'm thoroughly stumped here...this D44 axle I have sitting here is making me quite cross. The cross pin is held in with a roll pin...which requires a punch that is longer than what I have...so I used a longish allen wrench(no lecturing about the right tool for the job...) to drive it far enough to get the cross pin to move. Yay....not. Because of the thick gears, the cross pin won't move further than a half inch. Yeah, this has been covered before. Too bad I can't really grind the ring gear down...it overlaps the cross pin by alot. Like...the entire tooth alot. I'd remove the carrier and the ring gear, but lo and behold....the axles are c-clips. I think. That's the only explanation...because I removed the brake backing plates and they're not retaining the axle at all (like a Ford 9" with a bearing retainer plate). How else could a semifloater axle shaft stay put? So now I can't remove the carrier, I can't unbolt and move the ring gear out of the way because of the pinion gear, I can't remove the pinion gear for obvious reasons....

The only explanation for how this axle went together is Magic. Pure, unadulterated sorcery.

I don't think it is a c/clip axle. Pull the wheel and unbolt the axle and slide it out. If the cross pin hits the ring gear you need to unbolt the ring gear to get the pin out. When you reinstall I'd grind the ring gear teeth (out of the pattern) to clear the shaft for future maintenance. JMO

The axle is out of the truck. I've unbolted the brake backing plate and the axle won't budge. Then again, it won't move in towards the cross pin either, and there's a 1/4" of room between them. Maybe it's just stuck? If that's the case I should just be able to go out there and pry it apart. I'll try that later.

I can't grind the ring gear down...it covers the cross pin almost completely. I'll need to pretty much remove a couple of teeth on the ring gear. Not happening.

http://www.a11eur0.com/gallery/d/5437-2/STA72015.JPG
http://www.a11eur0.com/gallery/d/5431-2/STA72017.JPG

What is this axle from? The oly c-clip d44 I know of is the aluminum ones in ZJs.

It's from an Isuzu Rodeo...I asked about it in the 'zu section and the possibility of it being c-clip came up, so I'm entertaining that idea.

If it was c-clipped, you'd be able to see the c-clip buttons on the ends of the shafts within the diff. I see nothing there.

I say give the axles a harder yank.

Ha that's funny...no c-clips...the reason they wouldn't budge was because, simply, that the brake flange bolts were stuck in the holes.

What I want to know is how the hell I'm supposed to change an axleshaft in this axle without completely removing the brakes on that side? Poor design...should just have a bearing retainer plate that is separate of the brake backing plate, like the 9".