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Welded front diff question?

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 7:20 pm
by beebee
1st Question

We've all heard that if your front diff is locked ie spool or welded then steering is really difficult. Does this mean
A) It is phically difficult to turn the steering wheel or
B) The vehicle struggles to change direction due to the two wheels trying to rotate at different speeds ie no differentiation

If the answer is just (A) then what would the result be if running a welded front and hydro assist?

2nd Question

In a welded diff scenareo, would the welds be the fusable link? For instance if I snapped and inner axle (I have CORE cvs) would the welds break before the rest of the diff due to shock load?

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 7:36 pm
by OVERKILL ENG
Both it was hard to steer and wantss to push the front forward instead of turning.

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 7:54 pm
by hypo
yeah iwoodnt run a sppol or weld the front 4 the same reasons as sam, i notice even with my front locked(ARB) that it wants 2 push forward rather than turn ( i know that this ia also due 2 the rear been locked )

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 7:59 pm
by beebee
Oh well back to the drawing board :cry: :cry:

Thanks for the imput though guys. :)

If anybody wants to try and convince me to do it - now is your turn. 8)

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 8:06 pm
by M&M Custom Engineerin
run it welded in the front, i would rather lose a bit of steering lock and gain a heap of traction

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 8:09 pm
by hypo
mickbj42 wrote:run it welded in the front, i would rather lose a bit of steering lock and gain a heap of traction



yeah do u have 2 limit steering travel with the CORE cv's like u need 2 with longfeilds ??

maybe it will work ??

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 8:10 pm
by RokToy4x4
what type of 4wd is it :P

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 8:11 pm
by beebee
No as they don't have a welded ring like the longfields. Although limiting your lock with any cv will possibly make it last a bit longer.

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 8:11 pm
by beebee
RokToy4x4 wrote:what type of 4wd is it :P


Hilux.

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 8:15 pm
by RokToy4x4
yea welded front is a cheap locker, i've had a few front and rear,better than no locker at all :D

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 8:20 pm
by M&M Custom Engineerin
hypolux wrote:
mickbj42 wrote:run it welded in the front, i would rather lose a bit of steering lock and gain a heap of traction



yeah do u have 2 limit steering travel with the CORE cv's like u need 2 with longfeilds ??

maybe it will work ??


when you run welded front it pushes forward all the time so you basically just lose some lock. You learn to drive around it by turning earlier etc.

Just weld it until an airlocker comes along second hand or until you go and buy a new airlocker.

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 8:44 pm
by taziiy
does it still want to push the front if the hubs are unlocked :?:

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 9:27 pm
by beebee
taziiy wrote:does it still want to push the front if the hubs are unlocked :?:


No as without the drive to the wheels, they just do what they're told.

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 9:29 pm
by beebee
hypolux wrote:yeah iwoodnt run a sppol or weld the front 4 the same reasons as sam, i notice even with my front locked(ARB) that it wants 2 push forward rather than turn ( i know that this ia also due 2 the rear been locked )


When you say that "wants to push forward" do you mean that it is a real pain or is it like what mick said where you just learn to live with it?

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 11:09 pm
by hypo
well ya get used 2 it it can b a real pain somtime if u r coming up 2 a ledge at an angle and it just keeps spittin u off the side, in this situation i can turn my front off hook it into the ledge and drive up it but u may just keep slidin off

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 11:20 pm
by beebee
I can see what you're saying and you certainly have a point.

However, I think I'll weld it. This frees up $1000ish that would have gone into a diff lock that can be spent on dual cases. Still not feeling confident about it though.

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 11:21 pm
by hypo
i know this may sound dum but y not put a lockright in the front 4 the time being ?? if u still not confident bout running a welded front

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 11:37 pm
by beebee
Priced a lockrite yesterday at $1100 (off the top of my head but close). The ARB quote was actually cheaper :!: :shock:

A 4wd systems lokka would probably be the way to go. Although from what I've heard from some others, half the time the auto lockers will not disengage when you want them to anyway so why not spool it? I don't want to waste $600+ on a auto locker to break it when I break my first inner axle. Decisions decisions...........

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 11:40 pm
by hypo
if u got the money just ARB the front u wont regret it but i reackon u will regret spooling it

Posted: Thu May 22, 2003 11:51 pm
by beebee
Prob is I got no money!

At the moment, I have to pull my welded rear out for a roadworthy. And I need to put something back in. In the front I have an LSD so this will go into the back and the welded centre will fill the hole in the front. Only thing is that the crown wheel on the LSD is slightly chipped but the welded centre is all good. So I was thinking, should I scrape together enough for a locker to replace the welded and keep it in the back and thus retain the good R&P. I don't know.......At least if I put the welded in the front, I can always pull it out again. :)

Posted: Fri May 23, 2003 7:51 am
by suprasurf
beebee wrote:Priced a lockrite yesterday at $1100 (off the top of my head but close). The ARB quote was actually cheaper :!: :shock:

A 4wd systems lokka would probably be the way to go. Although from what I've heard from some others, half the time the auto lockers will not disengage when you want them to anyway so why not spool it? I don't want to waste $600+ on a auto locker to break it when I break my first inner axle. Decisions decisions...........


Find some one else who wants a LOKKA because theres a discount for buying 2 !

I run a lockrite in the front and a LOKKA in the rear, have for a couple of years, and they work well !! Never busted a CV or had the lockers fail.