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Dana 30 Strength

bcjeeper

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Vancouver
I have heard some people say that the dana 30 CAD axle tube is stronger than a hp d30. Is this true? I'm not talking about the 2 piece axle vs. the single piece axle as i should be able to just swap the one piece axle from the hp30 to the CAD30. I just want to know if the CAD axle housing is stronger than the HP30 housing.

I ask becasue i bought a parts XJ with a CAD d30 and an 8.8 with 4.10's. My current Xj has d30/d35 with 3.55 gears.

I am trying to decide which way to do the swap. Convert the CAD axle to a 1 piece passenger side axle and putting that into my XJ, which should be easier than taking the R&P out of the CAD and swapping it into the hp30. The other option is pull the 4.10 R&P and swap it into my jeep but that seems to be alot more work.

Anyone have any info or experience with this?
 
I don't know about the strength, but swapping the R&P is going to be a lot more than just a direct swap. Axles are like snowflakes, so you'd have to completely re-do the front gears to put them in your case.
 
I would not want that CAD axle in my Jeep. That means your passenger side axle tube is 3 separate pieces, so no way its stronger than one single tube.
 
Just swap the axles as they are and if you break the cad side shaft then you can swap shafts. I ran cad till it bent at the cad . I now run std housing with a truss .
by the way I have a outer shaft for the cad axle with the large u-join if you stay with the cad and want a spare sell cheap.
 
Run the disco housing with non-disco shafts. I don't know if it is or isn't a stronger housing but it's what I run. Disco housing, alloy axle shafts, single upper control arm on the passenger side.
 
If you decide to go with the CAD housing and a 1-piece shaft, replace the CAD actuator with a cover plate made out of 1/4' or 3/8" plate. it'll stiffen up the CAD side the same way a heavy duty dif. cover does.
 
I've heard the older axles had slightly stronger tubes, but it's more difficult to find trusses.
 
People argue bback and forth about the strength differences. Yes, the cad housing has a better uca mount but the tubes go into the disco housing less then the center section and have less plug welds. I've seen a few people who have ripped the tubes right out of the disco section. If you already have the cad housing, just run it the. Weld the tubes to the housings and call it good enough, add a truss for extra piece of mind.
 
I run a disco as a disco and I have bent a Standard axle 1 piece and I have bent 2 CAD or disco housings and I think they hold up better. But mine disco's have 2 spot welds just like the center section so I dont know Foxwar71 is going on about and I have never broke any disco axle where I broke the 1 piece axle at the ears in Walker Valley wa running 265/75/16
 
I doubt the ears are any different between the two. I could be wrong, but I'm thinking the ears would be the same.
 
the amount of time youre putting into swapping out this into that 30 for this 30 piece and part tube plug weld whatever is dumb.

but a TNT truss and burn it on whatever axle you plan on running.
 
CAD is housing is no better. Yes the pass. side Upper Ca mount is stronger but
the assembly as a whole is weaker.
Go for a late model housing and a truss. The tubes, C's etc are all the same.
 
But mine disco's have 2 spot welds just like the center section so I dont know Foxwar71 is going on about

I dont know what you're talking about but Ive never seen a center section with less the 3 spot welds on it. All the 30's I got laying around here have 3, and the 60 & 14b in my black jeep have at least 4. The lack of spot welds isnt the killer, its the fact that the tube only presses into the disco section like 1.5" compared to the like 3" into the center section.


Here's some quailty disco 30 damage:

http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1030529
 
I dont know what you're talking about but Ive never seen a center section with less the 3 spot welds on it. All the 30's I got laying around here have 3, and the 60 & 14b in my black jeep have at least 4. The lack of spot welds isnt the killer, its the fact that the tube only presses into the disco section like 1.5" compared to the like 3" into the center section.


Here's some quailty disco 30 damage:

http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1030529

Doing this:

24520_10150168784755576_663205575_11868456_829354_n.jpg


Will break a 30, CAD or not...

Especially considering:

yea he hit a wash out that was waaay deeper thn expected. thankfully hes caged with five points. that housing has taken some serious abuse, verything was alrady bending before the trip...

Robert
 
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