what is involved with adapting a dana 44 onto an XJ? i got a bronco dana44 but im assuming im gonna have to retube one side to make it just a lil bit longer, and then get the 4 link brackets put on it. if anybody has a 44 up front, can ya take a few measurements for me? i need to know distence from the outside lip of the pumpkin to where it welds up to the knuckles on both long side and short side. im hoping to only have to retube the long side to get it the exact width

What Bronco D44 are you referring to here? There's the EB low pinion D44s, the fullsize Bronco HP44s and the later TTB D44s; clarify, then search - there's lots of info here. Then when you're done searching, go to www.naxja.org, (Tech Forum) and ask FarmerMatt.

low pinion early bronco i beleive a 73. thanks for the link ill check there

why dont you just find someone who has a dana 44 out of a early model xj that would swap. I belive they were in the year's 1986- 89 and 1987 was the most made with stock 44.

Originally posted by deja vu
why dont you just find someone who has a dana 44 out of a early model xj that would swap. I belive they were in the year's 1986- 89 and 1987 was the most made with stock 44.

Hey, we're talking about front axles here. Newbs... :shaking: :flipoff2:

Pyros, you won't need to retube the axle if you want to keep it the same width as your current XJ D30. The EB has nearly the same width as the XJ axle so all you need to do is cut off the stock radius arm mounts and weld up the RE brackets.

Ya, just throw it in. The center section will be a little more centered, But I know people running them with no problems. It will clear the oil pan;)

im not worried bout the oil pan. this is actually going on my s10. its a chevy truck that uses XJ dana 30 and basically grafts the XJ 4 link with coils onto my s10. im worried bout the width cuz the axle seems a bit narrow as of now. the coils are bowing a little bit and snaggin on a bolt on the frame... this is the first problem that they have had with this particular kit but neways i just want to make sure its wide enough so the springs wont rub even worse. does anyone know the exact difference of width between the EB44 and XJ30? chevy truck, jeep suspension, ford axles... cant go wrong!

I'd be willing to bet that the EB44 is around a 1/2"-3/4" wider than stock XJ D30 but I'm not a 100% sure.

If the coils are hanging up on a simple bolt on the S-10 frame, why not grind the head of the bolt or have it machined slightly to gain the extra clearance. Chances are you won't need a whole lot of extra clearance to get the coil to slip past. Also, maybe you could try tweaking the wheelbase a lil to help the coils clear.

just go full width and not worry about it:flipoff2:

Originally posted by norcalXJ
just go full width and not worry about it:flipoff2:

Go 60 or go home. :flipoff2:

Originally posted by Jason R


Go 60 or go home. :flipoff2:

werd

Originally posted by JS-Economos
I'd be willing to bet that the EB44 is around a 1/2"-3/4" wider than stock XJ D30 but I'm not a 100% sure.

If the coils are hanging up on a simple bolt on the S-10 frame, why not grind the head of the bolt or have it machined slightly to gain the extra clearance. Chances are you won't need a whole lot of extra clearance to get the coil to slip past. Also, maybe you could try tweaking the wheelbase a lil to help the coils clear.

i was hopin the axle would be a bit wider... and i was talkin to one of the guys that designed the kit and he offered the same suggestion you did with the head of the bolt, only he thought about recessing it into the bracket on the truck. i emailed him some pics today so hopefuly ill get a reply by tomorrow

Originally posted by SeanP


werd

Until I see pics, I'm afraid its all just horse-hockey Sean.:flipoff2:

Originally posted by JS-Economos


Until I see pics, I'm afraid its all just horse-hockey Sean.:flipoff2:

soon, young Jedi, soon.

IMO It's a big mistake to try to fit the 44 up to the existing suspension on a coilsprung Jeep. It's sort of a waste of time, what with all the brackets and crap, and in the end, you're still stuck with all of the problems that that suspension dishes out.

Ok so you've SAS'ed this S10 (nice work), and you have this D30 Jeep type suspension. Is it worth it to you to go to a 44, to swap wheels, to cope it up to your S10 and keep the Jeep style brackets? I mean, not to question your judgement or anything, but what you breaking anything on the 30 that the 44 will solve?

So, yeah, the 44 is cool and all, but let's say that you're going ARB in the front and you want to gear it. You can keep your SAS kit and then, boom, go get a High Pinion 30 from a junker Cherokee (no welding), get a 30 spline ARB, and basically throw 44-worthy shafts in there. I don't even know what size tire that would get you - I'd say 35-36" without too much problem???

Seriously, what are you going for? What's your budget tolerance and how much fab can you do? Maybe there's a better way to do what you want without trying to adapt a random front axle to your obviously sorta finicky setup - or maybe you sell the suspension part of your SAS kit and put radius arms on. There are alot of variables here.

Bob

Ok ok ok I need to point out where I'm coming from. I don't believe in putting Jeep style arms on a D44 - it's simply not worth it for most applications. I'm so sold on the simplicity of radius arms, on a single UCA, on anything else.... I'm planning two 44 swaps right now for friends and they both will be using modded radius arms. This is after I did a Jeep style suspension on my 44, which I fabricated entirely from steel stock.

Oh yeah, I just finished a Rodeo SAS last month using leafs - good on ya if you have coils!!!

Bob

well heres the deal. i already bought a set of early bronco axles for 1050. the 9" rear already has a detroit with 4.11s and 31 spline dutchman shafts. i just finished doin a rear disc conversion on it. the dana 44 up front also has a detroit and 4.11s. before i was thinkin of goin with the 44 i was thinking of regearing front and rear and doin lockers (7.5" 10 bolt rear) but i added it up and buying the EB axles turned out to be cheaper than building up the 30 and my 10 bolt, and still have to worry bout breakage. now i saved a lil money and got a bullet proof rearend that ill never have to worry about and a locked and geared frontend with milemarker hubs up front. at this point i can still sell the 44 and go another route cuz i havent even touched it yet, i was just seein what i gotta do to get that 44 up there

I'm not an expert but it sounds like adjusting that bolt is the best/ most affordable option. especially if the guy that designed the suspension says so.

after completing a dana 44 front swap my advice is..... fork over the cash to currie..

its not that its a bad swap really, just the costs add up

Gut the EB 44 and swap it all into an '80 & up Waggy 44 front housing and shafts, then weld on RE's bracket kit and bolt it in.

Originally posted by deja vu
why dont you just find someone who has a dana 44 out of a early model xj that would swap. I belive they were in the year's 1986- 89 and 1987 was the most made with stock 44.

The conversation is regarding front rears, dunce!
:flipoff2: :flipoff2:

Originally posted by Trango
IMO It's a big mistake to try to fit the 44 up to the existing suspension on a coilsprung Jeep.

I mean, not to question your judgement or anything, but what you breaking anything on the 30 that the 44 will solve?

So, yeah, the 44 is cool and all, but let's say that you're going ARB in the front and you want to gear it. You can keep your SAS kit and then, boom, go get a High Pinion 30 from a junker Cherokee (no welding), get a 30 spline ARB, and basically throw 44-worthy shafts in there. I don't even know what size tire that would get you - I'd say 35-36" without too much problem???
Bob

Heres the thing Bob :rolleyes: no matter what you put in a 30 It still will lack in form of ball joint size, knuckle strength, R&P strength,axle tube strength,etc.,etc., etc.

Its the same argument for a 60 vs 44.

I can see your a super this, super that guy so surely you know about super 44s.1.42 33 spline shafts how can you get those in a 30?

I do know one thing anything that uses 297s suck:flipoff2:

I agree with the balljoint statement.
My balljoints in my XJ Dana 30 are shot. I priced them out and decided that my Dana 44 swap will cost the same dollars as replacing all my ball joints.
Dana 44 ball joints are half the price of the Reverse cut 30.

Now the only thing thats holding me up is deciding if I want to put the axles in full width or not :D

Originally posted by GPN Family


Heres the thing Bob :rolleyes: no matter what you put in a 30 It still will lack in form of ball joint size, knuckle strength, R&P strength,axle tube strength,etc.,etc., etc.

Its the same argument for a 60 vs 44.

I can see your a super this, super that guy so surely you know about super 44s.1.42 33 spline shafts how can you get those in a 30?

I do know one thing anything that uses 297s suck:flipoff2:

Oh great. The 60's highhorse rides again. Hiyo silver.

Dude I did not just fall off the Snapon truck. The debate of strengths between the D30 and the 44 is a fait accompli. Everyone knows it.... tada, it's a smaller axle on all counts. I have 44's F+R on my rig just because I was blowing things like balljoints and D30 hubs... I am also fairly sure that, upon disposal, my D30 housing was tweako. However, do we even know what tire size the dude wants to run? He might be just fine with his XJ 30 (R+P just about equal standard 44 IMO) and some conservative driving. Yeah, he has the 44 front, but is it worth the graft, you know, a little cost/benefit analysis. I dunno - the 30, especially in its HP XJ config, isn't quite the POS that the 35 is. Dudes run that thing and it doesn't break nearly as much as I would figure it does.

It really all comes down to what is he breaking with the 30, and what size tire he wants to run. If he has like zero patience or fab skills, a 44 graft will be really spendy for someone else to do. I've never even asked about the price for that, but I'm guessing that a shop would not do that for cheap. Think about it - they're going to charge for EVERYTHING, like steering and a custom trackbar and bracket placement and welding. He did, after all, purchase an SAS kit, even if it was for the standard Jeep junglegym. I mean he was having troubles relocating a bolt, you know? Dude come ON. I used to do this sort of stuff as a grunt in a shop, and it does not come cheaply.

You know, I'm trying to help the dude out by providing him some options from the Jeep and 1/2ton world that he's obviously clueless about. Maybe you guys should just sell him on a F350 HP 60 and just be done with it.

Later
Bob

O I've seen it. Its not ALL horse-jockey. :flipoff2:


Originally posted by JS-Economos


Until I see pics, I'm afraid its all just horse-hockey Sean.:flipoff2:

Originally posted by Jason R
O I've seen it. Its not ALL horse-jockey. :flipoff2:




:laughing: :D