Rare dana 44 front axle?

[Gwamp]

I got this Dana44 front axle as part of a lot of junk that I bought over the last couple of weeks. It is out of a 70's(?) Chevy and that is about all that I know about it. It appears to me from some quick measuring that it would fit in an SOA configuration as is. It measures about 29.5 inches inside the spring pads and that is about the same measurements that I came up with on my BluePig. Anybody know anything about this axle? Thanks guys! :D

[porchpiggy]

Chev used Dana 44's for the front until about 76, GMC used the Dana 44 a little longer. You might do a search, seems to me I saw some info on chev 10 bolts and D44's being a easy soa swap.

[Gwamp]

I forgot the pic! :eek:

http://www.caddiator.com/img4.jpg

[Bob Barry]

That's the exact axle I'm using to go SOA w/o relocating perches. Good find.

[Stuka]

you got a pict of the front? Make sure it isnt a Corp 10 Bolt. Unless it has tags and such on it. I only ask because the webbing around the pinion is different then that of my front D44.

[Sambo]

it will bolt right in...i tryed this once,but couldnt hook the steering up...so i did an soa on a wt axle...but it will bolt right up :)

[Gwamp]

It has D-44 F stamped on the axle so I am pretty sure it is a Dana axle. I am going to try to sell this or trade it for a Dana 60 front *fingers crossed* It is not heavy duty enough for my nefarious plans. I would just snap those axle shafts like twigs with the larger tires on it. So I might as well get it to someone who can put it to use instead of me just running it until it breaks and then throwing it away. :D

[scotty]

im not going to say that you should run it,or that 60 is unneccessary,but ive been running a 44 for a long time in the front with 38s,and so far its held up pretty good,for whatever its worth. and im not very nice to my rig,either ;) told myself i wasnt going to swap in my front 70 till ive broken all my spare 44 parts,and im still waiting. i still have 2 long side shafts and 4 short sides to go... tongue.gif

now the rear 44 was a different story... :eek:

[ October 18, 2002, 04:47 AM: Message edited by: scotty ]

[Gwamp]

I just figured that I should do this once. Once I get it finished, I don't want to have to worry about it too much and with the 44 under there I would worry about it. The 60 will give me piece of mind. Of course, if I really wanted bulletproof, I would build my rig around a set of Rockwells. But you can break anything if you wheel it hard enough. :D

[Lindel]

I dunno, if you break Rockwells on a truck as light as an FSJ, then you're doing stuff people probably shouldn't attempt!! :D

This would be in the "Darwin Awards" catagory!!

[Bob Barry]

If you set up your truck to run this axle, then all the engineering work for running a D60 will already be done.

I'd run it; unless you have access to a secret stash of front D60's... smile.gif

[will e]

am I missing something? Can I get one of these axles and make SOA a 'bolt in' operation?

[tuck]

Originally posted by will e:
am I missing something? Can I get one of these axles and make SOA a 'bolt in' operation?yes and no
the axle will bolt in, and be in SOA configuration, but the steering is another story. There are a few options for steering, but not really bolt in.

[will e]

Interesting... I will search the archives. I don't remember ever seeing anything about this.

[Bob Barry]

I'll give you the low-down in a couple months whether or not it's a bolt-in. I just got my DPA, and I'm deliberating about how to do the steering linkage.

[scotty]

steering and shock mounts. you will have to fab shock mounts.

gwamp,you wouldnt hold out on us with a secret stash of d60s,would you tongue.gif

the sniper guy from top truck challenge broke one of his axles at a rock crawl thing a couple months later,i remember reading in one of the mags. bork a front outer stub shaft! :eek: and the axles have gotta be half the weight of the sniper.

its too much of a PITA to put rockwells into a vehicle. if another set pops up locally,were gonna snag em and build a tube chassis rig around em :D it will be fun-well take it out and thrash on it for awhile,then sell it for big $$$ to spend on our jeeps :D

[Gwamp]

I wish I had a secret stash of front D-60's, :D But with the sheer amount of 4x4's in my area, I am pretty sure I can locate one fairly reasonable. I have hooked up with a couple of the local "horsetraders" and I am haveing them keep an eye out for me.

Rockwells are a pain because of the fabrication and weight issues, but the "coolness" factor is pretty high though! :D They would be too much work for me to try to undertake at the moment with my limited garage area and lack of funds. Rockwells take money to build right! smile.gif

[bigblack'74]

hey cant you just swap in the knuckles from a chevy or dodge for high steering conversion which is kinda standard for this setup?? or is more confusing than that??