I am getting ready to put front and rear lockers in my truck. Will probably go with EZ lockers or something similar. I have a 1990 IFS pickup running 31x10.5x15 BFG MTs. There are a couple slight performance mods on the 22RE engine (headers, FIPK) but nothing major. Everything else on the truck is the original stock parts. My question to those that use their trucks hard is what will be the weak link I should watch. The truck is a daily driver but I use it very hard off road (4+ trails) for a month or two each year, and am wondering what I can expect to break with the addition of the lockers. I would rather replace something now than find out this fall on the trail. Thanks for any insight.

 

Even without the addition of lockers you can expect to have problems with the IFS. Mostly the CVs coming apart or breaking.

 

I kind of figured the CVs would be suspect, but didn't know how common it was to see failures. I haven't had problems yet, but haven't pushed this truck as much as I did my '80 Toy with the solid front axle. I do a lot of wheelin alone so I don't want to get stuck somewhere with a major failure of some sort. At least with the CVs I can limp back out to somewhere convenient to fix them. Anything else that people know about that I should look into before I venture into the great unknown?

 

You mentioned #1. Don't wheel alone!

 

I understand the whole safety in numbers thing, and I enjoy having company when it's the right company, but I wheel alone because I like to, and I don't bitch about the consequences. There are times it would be really easy to have someone hook a winch line to my truck and get me back on track, but it's also a good challenge to figure it out for myself. Now that I've found this board I can hopefully talk some people into meeting up this fall for group rides, but I'll still be doing multi-day trails for photo shoots and living out of the truck, and not many people are up for that. I've been off-roading a long time so I know about the dangers and such, I'm just not real familiar with this particular truck and it's limitations, and thought I could learn from others misfortunes in similar rigs.

 

the cv shafts will really be breaking if you put a locker in it . I have a friend that breaks them every time we go out.. i'd do a sas instead of spending the money for a locker up front.

 

I guess the $300 for a front locker still sounds like a lot better idea than the $3000 to do a SAS correctly.
Breaking a CV every time you go out sounds a lot like the guy in one of the other threads here that went through more than half a dozen R & Ps, either the truck has a lot more mods than mine, or someone is doing some very poor quality work. I believe that with the addition of a front locker my CVs will be more vulnerable, I don't believe that with the HP output of my 22RE and 31" tires that I will be going through a CV every time I lock the hubs. If I used my truck such that a SAS would be needed, I would think of doing one, but I wouldn't be thinking about EZ lockers anymore, and wouldn't be running 31s. Its just overkill for what I do.

 

Ya know, that's when a Detroit True Trac may come in very handy!

LSD that's very strong, won't bust your CVs and is a lot nicer to drive than a full locker.

I was happy with the one I had, I just wanted more when I did the SAS.

 

I thought about the True trac but understood that it is a full carrier replacement, and that I would have to know how to set backlash and such. If this is something I could do myself, I would be very interested. Anyone out there done this themselves, maybe in a dirt driveway like mine, so they could let me know how easy or hard it is?

 

It is a full carrier replacement. How long has it been since you did the bearings and seals on your rig?

 

I did those the same time I changed the muffler belt and added more blinker fluid, in other words, I haven't. I just bought this truck about a year ago.

 

The reason that I ask, is that if you're going to pull this apart to do some work, it's a good time to do a master install kit and a good idea to have it done professionally. Take the diff out, bring it to a shop. $200 or less in labor and you'll have it back the next day.

It's worth making the investment to get it done right, rather than buying something that'll do the job half way.

 

That's a good point, although I'm kind of in the middle of nowhere up here and don't know that I trust the shops around here to do the work. Also, I'm thinking twice about putting too much money into this truck. I may be better off looking for a rust free Toy before I get in over my head with this one. Growing up in MN taught me that vehicles disolve before your eyes once the rust starts. Guess I have some more thinking to do, but thanks for the advice.

 

Yes, the CV's will be an issue, but that is only the start of it. Crawl under your rig, and look closely at how the mounts on the frame are built to hold the IFS stuff, just small diameter rolled steel. There is goi9ng to be the weak link after time. Last few SAS's I have done, the mounts were just taco'd and badly bent (when you go for an alignment, and they say they can't do it, SAS time buddy)...

 

I don't do too much on the rocks, but I've done every mud/dirt/stone trail around here and never worried about my CVs, I think they are better than people give them credit for, and I definitely enjoy the ride the give on the highway/road.

 

I'd say don't lock the front unless you get a ARB that you can control and only use it if you are really in trouble.

 

I like the ARB units but they are twice the money the EZ locker is, and the install has to be done by someone else so the cost is really probably more than triple. A rear locker and my winch are probably more than I will need for the type of use my truck sees, but I can see from the responses that most feel a front locker on a stock IFS rig is not a good idea, and for me it is probably not necessary. I was just trying to find out what the issues would be as the front locker would be invisible most of the time with locking hubs like I have, but I think I've heard at least some of the problems. Thanks guys.

 

ARB's and EZ lockers are not even in the same paragraph when it comes to lockers. Simply put, if you go in four wheel drive and lock your front hubs with an easy locker, you'll turn like a Mack truck. I have a good suggestion that I'm surprised noone - including myself ever suggested. Go on a run with someone who has a front locker and see what's is like - even it it's just around the parking lot at the trailhead. Driving straight ahead you don't notice much except excellent traction. Try to park the silly thing or check out the turning radius. That'll give you a better idea if a locked front end is what you want or not.

 

I had a truck in the past with front and rear detroit lockers and no locking hubs, so I'm familiar with how they drive. With my current Toy, I have the option of taking it in and out of four wheel drive and locking or unlocking the hubs, so even though the selectable locker (ARB) is more convenient, for my kind of driving it would rarely if ever be necessary. If I was talking about a spool or didn't have locking hubs it would be very different. I'm still undecided about the whole project as I'm trying to assess the amount of rust on this truck and guess at it's life expectancy. Thanks for the further advice.