Dana 44 strength...

[Erik]

I am in the process of piecing together a '73 J-10 and will be using Dana 44's front and rear.

What I need to know is, how strong is this axle? I will not be doing any extreme off roading, but will be in the dirt from time to time. I cannot afford to use 60's or I would, so I need to know if the 44 will fit the bill so to speak.

I tried to use the search function to see if this has been discussed beofre, but it isn't working.

Thanks in advance.

Erik

[jeepbob]

The d44's are plenty strong for all but the heavyest off roading. For mild stuff using 33's or less they will be fine.

[ibnfe]

They are a fairly stout axle. Don't know of anyone with problems with D44 rears. 44 fronts have a tendency to snap axle shafts when you combine them with big tires (35's or larger) and high HP engines. Other than that, They should be fine unless you intend to do lots of serious rock-crawling type stuff.

[scotty]

i just traded my rear amc 20(which is pretty comparable in strength) for a d44. i have been wheeling with a front 44 and rear amc 20 for bout 2 years with 38 inch tires.

my 1/2 ton drivetrain has held up very well for me,but i run a 258,and am a very deliberate driver-i like to find the right line,and never will just put my foot on the floor and let it bounce.

alot of factors will determine how long the 44 will last.how many horsies are under the hood,what tire size,how you will use it,and how far you will depress the skinny pedal in relation to all other factors.

a word on the d60 vs the 44: the most common version of the d60 has the same size axleshaft as a 44: 1.31",30 spline,so if your afraid of breaking axles,then use a corp 14 bolt,or make sure that you find a 35 spline,1.5" d60.

the big advantage of a d60 is the big ring and pinion gears. if yore gonna run 4.10 or lower gears,a d60 might be a good idea,since its pinion,diff,and ring gear are massive compared to the 44. of course you will pay for it with ground clearance.

my friend with an xj only has about 8.5 inches of ground clearance under his clearanced d60 with 33s. thats not a whole lot.

[fsj401]

well, if you saw my flight video, you can see that the 44's seem to hold up pretty well...Ive been thinking about doing a dana 60 swap at some point, but i think it will be kinda fun to see what it takes to break one.

Jeff

[River Beast]

No problems with snappin' one of my 44's yet...crimped the tubes a little by the perches, but that's it... and I have done some CRAZY stuff. 39.5's running lockers and 4.89's... I wish I would have gone 60's but so far I don't have any need for them....yet.... ;)

[Erik]

Thank you all very much. You've just made my year. As soon as I get it a little more pieced together I will shoot a few pics of it.

Basically the truck is a cross between an M-715 and J-10. It will be running a 351W backed with a T-18 and an NP-205. The engine is stock, so no worries about massive horsepower there. I haven't decided on tires yet, although I have it narrowed down to either swampers or boggers. Could you give me the pros and cons of each, as well as what size would be appropriate?

I would like to have this thing running in the next month or so.

Thanks again for the help.

[scotty]

what is your intended use? you will be lucky to get 7000 street miles outof a bogger if you rotate them frequently,and much,much less if you dont. the regular tsl will be alittle better. if you have the $$$,the bogger is the ultimate off road tire,the regular swampers work well,too,with mabye just alittle less onroad noise and just alittle better street manners.

im am poor,so thats why i run gumbo mudders and ground hawgs. the 'hogs are a good directional tire,like the bogger,and ive been real happy with them off road. they both stick to the rims like glue,even at 5 psi. alot of people ive run into with boggers have to run alittle higher pressures to keep the boggers on the rims,but the rim has alot to do with that,as well,so dont let that statement scare you away from a bogger. i keep finding these tires for cheap,so ive got like 3 complete sets,plus a cuople of bald spares. at a car show swap meet a few months ago i picked up 4 38x15.5 'hawgs on 10 inch wide 6 lug wheels for $50.

size? well,again that depends. a bigger tire is alot hardr to balance and keep that way if its gonna see alot of street use. i think 35 is the biggest,most practical size for a street driven rig. alot of folks will run 33s and 35s on their back and forth to work/weekend fun rigs. offroad,bigger is better,up to a point. eventually you willget to the point that the lift required for a certain size makes your center of gravity too high,and the sheer size/weight of the tire will start to break parts unless drivetrain is beefed up. my tires have been getting larger and larger,and even tho i have a set of 40x17.5 gumbos,i have drawn the line at 38s. i think any bigger driveline reliability will be come more of a factor. for me,44s and 38s are a great combo. my rear diff is offset and clearnaced.i have 11.5 inches under the diff,and hat,combined with the offset,lets me go thru some real deep ruts. :D

further ques? smile.gif