[begvis]

Been a YJ/TJ owner for 10 years finally ready for some serious mods...

Couple of questions though.. 97 Sahara, getting ready for the REBB kit probably not gonna MML or mess with TC unless there is vibes but from what I read I shouldnt get any.

Leaning towards upgrading my D35 (3.07) trac loc to a D44 with 3.73, S35 kit doesnt seem like a bargain for what you can get a new D44 with gears for... Now for a possibly dumb question. Am I supposed to change the axle ratio in front also. I will leave it (D30) alone if possible, I intend on running no bigger than 33's most likely 32 unless I like the ride from the REBB and put on a 1" BL to go with it.

5 speed AX-15 stock if it matters

B

[slowsi]

The s35 may come to around same price as d44 but you do not get a locker like you do with the S35. As for gears you do not need to change both at same time but you will if you put it in 4x4, so bascally yes you do need to gear both axles if you plan on wheeling at all.

[MCanavan]

Where can you get a D44 for the same price as a S35? Are you talking just the housing?

[mike_dippert]

unless i'm gravely mistaken, currie makes D44 axle assemblies made to your specs, check their website.

[begvis]

I dunno about the same price might be a few hundred off, but since I need to regear, add the S35 30 pinion, and add a locker a new D44 with 3.73 gears complete, minus axle shafts and drums for around 700, sounds kinda close. Plus the overlying tone of this board is spend the extra few bucks and do it right...

B

[mike_dippert]

spend more once, save more, i have a 30/35 set up, when i break an axle, i'll be calling currie, but not before then, b/c i'm only going to have 32 or 33's so my axles should be able to hand most of my wheeling. my jeep is my DD too so i wont be kicking its *** anytime soon

[nhlbill]

Originally Posted by begvis

Been a YJ/TJ owner for 10 years finally ready for some serious mods...

Couple of questions though.. 97 Sahara, getting ready for the REBB kit probably not gonna MML or mess with TC unless there is vibes but from what I read I shouldnt get any.

Leaning towards upgrading my D35 (3.07) trac loc to a D44 with 3.73, S35 kit doesnt seem like a bargain for what you can get a new D44 with gears for... Now for a possibly dumb question. Am I supposed to change the axle ratio in front also. I will leave it (D30) alone if possible, I intend on running no bigger than 33's most likely 32 unless I like the ride from the REBB and put on a 1" BL to go with it.

5 speed AX-15 stock if it matters

B

There is another recent post about complete axle assemblies where a member bought a complete Ford 8.8 set up with TJ brackets and a tracklock and gearing of his choice for $1500.00 from ok4wd. That's a heck of a price for a complete axle assembly! Especially for an 8.8 which is stronger than a standard D44.
Just something to think about.

Also you could go to the junkyard and find a complete TJ D44 for $100.00 at a "pull and save" (they are out there, but sometimes hard to find) and then put your own locker and Alloy chromo shafts in it for under $1500.00 including set up (which should run you about $400.00 even in exspensive markets).

Then you would have a super strong D44! More work that way, but you could have everything done before you swap, and then just take a 1/2 of a day and swap in your new axle (which will bolt right up). I don't know if the driveshaft needs to be changed on a D35 to D44 swap though, that might be something to look into also.

Bill

[method84]

Originally Posted by nhlbill

There is another recent post about complete axle assemblies where a member bought a complete Ford 8.8 set up with TJ brackets and a tracklock and gearing of his choice for $1500.00 from ok4wd. That's a heck of a price for a complete axle assembly! Especially for an 8.8 which is stronger than a standard D44.
Just something to think about.

Also you could go to the junkyard and find a complete TJ D44 for $100.00 at a "pull and save" (they are out there, but sometimes hard to find) and then put your own locker and Alloy chromo shafts in it for under $1500.00 including set up (which should run you about $400.00 even in exspensive markets).

Then you would have a super strong D44! More work that way, but you could have everything done before you swap, and then just take a 1/2 of a day and swap in your new axle (which will bolt right up). I don't know if the driveshaft needs to be changed on a D35 to D44 swap though, that might be something to look into also.

Bill

I bought an 8.8 from OK4WD.com and recived it this week. Its a brand new unit and its pretty darn beefy. It eats my dana 35 for lunch and breakfast I havent installed it yet but I plan on doing the major overhaul in less than month including RE superflex lift, currie HD steering and some 35's. JKS body lift goes on this weekend as well as the M.O.R.E. MML.

OK4WD did a decent job on the axle. You deffinetly cant beat the price thats for dang sure. They didnt do the best paint job in the world, kinda looks like they just sloped it on and shipped it but all the welds look clean and I even had them stitch weld the tubes to the housing for and extra 30 bucks to prevent the tubes from spinning which is could be a problem with the 8.8 since the plug welds dont seem to hold up to the stress us jeepers put on them. Also the both brake backing plates were bent up pretty bad. Besides that Im happier then a pig in poo. I was going to go with the 44 but could beat the price of the 8.8 with the proper gear ratio and trac-lok.

The thing to remember though is that the 8.8's from OK4WD are brand new from Ford. They have a connection with Ford to getting these surplus axles. OK doesnt fo any internal work to them at all they just set it up for a TJ. Any extra gearing work will come out of your pocket and they will charge you labor. The factory gear choices are 3.73 or 4.11. So if your looking for deeper gearing then you may want to consider something like a dana 44 from PORC. They build 44's with the gear ratio of your choice, and a locker for 1600-1700. Keep in mind that if you want the PORC dana 44 you will have to swap over your dana 35 drum brakes to the new dana 44. If you want the disc brakes they charge an extra 500. For me the OK4WD 8.8 was a no brainer it has the proper gear ratio for me, disc brakes, and its beefier than the 35 or 44.

OK4WD 8.8


Heres a few pics of my 8.8

[nhlbill]

Ahhh....yours is the one I was thinking about
Thanks for clearing up a couple of things, but thats still a heck of a price especially for a new axle!
Did you get it in yet?
Bill

[method84]

Originally Posted by nhlbill

Ahhh....yours is the one I was thinking about
Thanks for clearing up a couple of things, but thats still a heck of a price especially for a new axle!
Did you get it in yet?
Bill

Nope im holding off till I get my week vacation off of work in a month. its my daily driver so I dont want to be stressed out about getting it to work on a monday. It will give me time to unwind and be with my jeep for a week. Besides it too danm cold out up here to be doing big projects. I wish I had a garage