limited slip for offroad?

[88stroker]

i was working on pulling my donor axles yesterday and noticed that the front h.p. dana 30 has the lsd tag on it. I'm not quite sure what a limited slip works like offroad. i know they work ok for street racing but will they really give any advantage offroad?.....or rather does a front lsd work very well?

 

not planning on changing it if not just curious is all :nuts:

[Pete M]

In my opinion front limited slips are awesome. They provide way more traction than open, but still slip enough to help prevent damage in high-stress situations. :D

I don't like limited slips in the rear. They never seem to provide enough grip when it really matters. :(

[BLHTAZ]

I don't like limited slips in the rear. They never seem to provide enough grip when it really matters. :(

X2

I have a trac-lock in the front of our YJ, which is just a gear driven limited slip, and it is not the greatest either.

[TNT]

I don't like limited slips in the rear. They never seem to provide enough grip when it really matters. :(

X2

I have a trac-lock in the front of our YJ, which is just a gear driven limited slip, and it is not the greatest either.

 

I think you mean a Tru-Trac limited slip which is a gear operated unit. It send power to the axle with the most traction. At low speeds it might notlock up as easy. If you lift a tire it will spin thr lifted tire. If you apply the brakes it will transfer the power to the other side. They work nice when crawling if you ride the brakes some when the trail gets bad. This will keep it working great.

 

A trac-lock is a clutch type limited slip.

[Eagle]

You found one with a limited slip TAG?

 

The factory never offered a front limited slip. What does this tag say and what does it look like? If the axle has a vacuum disconnect, having a limited slip in there would pretty well defeat the purpose of the disconnect.

 

BTW -- limited slips suck for street racing. A couple of burnouts will wear out a LSD in no time at all.

[BLHTAZ]

I don't like limited slips in the rear. They never seem to provide enough grip when it really matters. :(

X2

I have a trac-lock in the front of our YJ, which is just a gear driven limited slip, and it is not the greatest either.

 

I think you mean a Tru-Trac limited slip.

:oops: Yep...that is what I meant. I was in a hurry earlier as I was sneaking on here at work ;) .

[88stroker]

maybe i was jumping to conclusions...

 

the rear has a lsd and my dodge has an lsd and the easy way to tell usually is they say to use a special oil for limited slips on the diff tag.

 

well i saw this tag on the front diff and thought"well cool lsd up front"

maybe I'm wrong.....could just be a special lube for the high pinion.

 

also this is a non disco axle. i guess i could open it up to find out.

 

on another note i have a question doe the axle shafts on the dana 30 have some sort of dust shield at the axle tubes or are my seals just crazy dry.

 

i didnt stop and look real close to see what i was looking at but thought id ask

[Eagle]

The high pinion D30s don't need or use any special lube.

 

You didn't read the tag, then? The fronts usually have a tag on the outside with the gear ratio stamped into it. Is that perhaps what you saw?

[88stroker]

mine has 2 tags on it one like you said that is bolted from one bolt to another labeling the gearing and then one that is a tag under only one bolt that said use special lsd lube. which is as i said identical to the tags on the rear dana 44 which i know has a lsd and identical to my dodge diesel with a dana 80 which i know has a lsd.

 

which led me to believe i had somehow gotten a factory lsd front.

 

guess on wednesday or thursday I'm gonna have top pop the cover to satisfy the old curiosity.

ill keep you posted. i have a pic of the diff but both tags arent visible enough to make it worth posting. ill get a better one and also one with a close up of the tags.

 

anyways you guys know how amc is about this stuff.

[BLHTAZ]

LSD's don't need a specail lube...they still use the normal gear oil, but they need a friction modifier added.

[88stroker]

you say its a friction modifier?

 

does that sound like a special lube to anyone else?

 

if you buy it at napa it comes in a white tube about 4 oz. or so maybe more.....ive changed gear oil before.

 

the point of the post is are lsd's anygood offroad and it sounds to me like they are if you ride the brake a little.

 

thats all i was looing for

[BLHTAZ]

Calm down friend... :cheers:

 

In my world...lube is the gear oil. The friction modifier is not the lube ;)

 

From the jest of the posting here, you should conclude that an LSD is not good for off roading...at least as I read it. :thumbsup:

[HOrnbrod]

mine has 2 tags on it one like you said that is bolted from one bolt to another labeling the gearing and then one that is a tag under only one bolt that said use special lsd lube. which is as i said identical to the tags on the rear dana 44 which i know has a lsd and identical to my dodge diesel with a dana 80 which i know has a lsd.

 

which led me to believe i had somehow gotten a factory lsd front.

 

guess on wednesday or thursday I'm gonna have top pop the cover to satisfy the old curiosity.

ill keep you posted. i have a pic of the diff but both tags arent visible enough to make it worth posting. ill get a better one and also one with a close up of the tags.

 

anyways you guys know how amc is about this stuff.

 

If you send the 8-digit tag number(s) I could probably cross it. Should be 8953xxxx.

[Eagle]

you say its a friction modifier?

 

does that sound like a special lube to anyone else?

No. It sounds like a lube additive.

 

the point of the post is are lsd's anygood offroad and it sounds to me like they are if you ride the brake a little.

No.

 

Specifically, a Detroit TrueTrac is good but may require riding the brake to get it to engage. The TrueTrac is a gear-operated limited slip. Any clutch-type limited slip is engaged at all times until the traction difference between the two wheels becomes too much and causes the clutches to release. The clutch types are nowhere near as effective as the TrueTrac.

 

In reality, for use in the front a locker is much more effective than a limited slip. On the street in 2WD a mechanical locker is never engaged because you're never putting power to the front diff, so in daily driving it's completely "transparent." I've known serious off-roaders who strongly advocate locking the front axle before doing the rear because they feel it's more beneficial.

 

Whatever might be in there is NOT factory. The factory limited slip was a Dana Trac-Lok. I just checked the Reider Racing web site, and there is no Trac-Lok offered for the Dana 30. That was my recollection, but I wanted to confirm.

 

http://www.reiderracing.com/danatraclok.htm

 

Please let us know what you find when you open it up.

 

BYW -- are you certain it's a Dana 30 front axle? There's no chance a previous owner swapped in maybe a Rubicon "Dana 44"?

[88stroker]

ok about the lube.....not to be lame but its short for lubrication and a friction midifier is to add extra "lube"rication

but who cares you call it lube i call it diff oil i live in stevinson california population 200 i don't claim to be all knowing

 

I'm gonna get you a pic right now of the tag

 

as far as limited slip being better is it better tahn open diff?

 

cause i don't buy lockers for my stuff! if its that tight of a fit i don't belong there

 

i built a tj for a buddy that had a custom home brew long arm setup on it that would leave behind the rubicon that our friend wheeled with but he was a really bad driver so we called it the boobicon

 

anyways let me go take some pics and get em uploaded 8)

[88stroker]

ok here's the pics

 

ok [picture of the two tags and the diff

 

my manche and the donor

and the manche with the 2 wheel drive axle pulled

[88stroker]

ok and here's the numbers on the front diff tag

8953005004

3 54 46

 

with the same sapcing . the jeep is an 88 or 89 wagoneer that has been in the field at my inlaws for several years when ipulled it out and got it runnung but it makes a better donor in my book

[HOrnbrod]

The tag number 8953005004 translates to a rear '86-87 Cherokee & Wagoneer locked D44, w. 3.54 gears in both the parts manual and the Dana manual.

[mvusse]

If it's a 44, would it be possible someone swapped the insides out of a rear 44 and swapped the tags along with it?

[Eagle]

a) The photo is too out of focus to read the tag

 

B) can you take a photo of the complete diff?

[88stroker]

i have pics of the diff but the tags are too hard to see.

 

i mean the pics are pretty good for a cell camera

 

to be honest I'm starting to think that someone got the tags mixed up.

 

do the dana 30 and 44 have the same diff cover?

 

i just don't have time right now to open the cover and look I'm crazy busy with church and work right now plus I'm remodeling my house and a million other things. should be able to open it up on thursday and have a look see. was gonna try to go see a buddy that day to get him going on my long arm bracketts so i can get my three link set up and put this axle in there.

anyways guys sorry I'm so slow I'm sure your all curious to see what the deal is. if i have a minute tomorrow ill crack the diff but i gotta move about 30 6x24 glue lam beams after work tomorrow. as if building houses all day wasnt enough now i build one after work! :headpop:

 

I'm sure you all neede to know that

 

 

ok tomorrow ill post up if i can :eek:

[CWLONGSHOT]

I think your right on the tag swap... No the covers are in NO WAY interchangeable.

 

BTW, MJ may have never gotten a LS up fromt but Jeep made them and offered them in the D30 in the WJ line. I had one!! Its the one the wife rolled last year. LS front and rear AND full time 4WD!!!

 

CW

[camo89]

looking at my computer here at work xj where avalble wits lds frons with the comand track 4wd system

[135Boom]

I'm not a big off roader or anything, this is just my hunting truck and I hate the open diff in the rear. Seems like I have to put it in 4x4 for the dumbest things.

What is a good way about going to limited in the rear?

[Pete M]

I'm not a big off roader or anything, this is just my hunting truck and I hate the open diff in the rear. Seems like I have to put it in 4x4 for the dumbest things.

What is a good way about going to limited in the rear?

 

 

There is no easy way. All limited slip installations require re-setting up your gears and that's not cheap. Although, you could get an XJ/MJ axle from the junkyard that already has one and simply burn on perches in the right spot. But the factory posis weren't all that great.

If I were in you shoes, I'd go for a "lunchbox" locker that installs in place of the spider gears. They are $200 and change and it is not required to re-setup the gears. The Aussie brand comes to mind as a good choice.