine. It's really not hard, it's just time consuming.

Sean,
Could you possibly EXPAND on this statement a bit for me?
What did you do, how did you do it what problems did you encounter and what was so time consuming about?
Looking at it, it seems that all I have to do is remove the carrier, pull the pin throw the new sssssshtuff in and put it back together the way it was.
Would I really be messing with the pattern if Im not doing anything to the pinion? How is the backlash set?
Im really nervous about this one...
Didnt really want to have to mess with the diff this much if I didnt have to.
I thought it would be MUCH simpler, but the 4.88 blew that away...

K

[locrwln1]

Originally Posted by chicago

Sean,
Could you possibly EXPAND on this statement a bit for me?
What did you do, how did you do it what problems did you encounter and what was so time consuming about?
Looking at it, it seems that all I have to do is remove the carrier, pull the pin throw the new sssssshtuff in and put it back together the way it was.
Would I really be messing with the pattern if Im not doing anything to the pinion? How is the backlash set?
Im really nervous about this one...
Didnt really want to have to mess with the diff this much if I didnt have to.
I thought it would be MUCH simpler, but the 4.88 blew that away...

K

The good news is that the pinion depth is set and you don't have to worry about that part. The part that will get you is because the carrier location is set with the side adjusters, you can't take it apart and put it back together without changing the set. With a Dana axle that uses shims, you just have to make sure that everything goes back together the same way you took it apart. With yours, you will have to adjust everything back and check the pattern and backlash. I have the dial indicator and stand for doing that part.

To adjust the pattern, you just have to move the adjusters to get the carrier where you want it. Basically, put it back together, adjust it until the pattern is correct and you are set. Once assembled, you won't have to take it apart to make any adjustments, just turn the side adjusters until it is where it should be.

I would recommend taking a before pattern picture so that you can re-create the pattern. Like Shawn said, time consuming.


Jack

[chicago]

WEEEEEELLLL....
I BAILED! Ended up taking it in to the man (Dean @ driveline service in Carson City).
I called him and asked if it would be a big deal for me to do the install, and have him reset it...He advised against it, so it could be re set to what it was. So I dropped it off this AM, and can pick it up tomorrow.
I donno what the hell I doing, so I figure that its best to leave it in the hands of someone who does.

I know...Im a

K

[locrwln1]

Nothing wrong with that, sometimes, you are better off, when you know your limitations. I need to learn that.

Jack

[rusty_tlc]

Originally Posted by chicago

...I know...Im a

K

Actually I would have done the same so i guess we are both
They way I look at it learning about this stuff is like drinking out of a fire hose, you can only take so much in at once.

[chicago]

Originally Posted by rusty_tlc

Actually I would have done the same so i guess we are both
They way I look at it learning about this stuff is like drinking out of a fire hose, you can only take so much in at once.

Rusty...I donno what it was about that "fire hose" statement above, but I laughed OUT LOUD when I read it!
Yeah...if Id have tried it, Id have no way of being 100% confident that I did the re set right, and I really didnt want to find out the hard way.

K

[chicago]

UMMMMMM, yeah...I probably could have done it myself!
He let me hang out today while finishing up which was re installing the carrier, ring gear etc...Didnt look all too hard with the spanner nuts.

I start re assembly tomorrow!
Cant frickin wait to try it out!

K

[WILLD420]

I run a front locker in an older Ford with a ttb and they are supposed to have the worst powersteering known to man. Personally it's not too bad unless you are in 4wd and driving on hard surface, then it's like having manual steering. You have to maintain forward or rearward movement to turn the thing easily. Great thing is that you can pop it out of 4wd and turn easily if you are on hard surface.

BTW if you have a spanner type diff, it's easy to take the carrier out and put it back in. Measure the backlash if you can, then mark the spanner nuts with a punch. Loosen the bolts, turn the nuts a little, count how many holes you moved them. Pull the caps leaving the nuts in the case with the case securely standing on the pinion, pull the carrier out, hoping to not move the nuts. Do your thing, put it all back together. If something happens, you can usually put the carrier back in, turn one of the nuts the required number of turns, then snug up the other side. As long as only one side falls out, you are o.k. If they both fall out, that's where the backlash adjustment comes in. Just run it up on both sides till you get the number you are looking for.

[chicago]

Went wheeling today with the new set up, in the hills behind the house....!
HUGE difference in traction right outta the box. Im actually quite surprised at the turning ability with it in. You know its there for sure, but its really not that bad. Just a little more resistance at the wheel. Where I noticed the biggest difference is when I played on some of the boulders up behind Damonte. Heres where you feel both the positive and negatives of the auto up front. It requres a lot more effort when bound up to steer, but...youre up and over with ease. Im curious to see how it does on Barrett lake trail.

K