locker?

[tommyboy]

Hello,

I am new to Jeeps so please help me out. I bought an 05 Unlimited early this year. I have taken it out off roading(mild) several times. Everyone says you need a locker but is this overkill. I dont plan on rock crawling at all. Mostly forest and hunting trails only. It is also my daily driver. I have a 2 inch lift and 32's on it. A rear air locker will cost $1000 installed. I can afford this but if I'm not using it, it seems like wasted money. Someone told me about a lockrite for the front but said there will be noise and probably mechanical problems down the road with breakage. Much cheaper now but in the long run not if it causes problems later. Another guy said stick a limited slip in the front. I'm so confused lol. Any thoughts? Thank you.

Tom Eason

[moneypit]

My advise would be wheel it the way it is . If in the future you start to get into trouble you upgrade to a locker. If it is your daily driver some lockers change the way it runs on the street. I put in the ARB lockers because I did not want to change how the LJ runs on the street. With ARB you don't know there is a locker in there till you flip the switch and engage them. The down side is they are expensive.

[treeofliberty]

Tommyboy,

There's always some know-it-all that will tell you what you need for your ride. I don't know how many sheer walls I've climbed after people asked me if I had lockers first. I don't. Just the LSD in the rear D44. If you've not spun tires on the trails yet, I'd say you don't need it.

Where you live, and the type of wheeling you intend to do will have an impact on your decision. You don't want locked axles in the snow. An auto locker (lock-right, aussie, detroit, etc) in the front will be nearly invisible while in 2wd. In 4wd, it will receive torque and lock the axles. However, this is bad in the snow & ice. If you live where the white stuff falls, pay the extra for a selectable.
The other thing about lockers is that they steal some turning radius.

I still think the best bang for the buck is to lock the front, to complement the LSD rear.

Unless YOU think you need lockers, I'd say to wait. By the time you actually need them, you'll be wanting to regear (having bigger tires) and want to combine the labor.

[RubiRedLJ]

moneypit said:

My advise would be wheel it the way it is . If in the future you start to get into trouble you upgrade to a locker. If it is your daily driver some lockers change the way it runs on the street. I put in the ARB lockers because I did not want to change how the LJ runs on the street. With ARB you don't know there is a locker in there till you flip the switch and engage them. The down side is they are expensive.

x2

I really regret putting a Detroit locker in the rear of my old TJ's D44. If I ever have to do it again, I would go with something like an ARB. Hopefully these "new fangled" Rubi lockers will hold up to the abuse!?

[Mars]

Sounds like good advice, all. If you're not running into situations that would benefit from a locker then why spend the money?

I'm in the market for a rear locker. I've only taken my Unlimited down to Sayersbrook and hit the moderate trail but there was a couple of places where a locker would have helped. Specifically, going up a steep grade of uneven terrain. A friend with a SWB Rubicon kicked in front and rear lockers and walked up the hill. I had to hammer it.

My first choice is the ARB, but I recently saw a new kit come out from Ox (saw it on Quadratec). It's mechanically engaged rather than ARB's air-actuated setup. Cheap enough to make me take a hard look at it but haven't found any reviews yet. The Ox system is engaged from the cabin via a toggle, with a cable running to differential to engage (a bit like shifting gears on a bicycle).

Anyone heard anything about Ox?

[salyers890]

I would spring for the Ox if I were getting a locker. seems pretty neat.

[tommyboy]

Thanks guys. I appreciate the input. I still havent decided either way but I will let you know how it turns out. Happy holiday season.

Tom

[treeofliberty]

mars said:

Anyone heard anything about Ox?

I've read, but not experienced for myself, that Ox has undergone two designs. Some people swear by them, while others have complained about the cables stretching over time, needing to be adjusted.

You certainly have three options for selectable lockers: air, cable, and electric. None are cheap, and I've heard zealots and haters alike.

From all I've read, with a proper professional install, you would be happy with ARB's or an OX.

[Mars]

I'm leaning towards the ARB setup because for the extra $150.00-$200.00 I save, I'm getting a useable air-compressor to air up the tires with after a run.

The OX sounds cool, but I haven't come across anyone with it installed yet. Plenty of air-actuated lockers in my local club though, with no complaints.

[moneypit]

I have the ARB's and love them. But their compressor is not really very good for airing up tires. Its very slow. It will work in a pinch but I would not want to try to do 4 tires with it. I bought a seperate portable compressor that works much better. I would see if the installer could put in a larger volume Viair compressor that could do both. They even have some compressors that will run air tools. I did not think to ask that before having mine installed. I had a link to a place that had great prices on the Viair units. If you are interested let me know and I will see if I can find it.

[Mars]

Thanks for the heads-up, it didn't even occur to me. I'll look into the third-party compressor.