Re-gearing needed or not ?

[shane h.]

Sorry for the dumb question, but why does it cost $2,500 to regear a diff? Obviously more involved than one would think.

Gears, bearings, and consumables for both axles are probably around $900. The balance is all about having the equipment and know-how to do the job - hopefully done right the first time. Not sure if that answers your question or not???

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[grimmjeeper]

Sorry for the dumb question, but why does it cost $2,500 to regear a diff? Obviously more involved than one would think.

Beyond the parts, which can get close to $1,000, it is a labor intensive process. It takes several hours for a pro to set up the gears on an axle. And there are two axles. A full day of shop labor isn't cheap.

 

[mixdup]

Sorry for the dumb question, but why does it cost $2,500 to regear a diff? Obviously more involved than one would think.

Because it's not like changing oil. It takes some fairly advanced knowledge to do correctly, and handle any snags that may come up, and it takes someone who pays attention to detail

 

[Richard_JL]

Gears, bearings, and consumables for both axles are probably around $900. The balance is all about having the equipment and know-how to do the job - hopefully done right the first time. Not sure if that answers your question or not???

Beyond the parts, which can get close to $1,000, it is a labor intensive process. It takes several hours for a pro to set up the gears on an axle. And there are two axles. A full day of shop labor isn't cheap.

Because it's not like changing oil. It takes some fairly advanced knowledge to do correctly, and handle any snags that may come up, and it takes someone who pays attention to detail

Thanks. I'm understating about $500 per diff, and $150/hr times 8-10 hours, grand total $2300-2500. It makes sense. Seems you have to pick a good shop or you can waste a lot of $$.

 

[AVGeek99]

Thanks. I'm understating about $500 per diff, and $150/hr times 8-10 hours, grand total $2300-2500. It makes sense. Seems you have to pick a good shop or you can waste a lot of $$.

Guessing location has a lot to do with it as well. I had both of my regears done in the Minneapolis area. Not near as many offroaders in MN, so not near as many shops as in other areas of the country. If I end up deciding on a regear I'll need to find a good shop in CO Springs, guessing more options than in Minneapolis, even though it is much smaller.

 

[jadmt]

https://metalcloak.com/gear-ratio-calculator

i have 4.10’s 24 jlur 3.6 auto. Mickey Thompson 37’s I figured I would need to re-gear but 4000 miles on the tires including a trip to Moab have changed my mind. I run two sets of tires my other set is 255/85-17 ie 35x10 and those are on oem wheels so not only am I going from a smaller tire I am adding 27-30 lbs per corner when putting on the 37's and you thing that would be a dramatic difference but it has not been..my tranny temps and engine temps have not changed when switching back and forth and my diff temps feel the same via the calibrated hand measurement for heat ..that all said if I had a choice I would always go deeper gearing.

 

[grimmjeeper]

Guessing location has a lot to do with it as well. I had both of my regears done in the Minneapolis area. Not near as many offroaders in MN, so not near as many shops as in other areas of the country. If I end up deciding on a regear I'll need to find a good shop in CO Springs, guessing more options than in Minneapolis, even though it is much smaller.

Talk to @chevymitchell. He's down in Pueblo and does good work.

 

[chevymitchell]

Talk to @chevymitchell. He's down in Pueblo and does good work.

Thanks man.

Yeah, down here in Pueblo West. Always down to do some axle work. @AVGeek99

 

[KIZEMAN]

Guessing location has a lot to do with it as well. I had both of my regears done in the Minneapolis area. Not near as many offroaders in MN, so not near as many shops as in other areas of the country. If I end up deciding on a regear I'll need to find a good shop in CO Springs, guessing more options than in Minneapolis, even though it is much smaller.

I just did a 5.13 regear at Zeus here in Minneapolis. Total cost was $3,550 for Revolution gears and the full rebuild kit.

 

[sherpaJL]

I bought this 2023 jl beach edition with the reckon package brand new …

'22 JLUR, 3.6 eTorque, 8-Spd Auto 850RE, Kanati Mud Hog 37s (36.8")
Running 5.13:1. Perfect setup for my rig.

 

[kah.mun.rah]

Depends on where you plan to drive it. If you have the automatic transmission and stay primarily on flat ground at sea level, you will be fine. If you live in an area where you are climbing mountain passes all day, a re-gear would help.

 

[Ol’ Timey Manual SWB Guy]

It’s not just about the ratio, though. I believe the numerically higher ratios like 4.56, 4.88, 6, 7, 8…. will decrease the expected mean time between failure (MTBF) of the pointy threaded pinion mating with the threaded ring. That’s why D30 pumpkins tend to come from the Dana factory with 3.73 or less, while the numerically higher ratios (4.10, 4.56, 4.88, 5.13, etc. tend to come in the bigger D44 and D60 pumpkins. The larger housing exists to hold a larger ring (i.e., 220) and a beefier pinion to mate with it.

Point is, you may be able to go up to the next number on your particular Jeep (e.g. 3.45 to 3.73). But the higher you go numerically, the more you may encounter a pinion failure someday.

This risk is one reason people with a Sport look for Rubicon takeoff axles, and why people with a Rubicon upgrade to D60s or whatever. You’re not only changing the number, but you’re often going to the next beefier pinion.

It’s a little bit science, a little bit art.

 

[kah.mun.rah]

It’s not just about the ratio, though. I believe the numerically higher ratios like 4.56, 4.88, 6, 7, 8…. will decrease the expected mean time between failure (MTBF) of the pointy threaded pinion mating with the threaded ring. That’s why D30 pumpkins tend to come from the Dana factory with 3.73 or less, while the numerically higher ratios (4.10, 4.56, 4.88, 5.13, etc. tend to come in the bigger D44 and D60 pumpkins. The larger housing exists to hold a larger ring (i.e., 220) and a beefier pinion to mate with it.

Point is, you may be able to go up to the next number on your particular Jeep (e.g. 3.45 to 3.73). But the higher you go numerically, the more you may encounter a pinion failure someday.

This risk is one reason people with a Sport look for Rubicon takeoff axles, and why people with a Rubicon upgrade to D60s or whatever. You’re not only changing the number, but you’re often going to the next beefier pinion.

It’s a little bit science, a little bit art.

The teeth do get smaller the numerically higher you go but the argument is that even though smaller, there are more teeth meshed together making the combination stronger. Personally I am on the side of keeping the teeth as thick as possible so I kept 4.88 on my JL instead of going to 5.13. Big tooth or small tooth, the more important thing is to not drive backwards with force on the teeth (pulling someone out while in reverse) since the back side is the weak side of the tooth.

 

[grimmjeeper]

The teeth do get smaller the numerically higher you go but the argument is that even though smaller, there are more teeth meshed together making the combination stronger. Personally I am on the side of keeping the teeth as thick as possible so I kept 4.88 on my JL instead of going to 5.13. Big tooth or small tooth, the more important thing is to not drive backwards with force on the teeth (pulling someone out while in reverse) since the back side is the weak side of the tooth.

The teeth don't get smaller

The pinion head gets smaller with fewer teeth. The teeth stay more or less the same size.

 

[kah.mun.rah]

The teeth don't get smaller

The pinion head gets smaller with fewer teeth. The teeth stay more or less the same size.

I was going by this:

If the pinion has the same number of teeth between ratios and the ring gear gets more teeth, the smaller pinion head means smaller teeth, which matches the more smaller teeth on the ring gear. And with more smaller teeth you get more teeth in contact which balances out the strengh loss in the teeth.

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