GearVendors or Powertrax No-Slip?

[willhunting]

Does anyone here have any DIRECT experience with either the GearVendors Under/Overdrive or with the Powertrax No-Slip? I have read reviews of these in the magazines but think that most magazines will print whatever is convenient to the people who pay them for advertising.

The No-Slip is supposed to give all the advantages of a locker but which disconnects automatically and without the jarring of a typical locker.

The Under/Overdrive promised better power, fuel economy, AND engine life while giving overdrive and splitting other gears when desired. Is this total overkill for normal applications or for simple (non-race) high-speed applications?

I am looking for traction and power for a Blazer that will never leave the trail and will 99% of the time be ON-ROAD driving me to work, etc.

p.s. the websites are www.gearvendors.com and www.powertrax.com

Any replies would be appreciated.
-WillHunting

 

[HarryH3]

No direct experience with the GearVendors unit. Mainly because it costs $2,500 plus installation!

I can't justify that kind of cash just to be able to split gears and get maybe another 0.5 mpg.

Look back a couple of days. The PowerTrax No-Slip question just came up within this week.

<font color=black>HarryH3 - '75 K5</font color=black>
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://ThunderTruck.ColoradoK5.com>http://ThunderTruck.ColoradoK5.com</A>

 

[militaryblazer]

I have heard that you can't add a Gear Vendors Overdrive to a Blazer cause of the short wheelbase. You would have to go with an even shorter driveshaft and higher angles. If I'm wrong somebody let me know!

See more--&gt;<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.geocities.com/m1009_86>http://www.geocities.com/m1009_86</A>

 

[Panther]

Hey Will!!!

I have been asking around about the Powertrax No-Slip (as IDed by Harry). Here are some other sites with reviews (if you haven't seen them).

http://www.drivetrain.com/noslip.html

and

http://www.rockcrawler.com/techreports/powertrax_tj/index.htm

and

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.outdoorwire.com/4x4/reviews/no-slip/>http://www.outdoorwire.com/4x4/reviews/no-slip/</A>

drivetraindirect.com quoted me $379 with shipping.
macromotive.com lists the unit at $382 without shipping

It seems there aren't a lotta stories about them cause they are so new. They sound good. I am emailing a couple people about them (from the articles) and drivetraindirect.com has had one on for about 1500 miles so it'll go that far.

I am gonna get one in the next 3 weeks so I will let you know as it goes. Like I told Harry, somebody has to be the first.

Are you set on a soft locker? Seems it might be a little harsh for 99 percent on road. Have you looked at an Auburn LSD? They are supposed to be really good diffs.

I'll let you know as I get info!! Hope some of this helped!!!!



<font color=blue>"It's just a differentialator....Totally unnecessary"

</font color=blue><P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by Panther on 01/26/01 11:51 AM (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[Panther]

Email from Chris at rockcrawler.com

Hey guys, here is the email I got back from Chris who wrote the article for rockcrawler.com.

By the way Will, make sure you check my other message on the web site (not just in email) cause I edited it like 4 times.

*********************************************************
John,
You're not the first person to ask me that question. The locker has been functioning well since I wrote the article.

Fortunately, I don't have anything negative to add. I forget exactly how many miles since I installed, but if I had to guess, I'd say 25,000 miles. I pulled it out to check on it a few months ago. No visible wear and tear.

What I tell everyone is, I'd still rather have an ARB Air-Locker that I can manually engage and disengage, however, I feel the Powertrax No-Slip is the best locker you can get for its cost, and for its ease of installation. I don't think you'll be disappointed with the unit. Take care!

- Chris
www.rockcrawler.com

*********************************************************


<font color=blue>"It's just a differentialator....Totally unnecessary"

</font color=blue>

 

[dyeager535]

My dads got a gear vendors in his K20. (454) Uses it to tow a 10,000 trailer. Personallym if you have a 3spd auto now, get a beefy 700 built up. The GV unit does not have enough overdrive to make it worthwhile..something in the range of .75, while the 700 is .70. This makes the OD unit worthless when towing up a hill on a freeway, you end up going back to 1:1 anyway, because 2OD still keeps the RPM's too high.

The GV unit is pretty tough I guesss, haven't broken it yet. His is on a manual tranny, so you can't run it at any speed under 25mph. You also have to manually shift it (an additional switch) into and out od OD, which on the manual, requires you to depress the clutch. Forget when you slow down under 25 in gear, and you get one hell of a harsh downshift. On top of that, it requires the addition of quite a bundle of wiring in the truck.

Dorian
My K5 and Chev/Olds tech/links page: <A target="_blank" HREF=http://yeagerd.home.mindspring.com/index2.html>http://yeagerd.home.mindspring.com/index2.html</A>

 

[Panther]

Email from Chris at 4x4wire

Hey guys, here is the email I got back from Chris who wrote the article about the No-slip for 4x4wire.com.

*********************************************************
Hi John.....

Basically everything I've said in the article still holds true - I'm still majorly impressed with this unit. Now and then it'll bind-up a little more than usual and you'll get a little bang out of the diff, but for the most part it makes no noise at all. Sometimes I don't even really believe that it's still functioning because I don't notice it back there, so I have to FORCE it to bind-up (like a slow, tight turn in a parking lot) just to remind myself it's still back there. ;-)

I've got about 40,000 miles on mine now -- I put a tremendous number of miles on my vehicles.... Still running like the first day I put it in.

- Chris
*********************************************************

<font color=blue>"It's just a differentialator....Totally unnecessary"

</font color=blue>

 

[Panther]

Email from Bill

Hey guys, here is the email I got back from Bill about the No-slip. He is kinda random cause I just stumbled onto his web site and saw he had them (front and back) but hey, opinions are opinions

.

*********************************************************
I'm not sure how many miles I have on the truck since I installed the lockers in both ends. I ran about five or six wheeling trips to various places: Left-Hand Canyon, Wheeler Lake (twice), Red Cone, Webster Pass, Glacier Ridge, Hackett Gulch, Old Chinamen's Gulch. I got a little crazy at Old Chinaman's and broke my rear driveshaft on a rock. One thing I can say, Automatic Lockers in the front are no picnic to drive if you only have front drive. Lock one hub or both, it doesn't matter (especially when I knocked my sterring stabilizer off on a rock earlier that day), it still pulls hard to the side when getting on or off the gas.

Overall, I really like the powertraxx units. They're plenty strong, I thinkI could break a chome-moly axle before I broke the lockers. They're very driveable too, although you might get more sway than I do, with your shorter wheelbase. I only notice it (in the back) when I have a bog load in the bed. The units do not ratchet in corners (except in reverse), and only show occasional signs of driveline windup (far better than a Detroit).

If I had to do it again, I might think harder about ARBs, but the problems people have on the trail with air lines is still a turn-off for me. Every trip I went on last year with one or more people equipped with them, someone had an "air" problem that left them, at least temporarily without a locker.

Bottom line, there is no easier locker to put in with the strength and lack of bad road manners than a no-slip. You can even put one in the front, like I did, but you better replace all your U-Joints with the best you can buy, and while your in there, get the Chome moy axles and stub shafts too.

Bill



<font color=blue>"It's just a differentialator....Totally unnecessary"

</font color=blue>