Incommando

OMG was this terrible. Full of nasty stereotypes, lies, and fake scripted drama. It portrays 'wheelers in a very bad light. One goof explained that his "superjeep" is special because it has two transmissions...when all it has is a tranny and a transfer case....

I officially hate you. Or envy you. Or something. I love Badlands and to live that close as opposed to 203 miles away..... Its not as glamorous as it may seem... I remember going there when it was just an abandoned gravel pit. My dad worked in the pit in high school, and would take his 1975 CJ5 out there after work. We've had our fun out there, now we just stand back and watch everybody else enjoy it. Its still pretty cool to see the all the rigs roll through town though....the Wrangler guys never wave to us MJ guys?!? :hmm: Amen on the Wrangler guys and their "only real jeep" mindset. On my trip to Haspin this weekend an '06 LJ with a locked rear , a high dollar teraflex lift, and on 265/75/16 Duratracs, the same size and type of tire as I have, could not follow my MJ although I followed him everywhere he could go. But you know...they are the only real jeeps. :banana:

Just as the front of the Jeep version of the AW4 has the AMC bolt pattern that only fits the AMC block the rear has the NP round pattern that does not match the Yoder pattern. If you want to go pass. drop in an auto XJ/MJ you can get a cheap $50 spacer that allows you to bolt the darn good Dana 300 t-case to the AW4. I did this to put an AW4 into a CJ as they are pass. drop from the factory as was the D60 I swapped in. Otherwise doing the $100 junkyard shaft upgrade ( or starting with the later HP30 front) makes the HP D30 as good as a LP D44 per the magazine ratings. Then throw on a $100 truss.....For someone considering a D60 front swap getting the usually considerably cheaper gm/dodge pass side version and doing the swap to the much stronger iron D300 can offer a considerable money savings over the very pricey Ford driver's drop HP D60. I waited until I found a good deal and wound up with $600 in the pass. drop D60, spacer, and D300 for the CJ. Even though I saved $200 on the usual price of the axle paying the usual $600 price still would make it less than 1/2 the cost of what a driver's drop D60 goes for around here. Sorry, I didnt consider the auto tranny. I was thinking of the AX15. With a change in tailhousing and main shaft off of a R151, you can bolt on the gear driven Yota cases (and open up a wolrd of cheap doublers!). And I forgot the Aisen sticks, just the Aisen Warner sourced AW4.

I officially hate you. Or envy you. Or something. I love Badlands and to live that close as opposed to 203 miles away.....

Get a bigger suitcase....

Just as the front of the Jeep version of the AW4 has the AMC bolt pattern that only fits the AMC block the rear has the NP round pattern that does not match the Yoder pattern. If you want to go pass. drop in an auto XJ/MJ you can get a cheap $50 spacer that allows you to bolt the darn good Dana 300 t-case to the AW4. I did this to put an AW4 into a CJ as they are pass. drop from the factory as was the D60 I swapped in. Otherwise doing the $100 junkyard shaft upgrade ( or starting with the later HP30 front) makes the HP D30 as good as a LP D44 per the magazine ratings. Then throw on a $100 truss..... For someone considering a D60 front swap getting the usually considerably cheaper gm/dodge pass side version and doing the swap to the much stronger iron D300 can offer a considerable money savings over the very pricey Ford driver's drop HP D60. I waited until I found a good deal and wound up with $600 in the pass. drop D60, spacer, and D300 for the CJ. Even though I saved $200 on the usual price of the axle paying the usual $600 price still would make it less than 1/2 the cost of what a driver's drop D60 goes for around here.

Four Wheeler and some other sources rate the LP TJ hybrid below the HP D30 with big u joints. Both use the same spline count outer stub shaft and unit bearings. The LP D44 loses any ring gear size advantage to the less stress that a HP design endures according to conventional wisdom. A HP D44 would of course be stronger but the LP D44 is at best a tie. As the u-joint/yoke area is the most common failure point and is the same in both axles that is a draw for sure. Breaking a shaft at the diff is far more rare especially when unlocked. For those looking to upgrade their front axle a TJ Hybrid is only a deal if it is cheaper than upgrading a HP30 to big-joint shafts (not chromo just junkyard stock), adding a locker, a cheap truss, and if you need 4.10 gears IMHO. Well, and Four Wheeler's

nice

In my sig link is a list of the components for a front lift. It is all good quality pieces and I included part #'s, where I got them, and how much they were including shipping as of May 2014. I went with 5.5" front springs but the 4.5's are even a tad cheaper. There are many ways to do it and some may be cheaper and some more expensive. But I know that this one works well http://comancheclub.com/topic/43844-the-diy-700-off-road-capable-soa/ And right to the parts list: http://comancheclub.com/topic/43844-the-diy-700-off-road-capable-soa/?p=445884 Just ignore the rear stuff.

It really depends on how much, if any, spring sag you have. But the posts I have seen claim approximately 2" of rake. They are measuring from the center of the hub to the bottom of the flare without stating whether they determined if the rear flare is higher than the front flare or not, though. It may or may not be. Did they check? Who knows. I personally think it is actually closer to 1.25". I base this estimate on laying a 4' level on the top of my bed rail and seeing how much I had to jack up the front to level the bubble. I measured from the bottom of the stock bumper to the ground as all I needed from the measurement was the difference in the measurements. The semantics of where and how to measure where eliminated this way. http://comancheclub.com/topic/28129-ride-height-rake-actual-lift/

Oh: 79 miles there, 6 hours and 19 miles of off-road trails, 79 miles home and the truck drove like stock at 70+ MPH and had no handling or reliability issues at all. There are better off road lifts, there are better on-road, but this works very well all around. and was comparatively inexpensive. I am supposed to be getting some pics of the more hard core stuff whenever the guy gets it downloaded and sent to me.

The front does flex more in the real world. Notice how much more the tire is stuff here then on the ramp: Some other pics of this outing at Haspin Acres in Laurel, IN on 11/29/14

http://www.amazon.com/Omix-Ada-18054-09-Drag-Link-Kit/dp/B000FQ80HO Onlu $72 (: For $72 anyone who takes their MJ off road should do this.

I bent the factory long tre my first trip out with the MJ. Upgraded to the ZJ stuff and I have had no further problems. You only need the long tre kit so don't pay for stuff that you do not need if it isn't worn out. This was $96.04 including shipping & sales tax after using one of their ever present discount codes http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/omix-ada-tie-rod-long-kit-zj-v8-18054.09/10186043-P?zoneAssigned=1 http://comancheclub.com/topic/43867-relatively-cheap-tie-rod-upgrade/?p=446768

Not all 8.8's are created equal. The early explorer versions like that were weaker including a lower spline count and smaller diameter shaft. Generally only the later versions are considered desirable. I have no idea what the width of the fox body 8.8 was but I have heard that fox body mustang rears were not desirable for jeep swaps. And you have more suspension crap to remove as it is not a simple leaf spring suspension. Sometimes free can cost you...

XJ Wagoneer was just a tarted up Cherokee. No mechanical differences and no D44 front ever in the domestic XJ line. FSJ Grand Wagoneers/Wagoneers had D44 fronts but that is a whole nother kettle of fish

i was at Haspin Saturday. I have heard about "behind Walmart" on OffRoadOhio.com but never been there

That makes all of the difference in the world.

Darn. I had hoped for more.

I would match the front with a good rear either 8.25 or 8.8 then. That looks like the cheapest option. That matches the ratio and gets rid of the D35. I paid < $100 for a good 29 spline 3.55 here 8.25. Hopefully the market is the same there. I use 3.55's with a 4.0 and 32's and it might not be optimal for either on-road or off-road but it does both just fine.

Thanks for the gear info. Looks like what you buy and what you get can be a bit iffy. Buying cheap may be a heck of a bargain in this case. We both have had luck with the USA standard. Good to know for the future.

I am confused. You want a 3.55 rear to match the front but say a 4.10 to match the your rear? What gears do you currently have in both axles? If it is a 4.0 and things haven't changed it should be 3.07 gears with a 5-spd IIRC. Auto would be 3.55. 4cyl would be 4.10. If things are still original. A little info about your truck would help, too If you are going with a stroker and 33's and you have a D35 rear now I would just go ahead and upgrade. D35's do not have a reputation for strength. If your front is 3.55 then a later Explorer 8.8 would be the way to go IMHO. A cheaper option would be a later XJ 8.25 in 3.55. If you have a 4.10 then that ratio was also fairly common in the Explorer 8.8.

4.10's. If you have a D35 now you may well end up upgrading it in the future with a stroker and 33's anyway so why spend twice?

I have it on DVR. I hope that it is real and not a fake & scripted "reality" show like Duck Dynasty, Pawn Stars, and those others.

:eek: