Axles ?? (kind of long)

I've been thinking of upgrading my rear axle from my current D35 to a D44 or the 8.25. I know that the 44 isn't a C-clip and has 30 spline axles. But something I noticed that I thought a little odd is that the 44 has a smaller pinion shaft (1.375") diameter than the d35 (1.406"). And the 8.25 pinion shaft (1.625") is a full 1/4 inch larger in dia than the 44. I know that the stock d35 is fairly week (housing, axles, etc.) and a c-clip - bad combo. But what are the draw backs to the 29 spline 8.25? I'm primarily looking at these 2 axles for a swap because they are - 1. the easiest for a non-fabricator like me. And 2. The cheapest way to upgrade. Anyway, thanks for any info.

Rob D

The 29-spline 8.25 is a pretty stout axle, the drawback is that there isn't a lot of aftermarket support in the form of lockers, etc. The 27-spline 8.25 could be found in 91-96 non-ABS XJs, it wasn't 'til 97 that you found the slightly thicker axles of the 29-spline. Keep that in mind while shopping

Do an 8.8 with disk brakes...Off an 95+ explorer...
or do a ford 9 in rear, or a dana 60 10in ring gear, dana 70 10.54in ring gear or 14bolt 10.5in ring gear...(full width options..)

If your not braking what you got just get spares... If you need or want to upgrad, then upgrade.

In my opinion there are some pretty good advantages to having the 8.25 (29 spline) axle, one of which you mentioned.

There are disadvantages also, and in my opinion there are 3:

1) poor ground clearance (see thread on shaving a 8.25)

2) c-clips

3) can only gear down to 4.56 gear ratio.

Some people also mention they are prone to gear noise. I hope that isn't the case since I plan on keeping mine.