Ox lockers? Searched with no results

Well I got my 8.8 (4.10, LSD, disc brakes) for $350 and now I am going to change the front R&P to 4.10.

My question is since I will have the front diff apart, I want to put in a locker and change the axles to 30 spline. I like selectables and was wanting to know what is the consensus on the Ox locker for the d30?

Thanks

Might try searching posts from Jes... he's the only one I know offhand who had one.

thank you sir.

I was looking into them recently. From what I read they are good but not alot of brand loyalty towards them. I saw alot of people calling them a fade that has ended. Anyone that had any thing negative would just use 'its not XXX brand so its worthless'.

Maybe you didnt know but you can search for ox* locker and it will show results. The * lets you search for those -3 letter words.

I picked up D44 for the rear that was already built with an OX. I then built a front 44 and put OX in it. I have yet to really use it, as my Jeep isn't road worthy due to non-differential related problems, but from what I could tell it was a pretty beefy locker. The diff cover is pretty nice too.

I like the idea of the cable driven system, so you don't have to rely upon an air compressor. Most of the people I wheel with run ARB, and I've seen them lose their locking capabilities multiple times due to air leaks or electrical issues. I really haven't read many things on the OX units failing FWIW.

Yeah that's why I wanted to use one. No air or elec to fail and the Ox has a beefy cover.

As far as the searching goes, I searched "Ox, cable locker, ox locker, Ox differential cover" and several others with no results.

It just seems to me that simplicity rules with this locker and the only downfall I can see is if you damage the diff cover you might be more than without a locker.

you could go with the super 30 kit. I think it comes with an ARB though

You have to ask yourself how many times the company has gone bankrupt and come back, and ask yourself why.



I know two people that have Ox lockers here in SoCal. I drove both rigs and then bought a 30 spline ARB.

Ya I had a hard time trying to search for OX when I was doing some research on that matter. Everything I tried to search would bring me up to the mention of OX in one post. I couldn't find anyone who shared how they routed their front cable.

As for the diff cover, it is a really beefy cover, took two hands to hold it most of the time. You must do something really stupid to damage it I would say. And what do you mean by you might be more than without a locker?

Begster said:

And what do you mean by you might be more than without a locker?

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After I wrote that, I thought, "Well that doesn't make any sense." What I meant is if you damage it, you might push the shift fork into the diff and lock the front end up completely and not be able to limp it at all. But that comes from assumption with no experience with the Ox.

All in all are you happy with your ox? I.E. ability to engauge or dis-engauge, binding problems, etc.?

FlexdXJ said:

you could go with the super 30 kit. I think it comes with an ARB though

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I am assuming that the Super 30 is a superior deal like the super 35?
thanks

How the OX shift fork works is it slides into the grove in that collar on the right, and then pushes the collar to the left when engaged, locking the OX spider gears inside the locker, and then unlocks when it is pulled back to the right.




Here is the cover. I don't have any pics of the inside of it unfortunately. But the fork sits right next to the X on the inside. So if you did take an impact straight on, it would just push the fork into the carrier, it wouldn't engage it or disengage it. It would be the same with any aftermarket cover. It would have to be a large impact to bend/break it, and you would have bigger problems than the locker engaging.

I can't really give a real report on the lockers, I haven't driven my Jeep more than 5 miles since I got it back together on Thursday, and not even close to taking it offroad. While adjusting the locker and test engaging it, it was nice. I could tell when it was in, and the way the lever is set up, once its in it won't let it accidentally slip out. Installing the levers were a little bit of a pain due to the cable being stiff, not allowing for sharp bends. But I do enjoy the feel of the lever, its nice to use.

Cool. Thanks for the pics, it look like a beefy unit and keep me posted on how well it works.

cal said:

I know two people that have Ox lockers here in SoCal. I drove both rigs and then bought a 30 spline ARB.

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Cal, why? Didn't like how they engaged, something else?

I have Ox's front and rear, so I'll weigh in. They're pretty expensive, IIRC I paid about $750 each. The cable is sold seperately for about $90, so all told you're into it for a pretty penny. I have an ARB in my other rig, which I like tremendously. I only went with the Ox because I too didn't want to mess with a compressor, which is an extra $200-ish for the one ARB makes. The Ox requires cable routing and adjustment, which is a bit of a PITA, but I finally have mine adjusted and working properly. In the front, you route it straight out from the cover, then radius it around the steeering knuckle "C" of the front diff. I used a worm clamp to secure it there. I then used zip-ties to secure it to the uni-frame, radiused it over the trans in the tranny tunnel, then back aft and machined a hole to mount the controller on the tranny tunnel just fwd of the passenger seat. It was a pain, and is only recently adjusted to where the cable actuation is consistent.

The cover itself is beefy as Hell, not much worry about bending or breaking it. For the rear I ran it out the side of the diff, over the axle tube, inboard of the shock, and zip-tied it parallel to the driveshaftup to a hole machined in the tranny tunnel to the controller just frd of the driver's seat. The rear has been trouble-free, the front took some adjusting to make it consistent.


Would I do it again? No, for the money and hassle, I'd go ARB. But they do work, are very stout in construction, and are selectable. I do like the beefy covers, and have heard of no problems with their durability.

Thanks for the info Fubar. The research I have done on other sites pretty much agrees with you. They're a pain to set up, but they work well after that. Most people said they would go with the ARB if they had to do it over again.

Now, I'm trying to find the super 30 kit. I found one at quadratec, but I am checking prices at other places.

I ran one in my front axle for a while. Worked fine when I could actually get the damn thing to engage. Adjusting the cable repeatidly got really old really fast. I routed the cable as far away from the exhaust as possible and still melted 2 of them. I went with a different locker when I swapped my D30 for a D44.

Frank Z said:

I ran one in my front axle for a while. Worked fine when I could actually get the damn thing to engage. Adjusting the cable repeatidly got really old really fast. I routed the cable as far away from the exhaust as possible and still melted 2 of them. I went with a different locker when I swapped my D30 for a D44.

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That seems to be a common problem with the Ox. The TV cable is too stiff and the adjustment is too sensitive.

I have an OX in my Dana front end. I must have been lucky, as I never had a problem getting mine to engage/disengage properly. I did however adjust mine while I had it jacked up. I like mine so well I am going to put one in the 8.8 in the rear of mine.

I got the 30 spline Ox up front and I don't have any issue with engaging it. (I only got the Ox becuase I got a very good deal on it. I had been planning on using an Aussie, but found a great deal on teh Ox)

Adjusting it was a "bit" of a pain (really not a big deal I thought), but once I had it dialed in, and locktite the threads like the directions say to do, it hasn't needed any re-adjustment.

But, that was after I melted one cable because it touched the motor mount. I re-routed the new cable and now it's fine. Put about 1,500 miles on it in the desert heat and no issues.

I just got it at the beginning of summer and only used it a handful of times... but everytime I needed it, it locked in quickly and smoothly. I probably engaged it only 10 times or so... so I can't say much about long term dependibilty.

Overall I am pretty pleased with it so far.