Ok lets move on, look at my new thread on wheels and give me some positive choices.

 

OK, definitely your's. I Googled your quote and got this.

Detroit Locker - Automatic Lockers - Locking Differentials

This isn't from Detroit (Eaton actually is the manufacturer), it's from a site called "offroaders.com". I haven't looked into what that is, but it's not the manufacturer like you claimed. Look up my quote, it's from Eaton's web site.

 

The lunchbox lockers only allow the wheel to spin faster than the ring gear when the wheel is driving backwards into the ring gear.

That's when you hear the ratchet click click sounds.

The key is the gas pedal. When you use the gas pedal the engine spins the ring gear and forces 100% to both wheels. No problem in a straight line but in a turn the inner wheel has to slip -whether it be by chirping on dry pavement or spinning on wet grass. Lots of gas pedal and the inner tire breaks free and the truck will pitch sideways. I love this, it's very predictable and easy to control but I would not give this to a beginning driver.

No gas pedal no problem, if wheel has traction it will drive backwards into the ring gear, overcome the springs inside the locker - and you get the ratchet click click sounds.

Driving with one of these lockers is pretty simple. Only goose the throttle in a straight line. To pull out into traffic just gas it straight and get up to speed, then let off and turn the wheel and allow the truck to coast through the turn. Then when straight, gas it again. If you cannot do this because you are going up hill then you better be easy on the gas.

Off road style tires are easier on dry pavement than street tires because they don't chirp as much. They slip easier.

 

See my sig, 3:08 in the truck with the locker.

It's always locked. It unlocks when the wheel spins faster - drives back into the ring gear.

Yes and its 100% locked when I'm on the gas. It only unlocks when I'm not on the gas - when the wheel spins faster back into the ring gear.

It does as well in mud as a true 2wd truck can, which is twice as well as a one-wheel drive truck. It's great on wet grass and anywhere one wheel cannot get you out.

Pitching the truck sideways is effortless. Cut the wheel then 75% throttle to get it going sideways, then working the throttle to maintain the slide about as far as you want to go. It's great for drifting. It's a LOT OF FUN, and I'm very pleased with my decision to put this locker in this truck. It changed how the truck performs off road.

If you are driving straight on gravel and you floor it, it will spin both rear wheels. You will go as straight as your steering wheel is, but almost always end up a little sideways as you go further.


Let your imagination take over...

 

I’m not sure what you are saying here. It sounds like you are saying that lunchbox lockers disengage any time a wheel is trying to go faster than the ring gear. If so, then I agree with you 100%. But you follow it up by saying...

which contradicts your first statement. I still maintain that automatic lockers will always disengage whenever one tire tries to overrun the ring gear, whether you are on the throttle or not. So when turning the outside tire can overrun the ring gear whether you are on the gas or not, and there is no slipping or chirping. The exception comes from the fact that you are now in one-wheel drive (the outside tire is overrunning, not driving), so if the one driving wheel doesn’t have enough traction you will spin it. But this is NOT because the locker is locked, it’s because it’s unlocked!

Yes, lots of gas pedal is usually enough to break the one-wheel drive free, when it catches up to the outside tire the locker will reengage pretty harshly. If you gave it enough gas you’ll now break the outside tire free as well and you will kick the back end out

Again, they’ll unlock whether you are on the gas or not, so none of that matters. You just can’t give it so much gas that you break the one-wheel drive loose.


I agree with almost all of this. I’ve already noted my exception to “its 100% locked when I'm on the gas. It only unlocks when I'm not on the gas” because I agree with the next statement, “when the wheel spins faster back into the ring gear” and those two statements contradict each other.

The other statement I partially disagree with is that a 2WD with a locker is as good as a 4WD. In an empty pickup even two back tires driving aren’t as good as one back and one front driving. The front has so much more weight on it, it just helps a lot more. The exception to that is if you are getting crossed up and lifting a tire. Then a 4WD with open diffs is down to 0 wheel drive and a 2WD with a locker is actually better.

However, if you have a 2WD truck and are looking to turn it into a better off-roader, you’ll get WAY more bang for the buck by adding a locker than you would by converting it to 4WD. So I certainly agree that it’s a good purchase.