new rear end

[coolmemin]

1074600

Hey guys a couple questions for you guys, I was at a friend's junkyard the other day looking for an axle to swap my dana 35 and 30. I am looking for an axle that I would not have to do too many mods to to switch because of my limited mechanical skills and its probably expensive to have it done. I was primarily looking for a ford 8.8" from a 95 or newer explorer but they only had a 94, it had drum brakes... I was wondering if anybody knows if this axle is weaker than the post 95 8.8". I saw a lot of ford 9" but I think that is overkill for what I wanna do (at most 35" tires) and it would be a lot of work. I also wanted to know what would be a good truck to get a dana 44 for the front? There was a lot of old Ford trucks, I think there's a Wagoneer too, I can't quite remember. Anyways, I really appreciate any input and experiences
thanks,
Guillermo [addsig]

 

[jhiggins]

1074625

Go with the 9" once you get the bug you will
just want to go bigger and bigger ...The tuffer
the axle the better off you are...just my $.02 :-D [addsig]

 

[Snitty]

1074647

i agree.. the 9" is the way to go.. and for the front... just look for something that has a matching width to what your rear will be[addsig]

 

[jhiggins]

1074649

And make sure the pumpkin is on the right
side that it is suposed to be on... :-D :-O :-D

What kind of jeep is this for???? :-? [addsig]

 

[coolmemin]

1074802

i won't be using bigger than 33" tires i think, and its a 4 cyl. Isn't the 9" a lot more work to get in there than the 8.8". The reason is because I can get the axle for cheap but the work is expensive. Also, how can tell if the 8.8" is the 31 or 29 spline? What would be a good place to get a 9" from, I saw a lot of fullsize broncos and for vans with 9" but they are probably a lot wider than what I need so I will need to shorten them...ok, here comes another dumb question, could you just replace the axle shafts with shorter ones?
thanks guys, i knew you would be able to help me out[addsig]

 

[Snitty]

1074863

the 8.8 is actually more narrow than the D35... that is one reason I would suggest going with a 9"... and they would both be the same amount of work to get in there[addsig]

 

[Snitty]

1074866

the 8.8 is actually more narrow than the D35... that is one reason I would suggest going with a 9"... and they would both be the same amount of work to get in there[addsig]

 

[cmoore]

1074872

If you're not going over 35's I would say leave the D30 up front and not worry about it. The front axle doesnt see the same kind of stress and so the D30 usually will hold up very well. Tri County gear has a super 30 kit that will bump the D30 up to D44 strength (except the ring and pinion gears are still small). I know lots of folks running 35's on hard trails with the d30/d44 combo with no problems (including me).

If you really want to swap out the front. Look at Early Broncos. The pumpkin is on the correct side, the width isnt off by much, and there are a lot of em floating around the yards.

hth[addsig]

 

[coolmemin]

1074918

ok, so lets say i do the 9" instead, are broncos from around the 80's a good place to get em? what about old ford trucks? there aren't any early broncos at the yard that's.
What are some good solutions if the axles are too wide?
and thanks for helping out, you guys help me learn so much just by reading others' posts [addsig]

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

1074925

I'd look under Wagoneers and other SJ's, look for the ones with the driver's side front diff, it's a D44. Quite possible the rear could be the D44, or the AMC20HD, which is stronger than the D35 and offers 1 peice axleshafts, unlike the 20 found in CJ's. Many had Quadratrac 4wd, which has the offset rear diff, don't want that.

The SJ front and rear D44's will be close to the same width, and the front diff can be found on the correct side. Lug pattern is 6lug, so new wheels are needed.

What year/model Jeep are these axles going under, that really determines the right axle and the amount of work needed. Since you have the 2.5L engine, you'll likely need to regear the axles since few factory axles have that low of gearing ($$$).[addsig]

 

[coolmemin]

1074938

its a 98 TJ. I don't know my current gearing but I am trying to find an axle with my current gearing[addsig]

 

[OiiiiiO]

1074946

Too wide is better than too narrow. Do some local investigating and find out who does work for the all the drag racers in town. Narrowing isnt a huge deal and usually doesnt cost all that much. Just find out how wide you need and get the tubes narrowed to accept a production length axle that will match your needed length (you dont want custom axles).

One thing to keep in mind is that swapping housings will most likely include the need for new driveshafts as the length will be different.[addsig]

 

[OiiiiiO]

1074948

its a 98 TJ. I don't know my current gearing but I am trying to find an axle with my current gearing

I think all 2.5L TJ's came with 4.11s[addsig]

 

[firemanharry]

1074955

Why would you worry about having big rears under a 4 banger? :-? [addsig]

 

[meangreenyj]

1074962

waggoneer axles are awesome... friend of mine swapped a set into has comanche and it's unstoppable.. try to find the d44, AMC HD20 combo and throw some one piece axles in the 20.. it'll be a lot stronger and will still fit your jeep.. you'll have to go to either 5x5.5 lugs or 6 lug, though[addsig]

 

[coolmemin]

1075002

I only have 31" tires on but I want to put a locker front and rear but I don't want to break the dana 35 and get stranded. I already did that with my stock cherokee and the wheel fell out on the freeway in Mexico :-O :-O :-O ... not a fun time indeed :-(
anyways, thanks for all your help, and while I'm at it, I have another question, I was looking at some explorer axles today and I couldn't find the gearing on them they were 1999 and I'm looking for the 4.10 gears so I don't have to regear. I saw a tag on the axle but I couldn't decipher the #'s do any of you guys know where it says the gears?[addsig]

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

1075017

I think all 2.5L TJ's came with 4.11s

2.5L 5spd has 4.11 gears
2.5L auto has 3.73 gears

try to find the d44, AMC HD20 combo and throw some one piece axles in the 20

The AMC HD20 already has the 1piece axle shafts, that is one advantage over the AMC20 found in CJ's.[addsig]