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Amount of travel on front driveshaft

M

markread

NAXJA Forum User
Location
milwaukee, wi
I just picked up a used front driveshaft on ebay to use with a PORC SYE in the rear. I am concerned with the amount of travel in the slip joint.

Seller's Specifications:
1994 Front Driveshaft from a NP-231 transfer case with the 30-40LE (AW4) automatic transmission and a Dana 30 Front Axle. I see no reason it would not work on a 30-43-LE and it should fit 87-96 4.0L. This uses the 1310 U-Joints and is 32" in length compressed and roughly 33 1/4" extended.

That's only 1.25" of travel in the slip joint. Is that typical of the front shaft or is there something wrong with it?
 
I know they're the same length. I'm asking how much travel there should be with the slip joint. I would think it would be more than an inch and a half. The only specifications I can find anywhere is what the collpased length is, nothing on what the fully extended length is.
 
The amount needed is suprisingly small. When I was looking do get a shaft, I flexed to the max one way, measured, the flexed the opposite way and measured. The overall DS length changed by around 3/4" and I have pretty reasonable travel (6.5" longarm).
So the slip is probably adequate, but there is not a lot of room for length approximating. I would do the same test on your jeep, and see what your length change is, since we are all a little different.
 
Does anyone have a stock front driveshaft laying around that they could measure the travel or the extended length of it?
I just want to make sure this one isn't binding with only 1.25" of travel.
 
You don't need much slip-yoke travel on either driveshaft with an XJ. The front is fixed by the control arms, especially on a LA system where the DS and arms are about the same lengths. It just moves on it's arc like a pendulum. The rear is a centered pinion, so it essentially doesn't slip when the axle articulates. The biggest concern would be if you plan on jumping your Jeep or doing a lot of high-speed rough terrain type stuff, as it could potentially lengthen/compress enough to bottom out or entend beyond the end and fall apart. That seems very unlikely as well though.

I've never heard of someone having a problem using the AW4 front shaft in the rear of a similarly equipped XJ.
 
markread said:
Does anyone have a stock front driveshaft laying around that they could measure the travel or the extended length of it?
I just want to make sure this one isn't binding with only 1.25" of travel.
Click to expand...

I've got one in my basement. I'll try to measure it this weekend.
 
I took some measurements. Fully, compressed, the driveshaft appears to have about a .25" of space between the two sections. Fully, extended, there is about 3.25" of space between the two sections. There looks to be about 3" of travel. I had an overall fully extended measurement of about 34.5" from u-joint cap to u-joint cap.

One thing that I can say is that you may need to give it a good tug before it extends. I think the grease in the slip-joint. creates a vacuum.

'98 Automatic Front Driveshaft Fully Compressed


'98 Automatic Front Driveshaft Fully Extended
 
Markos said:
I took some measurements. Fully, compressed, the driveshaft appears to have about a .25" of space between the two sections. Fully, extended, there is about 3.25" of space between the two sections. There looks to be about 3" of travel. I had an overall fully extended measurement of about 34.5" from u-joint cap to u-joint cap.

One thing that I can say is that you may need to give it a good tug before it extends. I think the grease in the slip-joint. creates a vacuum.

'98 Automatic Front Driveshaft Fully Compressed


'98 Automatic Front Driveshaft Fully Extended
Click to expand...

that looks like what mine had,
I'm running a front ds in the rear at about 6" of lift, haven't had any problems with it yet!
 
Yeah, you don't need much movement. Do the trig. Just get the lenght of the DS, and assume that you're going to get 12" of travel out of the rear axle.


in other words, it will work.
 
Pythagorean theorum is close enough to show you how much movement you'll have on the driveshaft.
 
Many are not understanding what my question was. I fully realize that I won't need much movement. My question is how much play should I have in a stock front driveshaft? The one I bought is only traveling 1.25" no matter how hard I pull on it. Another member sent me a PM sayin he also was only getting that much travel out of his. Yet Marko demonstrated he is getting 3 inches out of his.

This makes me wonder if mine is binding or maybe there is different amounts of travel throughout the years?

Once installed there might not be much movement, but 3" of travel will allow a driveshaft to fit alot more different configurations. Because the larger range of length will be more "forgiving" to fit alot more lift/SYE combinations.
Plus I don't want to install a driveshaft if it's faulty and binding for some reason that I might not be aware of.
 
markread said:
Many are not understanding what my question was. I fully realize that I won't need much movement. My question is how much play should I have in a stock front driveshaft? The one I bought is only traveling 1.25" no matter how hard I pull on it. Another member sent me a PM sayin he also was only getting that much travel out of his. Yet Marko demonstrated he is getting 3 inches out of his.
Click to expand...

Hmm, all I can say is that pictures don't lie or forget. I also pulled this driveshaft out of a '98 XJ classic myself. From what I understand, all auto front shafts are pretty much the same. Perhaps it is binding.
 
Every std yoke ive ever seen is 3" travel!I run TW's long travel yokes on my 95.
 
Yea im the other member with the same issue. I just cant seem to get it past 1.25" of travel. Mine was removed from a 1990 jeep xj. I Wonder if it has to do with which dana 30 it had (high or low pinion). But i think 00-01 only had low pinion but i may be wrong.
 
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