is a stock d30 with 4.56's strong enough for 35's?

[steveVA]

i am going to order a DTS d60 with discs and electrac locker with 4.56s for $3209,, how long will the d30 last with 35s in the front?? open diff for now,,, is the d60 overkill?? opinions please...
thanks

[ChuckD]

There's a number of guys on this side of the country that still run D30's with 35's. I don't see a problem. Does it have the bigger U-joints?

Also if your running 60's, why not go with a deeper gear, like 4.88 or 5.12?

[steveVA]

I am getting a 60 for the rear,, and not planning on any upgrade for the d30 right now, except for the gears i won't go any bigger than 35's so i figured 4.56s would be good,, plus I have a 4:1 t-case so offroad will be fine,, I am pretty easy on stuff, so I figured a unlocked d30 with 4.56's would hold up okay,, I just wanted to be sure... no I have the stock u-joints :-(

[LawlessXJ]

My nephew and his dad both run 35's w/4.56's and detroits in their dana 30's (and have for year's) lot's of hard wheeling with virtualy no problems. I'm amazed.

[Neil]

About to beat the snot out of mine this weekend. I'll let you know. :)

[ChuckD]

Originally posted by Neil
About to beat the snot out of mine this weekend. I'll let you know. :)

Where are you going this weekend?

http://geoimages.berkeley.edu/GeoImages/BainCalif/CAL400/muffler.jpg

Looks pretty tough to me, :D

[EricsXJ]

With the D30 and 35's what is the most common failure - u-joint, shaft breakage, or failure due to the axle tube bending?

You can always get stronger alloy shafts and u-joints...

[CRASH]

Due to housing flex, lockers tend to come apart under harsh conditions.

An aquaintance of mine twisted the splines on two sets of Warn shaft/CTM combos on an RS D30 before having any other failures. This was 4.56's and an ARB, in front of a 4.3 Atlas.

CRASH

[steveVA]

so i should be okay with an open diff in the front with the 35's until i can get a 44?? I was just going to regear the 30 when i put in the new rear,, or i could splurge and order a new 44 too,, i really didnt want to shell out for all that stuff right away, plus i need bumpers and a winch,, i need to learn how to weld so i don't have to buy everything

[Pete M]

Dana 60s? My personal opinion is that the 60 is WAY overkill for measly 35" tires (now if you were shooting for 39.5s, I could see it). Do you have a V8? If I had money to spend, I'd go with Currie high-pinion 9 inchers. Can be made as strong as a stock 60, but HALF the weight! To show you where I'm coming from, I went with stock 78 Ford axles (44 front and 9" rear) on my truck 'cause the truck will never see more than 35" tires. Well that reason, and I got both axles for cheap (they even came with a free Bronco which I parted out and actually made money from the deal :D ) When I get more cash, I'm going to upgrade what I've got to a high pinion 3rd member for the rear and some alloy shafts and CTM joints for the front. That (and a gear change to 4.88s) will pave the way for the 35 inch tires. (In the mean time, I'm sticking with 33s because I've got 4.10 gears.)
Overkill can be a good thing sometimes, but I had a hard enough time moving 250 lb axles around the garage. I can only imagine if they weighed 500! That's a lot of unsprung weight! :eek:
Oh, and if you upgrade the dana 30 to the stronger shafts of the later models and take it easy on the gas, it can survive a while on 35s. Just be sure to bring along extra shafts, just in case.
Jeep on!
--Pete

[woody]

I think they would hold up if you are tender.

I know a guy who ran a factory RR 30 (no exotic alloy joints or shafts) with a real detroit locker (not EZ in open case) and 4.56:1 with 36" TSLs...FOR YEARS...over Tellico's toughest trails. He isn't a nut, but he's not afraid of the gas pedal either. His only started giving him problems recently, and it was a ring-gear failure that set his mini-disaster in motion.

I am installing an 88 non-disco Lockright/4.56:1 D30 tomorrow that has seen some of the rough westcoast trails, as well as Tellico etc on 33"
I may be on 33" for awhile longer or stepping up to 35 or 36" (depends how bad $ mommies Jeep is to fix) I put in new axle UJs today into fairly fresh 5-297x shafts...I also tote spare shafts, and I don't have many worries about this axle as long as I don't get too brave with the happy pedal.

[woody]

Actually the HP 9"s on both ends as Pete sez are about perfect mix and plenty strong for a way-built XJ. 35 spline shafts and a spool MMMM See that one in JP with the Sunray mods :viking:

Nothing wrong with a 60 mind ya, just kinda big & heavy. One could prune it and lose the drums to shave #s...

[steveVA]

im not set on the 60 if the 9 will work,, i was going to get it with discs,, is the price about the same??

[SeanP]

spend your hard earned money on the front. You can get the housing from 9+ (currie) for under $300. Weld on truss from Summit for $60. Disk caliper brackets (weld-on) from www.a-amfg.com for $25. Calipers from 79-84 Caddy El Dorado for around $100 loaded. Built 35 spline third member with detroit and gears will set you back around $1100. So for half of the dyna-crack, you will have just as stout and lighter and better clearance. If you really want the bling-bling, do what I did and get a Chevy 14Bolt rear end and cut the ends off and have them welded to the 9" for a full float.

SeanP

[SeanP]

and if you have any weight to your right foot at all, you will live on borrowed time with 35s on a D30. Maybe it's just me

SeanP

[Pete M]

www.currieenterprises.com should answer all your questions. They offer Dana 60s and 44s too, so you can see all sorts of options for your rig. Less costly choices for a strong rear axle include:
-an XJ/MJ dana44, maybe with some upgrades;
-an 8.8 axle from behind a '95-later V8 Ford Explorer (Dana-44 strength or better, disk brakes, 5 on 4.5 bolt pattern, and XJ width);
-an early Bronco 9" (XJ width, 5 on 5.5 bolt pattern to match possible front axle upgrades) they're 28 spline though and should probably be upgraded internally to 31 splines and the bigger bearings. If Currie doesn't carry the stuff, I know broncograveyard.com does (sans high pinion);
-or a fullsize Bronco/F-150 9" (dirt cheap, fullsize width, 5on5.5 pattern, 31 splines, big bearings, can get almost any of the Currie upgrades for it, check out my project pic's addy in my signature for shots of a fullsize Ford axle under a Comanche with the stock Bronco wheels with 3 3/4 inch backspacing and 31x10.5 tires, I think a Comanche is like 3/4 inch wider on each side in the rear than an XJ).
car-part.com should be able to track down a junkyard axle for you. At least it'll show you what prices they go for.
I don't know the exact specs you were looking at getting on the D-60, so the above is just some random food for thought. 'Tis better to research now than later. :cool:
Jeep on!
--Pete

[basalt51]

What about the new superior axle/ARB30 Spline kit? Does that do anything to strengthen the housing or resist the flex?

I'm trying to figure out how many lockers I want and what to do with my axles. I have a 1997 w/ d30 and 8.25 rear. I REALLY don't feel like going through all that Sean just described, or even digging around for a D44 and searching for brake parts, etc. I just want to have someone install the crap and be done. I would rather replace u-joints then axles too.

I'm easy on the go pedal and never broke anything on my open fj40 w/ 35s, though as far as I know they are pretty strong axles. I also never needed a locker so who knows.

[XJoachim]

I run a D30 in front with 38.5x14.5 TSL SX's with a detroit and WARN inner axles, Spicer 5-760X u-joints, 4,56 gears and stock outers and had just a problem with the lockright that wouldn't hold up to the forces of the big tires.

I snapped a u-joint when the locker was skipping teeth but this u-joint was almost 1 year old (non-greasable). I was gonig full throttle through a mud pit and the locker skipped teeth creating enormous shock loads the u-joint could not withstand.

After swichting to a detroit no more problems for me now.

As i am designing a complete new suspension for my rig with the switch to 44s the replacement axles will be a D60 front and a D70 HD rear.

[CRASH]

I also never needed a locker so who knows.

I think you need to start wheeling with the Sierra Chapter, to get some perspective on this particular matter...... :)

CRASH

[RNMedic]

www.a-amfg.com no worky got another link?

[basalt51]

Originally posted by CRASH
I think you need to start wheeling with the Sierra Chapter, to get some perspective on this particular matter...... :)

CRASH

Thats what I'm working on! I'm trying to "qualify" for the rubicon trip :D

I'm also tired of limiting the times of year that I wheel (a big reason I've never needed a locker).

I just hate doing things twice and I would rather spend the money on the ARB30 kit now then then later. Though I could also wait till I break something, then just get warn axles/hubs (assume the ARB itself didn't break).

Ah well, from the sounds of things I think I'm going ARBs front and rear and seeing what happens :D

[Stoney]

i think u'all have way too much money!!!!!!:D jsut go with a $200 dollar 14b lincon locked and a 44 or 60 front and u will spend a third of the price with ur axles being jsut as strong!!
just my .02

stoney

[xjjeepn]

I'm running a 30 front and a 44 rear geared 4.56 with a spool in the rear and Lockright up front. I did break both stock front axles, they were the small u-joint, old style. I have since upgraded to Warn high strength axles and the 760 u-joints. So far, no problems! The intelligent use of the thin pedal has a lot to do with the longevity of the 30 front.

[basalt51]

Originally posted by Stoney
i think u'all have way too much money!!!!!!:D jsut go with a $200 dollar 14b lincon locked and a 44 or 60 front and u will spend a third of the price with ur axles being jsut as strong!!
just my .02

stoney

I put 150+ miles a day on my truck so thats not a great option for me.

[Hunter-Lynchburg,Va]

i think w/ a 60 or bigger the problem you will have is hanging the diff on everything. since i know a little about your situation steve i would order a front hp44 with an open diff and whatever gears you want, then buy the matching width 9" from the junk yard do perches and brakes and either order a 3rd member w/ gears or find someone to set them up locally. its much cheaper to do a diff on the bench then under the vechicle. depending on how much the 44 costs you might be able to go 35 spline on the 9" to be positive you wont have any failures. shoot me an email and ill see what i can do about findin you a local enough gear guy.

Hunter