Suzuki: Samurai, ring and pinion sets, mountain highways

Question
QUESTION: Scotty:
This is a follow up question. Your program said I had asked too many follow ups and start over.

If I install the 6.0 under T-Case gear set (you recommended) and keep my 4.10 rears, how many rpms would I turn @ 60 mph. Remember I have 33" x 12.5 tires.

Your last answer stated " I lowered the diff ration to 5.12 and used a t-case with 6.0 low ration". Is this what you did to your Samurai or are you saying this is what I should do to mine?

Who should I contact to purchase the 6.0 T-Case gear set from?

Who should we contact to order the lock-rite lockers from?

Thanks

Tony

ANSWER: It's winter here, and since I have 34x9.50 swampers, it's nowhere near a decent ice and snow vehicle, but as I remember, I was turning about 3400 at 60, and had to go from 4.11 to 4.71 diff ratio in order to pull the grades in the Colorado mountain highways.  BUT that's with 34's at altitudes from 6000 to 13,000 feet.  33's at lower altitudes may be a different issue.  Look on the sites at izook dot com, and you will find the gearsets you desire.  I believe I went to rocky road for the ring and pinion sets, and the lock rites, and to trail tough for the t-case gears.  While you have the t-case apart, you might find the evil twin t-case modification useful, I find I like it lots.  I found it necessary to get the power steering kit (from a sidekick)(from trail tough) when I used 4-low, and tried to turn sharply while climbing nasty rocks, my arms were just not strong enough.
I have the 6.0 t-case gears, 4.71 ring and pinion, and lock rites in mine.  I've subsequently acquired a rock block sub gearbox(no longer made new by trail tough) and with a few minor modifications, it takes about an hour to install or remove it out on the trail.  It drops the t-case ratio another 1.8x lower, (a functional 11.2 low range) for those nasty trails littered with knee to waist high boulders, it very nearly matches the winch speed, making some trails somewhat easier..  I only use it a couple of times a year at most, and it's nice but nowhere near necessary.  As I remember, there's a 6.5 available from a couple of other link sites marketed, I think, by Calmini, and Spidertrax
Personally, I've preferred dealing with trail tough, and had more hassles and unnecessary bs dealing with rocky road lately.  Not sure, but I've had much better experiences with Spidertrax, Trail Tough, Roadless Gear, and Petroworks.  Maybe I'm just getting old and grumpy........
Oh yeah, if you put lockers in front, you will want to get the birfield rings to prevent blowing up the front birfield joints(Spidertrax).
About the only other thing I've added is the mighty kong t-case mount kit from trail tough, which eliminates the need for a t-case skid plate, and is much tougher, for the additional torque generated by those lower gear ratios.
Go to the izook dot com site and peruse the links, there are lots of ideas there.  My sammi is for doing old mining and wagon roads in the high colo mtns, and for the once in a while trips to Utah (Moab area, mostly).  You may have different needs, for instance I almost never need to deal with much mud, but DO need to deal with steep climbs in "bottomless shale scree", and things like climbing wet rocks(seems like it always rains in the afternoons in the Colo San Juan Mtns)
scotty

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Scotty:

We were wrong about our ring & pinion gear ratio. We had a 372.
We had Trail Tough build me a transfer case with a 6:4 gear and the mighty kong mount with. This really works well. We also installed the lock rites in the rear. This is were my question lies. When I apply throttle, the lock rite locks and there is no noise. When I let off the throttle or push in the clutch, I hear tick, tick, tick in the rear end. If you give it gas, it stops. It also has the tick when turning a corner. Is this normal? I've never had a rear end lock so I don't know what to expect.

Thanks

Tony

Answer
When you turn, you will hear the tick, tick.  That's normal, and means the locker is functioning correctly.  When you go around a corner under a little power, the inside wheel will lock and drive the car, and the outside wheel will "overrun", and click.  If you turn the other direction, the same will happen, but just on the other side.  This means that if one wheel is on rock, and the other on mud, or in the air, or whatever, the wheel with traction will stay coupled up, and you won't spin the useless tire, and go nowhere.  All the traction, and for quite a nice price, huh?
scotty