Breakin in Gears

[jtaylor42]

I am sure this is a dumb question but I have never gotten new gears before. I just picked up my truck today from getting a set of 4.10s put in it. What I am wondering, since they told me to "break it in" for the first 500 miles is, do I need to drive it in 4wd to break in front and rear gears or will 2wd break in both sets? Thanks.

[HemiDak]

Since there should be no CAD (Central Axle Disconnect) the gears and carrier will still spin in 2wd. The way to test this would be to have someone drive it slowly in 2wd, while you look under it to see if the driveshaft spins (be safe about this). If it does while in 2wd, you won't need to shift it into 4wd to break in the front. They'll spin, heat up, and cool down just like the rear. If it doesn't spin, it would be best to break the fronts while in 4wd (off of the pavement of course). ;)

Hope that helps...

[chris4x4]

What brand gears did you get?

[jtaylor42]

I ordered from 4 Wheel Parts. They were supposed to be Genuine Gears. However, they must have been out of stock or something because they actually shipped me gears from Randy's Ring & Pinion. Total for gears and master install kits front a rear was like $470. I am pretty happy thus far but I still have quite a few "easy" miles before I can see really how much power it now has.

By the way, I really want to thank YellowKota2k for all your help. You have a lot of the same stuff done to your truck that I want to do to mine and every time I ask a question on this forum you always answer. I really appreciate the help.

[HemiDak]

By the way, I really want to thank YellowKota2k for all your help. You have a lot of the same stuff done to your truck that I want to do to mine and every time I ask a question on this forum you always answer. I really appreciate the help.

No problem man. I used to have to find a lot of answers for myself, and know it really helps when someone out there knows exactly what you're wanting to know. It's always nice to help out. ;)

[T.j.]

Dont mean to thread jack but I figure 2 guys with gear experience are the best to ask :biggthump

I really want to regear and put in an LSD. Should I go 4.10 or since Im already shelling the money out just 4.56 the shit outa this truck?? Would the highway rpm's be alot different? Would the acceleration be alot diff between 4.56 and 4.10? Will my top speed go down to like 90-95? Let me know what you guys think. Also im thinking an auburn lsd, any thoughts?

Thanks guys

[chris4x4]

Dont mean to thread jack but I figure 2 guys with gear experience are the best to ask :biggthump

I really want to regear and put in an LSD. Should I go 4.10 or since Im already shelling the money out just 4.56 the shit outa this truck?? Would the highway rpm's be alot different? Would the acceleration be alot diff between 4.56 and 4.10? Will my top speed go down to like 90-95? Let me know what you guys think. Also im thinking an auburn lsd, any thoughts?

Thanks guys

The Auburn LS is a good unit from what I have heard. If you do serious off roading, you may want to just install a locker, or a powertrax. I know some folks that are happy with both. If you are going to keep your 32's I'd go with the 4:10's if you drive on the highway much. Keeps you revs around 2000 @ 70 M.P.H. fro good mpg, and in 4 low its still a good crawl.

[HemiDak]

I really want to regear and put in an LSD. Should I go 4.10 or since Im already shelling the money out just 4.56 the shit outa this truck?? Would the highway rpm's be alot different? Would the acceleration be alot diff between 4.56 and 4.10? Will my top speed go down to like 90-95? Let me know what you guys think. Also im thinking an auburn lsd, any thoughts?

4.56:
Hard offroading (lower crawl ratio)
Towing (heavy)
More power
Faster acceleration
Tires bigger/heavier than current ones

4.10:
Daily driving
Little towing
(slighty) better MPG
(slightly) less power
No bigger/heavier tires in the future

With 3.55 gears, my crawl ratio would be 28.968. With 4.10's it would be 33.456.....and 37.2096 with 4.56's. See how it would help with offroading? (my gears are actually 3.92, not 3.55 though)

You'll be happy with either ratio, but just depends on exactly what you do with your truck mostly.

As for the LSD, yes the Auburn unit will be good. I'm sure you won't notice much of a difference between that one, and the factory Trac-Lock. The factory one will work quite well, at a much lower price. Like said above, if you're going to be offroading it heavily, get a locker. I absolutely love my Detroit, and love how in functions.

Hope that helps...

[chris4x4]

Hey YellowKota2k,
How durable is the factory Trak Loc? I do some pretty aggressive Off roading ( desert, sand, rocks....Arizona has no mud ) 5 days a week, and Im just wondering what kind of life I can expect from it.
Thanks

[T.j.]

Thanks for the info guys, Im still stuck between 4.56 and 4.10, If im shelling out the money I kinda just wanna go big, but Im not really sure....

[HemiDak]

Hey YellowKota2k,
How durable is the factory Trak Loc? I do some pretty aggressive Off roading ( desert, sand, rocks....Arizona has no mud ) 5 days a week, and Im just wondering what kind of life I can expect from it.
Thanks

Mine was in for 65k miles before I got it, but was babied. I used it pretty hard for the next ~30k miles and it was still good. IMO You could probably expect it to last as long as you keep the truck, as long as the fluids are changed.

Thanks for the info guys, Im still stuck between 4.56 and 4.10, If im shelling out the money I kinda just wanna go big, but Im not really sure....

You still have a while to think about it, just make sure it's the right one for down the road. You never know what you might (or might not) want to do later...

[T.j.]

Good point man, I probably will just go 4.10's. Cuz if I ever wanted to go back to 31's or smaller, if I wanted to sell it or soemthing.. The 4.56's would be way to much.

Now about the auburn. Should I just go detroit instead, I wont do alot of offroading, But I hear in the winter a lsd makes your ass end kick out very easily, so being able to lock it or unlock it when needed would be great. What does a detroit locker or similar go for? Are they vacuum actuated or what?

Any other opinions?

Thanks guys

[Five9Dak]

My facotry lsd 3.92 9.25 chrysler rear lasted 82k miles. Then the lsd wore out. I bought the truck with 80k and prolly killed it with the hard driving I do. I would say under heavy abuse, the stock type lsd should last 40-50k miles. 100k if babied the whole way.

[HemiDak]

Are they vacuum actuated or what?

Detroit Lockers and other similar lockers are automatic. The lockers that are selectable are ARB (air), OX (cable), Eaton (electric), and some other Detroit models. You'd only want one if you offroad a lot and still use it as a daily driver. They're not cheap either, figure about $1k for a selectable locker for the rear.

I wont do alot of offroading

Then you don't need one. Don't waste the money on it.

...I hear in the winter a lsd makes your ass end kick out very easily...

Heh heh, a locker makes it 10x worse. Open diffs and lockers are the worst in the winter, LSD's are awesome compared to them.

[T.j.]

Im gonna see if i can find a factory lsd out of a wreck or soemthing...save some money, and then go for the 4.10's.

[xtreme6669]

i would not recommend 4.56 gears to anyone who runs tires smaller that 35's and still drives much on the street... my 4.56/35inch tire combo is great off road but on the highway is horrible... crusing at 80-85 its turning over 2500 rpm and i can almost watch the gas gauge droping. dont get me wrong im happy i went with this combo but with 32 or 33 inch tires it would be no good on the highway!

also my truck also has the factory lsd and its shot!! i had my truck in the shop doing an alignment last week and i spun the rr wheel forward and the lr went backward with almost no drag!! the clutch pack must be toast!! luckily i have the extended wty and there going to replace it! if i didnt have the extended wty paying for it i think i would go with the auburn unit.