question about axles and gauges

[mikekaz1]

that being said, D30 4.10 axles are getting harder to find with the newest xj being 15 years old and newest TJ being 10 years old, supplies are getting thin (atleast here in new England)  rears are a tiny bit easier being many source other vehicles, like explorers for the 4.10s.   4.56 are basically unobtainable in stock jeep  form.

 

no matter what you will have to have mounts cut off the rear axle and new mounts welded, depending on available skill and tools, this could add up to $200  in rear axle cost

[vandior2001]

well i am going to talk to a shop owner Monday, he has a 44 he's willing to sell but it needs rebuilding (diff cover is missing somehow). he's about the only guy i would trust to swap gears anyway. i will looks at prices for just the rear for now and drop my front shaft until i can save for a front axle or to upgrade the one i have looks like spring perches run about $30 a set.

[wildman4x4]

I don't know why folks are trying to talk you out of using a 8.8 as they are great axles for this swap. If you look around you can find a 8.8 that has 4.10 gears already, most times has a limited slip in it and has disc brakes. A 8.8 is stronger than a D44 and about the only short coming on the 8.8 is that the tubes need to be welded to the center section as they can spin on you under heavy torque. And for some people the other short coming is that a 8.8 is a "C" clip axle like the D35. There is a kit offered to eliminate the "C" clips. But at least you would have 4.10 gears already in your rear axle then all you need to do is regear your D30 or find one out of a 4cyl TJ as it comes with 4.10 gears. As said your D30 is good up to 35" tires and with the 32" tires you're running now you'd be fine for light to medium wheeling with stock shafts and joints. If you were to go to 35" tires you would want to get cromo shafts, 297 joints, a full case locker and truss the axle. I have seen many people run 37" tires on a D30 before for many years with little to no problems. Part of how long it is before you break parts is how you wheel. If you have a heavy foot then you will break more parts but if you drive smart you can wheel for a long time with no problems.

[Tykerp]

I found a decent price on a 30 with an arb and 4.56 gears here. It is out of a TJ though. That would mean it is low pinion right? I can't tell the pictures are from the front of it. Not sure if I would want it or not.

[mikekaz1]

i truely don't understand why so many people get so "butthurt" over low pinion d30s.  

[DirtyComanche]

i truely don't understand why so many people get so "butthurt" over low pinion d30s.  

 

Not butthurt, just have zero use for installing a downgrade.  The front driveshaft is so nicely protected on a HP setup, and the angles are so much more happy.  Going to a LP front axle throws the driveshaft right into the fodder zone, unless you have really low mounted control arms.  Either way, the operating angle increases by a couple degrees and you get closer to maxing the double cardon out.  All u-joints live longer if they are 'working' (misaligning) less.

 

Economics will sway me though, but my wheeler has a HP D60 in it for a reason.

[vandior2001]

found a TJ Dana 44 rear!! 1999 or 2000 i was told.

needs rebuilding, was sitting outside with no diff cover...... but JY should have most of what i need. getting new seals and bearings though. just need to wait a few months to save up the money.

[mikekaz1]

found a TJ Dana 44 rear!! 1999 or 2000 i was told.

needs rebuilding, was sitting outside with no diff cover...... but JY should have most of what i need. getting new seals and bearings though. just need to wait a few months to save up the money.

 

curious, how much did you pay?  also... what would the JY have that you need?

[vandior2001]

made a bit of a snafu on the axle. It's a dana 44 out of a 1980ish J-10, so it's a bit to long

 

as for the JY, the center bits ( gears and stuff) should be the same no matter what it's from.

 

dodge 1500 dana 44 should have the same parts in the diff, just longer shafts. I could be wrong, if anyone knows for sure please let me know

 

i paid $100 for the axle

 

also does anyone know what the stock axle shaft length for a MJ Dana 44 is?

[Eagle]

made a bit of a snafu on the axle. It's a dana 44 out of a 1980ish J-10, so it's a bit to long

 

as for the JY, the center bits ( gears and stuff) should be the same no matter what it's from.

 

dodge 1500 dana 44 should have the same parts in the diff, just longer shafts. I could be wrong, if anyone knows for sure please let me know

 

i paid $100 for the axle

 

also does anyone know what the stock axle shaft length for a MJ Dana 44 is?

 

You have more problems with that axle. The J10 trucks used 6-bolt wheels, so you'll need nw wheels, and the rear wheels won't match the front wheels.

 

If possible, I would take it back. Trying to use it is going to be very expensive.

[DirtyComanche]

As Eagle said, unfortunately that axle isn't much good for you.  It's a 79 or older, I believe, and it's 64"~ wide.  And it should be 6x5.5 bolt pattern.  It's not a bad axle, it just doesn't match up well to anything that you probably want to do.  It would pair excellent with a HP D44 front out of say a 79ish F-150 Supercab or something like that, which would be about 65" wide and driver's drop.  You would need some Wagoneer knuckles/spindles/hubs for it though (or whatever) to make it 6x5.5 to match.  But good luck finding one, and swapping it in would be a lot of work.