Howdy –

I’ve got a pretty standard driver/weekend runner TJ with an Atlas, ARB’ed HP44 front, Detroit locked rear 44, 8274 and 35” MTR’s. It gets beat fairly hard when I go out, but also sees about 15000 miles year on the street. If that is an asswipe mall cruiser to you, then don’t waste your time reading anymore.

The rear is the factory TJ 44 with the Warn 5.5 full float hub kit and alloy shafts, but the Detroit crapped out on me. A 60 is in the plans for next summer, so dumping $$ for another ARB or Detroit seems like a waste. Right now, it has got to be a cheep & strong fix. I was thinking about tossing a full spool in the back and then locking only one hub for street driving to keep from eating up tires when turning. If I had an open carrier sitting around, it would already be welded up and stuck in. A spool is damn near unbreakable, so it could be sold off when the bigger ass end goes in eventually.

Does one hub have enough strength as long as I don’t go lead footing around? Are those “hub fuses” that warn sell strong enough to run in the rear to save shafts/hubs, or would they just melt away when I get on the gas. It seems like there are more than a few people who run welded or a spool up front with one hub unlocked to turn on hard ground, and I basically just want to do this in the rear instead.

I’m open to suggestions/input/criticism, but don’t waste time with the newb flame shit. Yes, I searched. Yes, it is a bit on the cheep ass/could be better/not a 60 theme, sorry. Yes, I realize this could fall in the newb tech section, but I would like some input from folks that actually know what they are talking about. I'll fully admit that this is borderline retarded, but I just want to know if it will work as a cheap fix. A front wheel drive TJ sucks, and that is what carried my damn near broke ass to work this morning.

Thanks.

Personally, I'd rather find an open carrier and put a lock right or similar in it if you are going to limp along for a while. Or maybe e-bay or search the boards for a used trash-lock.

I wouldn't want to put the wear and tear on the other parts of the axle if you're looking to sell it to fund a d60 upgrade in the near future. Plus, I wonder if the drive would be a little quirky with only one hub locked it; especially on wet twisty roads.

A fellow club member tried the same thing hopeing that it would work, in the end he decided to let the tires eat since it was a very odd and nervos ride with one hub locked. hell get a lock rite use it for a bit then its in there to sell with the axle or take it out and you can almost get what you paid for it on ebay or over at JU.

Did you blow a rear hub, and the Detroit went with it?

Locking just one hub is a bad idea. Put the spool in, and you'll see why.

If you don't think you'll like the spool with both hubs locked, just get a new Detroit.
You'll get 1/2, or more back when you sell the D44 (vs selling it with an open dif, or a broken Detroit), so for a couple hundred bucks, you get to use a Detroit for the year+ till you get the D60.

If a broken hub led to the fragged Detroit, maybe you'd be better off with drive flanges.

Thanks for the info, fellas. Hubs are fine, the detroit just died on me. I had thought about about a lunch-box locker, but by the time I buy one of those and an open carrier, the price is almost as much as a real locker. The capitial for major purchases right now is lacking thanks to a little run in with the law. I guess the spool will win out at $137 - if the hubs blow it will get drive flanges. It might have the turning radius of a battleship, but fawk it.

Thanks again.

Actually, you may find you don't mind that spool on the street after you use it. I used one for quite some time and it's only really noticeable on low-speed turns. In fact, I prefer the predictable nature of the spool over the Detroit on pavement.
Dion

I take it the detroit is completely fried? In other words, it can't be fixed. The reason I'm asking, when I had a 44 in the rear, had to take the locker apart to remove broken shafts and it seem pretty simple. Maybe you've already had it apart and seen how bad it is, just thought maybe another option :shaking:

Other than some tire wear and a little squeeling on tight turns a spool works fine on the street. I have a question about your Detroit, are the side gears any good or are they dead too?