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JK Dana 44 VS. 8.25

W

whompinxj

NAXJA Forum User
Location
ChiTown
Im planning on new axles soon and have already decided to go with a jk 44 front, but for the rear im undecided. Right now its between my current rearend, the 8.25, or a JK 44. I understand that I will have to cut of all the brackets and set it up for leaf springs. However, if I keep my 8.25 It will be regeared and locked with 29 spline chromo shafts, a small truss and a traction bar.

So my question is what do you think is stronger?

I'll be running 35 inch tires maybe 36's
 
a JK44 is much stronger than a 8.25, and even stronger than XJ 44s. It'll also be the same width as the JK44 front. I'd go that route if funds allow.
 
whompinxj said:
Im planning on new axles soon and have already decided to go with a jk 44 front, but for the rear im undecided. Right now its between my current rearend, the 8.25, or a JK 44. I understand that I will have to cut of all the brackets and set it up for leaf springs. However, if I keep my 8.25 It will be regeared and locked with 29 spline chromo shafts, a small truss and a traction bar.

So my question is what do you think is stronger?

I'll be running 35 inch tires maybe 36's
Click to expand...
From what I've heard an 8.25 with chromoly axles is just as strong as a built D44... just what I've heard.
 
The -44 is slightly stronger. The JK axles are wider then the Cherokee axles. More important: lots more support for the -44 also, I think gears top out at 4.56 for the 8.25. You could buy a matched set of JK rubicon axles and solve the locker problem all at once.
 
whompinxj said:
So my question is what do you think is stronger?

I'll be running 35 inch tires maybe 36's
Click to expand...

As you can read, there are comments being thrown around about "much stronger than an 8.25",(either with a regular D44 or now the JK44)in this thread and others....not sure where this fact bible is located.....
But Alloy USA shafts for the 8.25 are available and cheap. And lower t-case gears are available if you want a low crawl ratio but remain streetable with 4.56 gearing.....anyways I've had a D44 snap shafts right in front of me on 33's while my 8.25 with 35's & 4:1 just kept on going.
IMO with 35's you're in the same boat with the 8.25 or D44.
 
JK D44's have to have special gears, not regular D44 gears, and I think they are only limited to one choice at the moment.
 
Ronbo said:
As you can read, there are comments being thrown around about "much stronger than an 8.25",(either with a regular D44 or now the JK44)in this thread and others....not sure where this fact bible is located.....
But Alloy USA shafts for the 8.25 are available and cheap. And lower t-case gears are available if you want a low crawl ratio but remain streetable with 4.56 gearing.....anyways I've had a D44 snap shafts right in front of me on 33's while my 8.25 with 35's & 4:1 just kept on going.
IMO with 35's you're in the same boat with the 8.25 or D44.
Click to expand...

the JK44 is definitely stronger than an 8.25. It practically a 60.
 
Begster said:
JK D44's have to have special gears, not regular D44 gears, and I think they are only limited to one choice at the moment.
Click to expand...

They require special gears because they are not a TRUE 44!!! I was thinking of going that route but changed my mind after getting the skinny on those so called 44's.
 
Plus the axle tubes have been breaking,do a search,plenty of threads out there!
 
Well they used to not make gears for a while, I guess they have developed some since the last time I've checked, not really been paying to much attention to them for a while.
 
I have heard that the Factory JK Lockers are almost impossible to get working out of a JK, They work on some sort of pulsed power sent by the JK computer, You cannot simply plug in a 12Vpower source & expect it to lock, They will not function.
PS: I have never confirmed this, Just something a Jeep tech buddy (He works at a Jeep dealership) of mine told me.
 
whompinxj said:
Im planning on new axles soon and have already decided to go with a jk 44 front, but for the rear im undecided. Right now its between my current rearend, the 8.25, or a JK 44. I understand that I will have to cut of all the brackets and set it up for leaf springs. However, if I keep my 8.25 It will be regeared and locked with 29 spline chromo shafts, a small truss and a traction bar.

So my question is what do you think is stronger?

I'll be running 35 inch tires maybe 36's
Click to expand...

Just get the matching JK rear. The JK axles have different lug bolt pattern, 5 on 5 the 8.25 is 5 on 4.5. The JK axles are 65.5" wide the 8.25 is 60. The JK's are 32 spline, the 8.25 is 29. 5.13 Gears are available for the JK's, you can only go 4.56 on the 8.25. JK axle shafts are 1.24 inches thick, the 8.25 are 1.21. The JK ring and pinion are larger. The locker is electric and only requires a simple 12 volt circuit. The JK is a better axle all the way around, and the price is very resonable.
 
Width guys... The Jk 44 up front with an 8.25 in the rear wouldn't work in most applications. The JKs are much wider than previous jeeps and it would look awkward having a front stick out 65 and 1/4" and the rear stick out only somewhere around 61". Also, has anyone read up on the JK 44s? They are much stronger than even the previous 44s before them. I don't think (in my own personal opinion of course) that the 8.25 could be compared to a rear JK 44.
 
The only real difference in regular 44s and the 8.25 is the fact that the 8.25 is C clip, and most 44s are not, and a 2 spline difference (I think.)
 
you could run a 8.25 with upgraded shafts and gears, especially if you truss it. Im not sure if the rear is the same but i know on the front the axle tubes on a JK44 are simply dana 30? anyway, if you did the 8.25 the lengths would look retarded, i guess a matching jk44 would be good in your case simply because you are using a jk44 front.

i think the bottom line is, in terms of strength, all of hte axles we mentioned you CAN break. If you wheel it like a mad man especially locked then yea you can break it. It really has most to do with how you drive it. You can turn your super44 into the strengh of a d35 if your slammin down the pedal the entire time. just my 2 cents
 
I really don't think a dana 30 compares to a JK44 as far as I can tell...

Maybe the tube size diameter, but I can't comment on that.

Just go read the link I posted.
 
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=950472
main.php
 
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