Yet another axle strength question

[Rodeoflyer]

I get it brother.. carry on. Most people just want the D44's for whatever reason. They are pretty beefy and with a truss approach a Pro 44 other than the beefier brackets, balljoints, knuckles, pinion angles. increased ground clearance and improved caster, all the reasons for going to a pro44.

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[CptFloridaMan]

I get it brother.. carry on. Most people just want the D44's for whatever reason. They are pretty beefy and with a truss approach a Pro 44 other than the beefier brackets and improved caster.

A pro 44 would be a wet dream to have but that’s way more axle than I’d need imo. The idea of D44s is nice but for 35s I’m having a hard time justifying it.

 

[roaniecowpony]

A pro 44 would be a wet dream to have but that’s way more axle than I’d need imo. The idea of D44s is nice but for 35s I’m having a hard time justifying it.

35s are plenty big enough to break things. But maybe your driving and terrain isn't all that hard on the axles. Still, I wouldn't put any money in any axle smaller than the 44. In your boots, I'd either make the decision to live with the axles as is, or go to 44s, or move on to a Rubicon. You pretty much need cash on the barrel head to do mods. When going to another vehicle (Rubicon) you have the option of going with a loan. ...and as we all know, mods are a money pit.

 

[CptFloridaMan]

35s are plenty big enough to break things. But maybe your driving and terrain isn't all that hard on the axles. Still, I wouldn't put any money in any axle smaller than the 44. In your boots, I'd either make the decision to live with the axles as is, or go to 44s, or move on to a Rubicon. You pretty much need cash on the barrel head to do mods. When going to another vehicle (Rubicon) you have the option of going with a loan. ...and as we all know, mods are a money pit.

I was debating sending a check to pay off my jeep, but with how my brokerage account has been looking and interest rates I’ve decided to stay liquid for the time being. And trading it in to jump into a more expensive rig is sort of a slim maybe thing. I owe $26k on it still but at 3% it’s not bad.

That being said, I think another option might be just to regear the front for the time being with 35s and when it pops; splurge on a ud44 or pr44.

 

[roaniecowpony]

I was debating sending a check to pay off my jeep, but with how my brokerage account has been looking and interest rates I’ve decided to stay liquid for the time being. And trading it in to jump into a more expensive rig is sort of a slim maybe thing. I owe $26k on it still but at 3% it’s not bad.

That being said, I think another option might be just to regear the front for the time being with 35s and when it pops; splurge on a ud44 or pr44.

I don't understand how you could "just regear the front". Both axles have to be the same gear ratio.

 

[CptFloridaMan]

I don't understand how you could "just regear the front". Both axles have to be the same gear ratio.

Sorry, I meant as a whole. Regear and lock the rear but for the front; only do the gears and rock it like that.

 

[roaniecowpony]

Another consideration about those aftermarket 44s is that they delete the FAD. Depending on how you use your Jeep, that could be desirable or undesirable. I drive my jeep on the highways. I want to keep that capability (and marketability). So keeping the FAD is a priority. If you sell your Jeep without a FAD, your potential market is necessarily a smaller group.

Making it stronger is also a priority. I'm putting in chromoly axles (in my 44s) front and rear, and trussing both, after seeing a pile of 44s broken through the FAD casting.

 

[CptFloridaMan]

Another consideration about those aftermarket 44s is that they delete the FAD. Depending on how you use your Jeep, that could be desirable or undesirable. I drive my jeep on the highways. I want to keep that capability (and marketability). So keeping the FAD is a priority. If you sell your Jeep without a FAD, your potential market is necessarily a smaller group.

Making it stronger is also a priority. I'm putting in chromoly axles (in my 44s) front and rear, and trussing both, after seeing a pile of 44s broken through the FAD casting.

How the drivability without the FAD? I know the angles are slightly different from the JK so pinion angle is a concern too. I’ll be researching for options if I’m staying with 35s until I’m ready then.

 

[roaniecowpony]

How the drivability without the FAD? I know the angles are slightly different from the JK so pinion angle is a concern too. I’ll be researching for options if I’m staying with 35s until I’m ready then.

It's more of a convenience thing. Without a FAD, you would opt to put old school locking hubs on a street vehicle. That means getting in and out and locking/unlocking hubs (which can be sticky, require periodic maintenance, or freeze up in super cold weather).

 

[five9dak]

What's wrong with spinning the carrier and front driveshaft in 2wd if you eliminate the FAD? Millions of jeeps were configured like this from the factory.

This talk about highway usage, or resale - I don't buy it. What am I missing?

 

[grimmjeeper]

I don't understand how you could "just regear the front". Both axles have to be the same gear ratio.

I read that as "don't do anything to reinforce the front but regear it. When it lets go, replace it."

 

[Some Random Guy]

What's wrong with spinning the carrier and front driveshaft in 2wd if you eliminate the FAD? Millions of jeeps were configured like this from the factory.

This talk about highway usage, or resale - I don't buy it. What am I missing?

Nothing wrong. Some people have had vibration issues and have difficulty balancing the pinion angle to keep steering good and driveshaft vibration down. Improving one worsens the other. Seems luck of the draw.

 

[five9dak]

I imagine this is more of a concern with lift. Fighting driveline angles on wranglers is a tale as old as time.

 

[kah.mun.rah]

Buy once, cry once and get an aftermarket HD axle instead of adding lipstick to the pig of a Mopar axle.

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