ive got a rear end out of a 94 chevy ext cab and i was thinking about welding the spider gears together to make it posi. well my question is if i do that how long does it normally last. i know its bad on it when turning corners but this is probably just going to be a toy for my back yard and in the woods to play in the mud. thanks Jeff

 

welding the rear won't make it a posi. it will just be welded. Very good for off road, sucks on road and gets squirrly on wet or icy roads. If you get on it aloton pavement it won't last, but off road it should be fine, especially in mud. Rock crawling is rough on it though.

 

That's know as a "Lincoln Locker" after Lincoln welders. It turns your rear into a Fully locked rear, like a "spool"(no slipping at all-both tires turning the exact same speed regardless of turning where the outside tire needs to turn faster to cover more ground than the inside tire orther will bewill chatter. If done right(read experienced welder) I have seen them last many years in "Offroad Only" rigs. Many of the Jeep Guys have been doing for years on the front axles since they can unlock their front hubs for street use and it won't have any effect.

 

This reminded me of something I wanted to ask a long time ago and forgot. If you got an electronic or even mechanical locker on the rear end, it would effect the front end as well correct? Like you get stuck, lock your rearend up, throw it in 4wd and all four wheels will spin? I know the front axle drive wheel is opposite the rear due to differentials and therefore they have an effect on each other. I figured locking the rear would cause the front two wheels to spin as well.

 

Actually having a Locker(real Locker NOT Limited Slip(POSI)) i the rear won't change anything about how the front functions. In most 4X4 vehicles,they are NOT actually true 4WD,many have regular "open" differentials,which means that the wheel with the least traction on each axle gets virtually ALL the power,so you can(I have before installing a LOCK RITE Locker in the rear of my 1978 CJ7) have one front and one rear wheel ON THE SAME SIDE off the ground or on ice,etc just spinning and the other side doing nothing, so you just sit there. If you have a optional Limited slip differential(Chevy called it "Posi Traction",AMC called it "Twin Grip",etc) you get aMORE equal distribution of power to both wheels on the same axleby using clutches in the differential,but still allow the wheels to turn at different speeds in a turn so that you don't get wheel hop or chatter(unless under hard acceleration,then you get "Power sliding" or "Fishtailing" while the tires are burning rubber). The wheels need to turn at different speed because the outside tire(left tire on a right hand turn)actually covers more ground than the inside tire does. A true locker machanicly locks both axles(Ford offered "Detroit Lockers" in the Muscle Cars)together to turn the same speed with fully equal power all the time in a straight line and also under hard acceleration in a turn,but are noisy when they lock and unlock(MY Lock RIte that I installed relaced the Spider gears with cogs and it sounds like you'are tapping on the brake drum with a ballpeen hammer when it ratchets while taking a turn, unless hammering it and it stays locked). Ther areselectable electric,cableand air lockers that give the best of both worlds.The last option is a "Spool" which is always fully locked and beats the hell out of the differentials on dry pavement,this is the same as a "Lincoln Locker" when someone welds the spidergears in the differential,ok only for slippery surfaces. Those are most common on the front axles of vehicles that can unlock their hubs so that the front axle isn't driving anything,then they can be driven on drive surfaces and then lock the hubs and have both front wheels fully pulling all the time. So in order to have real 4WD you need a locker both front and rear,then all 4 wheels are working 100% power 100% of the time. Sorry if this was too long winded,jsut got on a roll!

 

So technically if you had a locker and the rear tires had traction, the front left had traction, but the right front had none, the right front would go full tilt (100% of the power)? I figured with no differential between the front and rear that if the rear was stopped so would the front altogether.

 

Ya, since the front and rear differential are independent of each other(the transfer case sendsthe power to each end) the front wheel with the least resistance gets all the power from the front differential(assuming a regular "Open" differential in the front),but with a locker in the rear you will notice a HUGE improvement in traction. I have found that with a locker in the rear I can do most trails(including MUD) in 2WD that trucks with "Open" diffs need 4WD,even some with limited slips. If you get stuck with a locker or especially locker(s) you are really in some SOUP. If you don't mind some noise a "kit" type locker like my Lock-Rite that replaces the spyder gears with "drivers" and DOES NOT require removal and resetting of the ring and pinion gear(just removing axles and spyder gears) can be done by most of us,also if you go that route make sure you get a new cross pin,usually made of better than OE material like Zytel.