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Dana 44 Information

Muad'Dib

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Bend, Oregon
I just bought a dana 44 out of an 87 at the u-pull-it. It has 3.07 gears according to the tag on it (and it was a manual transmission).

I have been searching on here, and i cant seem too find too much information on what i should consider doing to this thing.

Besides of course changing the gear ratio to 3.55 (to match my dana 30), should i also replace the seals and bearings? What exactly do i need to change the ratio on it? Ive never done anything with axles before, so i may need a little direction.

I also have a question about paint prep... since i will have the axle out now, i would like to paint it. I already took it to a car wash and blasted it off really well, but how else should i prep this thing for paint? I was thinking of taking a wire wheel to it .. thoughts suggestions??

Thanks very much for your time.
 
If you don't know the condition of the seals etal. you should replace them (just my SOP). If you have the thing out and apart you just might wanna get it ALL done.

As far as painting, I'd just get the surface rust off (wire wheel, wire brush or sanding wheel on an angle grinder works better (but you have to be careful not to press too hard as you'll take metal with it). Then just a couple coats of primer, the "rusty metal" Rust Stop or rustoleum. Then paint with some decent quality paint (rattle can).

You have to remember that the bottom part of the Jeep is going to take the most abuse so even if you paint it to a nice shiny black, it'll look like poo after your first couple of trips out. I like gloss paint as it hoses off easier
 
If you don't know the condition of the seals etal. you should replace them (just my SOP). If you have the thing out and apart you just might wanna get it ALL done.
X2, better to do it now than have to pull it all apart again five thousand miles down the road. Get yourself a master install kit with the gears and it'll come with most of that stuff anyways.

As far as painting, I'd just get the surface rust off (wire wheel, wire brush or sanding wheel on an angle grinder works better (but you have to be careful not to press too hard as you'll take metal with it). Then just a couple coats of primer, the "rusty metal" Rust Stop or rustoleum. Then paint with some decent quality paint (rattle can).
Also X2, throw a twisted wire wheel on your angle grinder to get all the road gunk, old paint, and scale off. Rust converter primer, self etching, or something similar will work great, I hear good things about POR-15. I have heard that Hammerite paint is the most durable and great for axles but have no personal experience with it... yet. I've only got my axles stripped down so far.
 
You have a great opportunity here--you need to re-gear the D44, so why don't you consider the current/future tire size and what you want to do as far as wheeling to determine if you want 3:55s or another ratio?
 
Well thats were money comes into play. I know eventually im going to end up at 4.56.. however i need to do the lift first and then i can stuff the bigger tires under there. (at least a couple grand away!) Cant i just get what i need to change it to 3.55 for now on the cheap? Like from someone on here who has upgraded to taller gears? I can still do the bearings and seals at this time, but the gears i just want to do so i can get it under the jeep for now.
 
Used gears are going to be more challenging to set up properly from what I understand, and they may whine - I'd go straight to 4.56s. Of course, I'm being a little hypocritical when I say that, I'm currently working on going to 4.10s and I just went from 32s to 33s...
 
Well thats were money comes into play. I know eventually im going to end up at 4.56.. however i need to do the lift first and then i can stuff the bigger tires under there. (at least a couple grand away!) Cant i just get what i need to change it to 3.55 for now on the cheap? Like from someone on here who has upgraded to taller gears? I can still do the bearings and seals at this time, but the gears i just want to do so i can get it under the jeep for now.

Yes, you could just get some used gears in 3:55. While used gears can be harder to set up, if you don't mind the chance of a little whine for the short run go for it. As the D44 carrier break is 3:73/3:92 you can get by with just a ring and pinion.
 
Yukon Gears and Nitro Gears, plenty of others.
 
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So to change the gear ratio, i just need the ring and pinion right?


EDIT:

I found both of these on ebay:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/e...akeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Dana...ptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

Im assuming that the loaded carier is going to be a better deal as far as how much work will be involved swapping it all in, and for the chances of it whining..



Thoughts?

You still have to set up the ring and pinion, so buying the extra carrier gets you nothing but an extra carrier you don't need.
 
You're a full member on here, definitely ask for a quote from National Drivetrain. Their quoted price for 4.10s for my hp d30 beat everything else I could find - still haven't ordered as I hold out hope of finding an hp d30 with 4.10 gears in it already locally, but their quote was a very good price.
 
regearing an axle to 3.55, = the fail, especially an axle thats COMMONLY found in 3.55!

sell your 3.07 to someone who plans on re-gearing. everytime ive build a d44, the gears were the first thing to go.

AT LEAST regear it ahead of the tire curve... (i know you'd have to do the same to the front, but at least at the end, you'd have something better than a d44 w/ 3.55.
 
doesnt a loaded carrier only mean it comes w/ the side washers and spider gears? the install process is identical, your just installing NEW inside parts... (aussie would be a better choice)
 
No need to regear the D44 with 3.55's. Just keep your stock D35 if you're not running the bigger tires and store the D44 for when you do the lift, and regear it ONCE to 4.56's. As for the guy that's wanting to go to 4.10's with 33's, you'll be happier with 4.56's.
 
So to change the gear ratio, i just need the ring and pinion right?

Thoughts?

And the tools necessary press the bearings on as well as tools to measure black lash. And you need to knowledge to set up gears.

Here's another thought. Don't.

Take your time and build the axle with 4:56 gears and strong cover and maybe chromo axle shafts. Then don't install it into your rig. Don't install the Dana 44 until you have the money to do everything. Why do you need a stronger axle like a D44 running stock tires?

The cheapest way to build a rig is to do it only once.
 
sell... d35... uh?

If you were closer by I would give you 20 bucks for it and pull the carrier+ring gear out to make a porch lamp out of, but that's about it. I can't believe anyone would buy a d35 except maybe some retard on craigslist. If you do manage to sell it though, more power to you, removing money from suckers pockets is a great thing to do I guess.
 
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