k i have a 2000 ranger 4x4 that i believe has busted hubs... i dont feel they lock what so ever, and sometimes i get a small grinding noise from the front when switching back to 2wd. anyway thats besides the point...

i hope it is the hubs, as im thinking about getting manual lockers anyway. now i hear about welding the front diff and getting manual lockers, and just throwing on the locks when off roading, which i imagine wouldnt be too bad... then unlock when hitting the roads again... if that sounds like a bad idea, i just may get manual locking hubs up front, and get the torson l/s diff. but of course its more costly and im kinda on a budget

now my questions for the rear... what kind of budget options can i run for the rear to get better off road traction?

i plan on doing some decent trails and some minor rock crawling in the long run so im trying to learn what options i can start off with now.

last question is if i weld the front diff and lock the hubs, and run it in 2wd OR 4wd high, it would still run the same in either setting, and all 4 will be running? and when i change it to 4wd low, then it lowers transfer case with still running 4 wheels right? then only way to get it back to 2wd is to manually unlock the front hubs?

 

Nah, it's not a bad idea, I know a few guys running welded IFS yotas with manual hubs.

it wont change the way your 4wd performs at all, besides the fact both fron wheels will be constantly locked.

 

You will be doing 32 point turns on the trail....maybe not that many, but you will lose a ton of 4wd turning radius. Might break some more things also depending on your gas pedal use in those turns.

 

im thinking 33... 32 is too few