Hi everyone, I recently got my 95 F250 2wd stuck in the YARD..practically flat ground, it was wet and a bit muddy, so my bad. I did however discover that my LSD is virtually useless (even tried the brake trick). What I would like to do is one of the following...(cheaply if I can)...keep in mind I have never once opened a differential casing, so what do I need to look out for, and how much experience do you need to work on/replace/swap out a rear diff? Budget considerations are mainly due to the ever growing list of repairs I am currently making..trying to get my ol girl running perfect. (also I know tires play a HUGE roll, gonna pick up some MT Baja MTX in the very near future, unless someone points me in the direction of a more budget friendly alternative that is good both on and off pavement)

What follows are my considerations, any help/advice would be fantastic.

a. Repair the existing factory LSD..(not my top choice, have read its not so great at best)

b. Replace with an aftermarket setup

c. Budget friendly locker?

d. If $$ frees up perhaps a Detriot Locker?

Please give any pros/cons, consider ol girl is a daily driver and farm truck.

Thanks guys! (oh yea I am new round here so hey folks!)

 

Hey welcome to the forum. A good aftermarket option is a Detroit trutrac. It acts like a limited slip but uses helical gears instead of clutches. But the differential is not something to tackle blindly. It needs to be set up properly or you will have problems. My advice would be to take it to a drive line shop to have the work done.

 

Will check out the true Trac, thanks...I will probably end up taking it to a shop, but would love to the job myself. Right now in the research and decision phase..thanks for the info

 

Taking a differential out, removing the gears and bolting it back together is a fairly simple task. The hard part is replacing the proper shims (if any) back in there when the differential goes back in, and setting the backlash.

 

Are you sure you have a LSD ?
What's the axle code on the door ?

 

lightly apply the brakes while lightly applying the throttle will switch the drive power from the wheel with less traction to both wheels.

 

Axle code is 39 on the door jam

 

I did try that, as it has worked for me before with other vehicles...

 

Id Tag on the Differential

 

Doortag

 

That's an open rear end number. No limited slip.

 

Well that sucks..now its definitely time to do some upgrading

 

Guess we can move the conversation from should I fix or replace to...what should I put in.

Give consideration to getting out as cheap as possible, but would love to see what people suggest, or what others are running.

 

Whatever you decide, if you haven't ever done anything like this yourself, and you are going to, you need to do a lot of studying/reading. A guy can make a mess of things in a hurry if its not done right. You'll need the right tools/press, etc. If you have done this before, I'm not trying to insult you, just saying.

 

You can get complete good used rear ends with lsd for 2-300