What is the reason for not using a spoll on the street? Saftey, Breakage, Drivability? A locker costs $500 a spool cost $200
I have a spool in my regualarly street driven Chevy II, and I love it. As long as you are running decent axles, I would'nt worry about anything. I have killed enough clutch type posi units to where I'll run spools in everything I build from now on.
All of the above.Using a spool is the same as welding the spider gears in a differential;great for traction(both wheels drive)but extremely hard on axle splines in turns.Axle breakage is common even if you don't hot dog it all the time. Another important reason(and one that not many think about)is safety.With a differential,if you happen to break an axle while accelerating hard,the car is basically going to slow down and eventually stop.With a spool,if you snap an axle under hard acceleration,the remaining wheel is going to still drive hard and will pull you around in a heartbeat.I don't care how good your reflexes are:you are either going to make a hard right onto the sidewalk or a hard left into oncoming traffic.Nuff said?
also, its easier to lose control in a turn if your in water or ice. with an open differential if one wheel starts to spin in a turn (unless your doing it on purpose of course) the non-spinning wheel will hold on to the road and keep you from sliding sideways, if both wheels start to spin, well your whole cars spins. Also you said a locker, are you talking about an automatic locker? don't do it. it will engage and disengage when you least expect it causing some erratic road manners, I've also heard of people snapping more axles with auto lockers than spools, because the engaging and disengaging puts alot of stress on things. Also, none of this is from my personal experience Just research I've done in the past.
I run a 9 inch Ford W/Detroit Locker in my truck. They are a bit noizy as they "ratchet" when you make a turn,but if your exhaust is SWEET enough,you'll never hear it For the street,spend the extra bucks,and put some type of a limited slip in it,and save the money you will HAVE to spend on GOOD axles with the spool. Just my $.02 worth
I have a Detroit Locker under my 32 Roadster. It came from a Boss 302, many years ago. It is somewhat noisy in the 32 (open cat..you hear and smell everything ) BUT I have had it in closed cars and you almost never hear it (unless the windows are down and your hearing is good). Ford makes a fluid additive for them...it helps. .
I also have a locker in my 75 Nova (SPAM! For sale in the cl***ifieds! SPAM!) and it works good, although it is a little noisy. I just figure fewer moving parts means fewer parts for my unlucky *** to break!
Spools are hard on axles & pose safety hazards in traction limited situations (water, ice, etc.). They're not designed for the street & you really should run aftermarket axles with them. True locker rear ends typically use a ratchet - Ford's Detroit Locker is the prototypical example. Strong, reliable, but noisy. Clutch-type limited slip rears are what you'll find in most "posi" rears (posi-traction, traction-lok, limited slip, etc.). Fine for mild performance, but won't hold up to serious HP. They also wear out over time. Newer styles are air lockers and torque sensing. Of the two, I think the torque-sensing (Gleason-Torson?) is probably a great compromise for the street. Supposedly locks as solid as a locker-type w/o the noise, but is smooth like a clutch type. No personal experience with either of the last two...
[ QUOTE ] about the broken axle? If 1 side breaks wouldn't the car just drive like a dog leg axle? [/ QUOTE ] That's what I would think... but I've only broken one axle, and it was on an open rear, so the car just stopped!
After observing a couple of snapped axles in locker rears I'd definitely not recommend them for the street. Under hard acceleration if an axle breaks the car is very suseptable to taking a severe right or left turn (depending on which axle breaks) a condition that just invites disaster on the street. I watched a car on the track cross into the other lane and the resulting crash left one car totaled and the other severely damaged. This is a remote ocurrance but it only has to happen once to you. Frank
I was spectating at the local drags here one summer day and a tupperware 55 T-bird racer came off the line, whensuddenly his left axle shaft snaps. The announcer in the the tower had his primo 31 chevy coupe hot rod parked at the base of the tower. T-bird went left so fast the driver didn't have time to lift...punched the 31 chevy right in the door, smashing it up against the tower and totalling both sides of the coupe and the entire T-bird clone. The timing tower wasnt' lookin too buff either but nobody was hurt except in their checkbooks... Still, my brother has run spools on the street for the last 25 years with no ill effects.
The new Gold Trac rears use multiple sets of opposite worm gears intead of the rachets in the lockers. They are made to free up straight line hp on dirt cars running considerable stagger. The principle is that a worm gear is real efficient when it is turning one direction, but very inefficient rotating backwards. When the right tire spins, it causes one set of worm gears to bind, thus applying power to the left rear. If the left rear spins the opposite gear binds up powering the right rear. I don't know how this type of rear would last on the street or strip, because it is designed for cars that don't make hard launches or travel thousands of miles. Has anyone tried one in their 9" Ford?
we use something like that in our Formula SAE cars, its works really good however I know nothing about its longevity or how well it works in something with alot more horsepower.
[ QUOTE ] The new Gold Trac rears use multiple sets of opposite worm gears intead of the rachets in the lockers...I don't know how this type of rear would last on the street or strip, because it is designed for cars that don't make hard launches or travel thousands of miles. [/ QUOTE ] That's the torque sensing rear I was talking about - I think Gleason makes a version too. I know the Mustang crowd run them and so does the mini-truck crowd - even see their ads in the 4x4 mags a lot too. I think they're reasonably durable, but have no experience with 'em.
Spool it up!! Hell yes..they are cheap and work fine..I only broke one axle in my old 32 and thst because it was old and seriously abused.. Damn teenagers...
[ QUOTE ] Still, my brother has run spools on the street for the last 25 years with no ill effects. [/ QUOTE ] Does he run low traction-easy to break loose tires on with them? I'd think the life of the axles in aturn would be directly related to how easy it was to skid/spin a tire.
Doc...he runs street tires on the street and bolts up the slicks for racing. He was using apair of Moser-shortened factory mopar axles but stepped up to a pair of 35 spline Dutchman axles when he started running in the 10 second range to be safe. Fact is, the car only weighs 2100 lbs and the new axle shafts are as big as your wrist!
My setup is a 3100 lb car, with 30x13.5 MT ET streets, and I'm running Moser 35 spline axles. Driving it in the rain can be fun, and as was mentioned earlier, don't nail it unless your totally straight! I don't think the "chirp chirp chirp" or tire squeal around a corner is NEARLY as noticeable with the spool as it is with the locker. Honestly, the locker would only unlock around maybe 60% of the corners!
L78 Bias plys? think they will break before the axle? Chopped 29 P/U whith shortened bed and Little to no interior.SBC power glide?
[ QUOTE ] Spools are hard on axles & pose safety hazards in traction limited situations (water, ice, etc.). They're not designed for the street & you really should run aftermarket axles with them. True locker rear ends typically use a ratchet - Ford's Detroit Locker is the prototypical example. Strong, reliable, but noisy. Clutch-type limited slip rears are what you'll find in most "posi" rears (posi-traction, traction-lok, limited slip, etc.). Fine for mild performance, but won't hold up to serious HP. They also wear out over time. Newer styles are air lockers and torque sensing. Of the two, I think the torque-sensing (Gleason-Torson?) is probably a great compromise for the street. Supposedly locks as solid as a locker-type w/o the noise, but is smooth like a clutch type. No personal experience with either of the last two... [/ QUOTE ] I have to agree with this statement from the standpoint that I've run a spool in a Hailibrand QC which was a handfull on the street. Ran a Quick-trac (torsion sensing) in a Stock Car Products QC which tended to be the best set up for street use in a light Roadster..., effortless turning and handling with very straight launches...!! I've run Detroit Locker's in the past in heavey 3,000 lb cars and had no problems..., But they did sound like there was a ton of loose metal clanking around inside the pumpkin...!! I've just purchased a Winters QC with a Detroit Locker (from Brett Bodines "Hooter's" stock car) and am planning to run it in a light Roadster. With ten inch street tires I don't think I'll be breaking any axles but I'll probably be more aware of the noise... ! Mark
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