Worth gearing my stock axles??

[Murdoc85]

I've been contemplating this for a while. I'm trying to decide if it is worth gearing my axles or should i up grade to 3/4 ton stuff. I have an '83 Chero on 35's w/ 44 front and 20 rear with 3.31's right now. I don't do a whole lot of wheeling, its mainly a driver during the week. If i do regear, what would be a good ratio to go to? I was thinkin 4.10's or 4.56's. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks

Justin

[andy d]

higher gears in 1 ton axles are gonna do wonders for the MPG

[Murdoc85]

That would definately be a plus How hard would it be to put 1 tons under it?

[mcjeep80]

Originally Posted by andy d

higher gears in 1 ton axles are gonna do wonders for the MPG

he was being a smart @$$
it depends on how cheep you can get axles. what is it going to cost to regear? $200- $250,each if you do it yourself. and if you dont wheel that is prolly all you need. but if you can find a donor 3/4 or 1 ton truck cheep there not hard to put in and way cheeper than from a junkyard
you have a later rig like me. so here are the options i came up with; (best case)78-79 ford they bolt right in with a high pinion front and lower gears++good luck finding one though,other ferds will work with some fab work, or you can do what i did, get a 3/4 ton chevy ff14 bolt rear with 4.10s and rob the 8 lug rotors, calipers and gear set from the d44front found in the same truck. you will love it. you can burn those 35s like crazy with the new gears and stop as fast as you like with those big @$$brakes. good luck

[fulsizjeep]

I would go for the 4.56 if I was going 35s. If you are not too heavy on the go pedal in tight spots, should be fine. There is always potential for a fuse to blow if you hit it too hard. Like ujoints, axle stubs, drive shaft or even motor mounts, but for the most part the D44 and M20 axles under stock FSJs are pretty hearty.

[deadironrat]

If you regear yourself you can actually do it for less then $200 per axle. I got my gears and install kit from BJs and it cost me about $160 to regear my dana 44 (including a tube of RTV to put the cover back on).

[Murdoc85]

Thanks everybody, I had a buddy whos got a buggy who was going to get the motor, trans, and x-fer case out of a 1 ton ford truck and wasn't gonna use the axles. He didn't say what year, but thats what got me thinking about the axle swap. I've read on here that with doing a 1 ton swap, you would have to move the gas tank and such. what i was wondering too is if i did this i guess i would i have to get new drive shafts made or i guess i could just use the ones out of the donor truck and get them cut down, right? I had looked on BJ's for gears and since i have heard that the d44 and M20 are pretty good axles, I was leaning towards just gearing them, that would certainly be the cheapest route for me

[Kali]

If you do regear them, I would lean towards 4.10s. I have been running 4.10s with 33s and the RPMs are a little higher than I like. That would be similar to 4.56s with 35s. I also do a lot of 65+ driving on the highway. If you arent going to go over 55 much then 4.56s would be a better choice. Someone on here once said "4.56s are like the swiss army knife of gears" .... makes me want to have 4.56s some day

[Chevelleguy]

4.10's w/35's is the same as the stock 3.31's w/28's.

[Murdoc85]

Hey thanks for the input ya'll I reckon i'm gonna go for the 4.10s in my stocks. I believe those would suite my needs more than 1 tons...for right now anyway haha I can only dream of the day when i can roll on built tons and 42s, then i can let the serious offroading begin!

[bushwood44]

Got to change the carriers also

[addicted]

Originally Posted by bushwood44

Got to change the carriers also

He would only need to change the carrier for the front axle, the rear 20 uses the same carrier for 3.07 and up gears.

[Murdoc85]

I can just buy the thick cut d44 gear can't I? I thought i've seen on Randy's and the other ring gear websites that they make a thick cut gear for a 3.73 and down carrier, i hope i read that right

[addicted]

Originally Posted by Murdoc85

I can just buy the thick cut d44 gear can't I? I thought i've seen on Randy's and the other ring gear websites that they make a thick cut gear for a 3.73 and down carrier, i hope i read that right

Or you can do that.

I always forget about the thick cut gears.