I have a ford 9" detroit locker rear with a 4:30 ratio in my car with a Tremec 5 speed trans. I completed the car and I have driven it 200 miles. I can hear and feel the locker engaging and disengaging to the point it`s pretty annoying. This is a scratch built car and I am hearing new noises all the time. I knew going in that lockers make noise, but I`m beginning to think I made a mistake. Is it typical to feel and hear the locker? I will drag race the car once or twice a year. Will a posi of tru trac be a better choice? I will drive this car 5000 miles per year. Any help appreciated. Bob Myers.
Every Detroit locker I ever had made the same noises. It is some what annoying in a roadster ... where you hear, small and experience everything ... but you get use to it.
Yes, A Detroit Locker is one of those things in life that sound much better than they end up being. All that drama you are hearing will eventually snap an axle or pinion gear if it doesn't drive you crazy first. I think they are a mistake on anything you want to actually drive.
Normal for Detroit Locker. If you want quiet, get a clutch-type limited slip (Traction-Lok). I have heard some of the worm-gear lockers are much quieter than the ratchet-type...never run/ridden in one though.
It might drive you crazy...but, I never had a problem with mine on the street other than engage/disengage noise and feeling...I never broke anything...3 years, everyday, and dragstrip use on weekends...
I've put over 50k miles on the locker in my 55, no broken axles (they are Summers Bros.) or anything. If you have a loud enough engine you won't hear the rearend, and also you should get used to the "interesting" handling after a little while. Just make sure you drive carefully in situations with limited traction, as it will spin both tires very easily and you can find yourself pointing a direction other than you want to, if you gas it on a wet road or something.
I'm a fan of the Tru-Trac, but I keep a built center section with a Locker under the workbench in case I ever want to bolt a set of slicks on and head to the strip. Maybe building a 'street' center section would be a cool idea for you, too. That's one of the great things about 9-inch rears- You should be able to easily swap center sections without any major headaches in less than an hour. I'm planning to have 9-inch axles in all my cars, and a 'library' of center sections with different gear ratios and diff types for all possible situations. ~Scotch~
I changed out a powertrax for an OEM style traction-lok Ford and now I'm happy. The noise didn't bother me as much as the unique handling. A locker is probably great for off roading or for the person that expects their attributes on the road. It wasn't for me. Many thanks to Quick Performance in Ames!
I've worked on a couple 9" rears with Track-Loks that split in half....although they were in Broncos, not roadsters, so they might have been worked pretty hard. A track-lok would be ok in something light or a small engined car, but for a heavy car with a big motor it's inviting trouble.
I've heard nothing but good things about the Auburn Pro-Series. Unless you're putting out ridiculous horsepower it should be a very sufficient setup for the street and strip. When I replaced my 9" center section I was debating between a Trac-Loc, a Detroit or an Auburn. The guys at Currie sold me on the billet Trac-Loc they offer, in the name of streetability. Man, that thing is a piece of ****. 3 trips to the track wiped out the clutch packs, now I have a peg legger. That's what I get for being a *****. I should have gone with the Auburn or the Detroit. As much as the racheting and noise from the Detroit ****s, the embarr***ment of doing a one wheel peel is worse
Detroit Lockers breaking axles???!!! I honestly never heard THAT one before. I've got a Detroit Locker in one car - wouldn't hesitate to put one in any of them. I will SECOND the notion that they DO take some getting used to. And definitely aren't rain friendly, but not many of our cars are and we seem to manage. Maybe they're not for everybody, but I love mine.
I've killed 2 of em with street and minor strip use. One 7 5/8 behind a stock LT1 and one 9" ford behind a 420 hp 350. They chatter like hell without super doses of modifier and start slipping within 2 years of agressive street use. Pieces of **** IMO. Have a detroit locker in a 9" ford right now (killed the auburn pro) and it's a loud clanky annoying SOB. Thinking of removing it, though it happily tolerates 2nd gear clutch dumps. My car is also low (4.56) gears, which seems to aggravate the clanking. A friend claims theres some kind of spring/wave washer you can add to quiet them down significantly. Don't know how true that is. One of my other cars has an 8.5 with a Truetrac worm gear locker. That thing is the best thing since sliced bread. Silent, strong, and throws power continuously in search of traction. Detroit claims company employees run 9 second mustangs with truetracs, no failure. I've beat the piss out of this one for 3+ years in a 4200lb car with an LT1 and don't know why I ever messed around with the standard locker or the auburns. In the future, don't see myself buying anything but truetracs. Try one, you'll probably say the same. good luck either way
The truetrac is an amazing invention, and they've been around for decades, I wonder what took so long for them to finally catch on?
The 31 spline units are supposed to be a bit smoother than the 28 spline ones. The smaller axles wind up then snap back when the unit ratchets. The stiffer axle will allow the unit to ratchet easier. Another thing is to make sure the tires have equal air pressure, and are very close in actual diameter. Differences can cause some interesting handling. I also second the idea that the factory Trac-Loc are prone to breaking.
Seen this too, but the ones I saw were all two-pinion carriers. Never seen a 4-pinion Track-Lok split on the street...seem 'em smoked on the track though!
I drove the car 200 more miles since my post and have decided to keep the locker. I bought it for it`s toughness, and I guess some of you said what I wanted to hear. I don`t have an interior in my car yet nor door panels and I suspect the interior and insulation will knock a lot of noise down. Incidently, the car is a 41 willys coupe, roller cammed 383 stroker with Dart pro 1 heads, edelbrock air gap intake and a Demon double pumper 750. Thanx for all tips and info. Bob Myers.
Like I said before ... you can get used to it. When you get interior and all ... it will become less noticeable. Just be careful in the rain
With time, you will become better at working the throttle to minimize it. But expect the neighbors to ask stupid questions. Didn't realize it was in a Willys. Wear that locker like a badge of honor. Clanky but strong honor.
I have a locker in mine loud and noisey sound`s like a hotrod ! I like it and lock`s up with no ******** at the track !
Nope, never been 4 wheelin but he said it was in his CAR. In that application, I have never seen one broken in street use and only going to the track once or twice a year as he stated
When little brother's drag race HJ was running a mild 468" Olds et al he ran a 4.57 Detroit Locker - which is mine now - he broke a 31 spline nine inch Ford axle on the top end (125 mph & high 10's at the time without a whole lot of horsepower) and the axle started coming out of the housing which took the rear brakes out. He got stopped with no probs. Aftermarket axles be a blessing.... I'll be looking again, cuz I just got a pair of 12" slicks and Centerlines for the 32.... The 32 has a pair of Dutchmen's 31 spliners.... Anyone have an out of date parachute for not too much $$ and just for fun on the 32? Much more skatin' around on the top end and I'm gonna have to get serious....
since you all are on here, my wagon got re-geared by the P.O>. and they installed a mini-spool. (dont know what brand) anyways what can i do to get the rear end back to "normal driving ways???
Offroading sometimes breaks axles. Running 10's in the quarter sometimes breaks axles. ****py welded rear ends sometimes break axles. Spools break axles WITHOUT necessarily doing any of the above. I haven't known detroit lockers to break axles withOUT doing the above - THAT was the intention of my previous point - I think most guys got that. I stand by that. Off roading - nope - never done that, but I did see a Model A jump the curb last Saturday - he was looking for a parking spot!
Ive seen weak locker springs put a 7 inch tire E/Stock 427/410 powered 67 Fairlane 4 door wagon on the roof in 3 rd gear. I happened to be in it at the time too. 3.5 inch Rambler wheels and 7 lbs of air pressure in the 7 inch slicks probably didnt help either. This was in 1973, your results may vary
Spools break axles on the street because everything is in a hell of a bind all the time. Who runs a spool on the street anyway, I mean really? It seems I'm always in the minority on these things, but I will say it again anyway, if you're running a big motor (street or not) and any kind of traction device (spool, locker, ratchet, etc), you're going to break axles eventually. That's fine. Axles are expendable IMO, but only if you're running a full floating rear end. Break an axle in a floater, no big deal, limp it home pull the drive cap, pull the axle bits, and replace it. Easy peasy, and no lost wheels or wrecked auto (unless it gets away from you when that one tire stops pulling). Floaters don't look a whole lot different from a standard rear end, and they're loads safer with the big motors, plus the aftermarket gun-drilled axles are a hell of a lot tougher than the stock pieces too. I don't have a problem with a Detroit Locker on the street, IMO it's not working on the axles any harder than any other traction device does. I do prefer the worm drive torque sensing units like a Winters Triple Track or a Gold Trak or the like though, because they don't just unload under coast like the Detroit Locker will. I dunno, it's a feel thing that I've carried over from oval racing with spools I guess. I like to feel both rears dragging about the same as the car decels into the corner, but that's just personal preference.
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