So the other day i was out wheeling with my roommate, and we both got stuck in some pretty deep loose dirt. One front wheel spinning was keeping me from getting out. So he and i devised a clever way to keep that wheel from spinning! We tied one end of my recovery strap to the transmission crossmember, and wrapped the other end around the wheel. That locked the wheel in place enough to get the power to the wheel with traction. Once we got the truck moved far enough to have traction for both wheels, we yanked real hard on the end of the recovery strap to unwind it from the wheel, and voila! The redneck diff locker was born. I figure i'm either an innovator or WAY behind the times. Anybody done this before? I figure it's not the best way to do it, but will do in a pinch!

 

sounds like a pretty handy trick in a pinch!! i will defiantly be keeping that one in mind!!

 

Brilliant!

 

Thanks guys! Seemed to work great to move a few feet! Can you think of any real damage this could possibly do? I don't think the tension between the wheel and crossmember would be enough to bend the suspension or anything else, do you?

 

That is a situation where an auto transmission or a 5 speed with a hand throttle would be great.

With an auto you can use both feet and slightly lock up the front brakes.
With a 5 speed and hand throttle you can do the same.

 

Even in a 5 speed, if you can heel-toe you can slightly lock the brakes as well, which will somewhat act as a locker. A good trick I learned through autocross.

 

Similar to the e-brake trick for the rear axle.. nice move.

 

Good strong place on the cross member....no problem.......

How about a variation of the e-brake test that has been mentioned here.....how about taking a heavy duty piece of coat hanger or the extra thick bailing wire everybody should be carrying with them and tieing it to the ONE emergency brake arm that is easily accessable on the backing plate.....then pull it real hard and tie it off close by. That way, the one drum will really hold the wheel locked up and let the other side traction you out? Just a variation of the e-brake extraction idea but perhaps much more effective?
The tugstrap thing you did was very clever

 

Exactly what I was thinking.