Additional Traction

[Grim 82]

I'm thinking about lockers, limited slip, etc. to get another wheel putting power to the ground. I would like your opinions/experiences with these kinds of things to help me to figure out what I should get. The main purpose for this will be for icy road conditions and deep snow; no rock crawling, mudding, or anything extreme. This is for a daily driven 82 K10 so any option would have to be effective and forgiving in winter driving situations, and not something that chirps the tires around every corner on dry pavement. So far my research has me leaning more towards a Lock-Rite type locker for the front. I don't want to drop alot of cash into a selectable rear locker.
Current setup is 350, 700r4, NP208, 12 bolt/Dana 44, 3.07 gears & 33" tires. I am swapping in 10 bolt front and rear (I know ) out of my 88 suburban because they are either 3.42 or 3.73. I don't remember which but I know there are 41 teeth on the ring so those are the only choices.
Whatever I choose would be to fit the 88 suburban 10-bolts. Thanks

[VileZambonie]

Why do you want a locker up front? If it's daily driven it's kinda pointless. You don't ever want it locked while driving on the street. For the rear and what you describe here is what I recommend

http://www.auburngear.com/aftermarket/product_listing.aspx?category=4ea7b7ea-ad65-492a-830f-1b8a333d16ef

[Grim 82]

Thanks for the link.
What I was thinking was that with it in 2wd and hubs unlocked I would never know that it's there, but when I lock it in I would have 3 out of 4 wheels turning.
So with this Auburn how would it handle as far as going around corners and such on ice? If I understand, it's not selectable, so it's always there but it won't lock both sides at the same time; just transfer back and forth? I know that true lockers are a good way to end up spun around and upside down in the ditch, which is not what I want.

[HIGHPLAINSDRIFTER]

What about just going to a NP203 transfer case with a part time kit. That will give you the best of both.

[Grim 82]

I really like the setup that I have now, I just want an advantage over the open diff's. Something that isn't going to have negative effects on interstate driving, but when I'm out hunting I can go through a bit more snow, etc. I don't plan on having it locked up in town driving on the streets. The reason I mentioned throwing a 'lunchbox' locker in the front is because if I am thinking correctly, hubs unlocked in 2HI I would never even know that it's there, correct?
When I stress that it's a daily driver it's because I have a neighbor with a Toyota with Aussie lockers front and rear. He says it's great to go straight through a mudhole but when it's icy ouside it's suicide to drive it, and it won't make corners. Also on dry street it chirps and barks tires around every corner. I'm looking at the Auburn, but that would require re-setting up the R&P, correct? They are not nearly as spendy as I thought they would be, but I would need some consulting on the installation.

[motion427]

The most popular setup that we use for the 10 bolts GM is the Yukon Duragrip and the Eaton Truetrac for the rear.
As for the front,also use the Eaton Truetrac.

If your really on a budget,try to find a factory posi unit out of an old style Camaro or Trans Am 75-81 style.

With these units,yes you must reset the backlash of the ring & pinion,i'n most cases it's not affected when you change the diff.but double check.

The Lock-Right locker,Yukon Spartan locker,Aussie lockers uses the stock case,but it's drive's different on the street,especially in the winter.I would not recommend one in the front,but you could get away with it in the rear.The longer the wheelbase,the less noticable it is.

As for the Auburn posi unit,It's O.K.We don't ussually install these because they are not rebuildable.

If you need more info about differentials,let me know.
I'm a owner of a repair-performance-4x4 shop here in NB Canada.Been playing with GM car and trucks since Hi school.Had my first car at 15 years old. And I still have the car as of today.Over 20+years ago.

[VileZambonie]

The nice thing about the auburn cone is in my opinion it's very smooth and very strong (Used many). As far as needing to rebuild it, you won't need to unless you grenade something. Lockers are terrible for the street daily driver and you won't need anything in the front but if you do then get a selectable locker.

[motion427]

I'd start with the rear diff for now.
You'll notice a big difference in traction just by adding a performance differential asembly in the back.

We never had any luck with the Auburn units,after a year or two they were done.Had to remove them and install another unit.But my customers are ussually very abusive on they parts.lol.....it must be a Canadian thing. lol......

But for a daily driver truck on the street.The Auburn would be a nice choice.

[VileZambonie]

We've been using Auburn Pro-series carriers since 1996. I've never had one fail and I have one in my 74, I'm putting one in my 84 to replace the spool. My cousin is running one behind an 800+HP setup.

BTW- You do have to set up the entire assembly again with this type of carrier. You may want to find a reputable shop to do it but thats hard to find these days. Setting the pinion depth is critical. You will need some special tools to do the job right yourself but you can do it. The other part everyone seems to have a problem with is setting the pinion bearing preload. You need to collapse the spacer (crush sleeve) and set the pinion bearing preload. You do this by holding the yoke with a fixture and gradually tightening the pinion nut until you acheive the proper amount of turning torque. You'll need an inch pound dial type torque wrench for this. Once that's set you need to install the carrier with the ring gear installled. The carrier needs to have proper bearing preload as well. The amount of movement side to side will give you your proper preload however you need to have the correct amount of backlash at the same time. You will need a shim assortment and a dial indicator. After final assembly you'll want to do a gear tooth contact pattern analysis. I prefer the gear marking compound that GM sells (yellow) and verify your set up. Unfortunately if you do any of it wrong you may end up going through additional pinion seals, crush sleeves, etc so it is important to do it right the first time. Auburn gear and richmond gear sell do it yourself videos or there may be some on youtube you may want to watch first if you plan on doing this yourself. Whether you choose a cone type or clutch type differential you won't regret it.

[Captkaos]

For the situation you are describing, get a used gov-loc out of a 82-91 10bolt.  They only lock when they sense slip.  For a daily driver I see nothing wrong with an Auburn, as Vile stated they have a smooth action.  I did break one that came in a truck I had, but I wasn't nice to it at all, I replaced it with another Auburn and it was still fine when I sold the truck about 2 years later.  I wasn't as abusive on it later.

In general, I only buy Eatons because they are rebuildable, and I generally keep truck I buy for a long time, with that said, if I was just doing mainly daily driving I wouldnt think twice about an Auburn.

It is a limited slip though so it take finesse on Ice.  Gov-locs will stay open unless inertia (excess spin/speed) locks them, so if you are driving carefully in the Ice they won't lock.

[motion427]

From my end of the woods.We take the factory GM gov-loc and us them for door stoppers,before they blow up.I keep at least 2-3 Yukon Duragrips and Eaton Truetrac in stock because we sell about 1 a week.

We never tried the Auburn Pro-series.Might be something that I can look into on the next shipment.
We had issues with the regular Auburn and the Ected units.

We use to used alot of the Eaton HD posi unit,but now we use the Yukon Duragrip.If the Duragrip is not available,we use the Eaton,example the GM 9.5" and the GM 10.5" diff's.

I bought my GM Avalanche from the dealer it had 31xxx km. A week later I upgraded to a Truetrac before it would blow up,even though the truck was still under warranty.

Up here,it's mostly because of the ice and snow that we are have alot of issues with differentials.Some are not carefull and just hammer the thing at the wrong time,and spare parts exit the diff cover.......

Just need to recheck the backlash when you change the units.The pinion is not affected.Unless you do change the ring & pinion also,then you have to reset everything.

[VileZambonie]

You should ALWAYS do a gear tooth contact pattern analysis. Backlash can be perfect but that doesn't mean you have ideal contact. I highly recommend always checking even if you are just swapping the carrier.

[motion427]

Did you ever tried to check the wear pattern on a used set of gears?
Once the gears are worn a bit(let say 10 000 miles or more) the pattern will rarely come up correctly.
From what I've seen anyway....
Example,
I just finished putting together a Dana 44 front for a JK Rubicon. He had 2 set of gears,one new from Dana,and the original set from that came with the housing(about 60 000KM).Even with the factory shims,pattern was not perfect for sure.Since he had the new set,I put those in instead.Did not want to take a chance,also added RCV shafts,cast diff cover,upper ball joint and lower control braces.Hope it will holds up,he's running the 5.7L Hemi 5 speed manual in the JK w/37" tires.

But it's Grim 82 that will make his decision,not us.Whatever he decide's he'll see a big difference in traction for sure 

[Grim 82]

Thanks everyone for the replies and info. I am researching all of the options that you guys mentioned. I talked to the guy that built my transmission and he said he would help me/supervise me in setting up the diff over a 12 pack.

[derrick79]

Just want to add that if you decide to do it yourself and when your doing the pinion bearing preload, make sure you have a nice sturdy vice and got breaker bar and possibly a snipe. From my experiences crushing those crush sleeves, they can require quite a bit of effort to get them to crush. And DO NOT go over preload spec because then you will be taking it apart and doing it all over again. The first one I ever did, I was surprised how much force it actually took to get it to start crushing.