hi, im new here and already know that most people do not like the gov lock. i recently scraped my old suburban and pulled the gov lock for the hell of it. it was in an 8.5in rear and now i am wondering if i should use it in the front of my new burb witch has an 8.5 front. the only reason i am considering this is because im hurting for cash and already have the part. the truck is street drivin but will not be in 4 wheel for the most part on the street unless we get hit with alot of snow, and also yes the front is a straight axle not ifs.

 

you will have a hard time turning under power if it tries to lock on you.

 

Not sure I understand your reasoning on this as there are MANY vehicles that run true lockers up front and have no problem with turning providing their steering system is up to par. I think having a G80 up front would be perfect.

To the OP, I have no idea if the G80 will fit up front but if you do it, please let us know how things work out. Sounds like a great idea to me!

 

I think you may run into an issue with the whole reverse cut vs forward cut gearing. Usually front and rear gearing is opposite, meaning the carrier in the diff will spin the other way, and the G80 is only designed to spin in one direction for locking (won't lock in reverse right?)

But if both front and rear axles have the same rotation, then I don't see what the issue would be...

 

Could have sworn mine locks and clunks in Reverse... I'll have to check.

 

the steering system really has nothing to do with what I'm saying, Obviously the wheel will turn, but have you tried driving truck with a locked front axle? the wheels turn, but the truck still wants to go straight as both wheels are turning the same exact speed. They try to fight each other. If its a turn thats not under power it will probably keep free wheeling and act as an open diff, but if you try to turn under power and it locks, Its not going to turn very well

 

That only happens with a real locker (detroit, powertrax etc.) ... the g80 requires wheel spin to activate so it will act similar to a Limited Slip and be invisible until you start spinning tires.

 

search. asked and answered. for example

 

ok first off thanks for the input. so i now understand that it will only lock under "wheel spin" but being that its in the front diff if im turning left for an example the right side wheel will technicly be spinning faster than the left... so will this cause the locker to act like i am getting wheel spin and lock?
thanks again




and sorry i read this thread but it didnt realy answer any of my questions

 

Everything that I have read suggests that the gov-loc requires around 200rpm difference side to side for it to lock. Typical steering in a parking lot shouldn't cause that much of a difference in speed.

As far as the swap goes, unless you are sure that it was working properly when pulled, I wouldn't chance going through all of the trouble swapping it over into your front diff. There are MUCH better diffs out there. I understand that it is basically free, but your time isn't nor are the additional parts (bearings, shims, gaskets, etc) that would be required to install the diff.