dayum. thing is, i WANT to offroad. just not till i get this sucker fixed up and buy a DD. id rather not screw up my current DD. i plan on slowly turinin my truck into a trail/offroad rig. starting w/ the cheaper accessories and movin up to the expensive stuff like the full out suspension lift, locker, etc... most "offroading" itll see right now is just goin huntin or to a fishin hole. no mudding, crawling, or trailing (at least nothing major, might go up a steep hill or a little bitty mud hole)

 

so you would reccomend aussie over any of the others?

 

Ok here is one picture I have.

You're looking inside the diff of my sport trac (31 spline 8.8 with the aussie in (except the center pin is still hanging half out).
The big metal part in the center (where the pin is hanging out of) is the carrier. This normally holds the spider gears.
Inside that are two center gears (cam gears), and two outer gears (axle gears), see how the teeth mesh together? The axle gears are connected to, you guess it, the axles.
Between the two cam gears are 4 pins and springs holding them apart with a certain amount of force. Also in the middle is the center pin, which goes through the carrier. The ring gear is connected to the carrier, this is what your driveshaft is turning.
Now in between those two cam gears, there is enough room between them and the center pin to allow enough gap between those teeth to allow ONE side to ratchet. If you are coasting or light on the throttle, one side will be locked in (teeth meshed), and the other will be free. The wheel spinning faster is the free one (outside of the turn).
When you get on the gas, the force of the center pin turning the cam gears pushes those cam gears hard against the axle gears, which locks the whole thing as a unit.

 

Do you have a manual or automatic transmission?
The locker is pretty smooth on an automatic, but is a little awkward when accelerating through a turn, shifting gears in a manual. You will wear your tires out a little faster with a locker, and will likely change your driving habits just a little to make it smoother. Mine was on a daily driver, no problems.
Off road it is awesome. You get a full locker without having to deal with switches, air lines, extra mechanical junk, etc. It locks when you're on the throttle, and unlocks when you are turning.
If you want a selectable locker it is going to cost you a LOT more, plus it is more difficult to install.

The aussie locker in the front is a little weird in the snow, but nothing to worry about around here for the light dusting of snow they get every now and then.

 

You would have to switch to a 31 spline axle to run an Aussie. Powertrax makes the same type of locker for the 28 spline axle.

 

how does limited slip work? is it worth buying a locker when you have l/s on your daily driver and do mild off roading?

 

Yes. The aussie is available for the front of the ranger, but not the rear end (with 28 spline).
The powertrax locker is basically the same as the aussie, just more expensive because aussie sells direct.

 

it says 27 spline for the one im lookin at. i thought it was 28 and 31?

 

Bah. http://www.howstuffworks.com/search....p+differential

Limited slip in the ranger (other than the torsen unit) is a clutch based unit. There are several plates and the friction between them is what makes it a limited slip. It never fully locks. It is smoother on the street, but will still spin a single tire if it is in the air. It also loses its effectiveness as the clutch packs wear down.

 

That is for the front.
http://www.offroadlockers.com/item.p...//106014/.html
28 and 31 spline is referring to the rear axle. Notice it does not list a rear application.

Here is a listing for the Explorer 31 spline rear 8.8 (will not fit your rear axle)
http://www.offroadlockers.com/item.p...//306008/.html

 

damn. that sucks... i dont rele wanna mess w/ an axle swap. sounds like to big of a PITA

 

so it acts a lot like a detriot locker does?

 

I do know that an l/s when in 2wd will let you turn sharper by letting the out side wheel slip free,but when I'm in four wheel drive its a different story, not just because of the front being locked in but, I guess its the torsen l/s, works really well, a posi wont let the out side wheel slip free in a turn. I always thought that a posi left the rear axle shafts together all the time now matter what, the same as lockers.

 

Nothing extra happens when you switch into 4wd other than you go into 4wd. The reason you can't and shouldn't try to turn sharply in 4wd, unless you are on slippery terrain, is because the front wheels and rear wheels can't turn at different speeds like they normally do during a turn. 4wd locks the power going to the front and rear wheels and does not allow the front and rear axles to turn at different speeds. AWD cars are basically 4wd cars with a diff in the t-case letting the front a rear axles can turn at different speeds.

L/S and posi are different names for the same thing. But they never lock the 2 wheels together. They do help transfer more power to the wheel with traction but it is limited hence the name. In the end when one wheel completely loses traction it will spin the one wheel and go nowhere. Here are some videos showing that:

http://powertrax.com/PTRAX.mpg
http://powertrax.com/PTRAX2.wmv

 

Yeah pretty much. My roommate had a detroit in his wrangler. When it exploded he put in a lockrite (like the aussie), and it behaves the same.

 

x2

 

christian knows im running em front and back with 37 in tires for a few years now
the ony problem iv ever had was i broke 2 of the 4 pins my last trip out on the rear called them the next monday and had new pins at my door by wensday afternoon
and im not extactly what u call easy on my pos

 

soo if you have a locker do you still have to turn the switch to 4x4 hi or low? and is there any choices for a 28 spline rear locker?

 

Is there an aussie locker that fits 2wds as well? I believe I've read about one being installed on a 2wd around here somewhere.... I wanted to get one.

 

The 4wd switch and locker are not connected in any way unless the vehicle came equipped like way. Most of the time its connected in a way that doesn't let you activate the locker unless you are in 4wd low but that only applies to vehicles that came with a OEM locker. Automatic lockers lock automatically and manual lockers lock when you lock them regardless of what 4wd or 2wd position you are in.

Post 55 for 28 spline.

Read post 55 for 28 spline.

 

ok. thanks. is it the same quality as aussie? and would you reccomend that or get an fx4 rearend? idk nething bout the torsen (i dont even know what it is)

 

Powertrax makes a good product. The 31 spline axle is stronger but its up to how much money you are willing to spend.

 

Alright so I can only run the power trax locker then because my axle is only a 28 spline, gotcha. Explorers have the 31 spline axle correct? I want a 31 at some piont

 

whats better, fx4 31 or expo 31? which ones harder to install and do they come w/ 4.10 or bigger?