Outer Limits 4x4 Board

Has any one had or got a front diff weld in a feroza, if so is there any problems with it.

Try searching and you will find something.

I don't think that's covered in the FAQ post?

Just updated the FAQ with some links to relevant threads.

chatto wrote:Has any one had or got a front diff weld in a feroza, if so is there any problems with it.

there was a post on here not to long ago, with detailed pics aswell. would be keen to find this and have another look, as if there is more to gain than what there is to lose by welding then it might be something i would consider also.

come on guys who out there has welded there front diff, need some advice?

From Mike Hennessy's old web page. I downloaded the whole thing including the source code if you want that also.

Here is the text that went with the pictures. I edited out the HTML code and hope that I didn't muck it up too bad.

The good old welded up Diff centre - or as it is affectionately known - the Lincoln Locker ( after the Lincoln welder which probably was used to weld it up. This is the Grandaddy of all Lockers - back when there was no such
thing as a Detroit , Lockrite or ARB.

For those of us out there for which the aftermarket ignores find there is no Locker available for their 4wd's a Lincoln Locker is a viable inexpensive alternative to doing an entire axle swap just to fit a Locker. The Lincoln Locker acts exactly the same as a Spool ( or Mini Spool ) in that it does not allow any differential action between the 2 wheels. This means both wheels will turn at the same speed no matter what - even if one wheel is off the ground completely. The same is true for the Detroit, Lockrite Air Locker ( when Locked ) but the main difference is when differential action is required ( ie: going round corners ) the Auto Lockers can unlock - whereas the Lincoln Locker cannot. ( The Air Locker cannot unlock on its own, but the driver can unlock it at any time )

A word of warning - only put a Lincoln Locker, Spool or Auto Locker in the front of a PART TIME 4WD WITH MANUAL LOCKING HUBS - make sure if you are driving on road the hubs are unlocked as some very difficult steering handling charatoristics can result.


The advantages of a front Lincoln Locker in a Part time 4wd are

1. You have a Locked Front Diff !!

2. No bad on road handling as the front axle is disengaged on road.

3. Stronger Diff - less moving parts less parts to break - but only if the welds are good.

4. the Price is Right - fully Locked up for next to nothing !!


Disadvantages:

1. No Differential action - this can mean very hard steering on surfaces with good traction - for example : The

steering will be heavier no matter what but a locked front diff can make the 4wd just go straight ahead. The more traction the worse it gets.

2. Diff centre itself is stronger but the Locked front will place a lot more stress on axles CV joints as all of the torque can now pass through 1 wheel & it's axle CV joint - whereas an unlocked diff will only allow a max of half the torque to go through it.

3. Irreversible - once it's welded - that's it. Unless you replace all the guts out.

All the above is fairly true for a rear Lincoln Locker - but you can also add the following disadvantages

Road ride handling is affected - Truck will want to rear wheel steer - if you have a lot of icy roads then don't do a rear Lincoln Locker !!

Tyre wear will be accelerated as the lack of differential action will cause tyres to chirp squirm around when cornering.


After reading many mails on the virtues of the Lincoln Locker ( as well as talking to a mate over here with a
Lincoln locked Suzuki ) I decided to bite the bullet & Lincoln Lock my spare front diff !! I could only have my spare Front Diff looking at me for so long before temptation got too much for me !!!! My long term goal is still to go with the ARB Air Lockers when I do my Front / Rear Axle Swap, but I realise this could still be a while off yet - & I had the 2nd Diff I bought just sitting there, so...

So I took the Diff down to my Diff Specialist one lunch time yesterday & asked him to weld it up. Instead of just welding up the gears he said the Bullet Proof way to go is to take the gears out, grind them down a bit so they have a nice flat edge & cutting a square of steel plate that fits between the 2 side gears. Then the whole lot is welded together. The same is then done on the other side. So I said go for it !!

About an hour later & the welded centre was now stronger than the entire carrier !! - nothing could break this sucker !! So for a total cost of A$ 180. ( US$ 110 ) I have a Bulletproof Lincoln Locker - this includes all
the setup of the Diff as well. ( the Black Art of Diff Setup !! )

Then it took me around 4 hours to swap my
original Diff out & Install the Lincoln Locked one in. This was the first time I had swapped out a Diff so I went fairly slowly. I won't go into the Full Install here as it is all in the Workshop Manual. I did take the wheels off but I didn't disassemble the Hubs at all, to get more room to pull the Front Axles out of the diff I undid the Top Ball Joint from the Upper Control Arm ( the Drivers Side one for a RHD - or the Short Front Axle Side one ) & removed the clip holding the brakeline. This allowed the Front Hub the swing out enough to pull the Axle from the Diff. Now I just unbolted the Diff & Associated Parts & with some help lowered the diff & pulled the Long Axle out. The Re-install was just a repeat - I had a little trouble getting the axles all the way in. The splines went in easy enough - it was just the last little bit that required a bit of muscle. be carefull not to damage the Oil Seals.

OK - Now the Lincoln Locker Diff is in it is time to give it a full work-out.

Many thanks go to Duckman ( AKA Duncan ) for all his help with the Lincoln Locker & for being a great Test Dummy

- Thanks Heaps Mate !!

We all thank you once again Mike