Diff cover vs diff skid

[Vicious-Peanut]

Hey all,

Im planning on either the Carli front skid for the diff or the Ruff Stuff 3/8” cover. Any thought on one or the other and why? Planning to go Lubelocker for the gasket and change to synthetic oil while in there.

 

[PapaRaptor]

I would think the Carli is the way to go, but not 100% on it. I think the synthetic oil is a great idea. By the way not a bad idea for everyone to check the oil level in the difs. My Dana 44s in my Ruby where both low from the factory as was the manual trans. I replaced all the fluids around 5000 miles with Amsoil full synthetic. Plan to do the same with the Tremor.

 

[AKDV]

Hey all,

Im planning on either the Carli front skid for the diff or the Ruff Stuff 3/8” cover. Any thought on one or the other and why? Planning to go Lubelocker for the gasket and change to synthetic oil while in there.

Which way did you go?

 

[ccw]

Which way did you go?

Also curious to hear which way OP went.

Though IMO I like the Carli diff guard for two reasons:

1. Builds towards a future lower steering stabilizer if desired.
2. Doesn't mess with the factory cover.

With #2, Banks has me seriously concerned about any aftermarket differential covers. While the front isn't as critical as the rear, still something I would prefer not to mess with.

If you haven't seen their video series on differential covers, it's well worth a watch:

 

[Busa Dave]

The banks unit is good for mall crawling but not for off road used where you have exposed rocks hidden by grass. Learned this lesson year about 10 years ago.

Going to most likely have a PMF Suspensions put on the front and rear.

 

[ccw]

The banks unit is good for mall crawling but not for off road used where you have exposed rocks hidden by grass. Learned this lesson year about 10 years ago.

Going to most likely have a PMF Suspensions put on the front and rear.

For sure. The Banks cover wasn’t designed for off-road use. It was designed for on-road heavy towing.

I brought up Banks because their research shows how the design of the differential cover impacts differential and axle lubrication and temperature. As well as the fact many (most?) aftermarket differential covers are mediocre to terrible at both of those jobs.

 

[FordFanStan]

For sure. The Banks cover wasn’t designed for off-road use. It was designed for on-road heavy towing.

I brought up Banks because their research shows how the design of the differential cover impacts differential and axle lubrication and temperature. As well as the fact many (most?) aftermarket differential covers are mediocre to terrible at both of those jobs.

Their video and research is great, but remember it is a part of their sales technique. While I don’t doubt it’s a great product, I’ve yet to hear of a differential that failed solely due to a flat style aftermarket rear diff cover. And those styles have been around and used for many years on thousands and thousands of trucks.