When I took the runner to the place that installed my gears and locker Carolina Rock Shop the guy Andy told me the slack or "play" in the differential was called axle wrap. He said it had something to do with the locker and the locker locking after having a certain amount of pressure put on it or something. I don't remember his exact words but it was something in that area. Now, what do I do about this? Because when I let off and push the gas pedal softly, the truck jerks. I am still having HARSH engagements when I go from D to R or R to D. I'm tired of it. You can hear it from a few feet away, see the runner JERK and feel it tremendously.

Any advice?!?!?! :cry:

 

some of that sounds correct however some of it doesnt... axle wrap is when there is too much angle, stress placed on the differential and it hops back into place upon driving from a stop

 

Well if I gag it from a stop I will eventually snap a U-Joint. The 3rd member will jump upwards if I hit it from a stop. I know a traction bar should help with this, but the one I have is invisible. =/

What about the popping and whatnot in the diff?

 

Jim!!!

 

axle wrap is when the springs are too soft(or too much torque for the springs) and the pinion climbs upward, twisting the springs. mainly bad because it can destroy u-joints, kink springs or break pinions.

 

the link below explains what axle wrap is (which is exactly what kyle said), what causes it, and how to stop it.

http://www.4x4wire.com/jeep/tech/susp/axlewrap/

btw, axle wrap is one of the reasons lift blocks are bad. the block acts like a lever and multiplies the torque applied to the springs by the axle housing thereby making axle wrap much more likely.

 

My old Detroit did have a fair amount of play in it, at least compared to the stock diff and the ARB I now have. And that has nothing to do with axle wrap, as noted above. I think part of it has to do with the nature of the auto-locker. Going from power to coast side of the gears and the locking mechanism likely has a lot more play in it that just what is due to the gears only in an open diff. I found adding a tube of limited slip friction modifier and later some good synthetic gear oil (Redline Heavyweight Shockproof) helped smooth it out somewhat. But it never was as nice as an open diff so ultimately I replaced it with an ARB.

This page may help understand what is going on inside the locker:
http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/TrueTrac.shtml#Locker

 

Hmm, well since I bought frenched rear spring hangers, I had a loss of lift in the rear, which my lift blocks fixed. They were made for that sort of situation....so what do I do?

 

You could always add an anti-wrap bar (BudBuilt.com has a bolt-on unit), or add an anti-wrap leaf to the spring:

http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/4R_suspe...l#Update-part2

 

Anti-wrap bar = traction bar ?

 

Yes; trac-bar = traction-bar = ladder-bar = anti-wrap bar = kicker shock = torque rod, etc.
That is something to control axle wrap.

 

Could it be possable that axle wrap could engage the ebrake?

Sorry for the hijack.

 

I don't have an e-brake.

and no, its no big deal. I appreciate the input. :o

 

ideally you would get different springs rather than lift blocks, but that costs a lot more money, so, like 4crawler said, a traction bar is a cheaper way to stop axle wrap.

 

Ok, so if I get a traction bar will I still have all this "slack, play" whatever u want to call it in my diff? if im driving and i let off the gas, you will feel a jolt from the rear. if I press a little bit on the gas it will jolt as well, it feels like there is slack being tightened.

is this the locker symptom that I have to live with?

 

The trac bar will control axle wrap. If that is the cause of your problem, then yes it will help. One way to tell if you have axle wrap is to have someone drive your truck while you watch the rear diff and springs as they take off. If you see the pinion moving up and down a lot at that time, then that is axle wrap. If the pinion stays fairly still, moving up a little, then that is not axle wrap. You have even have loose u-bolts or something like that letting the springs and axle bang around too much. Check the bolts for proper torque and tightness.

 

Roger. I've definately had someone look at the rear when I take off. And whoo does it jump. lol.

 

That is axle wrap then, of some sort. Rule out something loose or broken first (u-bolts, spring and shackle bushings, spring clamps, etc.). If that is all fine, then some sort of anti-wrap device is needed. I run anti-wrap leaves on all 4 springs on my 4Runner, they work quite well. BudBuilt has a bolt-on trac bar. Or have someone fab up one and weld it to the axle. I am planning to add a rear trac bar to my rig, partly for a little better wrap control and since I some day may want to unbolt my double shackles and that will definately increase axle wrap.

 

Come on! Don't you watch "Trucks"? Everytime they put those pavement pounders up in the air on rear 8.2 million inch blocks they have to add something to stop axle wrap. Don't get a track bar, ditch the blocks and get some rear leafs w/ more lift and that'll solve that axle wrap crap.

$0.02

Good luck and keep us posted.

 

Sorry i wasn't suggesting i was asking cause i am have a problem with that.

B