mhuppertz

These tires are the exact same age with the same mileage. Guess I can't blame the compound...

edwinsmith

My guess is that your back tires have a much lighter load most of the time but you're still running the same tire pressure as the front. The wear pattern is classic overinflation.

Edwin

mhuppertz

This tire style has a pretty good crown in the design, but nevertheless, point taken. I was thinking it was because of a heavy foot with 5 speed and Detroit Locker!

edwinsmith

It could be both problems at once.

oliver foster

That is one of my guesses.
The other is Mark spins his tires sometimes...
The last is it has been a while since the tires where rotated front to back.

Yeah the tire compound is not to blame.
They do not look like the best winter tire set up.

What sort miles are on that set of tire Mark?

oliver foster

A Detroit locker is really tough on tire treads, if used on pavement especially if the pavement is hot making the tire rubber softer.

mhuppertz

Yea, and I blast 2,000 ft elevation down, drive around town, then back up 2,000 ft every day. During the summer I have noticed that no matter how gentle I try to pull away from a stop I am always leaving a bit 'o rubber, two stripes. "Speed cost money son, how fast do you want to go"...

mhuppertz

I have the toe as neutral as I can stand to drive it, the the fronts just don't wear out. I don't bother rotating them, just replace the rears as they lathe down to nothing.

edwinsmith

I have no experience with limited-slip differentials at all so forgive my ignorance. Is a Detroit locker a limited slip type or some other type of diff? Why does it leave rubber from both wheels? Does it do this even if you go straight and only go gently? This puzzles me.

Edwin

mhuppertz

The Detroit Locker is a ratcheting type, positive locker. It works like a socket wrench ratchet, if one wheel is turning faster than the other it ratchets, but when a wheel starts to slip it locks like a solid axle. It is fairly brutal, but the only thing that has help up to the abuse I give my truck.
A regular limited slip uses wet clutches to only allow a certain amount of speed difference between the two wheels. They tend to run much hotter than a positive locking differential and require friction modifiers. This is what the factory uses because it is a smooth setup.
I love my locker, would never go back to breaking spider gears and shafts again!

edwinsmith

I love knowing about how mechanical things work. Is there any online resource for the Detroit Locker mechanism? I get the ratcheting type but how do you back up?

Thanks

Edwin

mhuppertz