JimJam300 Posted December 1, 2023 Author Share Posted December 1, 2023 I’ve never thought about one in the front for my type of driving. I’ve never driven a vehicle with a front locker or limited slip to the best of my knowledge. I’m good with the rear only. If I bought a new truck I would definitely try to get an e locker. It would be awesome to have in front and rear. I guess I will have to put the locker decision aside and think about what I'll eventually do. I can't use the 4.10 gears on my open diff carrier and the clutch pack for the Trac Lok is just $90 so I'll run that in the meantime and get my tires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimJam300 Posted December 9, 2023 Author Share Posted December 9, 2023 I guess I will have to put the locker decision aside and think about what I'll eventually do. I can't use the 4.10 gears on my open diff carrier and the clutch pack for the Trac Lok is just $90 so I'll run that in the meantime and get my tires. In the middle of rebuilding my Trac Lok carrier I noticed one of the side gears was chipped and a whole new spider gear kit for this particular carrier was only a little bit less dough than a Powertraxx lunchbox locker . So I bought the locker. I found a $160 open carrier that will fit my gears, so the 4.10s will have to wait. Now I'm looking at tires, size 255/75R17. It's either gonna be Firestone Destination MT 2 or Yokohama Geolander MT G003, both are about the same price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimJam300 Posted December 19, 2023 Author Share Posted December 19, 2023 In the middle of rebuilding my Trac Lok carrier I noticed one of the side gears was chipped and a whole new spider gear kit for this particular carrier was only a little bit less dough than a Powertraxx lunchbox locker . So I bought the locker. I found a $160 open carrier that will fit my gears, so the 4.10s will have to wait. Now I'm looking at tires, size 255/75R17. It's either gonna be Firestone Destination MT 2 or Yokohama Geolander MT G003, both are about the same price. Got my Yokohama Geolander G003 MTs. They are nearly an inch skinnier than my previous tires so I can already feel the steering is a lot lighter. I was about to throw in my Powertraxx lunchbox locker on Saturday just to see how it works on the 3.55 gears and lo and behold when I opened my rear diff cover the carrier is.........a Trac Lok. Incompatible. I feel dumb for never checking this and getting all my info on which gear ratios had LSDs from forum speculations. The clutches were worn out and one of the retainer clip thingies was falling out, I have no idea if this is going to cause a catastrophic failure but I'm not gonna wait to find out. I was not committed to removing the carrier and yanking the spider gears on the bench so I sealed it back up and ordered that open carrier. So I guess this means a rear end rebuild and doing the locker and 4.10s in one go! It will be nice to assemble the new carrier on the bench and throw it in when I'm ready. I've never done a pinion replacement or adjusted preload and honestly I'm kind of intimidated, but I did just get a dial indicator so maybe I'll be good to go. I made a deal with a friend that we are doing the Gambler 500 in Oregon this June, I will be running recovery/retrieval in this truck and possibly be towing a car we build for the Gambler. So that is my date goal for completing the truck with the gears and lift. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted December 20, 2023 Share Posted December 20, 2023 Got my Yokohama Geolander G003 MTs. They are nearly an inch skinnier than my previous tires so I can already feel the steering is a lot lighter. I was about to throw in my Powertraxx lunchbox locker on Saturday just to see how it works on the 3.55 gears and lo and behold when I opened my rear diff cover the carrier is.........a Trac Lok. Incompatible. I feel dumb for never checking this and getting all my info on which gear ratios had LSDs from forum speculations. The clutches were worn out and one of the retainer clip thingies was falling out, I have no idea if this is going to cause a catastrophic failure but I'm not gonna wait to find out. I was not committed to removing the carrier and yanking the spider gears on the bench so I sealed it back up and ordered that open carrier. So I guess this means a rear end rebuild and doing the locker and 4.10s in one go! It will be nice to assemble the new carrier on the bench and throw it in when I'm ready. I've never done a pinion replacement or adjusted preload and honestly I'm kind of intimidated, but I did just get a dial indicator so maybe I'll be good to go. I made a deal with a friend that we are doing the Gambler 500 in Oregon this June, I will be running recovery/retrieval in this truck and possibly be towing a car we build for the Gambler. So that is my date goal for completing the truck with the gears and lift. Tires look good, and will probably work well for what you have planned. Speaking of plans, those sound like fun! What kind of car are you building? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimJam300 Posted December 20, 2023 Author Share Posted December 20, 2023 Tires look good, and will probably work well for what you have planned. Speaking of plans, those sound like fun! What kind of car are you building? We are not sure, the shopping starts in April. Ideally something with the same lug pattern as a Jeep that can fit 15" wheels so we can get some cheap used off road tires and sawzall the fenders Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimJam300 Posted January 3 Author Share Posted January 3 We are not sure, the shopping starts in April. Ideally something with the same lug pattern as a Jeep that can fit 15" wheels so we can get some cheap used off road tires and sawzall the fenders Powertrax locker is in the new diff carrier. This took waaay longer than I was hoping because every machined surface on this Motive carrier was out of spec. You get what you pay for I suppose. I had to grind out the side gear slots and "press" on the ring gear by tightening bolts in sequence. The bearings did not expand big enough with the induction heater to be hand fitted or even started, but the hydraulic press took care of that. Probably gonna knock out installation this weekend and get the front end done sometime soon. I will need to plan if I need to do the inner CAD axle bearing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted January 4 Share Posted January 4 Powertrax locker is in the new diff carrier. This took waaay longer than I was hoping because every machined surface on this Motive carrier was out of spec. You get what you pay for I suppose. I had to grind out the side gear slots and "press" on the ring gear by tightening bolts in sequence. The bearings did not expand big enough with the induction heater to be hand fitted or even started, but the hydraulic press took care of that. Probably gonna knock out installation this weekend and get the front end done sometime soon. I will need to plan if I need to do the inner CAD axle bearing That sounds like a pain! But glad you were able to get it on. 👍 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimJam300 Posted April 12 Author Share Posted April 12 That sounds like a pain! But glad you were able to get it on. 👍 So making a short story long, to my embarrassment I royally failed at swapping the ring and pinion in the rear and couldn't drive it and I wasn't going to attempt the front. Gary told me a while back this work is not for the faint of heart, I listened the first time when I bought a built Ford 9 third member instead of assembling it myself, but I didn't listen this time. I brought the truck to a shop that lives and breathes truck differentials and had them do all the work... With new 4.10 gears instead of the used ones. He also talked me into Eaton TrueTracs instead of the lunchbox locker, two of them actually, so front and rear. He also ended up repairing the u-joints in the front since they were missing most of their needle bearings... Anyway, I have the truck now. Since I got it back I threw on the lift. 3" Skyjacker coil springs up front, 1.5" Pro Comp leaf in the back, Rancho RS7MT monotube shocks all around. It rides....exactly the same as before which is great and a lot better off road since I'm not slamming against the bump stops. I'd imagine it will get softer once the suspension breaks in and I get some adjustable control arms. The wife and I took it to BLM land for some target shooting and I didn't even bother choosing my lines to get through the mud on the access road that would've stopped lesser trucks. It is nice having a vehicle that will get us through the hills confidently. Only issue is that I'm getting some pretty rude drivetrain noises in 4x4 and the "4x4 on" light illuminates during high throttle in 2WD, so I'm fairly certain there's an issue with the CAD actuator since it had to be removed for the repair and it is vacuum actuated. At some point soon I will also need to do all the wheel bearings and ball joints. Also in the works, my boss has a big front sway bar and quick disconnect links from a Jeep Wrangler that I'm gonna try to fit. Also have a relative who can source me a used Warn winch for free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted April 12 Share Posted April 12 So making a short story long, to my embarrassment I royally failed at swapping the ring and pinion in the rear and couldn't drive it and I wasn't going to attempt the front. Gary told me a while back this work is not for the faint of heart, I listened the first time when I bought a built Ford 9 third member instead of assembling it myself, but I didn't listen this time. I brought the truck to a shop that lives and breathes truck differentials and had them do all the work... With new 4.10 gears instead of the used ones. He also talked me into Eaton TrueTracs instead of the lunchbox locker, two of them actually, so front and rear. He also ended up repairing the u-joints in the front since they were missing most of their needle bearings... Anyway, I have the truck now. Since I got it back I threw on the lift. 3" Skyjacker coil springs up front, 1.5" Pro Comp leaf in the back, Rancho RS7MT monotube shocks all around. It rides....exactly the same as before which is great and a lot better off road since I'm not slamming against the bump stops. I'd imagine it will get softer once the suspension breaks in and I get some adjustable control arms. The wife and I took it to BLM land for some target shooting and I didn't even bother choosing my lines to get through the mud on the access road that would've stopped lesser trucks. It is nice having a vehicle that will get us through the hills confidently. Only issue is that I'm getting some pretty rude drivetrain noises in 4x4 and the "4x4 on" light illuminates during high throttle in 2WD, so I'm fairly certain there's an issue with the CAD actuator since it had to be removed for the repair and it is vacuum actuated. At some point soon I will also need to do all the wheel bearings and ball joints. Also in the works, my boss has a big front sway bar and quick disconnect links from a Jeep Wrangler that I'm gonna try to fit. Also have a relative who can source me a used Warn winch for free. Wow, that's good progress! You'll like the TrueTracs, at least you will the one in the back. I've not driven a truck with one in the front so don't know how that will work - maybe you can tell us since you have already used it. Does it come in suddenly and change the steering? As for the 4wd issue, it does sound like a vacuum problem since it drops at high throttle. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted April 12 Share Posted April 12 So making a short story long, to my embarrassment I royally failed at swapping the ring and pinion in the rear and couldn't drive it and I wasn't going to attempt the front. Gary told me a while back this work is not for the faint of heart, I listened the first time when I bought a built Ford 9 third member instead of assembling it myself, but I didn't listen this time. I brought the truck to a shop that lives and breathes truck differentials and had them do all the work... With new 4.10 gears instead of the used ones. He also talked me into Eaton TrueTracs instead of the lunchbox locker, two of them actually, so front and rear. He also ended up repairing the u-joints in the front since they were missing most of their needle bearings... Anyway, I have the truck now. Since I got it back I threw on the lift. 3" Skyjacker coil springs up front, 1.5" Pro Comp leaf in the back, Rancho RS7MT monotube shocks all around. It rides....exactly the same as before which is great and a lot better off road since I'm not slamming against the bump stops. I'd imagine it will get softer once the suspension breaks in and I get some adjustable control arms. The wife and I took it to BLM land for some target shooting and I didn't even bother choosing my lines to get through the mud on the access road that would've stopped lesser trucks. It is nice having a vehicle that will get us through the hills confidently. Only issue is that I'm getting some pretty rude drivetrain noises in 4x4 and the "4x4 on" light illuminates during high throttle in 2WD, so I'm fairly certain there's an issue with the CAD actuator since it had to be removed for the repair and it is vacuum actuated. At some point soon I will also need to do all the wheel bearings and ball joints. Also in the works, my boss has a big front sway bar and quick disconnect links from a Jeep Wrangler that I'm gonna try to fit. Also have a relative who can source me a used Warn winch for free. I'm DEEP into my 10.25 right now. I had a little medical issue that sidetracked me, but I hope to be shimming it up as soon as I get the carrier back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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