[Fot] Quaiffe Versus Gripper -

[Tony Drews]

Can't keep my mouth shut on this one, lots of great advice so far.

Jack ran welded diff in TR-3 back in the day, he reported push unless he 
kicked the tail out.  Taught him bad habits he had to unlearn when he 
went to a formula vee where smoothness rules. When he built his TR-4 he 
did the Quaiffe diff so I have experience with that one.

The three main LSD's are

Gear type (Quaiffe), clutch type (Gripper / Salisbury), detroit locker, 
I guess also viscous coupling but I'm going to ignore that one.  This 
would be like a Nissan or Subaru LSD probably.

As mentioned, the gear type diffs reward smooth driving.  If you lift an 
inside rear wheel, it WILL spin and you will lose some but not all of 
your drive (open diff you lose all).  In Jack's car, I suffered from 
that but Jack didn't after learning to be smooth in the FV.  Forced me 
to pat attention to smoothness.  Gear type diffs are pretty bullet 
proof, they rely on some creative use of worm drive gears as I 
understand it.  If both wheels are on the ground, it will transfer 
torque to both properly and not spin the inside tire.  Overheating 
doesn't appear an issue.  There are very smooth in engagement - can't 
feel it.

Clutch type have many adjustment options if you choose to use them.  
They require some care in what lubrication you use since they are using 
clutches in an oil bath.  The clutches can wear over time so there is 
some maintenance needed.  They can also produce heat when being actively 
used, that can be an issue in longer events.  They can keep an inside 
wheel from spinning when off the ground.  They are progressive in takeup.

Detroit Locker is not generally available in the TR diffs, they are rare 
in the big TR's, not sure if they are even available in GT-6 / spit.  
They act like an open diff on corner entry so no push but act like a 
welded diff on power on exit of turns.  They are mechanical, reliable 
and not sensitive to which lube you're using.  This is the one that fits 
MY driving style.  You can feel them engage at times - I don't notice 
while racing but do notice it in the rain or when pussy footing around.  
Would be horrible on the street I'd think.

Cheers, Tony Drews

On 7/20/2023 10:44 AM, Scott Janzen via Fot wrote:
> Does anyone have experience with a Gripper diff - or a Quaiffe?  I 
> currently run a welded diff in the GT6 and am contemplating whether 
> any advantage could be gained by making a swap.  Certainly curious as 
> to what the super fast GT6s at the Kastner Cup were running.
>
> Scott Janzen
> '68 GT6
>
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