Hey, so what would be your guys' opinion on what is going to have the greatest bang for buck on putting in a locker, putting one in the front first or putting one in the rear? I will eventually have both axles locked up, but only have the money for one right now. These will be ARBs, so I don't have to worry about on-road driving.

I was thinking that it would be better to put it in the front first, that way it helps pull the truck through the muck, and it helps with the steering, but I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks all

 

Front first

 

i call b/s. a rear locker will get a 2 wheel drive truck to places a front wheel car won't make it, and i'm not talking about bottoming out, ask me how i know plus, you have a d44 front, the longer you keep it open the longer it will stay together, selectable or not. plus by doing the rear first you can have a chit ton of fun while you wait for the cash for the front. i would take a rear detroit over a front selectable any day of the goddamned week. if you climb hills, yeah, go front. if you mud, go rear. you can "trick" the front by sea-sawing to gain traction in mud, the rear is where it is, so(with an open diff) if you have no traction, YOU HAVE NO TRACTION.

REAR!!!!

 

must admit Id probably lock the front first also but I do agree with with Dan, ARB front Detroit rear.

 

Rear first, doing the front locker in your TTB besides being a lot more complicated will break stuff easier especially with 35s.

 

As far as the front goes, its going to be a D44 solid (SAS in progress), so I'm not worried about the TTB crap breaking.....This is good info.

Another thing thats influencing me is the fact that the D44 is out (well, hasn't been put in yet) so its going to be cheaper to have somene set it up before I put it in rather than have it done later.....thoughts?

 

ttb and solid d44's are the same strength wise, most people go to a solid d44 to eliminate the tire wear problems or to lift higher than 6'' safely.

i don't think the price would change for a shop to do the carrier swap with it in or out of the truck, i mean unless you already have the housing stripped down, that would save on labor costs

 

Yet another reason to do the front first, sure Dan is right that a rear is more fun, but the front will get you there. There's more weight on the front when the truck is empty, it will help you stear in slippery situations, and will pull the truck instead of push making it go straiter through the mud.

 

He's going to break the d44 with a locker and 35s with the weight of that truck.

 

Maybe, that's more of a 'is it worth it to install a D60' question then a locker question. Sure the locker will put more stress on the 44 but he's not asking wether or not it's a good idea to put one in the front just which first, he's already said he's doing both.

 

I say lock the front and weld the rear, but I'll admit I don't know what I'm talking about.

 

Yes I know stock D44 shafts are going to have a high breaking potential, and I plan to address that with chromoly shafts, better-than-napa u-joints, and better hubs....

I do already have the housing stripped down, he told me to install it with an ARB I was looking at $300 with a stripped down housing....still seems high to me, but thats the average in the middle of nowhere. I'd do it myself if I had the tools and know-how.

lol, yeah and then say goodbye to any set of tires I ever put on...this is my DD as well

 

I know your set on it, and I'm not trying to talk you out of it, but I'm just letting you know that you might want to rethink it. Talk to Kjett, he runs mudbogs and even with chromo shafts he breaks the front either locked or with a limitied slip in there, but has NO problems when he runs it open (95ish F150 5.8)... and mudbogs are possibly the least stressful on components in the offroad world.

 

If this is your DD then all the more reason to upgrade to a D60 while its still out. How will you get to work if you break your front axle? If you had a stronger axle up front, I would say put it up front. Otherwise I suppose rear.

 

Just a little suggestion, make your hub the weak link on purpose, there much easier to replace trail/roadside and carry spares. If you are preparred for a broken hub and are rather sure it will go first, no big deal if it breaks, your good to go again soon enough.