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dana front axle

R

rckddy

NAXJA Forum User
Location
ft smith ar
looking to see if the xj ever came out with a dana 44 front if so what year. and if not what would be a good front end to put into a xj without a lot of work thanks all
 
The question is how do you define a lot of work?
 
rckddy said:
what would be a good front end to put into a xj without a lot of work thanks all
Click to expand...

At the risk of catching a bunch of crap from some of the DIY forum users and members. the EASIEST choice is to call Currie. It ain't cheap, but it WILL bolt right in woth no fab and only a few minor issues. I just did mine and the hardest part was unbolting the old axle.

HTH

Rev
 
the works not really the problem i just dont want one that sticks out much more then the 30 a inch is fine but no more then that so any ideas ?
 
rckddy said:
what year waggys had them thanks for the info
Click to expand...
All Grand Wagoneers had a 44 front, as far as I know. But they're all low-pinion. The 'ideal' front 44 is often described as an early/mid 1970s Ford high-pinion 44, narrowed (so it's about 2" wider than a D30) to use Wagoneer shafts. That's a fair amount of work, obviously.
 
Mambeu said:
All Grand Wagoneers had a 44 front, as far as I know. But they're all low-pinion. The 'ideal' front 44 is often described as an early/mid 1970s Ford high-pinion 44, narrowed (so it's about 2" wider than a D30) to use Wagoneer shafts. That's a fair amount of work, obviously.
Click to expand...

no matter what junkyard 44 you get, matching your stock rear (if its still stock) bolt pattern is going to be tough.
 
xj4life said:
no matter what junkyard 44 you get, matching your stock rear (if its still stock) bolt pattern is going to be tough.
Click to expand...
Really? Dual-bolt pattern axle shafts or wheel spacers for the rear seem easy enough. Spacers would let you match the width of a Waggy-width front 44 too.
 
Mambeu said:
Really? Dual-bolt pattern axle shafts or wheel spacers for the rear seem easy enough. Spacers would let you match the width of a Waggy-width front 44 too.
Click to expand...

just saying its something to consider. i added spacer/adaptors to my 8.8 to match a ford front 44.
 
So wait, the waggy 44 rear is more or less a bolt in, the waggy front is close enough but its low pinion, so get a 44 HP from a ford and shorten... Just how much work does shortening the axle entail. Im sure there is at least one thread out there, and I am not asking for a "how-to" on this topic, but would it be a reasonable project to attempt for a first real DIY project like it is? How much if any work is required to get the shafts to fit, is it just shortening the tubes and using the waggy shafts in place of the ford shafts? My friend's father owns a junk yard and I will be heading back to school soon, so I might be able to get some stuff cheap through him, and I want to go 44 front and rear if possible, and keep the front/rear width about the same, so this might be a reasonable project to undertake either at school (and bring it home for any welding) or a good winter break project.
-Scott
 
waggy front 44 will need brackets added to it, and you have to get a 80 or newer for drivers drop. also 83 and 84 a vac disconnect so you don't want those.
 
RCKDDY, your right, D44 axle builds have been covered quite extensively on NAXJ and Pirate4x4. You need to search these threads for "real experience" advise. The choices discussed above each have pros and cons. As an example, Waggy fronts are from a truck with leaf springs. The center section on the driver's side has a spring pad as part of the casting--difficult to deal with when adding the necessary bracketry to bolt the axle into an XJ. It's also high pinion, another negative, IMO. The Ford high pinion axles require extensive fab work if you want to shorten them to the same length as the D30 front axle. These conversions take lots of time and money--something, as a student, I didn't have. I suggest you search the various threads and the Internet (you can use Google for both) to gainer a basic understanding of the difficulties involved.
 
Rev Den said:
At the risk of catching a bunch of crap from some of the DIY forum users and members. the EASIEST choice is to call Currie. It ain't cheap, but it WILL bolt right in woth no fab and only a few minor issues. I just did mine and the hardest part was unbolting the old axle.

HTH

Rev
Click to expand...

:kissyou:
 
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