Smoker ratchet hub?

[hotshoe8t]

Need an explanation on the Smoker ratcheting hubs that are being run on the LR. How do they work and when do you generally run one? Everyone I have talked to tells me they lock in the corners and free wheel down the straights. If thats true then they are operating completely opposite of the locker type differentials that we run in full size applications.

the reason I ask is we are starting my five year old in Junior novice next season. The other handlers I have talked to at the local club claim that a smoker hub is around a tenth quicker a lap. I ran IMCA type modifieds and was a setup guru of sorts on the them for a quite a few years. Just trying to relearn some of the stuff that applies a little differently as quick as I can on the quarter midget stuff and this is the only part I am baffled on. whats your guys thoughts?

[RBurns17]

If the driver can handle unlocked without lifting, I would go that route. We had a ratchet on ours, but it got damaged in a crash during the Gen. Next race at Kokomo so we stuck an unlocked hub on it. The driver adapted right away and we were much faster. Haven't put the ratchet back on since, although it really all depends on the track you are running on.

The reason they pick up speed compared to a locked car is because when it frees up down the straight it eliminates drag on the LR that's there when the car is locked.