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best way to build up a ford 8.8

W

wishihad1

NAXJA Forum User
Location
charlottesville, VA
hey everybody

im looking for the best way to build up a ford 8.8. i plan on getting on probably around early june, and wanted to get ready to start researching. i know i want it locked, 5:13 gears, and 33 spline shafts. the only thing ive been able to find so far has been a Moser axle kit, which is a 33 spline spool, 33 spline shafts, studs, and c-clip eliminators, all for 600 bucks. doesn't sound too bad to me, but i dont know whether i want a full on spool yet or not

any lunchboxes i can run for 33 splines

thanks:cheers:
 
even though im going to have the money if i wanted to put an ARB or detroit in there, i dont want to spend that much money on it, because this summer its basically just becoming my toy. i could buy the moser 33 spline kit, for less then i could just buy either one of those lockers
 
Good place to ask but a better place would be on a mustang board...
go to corral. net and look around there there are a hundred people that have prob asked the same thing..
heres that kit for 575 delivered.
( this is my local mustang board that im involved with..)
http://www.midwestfords.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15006

and spools are not for the street so it better be just a toy that gets trilered.. you dont want to be running it down the street far..
 
What do you plan on doing with it, and what is the rest of your rig built like? You can't get 5.13s for the stock front so remember that when making your gear choice. The 8.8 is tough in stock form, unless doing something crazy you should just be able to lock it and go. If you do feel like you need to do something the Superior 8.8 kit looks like a really good setup, its what I will do eventually.
 
I built mine with a super 88 kit and reused the stock carrier for easy gear set up and a no-slip. About 1500 bucks for housing,gears,locker,super 88,break pads, drive shaft flange with new u-joint and pearch kit. The drive shaft bolted right up. Disk breaks and strength of the axel make it a good bang for the buck mod. The super 88 kit makes it a little wider (better) also.
 
ECTED locker (550$)
gears (175)
install kit (110)
TNT truss (179)
TNT ubolt elim (80)
Yukon alloy axles (275) keep stockers for spares
1.25" billet wheel spacers (55)

thats just IMO...
 
whats above me looks pretty good

i know that i cant go past 4:88 on the d30, but here the plan. im getting a pretty good amount of money for graduation from the g-rents for graduation. currently i have 35s, and a locker up front. i want to have the 8.8 in, and locked for the summer, save up some money, and after coming back from college next year make my "summer project" a dana 44, and 5:13 gears. well thats what the plans are now. but as for now, im just hoping to find a ford 8.8. ill probably just decided to live with the 31 splines, and lock it, but eventually i want to have 37-38s locked, on about the lift i have now, and keep the COG low
 
another thing to keep in mind is 8.8's are narrow and front 44's are wide.

and they share different bolt patterns. but that could be aleived with some wheel adapters on the 8.8 i suppose.

but my opinion is run your jeep right now then buy a set of matching axles later on.. same width/bolt pattern/history. either 44/9 in out of a late 70's ford or a couple 44's out of a 1980+ waggy/j-10
 
definately weld up the tubes to the housing, they are just tiny welds on there designed for street use, not for slipping off rocks then catching air then rocks and getting torqued, the weld brake then. Easy fix but make sure you do it.

Tnt truss is a great solution.

Other than that it gets personal into what you are going to do, but those two are simple cheap and no brainer to me.

Also you may as well make sure you get a disk brake 8.8 thats all my recomendations.
 
barillms said:
Whats the best thing to do about the driveshaft mounting? Keep the flange yoke or replace the flange yoke with normal one?
Click to expand...


I kept the flange on mine. The yoke just wasn't worth it. However, I have broken a flange yoke adapter.

and you really should truss it, but you don't have to spend all that money on a tnt truss, I'll take some pics of mine and show them to you tomorrow. My truss cost me about $10 in materials, if that.
 
ktm racer 419 said:
another thing to keep in mind is 8.8's are narrow and front 44's are wide.

and they share different bolt patterns. but that could be aleived with some wheel adapters on the 8.8 i suppose.

but my opinion is run your jeep right now then buy a set of matching axles later on.. same width/bolt pattern/history. either 44/9 in out of a late 70's ford or a couple 44's out of a 1980+ waggy/j-10
Click to expand...

The Super 88 axles have stud mounting holes for both 5x4.5 and 5x5.5 bolt patterns--use whichever you like.
 
mecompco said:
The Super 88 axles have stud mounting holes for both 5x4.5 and 5x5.5 bolt patterns--use whichever you like.
Click to expand...

Yep.. And if you have any locker issues or axle issues ever, you can Only get replacment parts from superior. Like out on the trail, if you do somehow (murphys law) break a axle, your screwed.

But it is a much stronger axle and great setup.
 
ROBERTK said:
Yep.. And if you have any locker issues or axle issues ever, you can Only get replacment parts from superior. Like out on the trail, if you do somehow (murphys law) break a axle, your screwed.

But it is a much stronger axle and great setup.
Click to expand...

Man, there's always trade-offs, isn't there?! It is a standard 31 spline shaft, so the locker is stock 8.8 (ARB going in mine, as we speak). I agree that if a shaft breaks it would be tough to find a replacement. If I'm doing something so stupid as to break a chromo 8.8 shaft (33s) I guess I deserve the ensuing hassle.
 
mecompco said:
Man, there's always trade-offs, isn't there?! It is a standard 31 spline shaft, so the locker is stock 8.8 (ARB going in mine, as we speak). I agree that if a shaft breaks it would be tough to find a replacement. If I'm doing something so stupid as to break a chromo 8.8 shaft (33s) I guess I deserve the ensuing hassle.
Click to expand...

So your not doing the super 88 kit then? yes they are stock spline but are not stock anything else. The shaft is longer due to end that are installed on the housing, and theres no c-clip.

But your correct in assuming you should never break a shaft.
 
ROBERTK said:
So your not doing the super 88 kit then? yes they are stock spline but are not stock anything else. The shaft is longer due to end that are installed on the housing, and theres no c-clip.

But your correct in assuming you should never break a shaft.
Click to expand...

OK, now I'm confused. Yes, we have the Super 88 kit which is pretty much installed now. Granted, the shafts are different than stock, and the axle tubes have been modified so a stock shaft will no longer work in them. The R&P and any locker will remain stock (or did I miss something in getting the standard 31 spline 8.8 ARB?) While I'm waiting for the Ford Racing gear install kit to arrive (using new Ford Racing 4.56 R&P) I hope to get the diff welded to the tubes this weekend. Then we should be able to get it all together. I went with the Ruff Stuff diff cover (and matching one for the D30) which I'm hoping may add some rigidity. I though about trussing it, but I think that is really overkill for my application.

FWIW I ran a locked 8.8 w/stock shafts and 4.56 gears in my FSB for quite some time with a 425ci stroker putting down a good 500 lbs of torque and 35" BFG muds w/o issue (including occasionally lighting them up on the pavement--have matured considerably since then, though).
 
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