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D44 with blown gears...

A

andrew2516

NAXJA Forum User
Location
New Kensington, PA
how much would you guys pay for something like this? I can get one locally and was just wondering how much is a good price.

Also anyone know how much it is to set up...say 4.88's in that? Just an estimate.

The owner said he was driving home and the fluid was leaking and he thinks he blew the gears.
 
andrew2516 said:
how much would you guys pay for something like this? I can get one locally and was just wondering how much is a good price.

Also anyone know how much it is to set up...say 4.88's in that? Just an estimate.

The owner said he was driving home and the fluid was leaking and he thinks he blew the gears.
Click to expand...

If the gears are truly blown, I would still pay around $200-300 for it, just because I would regear anyways.

IF you want a shop to set them up, they usually charge by the hour, so I would take it to them completly empty, cleaned, ready to have the gears set up, and get it back with just the set up done. Add parts in there too.

If he thinks, the might be wrong. If it is an XJ44, it would be much worth snagging.
 
scorpio_vette said:
actually some shops will charge you more if it's empty, because it's easier to setup the gears if you have the old shim measurements as a starting point.
Click to expand...


This man speaks only the truth.

Anywho. I would just tell the guy the gears are screwed, pay him $150 for it, and be on my merry way with a hell of a deal.

And for a shop to do a gear setup you are talking anywhere from 300 to 500 depending on how scheming they are.
 
If I could find a train load of XJ 44's for 75 bux apiece.....I'd cash in my IRA and buy the lot....and make some serious coin on the investment....you won't find a clean, undamaged one in Florida for less that 600 bux a pop.
 
Depends on what you'll be doing with your rig, however I bet a couple years from now once it's a dedicated trail rig you'll be kicking yourself. Good luck with whatever you choose though.
 
I paid about $200 for my Dana 44 even though it had 3.07 gearing. I used the opportunity to re-gear to 4.88 and couldn't be happier. For $125 I'd do it in a heart beat. it's worth it even if all you do is leave it in the garage until you get around to re-gearing, then swap it in.
 
mud1059 said:
Depends on what you'll be doing with your rig, however I bet a couple years from now once it's a dedicated trail rig you'll be kicking yourself. Good luck with whatever you choose though.
Click to expand...

It's close to be a trail rig now...8.25 is almost as strong as that d44 and about $600 cheaper. Thanks though.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
but 8.25 stops at 4.56 gearing. with the 44 you can go much higher. and for that price, why not just buy it anyways, and then sell it for close to $300??? unless you already have so much money that you can use a little extra. lol
 
scorpio_vette said:
but 8.25 stops at 4.56 gearing. with the 44 you can go much higher. and for that price, why not just buy it anyways, and then sell it for close to $300??? unless you already have so much money that you can use a little extra. lol
Click to expand...

haha! good point there...kinda reminds me of that Geico commercial.

If I knew I had a buyer, I would do the transfer but I don't wanna mess with shipping and finding a buyer and storing it.
 
while this can be true, it can also be a pain in the arse. 90% of the time when I am setting up gears, I toss the old shims out with the bearings. A good installer should know his gears and know the axles he is setting up.
Hell, I just did a D30 the other night. started with an empty housing. nailed the pinion depth of the first try and only had to adjust the backlash one time.
The shop that does things like charge extra for setting up an empty housing, or charges extra for installing a locker or posi. In my book thats a clear sign of a rip off. I've heard of guys/shops that knock out a set of gears in 45 minutes. My best on a D30 TJ wheels up to wheels down was 2 hours 15 minutes with an ARB. a good average is 3-4 hours an axle for most axles. I've setup gears in a naked D44 in like 45 minutes just for the gears setup.
Figure out what the shop is charging, and what they do. How clean do the make the axles? If there just swapping gears and bearings and stuff then its really not taking them that long. figure shop rate times how long they actually take. then let them err on the high side a little cuz it is a specialty task. If a shop charges $100/hr and the guy knocks out each axle in 3 hours, then $300/axle is a fair rate. but these shops charging $500/axle!!! screw that.
scorpio_vette said:
actually some shops will charge you more if it's empty, because it's easier to setup the gears if you have the old shim measurements as a starting point.
Click to expand...
 
Rawbrown said:
while this can be true, it can also be a pain in the arse. 90% of the time when I am setting up gears, I toss the old shims out with the bearings. A good installer should know his gears and know the axles he is setting up.
Hell, I just did a D30 the other night. started with an empty housing. nailed the pinion depth of the first try and only had to adjust the backlash one time.
The shop that does things like charge extra for setting up an empty housing, or charges extra for installing a locker or posi. In my book thats a clear sign of a rip off. I've heard of guys/shops that knock out a set of gears in 45 minutes. My best on a D30 TJ wheels up to wheels down was 2 hours 15 minutes with an ARB. a good average is 3-4 hours an axle for most axles. I've setup gears in a naked D44 in like 45 minutes just for the gears setup.
Figure out what the shop is charging, and what they do. How clean do the make the axles? If there just swapping gears and bearings and stuff then its really not taking them that long. figure shop rate times how long they actually take. then let them err on the high side a little cuz it is a specialty task. If a shop charges $100/hr and the guy knocks out each axle in 3 hours, then $300/axle is a fair rate. but these shops charging $500/axle!!! screw that.
Click to expand...

Just thought I would add, a lot of guys/shops will charge less if the axle is out of the vehicle. It’s a heck of a lot easier to work on the axle on a bench then if it's still on the vehicle.
 
I left out that detail considering that he is buying a busted axle. but yes, shops charge less if the axle is out of the vehicle. and even less if its clean and shafts are out. take it down to the bare minimums by pulling the shafts, brakes, most of the cover bolts and cleaning the snot out of the outside of it.
Thats like an extra hour of work for a shop, working under a vehicle and pulling the shafts.
I totally prefer doing gears on the stand rather than under the jeep and I have reflected that in quotes to people that want me to setup their gears.
 
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