Well, there's another way to look at it ...

If you have open diffs, on many obstacles, you will HAVE to take them faster to carry momentum over the low traction spots.

IMHO, a locker and driving practice will do more to allow you to take obstacles slowly than super deep gearing. (This is assuming that your diffs are geared at least close to right so you're not killing the clutch)

 

I guess I need lockers, 4.88s, and a marlin crawler!!! I wish I could!!!!

Seems like I need to practice my driving. I'm not sure how much slower I can really take the obstacles, but it seems that other people are doing better than myself. I'm afraid to kill my clutch, but maybe I'm being too conservative with it.

Another question for those who have a single 4.7 tcase: Do you find yourself not having enough gear choices? Seems like what I'm hearing is that 1st gear in 4hi is not low enough, while 5th gear in 4LO with a 4.7 is still too low for any non-obstacle setting. So I guess what I'm asking is this...is the 4.7 frustratingly low?

 

Sounds like you are addicted

 

IMHO, yes.

Mostly frustrating for everyone else, though. They hate it when you take an obstacle nice and in control, and then hate it when you can't keep up!

Seriously, wrapped out in 5th gear is like 15 MPH.

 

that is slow! i think it would be nice for certain situations to have the 4.7, but i think even having duel 2.28's would be a step in the right direction.

 

So if you wanted to do more than 15mph, couldn't you just put it into 4HI?

 

I ran a single 4.7 case for 2 years before going to duals.

In short, yes, you can go to 4hi, but that involves a stop for a manual tranny transfer case. Its not worth it.

Here is an example of why its not:

I do lots of camping/wheeling trips to utah. On a particuar trip, we went up to jackass benches. The trail was as follows:

Starts out in a canyon, wash, with lots of obstacles, tons of rocks, and a perfect setting for the 4.7.

Then it climbs out of the canyon onto the mesa. It then continues with areas of smoother two track, pierced by a small wash, then flat and smooth again, then small wash, then flat and smooth, then rocky area, then flat and smooth. You get the idea, and it went on like this for miles.

So, in the washy areas, 4hi was too high. You needed low range to get through without damaging the truck. However, you only needed maybe 2nd or 3rd gear in the 4.7 box, which is equivalent to 1st in stock low range.

The flat spots, on the other hand, were 25-35 mph plus, a speed easily reached in stock low range, but not in 4.7 low.

So your options with a single 4.7 case are as follows: change between 4hi and 4low, or be content with 15mph. If you have other trucks with you, that can suck in hurry.

Switching between 4hi and 4low means a FULL stop, shift, then go, then full shop, shift, then go. It is MUCH more annoying than just changing gears.

Perhaps that is just me, but I know a lot of other folks I wheel with who would also be irritated by that aspect.

Luckily, when I ran this trail, I had put my duals in the week before, and i marveled at the new addition. It was perfect. I was able to run the first part in 4.7 or double low, and the second part in stock low. It was the perfect combination.

 

Yep, but

... or you can't get quite enough torque to keep the truck moving in control (not stalling) due to the soft terrain and aired down tires.

 

it would be in your best interest to run dual stock t-cases and as your skill improves than add 4.7 gears

 

Could you mate stock V6 cases?

 

It can be tricky, but it's possible to shift 4L-4H if you double-clutch it at lower speeds and don't hurry your shifting. I'm getting better at it, but I'm shifting stock 2.28 to hi range, which is a much smaller step than 4.7 to hi range.

As for the op's question, I'd suggest a locker first, then gearing.

 

You can put a gear drive reduction box in front of a V6 (chain drive) case with the Marlin MC10 adapter.

You can not make a double tcase with 2 chain drive cases with "off the shelf" parts/adapters.

 

dual cases should come after atleast a rear locker. my vote goes to 4.88s and an aussie in the rear.

 

Its not really possible to do that with the 4.7 box. Any movement at all will keep it from going in. You have to be at a dead stop.

 

You're in the same boat I was in a few months ago.

Since you mentioned wanting 33's I'll give you some advice.

Regear the diffs to 4.88's and install an Aussie locker in the rear. You'll have less wheel hop and bouncing since both tires in the rear will be pushing. What I mean is you won't have to use speed to carry you up and over the rocks. Learn to wheel like this for a while and save money for some rock armor and your new tires. After you've done this for a while and are ready to take on larger things then go for a dual t-case set up with a pair of factory cases. Later on you can drop a set of Marlin 4.7:1's in your factory case and have the Ultimate Crawler set up.

The great part about doing it this way is that you progress in stages, as your skill level goes up so do the abilities of the rig. This way you don't run out and throw in an Ultimate Crawler, some 5.29's and 35's and start shattering drive shafts, bending spring packs, snapping U joints and tie rod ends etc... you learn to wheel what you have to the best of its ability and then upgrade it.

That's the route I'm going. My next step is dual stock t-cases.

 

seems like the consensus is that the first step should be a rear locker, then worry about the rest as it comes. thanks for all the input!

 

that is my plan!

 

Perfect example of how to search to find the info you need. I was thinking about whether i wanted duals or just one case with 4.7. Searched around and read this thread and all my questions were answered. Thread resurrection time. I think ill still do just the 4.7 for now and go duals when I sas.

 

Thanks for your efforts. Too bad we could not get more people to figure this out. If you run mud or fire roads you may want to reconsider the single 4.7 case. If all you run is rocks then go for it. 4.7 to 1 is really low. You CANNOT spin your tires in 1st or reverse its just too low. I switch between 2.28 and 4.7 frequently when wheeling. 4.7 does not work for snow, mud, sand, fire roads, ect. The only time I use it is when I'm crawling through rocks. If your trying to slow yourself down when crawling regearing your transfer case will give you far more bang than doing your diffs.

 

Since starting this thread, I have now installed 4.7 gears into the tcase. I have so far been really pleased with it. I run mostly fire roads and moderate rock crawling. The 4.7 is really low, which is amazing on the rocks. On the fire roads, I usually have to run it in 4th or 5th while in low range, or sometime 1st gear in hi range. People warned me that I would get annoyed with the limitations posed by the 4.7s, but I have thus far not found this to be the case. Yes, it is a mild inconvenience having to stop to change from hi to low range every now and then, but IMO it is worth it for the amount of control given by the lower gears when you need them. You have so much less bouncing over rocks and killing your clutch.

For the price, it is undoubtedly the best mod I have done so far. The install is pretty straight forward and doesn't require all the extra mods needed by dual cases, which is perfect for people like me who are limited in both funds and wrenching skills. I am installing lockers this week, so we'll see how that goes...