PEAK PUTTERS

After having the pleasure of installinga Spartan and Lock Right lockers, mine conclusion is:

The Spartan has better instructions, pictures, and is much easier to install. The Spartan also comes with all the parts needed, new center pin, roll pin and the spring/pin retainers for installatin, just pull when installed, very nice feature. No reused parts, just pull the spiders and install.

The Lock right's instructions are a little confusing, crappy pictures and the parts aren't labeled within the installation manual, but are in the owners manual. It also reuses the side thrust washers and center pin.

Neither is hard to stall.

My first Lock Right install took me a little while because the instructions aren't the greatest. My second one went more smooth to say the least. The front was a bit harder to install. I've installed 3 and reinstalled 1, so I guess you could say I've done 4 lock right installs.

I'm assuming spartan lockers are a lot like the lock rights on the road. I've read that they're pretty durable little units.

I'm considering Spartan lockers for the set of axles I'm picking up this week. Mostly because they're cheap and just to hold me over until I can get something selectable. I cant tell you how scary it is to destroy a u-joint, drive shaft, ect. and have to drive home in fwd with a front lock right. I did not like that one bit. I'd rather spend big bucks than do it again.

Instructions really?? If you can't figure out how it goes together by looking at the pretty gloss picture on the box you need to reach into your purse and surrender your man card immediately.



Oh and James... Let the axle breakage begin!

I don't think mechanical lockers in the rear are a good choice.

LiftedZuki wrote:I don't think mechanical lockers in the rear are a good choice.

Why not? Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and I'd sure love to hear your reasoning on this one...

I fully advocate rear mechanical lockers. Are they quirky? Sure, but so is a bone stock [fill in the blank with your favorite 4wd vehicle]. If you don't have the driving skills to adapt to the minutely adverse effects of a mechanical locker, you honestly should NOT be driving anywhere that said locker may be required.

tobyw wrote:

LiftedZuki wrote:I don't think mechanical lockers in the rear are a good choice.

Why not? Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and I'd sure love to hear your reasoning on this one...

I fully advocate rear mechanical lockers. Are they quirky? Sure, but so is a bone stock [fill in the blank with your favorite 4wd vehicle]. If you don't have the driving skills to adapt to the minutely adverse effects of a mechanical locker, you honestly should NOT be driving anywhere that said locker may be required.

I can agree with that to a point. Mechanical lockers are quirky as all hell especially a lockwrong. Aussie lockers are way smoother and priced about the same. Although they don't have that oh so fun feature of involuntary lane changed when the pile of crap locker engages/disengages one side or the other randomly.

White trash wrote:
I can agree with that to a point. Mechanical lockers are quirky as all hell especially a lockwrong. Aussie lockers are way smoother and priced about the same. Although they don't have that oh so fun feature of involuntary lane changed when the pile of crap locker engages/disengages one side or the other randomly.

I had a lock right in the rear for 8 years or more and now it lives in the front, I like the consistency of my spool better , but the lock right was better for street driving. if it is set up properly, it will work like it is supposed to, my lock right was predictable in the rear, a loose or tight carrier will make it not lock or not unlock like it is supposed to, I would prefer a selectable locker in the front, but it is not in the budget, with the lock right in the front i don't even know it is there, until I try to turn in 4 wheel drive

White trash wrote:oh so fun feature of involuntary lane changed when the pile of crap locker engages/disengages one side or the other randomly.

I have installed and driven/wheeled at least 6 vehicles with Lock-Rite/Aussie type rear lockers (most of those also having front lockers to match), and there is nothing random about the locker actuation. If it does it "unexpectedly", either you don't know what to expect, or something is wrong. Yes, they take some getting used to, but once you have a few miles under your belt they are quite predictable. In fact, in my old flattie, I could use the locker to help me parallel park at a high rate of speed

I dislike the LR in the back, the spartan seem to be a bit smoother and as mentioned earlier, not really noticable until the rig won't turn in mud.

I also think there might be to much slop in my case but it slams HARD and will make my 6k rig jump about a 1/2 lane, and you never know which way it is going, controllable yes, but annoying. It also rachets while drive down the road sometimes, not sure why but suspect slop in the axle is cause some issues.

If it was an Off-road mostly rig, I'd go with a spool, just more predictable and smoother. The LR works great but does have pavement quirks I really don't like.

I went through this guy and he was able to beat everyone I called.
http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=639133

Of all the rigs I've driven/owned that had auto lockers in them only one of them were what I would consider "nice" to drive. The vast majority of them would unlock in a corner and then suddenly lock down the road tossing you one side to another. By far the worst at that was a friends detroit locker in his yj. That thing was pure evil.

The nice one was a detroit no spin (different than a detroit locker) in a friends 14 bolt. You never knew it was there at all and that truck was a 4 speed.

I think one major difference in our experiences is that all of the rigs I have dealt with that have had auto lockers were 4 or 5 speeds. The loading and unloading of the locker makes a lot of slack every time you shift so it was always apparent it was there. Yes taking a corner with the clutch disengaged makes them turn nice and smooth but if you have to completely relearn how to drive to put up with the locker whats the point? My personal preference is and always has been a welded/spooled or selectable out back and whatever you can afford in the front.

I've read a couple placed about holding in the clutch around corners to make them turn nice, but havent seen anything on how they behave in an auto. Do you just have to deal with it, or are mechanical lockers friendlier in autos?

SquirrelCrusher wrote:I've read a couple placed about holding in the clutch around corners to make them turn nice, but havent seen anything on how they behave in an auto. Do you just have to deal with it, or are mechanical lockers friendlier in autos?

A smooth shifting auto will shift quick enough that the locker won't really disengage like a manual does. When you shift a manual the locker has time to go into neutral.

I never had to clutch, around a corner , but I would not recommend coasting half way through and getting on the gas, because it will get your attention. when it locks solid just like it is supposed to do when you apply the throttle

I just like knowing my rear spool is solid and it's there and it doesn't change, my lockright up front (no power steering) you have to hold on to the steering wheel or it'll pull you hard left or right depending when you gun it in 4lo.

I also have not owned a rear lockright'd rig so just what I've read that they aren't the best on road, but can be "learned" to deal with. My spool is plenty safe, do whatever with the same response, chirping tires.

Well, this from the kid that doesn't know any better (that alone should get some comments)

I bought my YJ about 6 years ago. It came with a LR in the rear, and yes, it was a little quirky to learn to drive. But, it didn't take any time to get used to it. If you drive responsibly....did i just say that?....you shouldn't have problems. The only thing that happens to me sometimes is it unloading turning a corner. Once in a while it will do it at odd times.

I wheel the Ps out of it and have never had a problem with it. I recently went in and removed the whole thing, inspected it and reinstalled it. It looked perfect, couldn't detect any wear. I have to say I like it.

Note: Wifey doesn't like it at all.

About 3-4 years ago I decided I wanted to lock the front so I bought an Aussie and installed that. Again, I've wheeled the Ps out of it and never a problem with it either.

So, from my standpoint, and I would say experience wheeling them in my YJ I wouldn't hesitate to put them in again. Now, are there better options? Of course there are. Does everyone have that kind of budget? Of coures not....I'm cheep! Would I change things...under the right circumstances, yes and within a reasonable cost.

And I'm sure the debate will go on, but you're welcome to follow me any day.