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dana 30 front end

1162 Views 11 Replies 3 Participants Last post by **DONOTDELETE**, Apr 28, 2000

Discussion Starter · Apr 26, 2000

i have been searching for new axles under my cj-7, i just finished putting in a 360 and am begging to break my 20 axles. i have done some research and am consedering a ford 9" rear..28spline, 61" long, i was also looking into a dana 44 front out of a scout. but my problems comes when a friend offered to sell me a 30 front end out of a 96 or so wrangler w/4.56's and a ARB w/compressor for just under 500$ can i put that axle under my jeep, and match the width of the ford 9" with tons of back spacing. i have heard it is a hard and takes a lot of fab to get the dana 44 front end in. what should i do?

81 cj-7,360,SOA,35's,locked rear,fullcage

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· #2 · Apr 26, 2000

sell the dana 30 for parts, then buy a dana44 from a wagoneer

OzarkJeep
77 CJ5, in a bunch of sanded and primered pieces

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Discussion Starter · #3 · Apr 26, 2000

i like the idea of selling it for parts, but i dont know if my friend would like me doing that. this may be a stupid question, but whats wrong with the dana 30 front? i have a cj 30 front and i have only spun a hub. oh and broke a axle u joint, but that was because of poor winching techniques.

81 cj-7,360,SOA,35's,locked rear,fullcage

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Discussion Starter · #4 · Apr 26, 2000

biggest problem is that the pumpkin on the 30 is on the driver side and your cj is on the passenger side. No matter how good the deal is it will take quite a bit to make it work, not worth it for a 30. I also agree with the above post, use a wagonner axle, the scout has no caster built in and it was a weak axle with the axle tubes thinner than most other 44s so most everyone is already bent.

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Discussion Starter · #5 · Apr 26, 2000

how wide is the wagonneer 44?

81 cj-7,360,SOA,35's,locked rear,fullcage

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251

· #6 · Apr 26, 2000

61-62 inches

from a wagoneer, not a Jtruck or a Cherokee with fender flares

OzarkJeep
77 CJ5, in a bunch of sanded and primered pieces

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Discussion Starter · #7 · Apr 26, 2000

thanks for your guys help. i never did consider which side the diff is on, that makes my decision easy. wagoneer 44's it is. one last question, how stupid am i to throw a ford 9" into the rear? i want a strong axle, but i believe that the dana 60 hangs too low. how much clearance will i lose with the 9, why havent i heard of people throwing a 9" in the rear of their cj's...it seems like a good idea to me.

81 cj-7,360,SOA,35's,locked rear,fullcage

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251

· #8 · Apr 26, 2000

I personally passed over one with disk brakes because the pinion enters the diff case so low...

just find a dana 44, unless your gonzo motor and tires youll be alright..

OzarkJeep
77 CJ5, in a bunch of sanded and primered pieces

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Discussion Starter · #9 · Apr 26, 2000

well, the driveshaft entering the pinion to low is a problem, especially since i have a spring over..that would make for a pretty bad d/s angle..i am assuming wagoneers also had a dana 44 rear axle. i guess what makes all my decisions final is the cost, because i am only a poor college student

81 cj-7,360,SOA,35's,locked rear,fullcage

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338

· #10 · Apr 26, 2000

The Ford 9" has very strong pinion and axle shafts,beefy axle tubes and strong R&P, but it does drop the rear drive shaft to low unless its major modified like Curry does with the pinion on top. Also the 9" you were looking at with 28 spline is considered the weaker axle as compared to most which are manufatured as 31 spline. Another axle that is often overlooked is the Ford 8.8 from an Explorer it is 60 1/2", has the same axle,pinion and tube diameters as the 9" only a slightly smaller ring gear diameter(thickness of the ring gear is almost identical), it has a super strong pinion yoke set up, and on 95s and newer has Disc Brakes. Its a very easy swap on a YJ, I wouldnt think it would be much different on a CJ. I lost 1" of clearance as compared to the Dana 35. check out the attachment of the view of the Yoke, the pinion angle is set high because I broke a leaf Fri night, the axle wrapped so far that the yokes bound up and disinigrated a new spicer U joint, But no damage to the yoke. I would say average cost for a set up with discs is just over $500, They typically have 3.73 gears and a Trac Lock.

Jeff
89 Wrangler
If at first you dont succeed, your replacement will try and try again.

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JEEPN

· #11 · Apr 26, 2000

In reply to:

...the scout has no caster built in and it was a weak axle with the axle tubes thinner than most other 44s so most everyone is already bent.

It's true, no caster. But "thinner than most" is a relative term, and I disagree with the "most everyone is already bent" statement. I have over 235,000 miles on my Scout II axle (parents bought the Scout II new in '78), no bending, which included some pretty hard wheeling (I ran Scouts before jeeps) with a much heavier vehicle. I have also never seen a bent Scout II axle, front or rear. If you're looking at numbers, the IHC 345 (stock) and 392 (common swap) put out more torque than the 360, parts are just harder to find for them. They're good axles, if you're going to discount one, do it for the no caster, not the "weaker" statement. BTW, unless you're jumping the jeep or doing some funky wheeling, the Scout axle will hold up fine. Look at how many fairly extreme rigs in the magazines have swapped in Scout II axles.

JEEPN
'81 CJ-8 Scrambled!
GM151/SM465/NP205 twinstick/7"Lift/33"TSL's/IHC D44's 4.10's Lock'd

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Discussion Starter · #12 · Apr 28, 2000

Didnt mean to bust on the scout axle, but i had several looked at before using a wagoneer axle and all were bent. The guy building my axle also said that about 75% of the ones brought to him are bent. Just what I have seen.

If you are thinking of using an 8.8 axle, it is not a bad idea, but you will need new axle shafts made because the 8.8 out of Explorers and Mountaneers will have a 5 on 4.5" bolt pattern, same as the YJ but not the CJ. You could use one out of a full size Bronco or 80s and later F150s. It would be a little wider, but will have the right bolt pattern.

Some wagonneers had 44s in the rear and some had AMC 20s. Some were also offset in the rear. The Model 20s used in the wag was a stronger and better one than that used in the CJs, it had one piece shafts and a stronger housing than the CJ ones, however most will be 6 lug. If you are using the mathching front then you could just get new wheels. The Model 20 out of a wag is not a bad axle and I would say on par with a 44 for strength because of the one piece shafts, better housing and larger ring and pinion. Good Luck.

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dana 30 front end

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