[AT] Tractor Hauling pickup

[Ken Knierim]

Steve,
    This vehicle was my tractor hauler for some time but since I got the
Cummins-powered rig it's relegated to less pulling duties. On highway usage
will be to and from the 4 wheeling areas (hunting or whatever) and whatever
snowy and muddy roads throw at it. I've long been a believer in
understanding the vehicle limits and staying within them and focusing on
how to work with what I have (read: too cheap to buy limited slip axles...
learn to drive without them). This hunting trip showed me what new vehicles
can do as my hunting buddy took his 2012 Ram diesel down some pretty hairy
stuff and it rarely slipped a wheel. Some was due to the traction control,
some was tires, some was driver (he's good). I wasn't sure my Blazer could
have gone where he took that beast.

In short, I'm looking for a slight upgrade over the (worn out) stock axles
this half-ton chassis has. I have to rebuild or replace them anyway due to
wear and I don't want to splurge for 1 ton axles with lockers (and gears
and brakes and rims and tires and springs and...). I can get a set of used
axles in way better shape for a couple hundred bucks, put in the gears I'm
looking for (around 4.10's for the 33" tires and slow/bumpy terrain) and
limited slip if it's not too expensive. I've seen kits with the clutch
plate style from $260 to over $600 depending on name/manufacturer and style
(with Detroit Lockers and the other top shelf stuff way more expensive) and
I'm wondering if there's a real difference or if it's mostly marketing. I'm
looking at the Auburn, Richmond Gear and Eaton versions currently and
they're $370 to $500. There's a bunch of what look like China built ones
for less but I'm hoping to stay away from "guinea pig" status on those. A
breakdown 3 hours from town would more than pay for the difference.

I appreciate your insight.

Ken in AZ




On Thu, Dec 5, 2019 at 4:13 PM Steve W. <swilliams268 at frontier.com> wrote:

> Ken Knierim wrote:
> > Steve,
> >    Do you happen to have any recommendations for my stock 86 K5 Blazer
> > 10 bolt to upgrade it to limited slip?
> > Just back from a (wet) hunting trip and limited slip would have been a
> > nice thing to have... and those axles I have are pretty tired.
> >
> > Now that I've put EFI on the truck and it runs fine, the rest of the
> > truck is coming under scrutiny. :)
> >
> > Thanks!
> >
> > Ken in AZ
>
> Depends on the use of the truck. For an 80-90% on road truck application
> something like an Eaton Tru-Trac or a Torsen is a good choice. It's a
> geared unit so no clutches to wear out and no special lube additives.
> They are quiet and because of the way they operate you can run them in
> both the front and rear diffs without causing binding or steering
> issues. A big bonus is that they operate seamlessly with no driver input
> needed.
> They also are not that expensive in that vehicle, somewhere in the
> $500.00 area for the unit.
>
> If on the other hand it spends the majority of life off road AND you can
> deal with their quirks a true locker in the rear with either a geared
> LSD or selectable locker in the front would be the ticket as there would
> be enough slippage to reduce the strain they put on the axles. However
> they will increase tire wear, turning radius and are NOISY as they lock
> and unlock.
>
>
> --
> Steve W.
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