75 highboy spool or no?

[75f250]

im thinking about putting a spool in my 75 f250 it has a d60 rear and i belive stock 4;10 gearing whats the pros and cons of this Ive heard that spools tend to break axles is this true? also i dont wheel my truck very often maybe 2 to 3 times a month would it be better to spool the front end or the rear? also i have a dana 44 front thanx for the input

[mlheppl]

I would go with a limited slip type of posi unit instead of a spool IMO. The spool will be rough on axles and tires when turning. The limited slip will allow enough slip to give a little relief when making sharp turns and u-turns especially on pavement. If your truck was 95% off road, maybe a spool might be the way to go, but IMO the limited slip is better for the occasional off road use. I'd also put the posi in the rear end.

[eggman918]

I would not run a spool or a locker in front unless it is a air/electric and use it only when needed,in the front they can cause a lose of control at speed in mud/snow/ice it will spit the front end out in a turn
in the rear I would use a ratchet type locker like a "detroit locker",they are tough and work well yet very driveable

[1971ford]

If it's mostly street, don't run a spool, especially in the front. Run Posi. I have a lincoln locker in my '71 racer and it's also my DD, nothing like hearing your tires go byebye on every turn. I started out with only about 25% tread on my tires and now they are totally bald within about 2 months.
The reason it is locked is because it is a race truck and both tires need to be spinning no matter what. Silt is nasty stuff.

I can't emagine putting a spool up front, that would be sketchy turning on anything but dry pavement.

[averagef250]

For offroad only all I run is a spool upfront. I feel air lockers are just plain overcomplicated, piss poor designed and poor in function. A spool (lincoln locker) in the front with the longside axle locked, shortside unlocked is a fine way to do things many can't do with very expensive lockers, limited slips and selectable lockers cannot do.

If you have a substantial enough axle you can lock and unlock either side at will, but the point is leave one unlocked until needed. You can still steer fine with one locked, both hubs locked and say bye to steering. leave the shortside unlocked if you have a 44 front. You'll murder your shortside axles if you use them locked all the time with a spool.

I have run plenty of cars and pickups with spools in the rear on the street. I have never had a noticeable tire wear problem I could stick on the spool, I blamed it on my right foot. I hands down prefer a spool or lincoln locker to a spline locker anyday on the street. Detroit spline lockers have always given me fits, they stay locked when you want them open, they skip splines on hard launches and make you look like an idiot. I feel powerlocks and detroit tru-tracs are the finest choices for combination street/offroad/track vehicles as they have good manners, but still give you 90% what a spool does when needed.

On a side note an ARB would be a brilliant differential if it was a selectable locker with a tru-trac differential inside and they figured out better ways to seal the air lines. As your selections are A- open diffy or B- full locked there's no inbetween and niether choice is good for use under a daily driver to me.

[75f250]

i would say my truck is about 30 percent off road 70 percent on road daily driver, what im getting from this would be to if im going to get a spool the rear end would be best? also im pretty mechanically inclined for example ( i know this has nothing to do with rear ends but i can put together a topend on a dirtbike) would it be a good idea to attempt to install a spool by myself or pay a shop to do it? ive never worked on a diff before. basiccally what im trying to ccomplish is my trucks pretty capable but it gets stuck where it shouldnt like in a foot or so of mud because one tire spins. im trying to eliminate the one tire fire but also keep its road manners. in the rear would a spool make it hard to turn also on dry pavement?

[75f250]

ok what tools would i need? also im an okay welder but not good enough to trust it on my rear end ive heard rumors about lincoln lockers mostly bad i heard that it doesnt really work out on high horse power trucks but does fine on say toyotas? im loccated in washington if nayone knows a good shop or someone that can do this i will pay for the argon wire and your time if u could help me out. when putting in a spool is it basically taking out the diff bolting the ring gear to it and installing it or do u have to say time the gears or ?

[averagef250]

Above all else you need an experienced feel for what gears should feel like. You get that from someone who knows how to do it showing you or by trial and error teaching yourself.

You must remove and install the carrier bearings to adjust preload and backlash many times. These bearings are a blind press- meaning no way to get behind them with a standard puller. The correct tool is a clamshell bearing puller. These run around $400 for just common diff bearings, more for the 70HD/80 clams. Without the clamshell puller you would have to have setup bearings. New bearings that you have honed for a slip fit over the carrier.

You will also need a .001" dial indicator, mag base and marking compound and a book to show you what the pattern should look like for your diffy.

Where are you at?

[75f250]

im located in ellensburg washington. yea i have no expirenece i working on rear ends and im kinda scared to tear into one by myself with only a book for aid how much would a shop charge to intall a spool? or how much would one of you guys want to help me out?

[averagef250]

I have a good friend in Cle Elum. You're a bit far from me for rear end work, but if you come this way I'd be happy to help.

[eggman918]

Does Eaton make a electric locker? there 2-speed rears are reliable..

[75f250]

yea cle elums not too far away at all. i see u live in portland i have a friend that i may be visiting in vancouver next month.

[Redcap]

there 2-speed rears are reliable..

Until the little motor housing breaks and you are locked into one ratio or the other.

[hotrodfeguy]

I would not see an issue with a spool as long as you had man hubs and unlock it when not in use. But I dont think the D44 would last mong on pavment locked in. So if you took care of it and such should be fine.

[4x4freakfe427]

I used to have welded spiders in the front hp 44 all stock and a rear dana 60 all stock, this truck was my daily driver and mud bogger I was running 42" swampers, I had a mild 390 with the 4speed, It took me about a year to break a rear axle shaft in the rear end. But the front held up for a little while every once in a while I would break a front axle but most of the time it was a ujoint in the front end. But to me this was all worth it for the extra traction.