Line Locks for Offroading?

Wondering if anybody here has used line locks as a poor man's locker for offroading as opposed to their normal use on drag cars. I've been thinking about lockers, but it kind of snowballs into might as well regear, then I'd have to do the front and rear, then I'd have to up tire sizes to account for the gearing change. While this is all stuff I do want to do down the line anyways, that's way too big a chunk for now. I thought it may be worth installing line locks for each corner, or at least just the rear. This way I can effectively identify a slipping tire and lock it up, sending power to the stuck tire. Kind of like how most modern vehicles simulate lockers, but without a computer telling it what to do. Even down the line after getting real lockers in the future, this would be helpful for making tight turns since I don't ever plan on swapping to a t-case with FWD capability. If anybody has any experience with this, I'd like to hear your thoughts.

 

Back in the eighties a company tried to market a system that did this very thing .

In theory it was a great idea ! It completely failed no market ever developed it was gone I think in less then 2 years.

Your Truck Your idea give it a try.

i wish you luck adding that many more connections in the brake system.

unlike in Drag racing where your cleaning tires locking the front brakes .

This will be used much more often Have you worked out just how you plan to control the system.

***This is going back a very long time things might have been upgraded and changed.

You applied the brakes flipped the line lock valve locked the brakes . in your case now you need 4 complete systems to be able to lock each brake independent correct?

Sounds like a plumbing nightmare to me.



Points for the idea.

If this works out go for it!!!

Best of Luck!!

 

Interesting idea

Rears could be done with a split e-brake. Two handles or something similar. This would also allow you to adjust the amount if you wanted to drag (but not stop) an inside tire for right turns.

Fronts would obviously need something different.

Don't you normally have to apply the brakes and then flip the line lock? That wouldn't work too well in this case as it would be nice to turn it on and off without having to completely stop all other tires.

Secondary master cylinder on each front circuit? I'm guessing that would push back through the primary MC

 

Yep, that's pretty much how I would plan on doing it. I have a bunch of switch blanks, so I was thinking I could have one dual button for front left/right and another dual button rear left/right. It would just be 4 switches which isn't a big deal and I think managing them while driving wouldn't be too bad. If I were really crawling or doing stuff where lockers were a necessity, this would be a PIA. The only couple times I've ever needed a locker it was just because I had one tire in the air in front and back. Something like this, I'd be on the brakes anyways, lock the corner in the air, then keep driving. For occasional use I don't think it would be too unreasonable. As far as lots of plumbing, I think I'd just try it in the rear and see how it does before messing with the front. Looking at how the rear brake lines are set up from the factory, I'd unscrew the hose from the hardline and just put the solenoid between the already existing junction on the rear axle. Seems kind of straight forward, but the hard part appears to be finding the fittings to make it work. This probably isn't something I'm going to pursue immediately, but I think it may be worth a try. Since it's non-destructive, I could always remove it.

Yeah, I thought about just using a cutting brake, but I'm kind of out of room for sticks in the console with the transmission, twin stick FJ case, and a crawlbox. I'll look around to see what others have done for placement, but I don't think I could fit it. See the above quote response as to how I would use it, but yes, using it as a traditional locker would be a PIA. I don't think extra MCs would be necessary, just a solenoid in each corner, Ideally just mounted between the existing hard/soft line interface.

 

Seen something mildly similar for the rear in applying a little e-brake to get the low traction tire to feel some resistance in a limited slip setup.

 

I've tried that trick, but it's never really worked for me. And don't get me started on Toyota's lsd. Not once have I ever noticed it actually limit the slip.

 

I've had it worked doing burnouts in my Dad's Tundra, but not really seen or felt the evidence on the trail.

 

You're vastly over-thinking this. The idea technically works but it's complicated and highly inefficient. Also, without fwd or rear steer digs don't work well no matter your braking options.

Stop over-thinking. You have a crawl box and sound like you are building a real offroad rig. Real offroad rigs have lockers because they are the most critical performance item you can add to your drivetrain and are way more efficient and effective than your suggestion.

Don't rationalize yourself into, "well if I'm gonna install a locker I might as well...". No! You don't. Take the day, simply install just the locker, and be done. Down the road you can do your gears, it's not that big of a deal.

 

Yeah, that seems to be the general consensus. I'm not going to pursue this, at least not now. I guess I should elaborate on helping the turning though. I know it's not as good as rear steer, but in the far far future when the FJ case gets swapped for a rhd gear case, there's the possibility for rear driveline disconnects that allow for fwd.

Believe me, I know this isn't a substitution for lockers as they won't act even remotely the same. As much as I would like to just get lockers now, they would have to be carriers for 3.73s, so when I eventually do up the gearing, I'd have to replace the locker again anyway. To me that just seems like throwing money away. If I could do the install myself I would since it would be relatively cheap, but the best I would be able to do would be an ecgs 3rd member swap which doubles the price. I'm not too confident that I'd be able to properly get the gear spacing and blacklash, but maybe I should bite the bullet and give it a shot. I'm just a bit hesitant because it's currently my only vehicle, so I can't really afford to have it sit around while I figure it out.

I hope this doesn't come off as confrontational, it's just my thought process on the matter.

 

You did specifically state no plans to go fwd, but, yes, there are rear disconnects for the RF1A.

Your situation sounds like a prime opportunity to install a lunchbox locker yourself in the stock carrier to hold you over until a larger upgrade.

 

Sorry, yeah I did mention that, but I've been kind of back and forth on that idea. I suppose what I meant was no time soon haha. I never realized lunch box lockers only replaced the spiders, I've never really looked into them too much. My only concern with them is how they handle icy roads, which I see a lot of in MT. I'll do a bit of research into them, but it seems like a good stopgap.