chevy dana 44 front end with toy v6 rear

[dillenger1]

Im considering my options here.I got a good dana 44 pass diff with everything for $150 good where im from.Im goinna sas my 1990 reg cab toy truck with it,but i have the width issue with the front.I was wondering how hard it is to cut the tubes and reweld to a shorter width to match my rear whitch is 58" i believe.The chevy dana is 64 i think.What do i do with the shafts?reweld or cut to shorter waggy spec?wheels spacers maybe?

[Frank1669]

wagoneer 44 or scout 2 44 will get you real lose to 58" wms or cut of the c ends cut tube get axels resplined

[dillenger1]

cutting to the waggy specs on the driverside seems a better idea,no?That way i dont have to respline all my shafts.who will do the respline anyway?

[Kunker]

I believe the Moser does re-splining, and I think Currie as well, although if you cut to Waggy specs, why not just pick up a new stock axle shaft for cheap? The outers are the same anyway, and it might be cheaper than shipping + labor.

[mauidogg]

Originally Posted by Kunker

I believe the Moser does re-splining, and I think Currie as well, although if you cut to Waggy specs, why not just pick up a new stock axle shaft for cheap? The outers are the same anyway, and it might be cheaper than shipping + labor.

cutting to waggy specs would be the smarter/cheaper way IMO.

if you don't have to worry about street riding all the time, I would leave the width and add spacers to the rear. Wide = stable

[dillenger1]

My toyota rear is 58" i think and the front is 67 wms. this seems to extreme for spacers ,no?

[dillenger1]

So what needs to be done to achieve a wide rear to match the front chevy dana?besides a t100 rear end

[MT4Runner]

Do not cut down a D44 to try to match Toyota width. Stick with the D44 if you want to be fullwidth and no more than 38's. If you want to be Toyota width and up to 40's, start building up a Toy front end. If you want to go 42's one day, just start building a D60!

The Dana 44 is a decent 1/2 ton axle that is moderately-priced to build up to run 36's-37's under a lightweight rig (like a Toyota) with a 4-banger or maybe a 3.4L. I like mine--the fullwidth sidehills great!! Budget for some TEN Factory shafts, Longfield 300M ujoints, high steer, a locker, and 5.38's.

On the other hand, if you want it to match the width of your rear, it's far cheaper (and you can go up to 40's) to build a front Toyota axle. Either run spacers outboard of the SA hubs, or run IFS hubs on the solid axle knuckles, and you'll get right around 59". Get a high steer kit, 5.29's, locker, and Longfields and Long hub gears.

I ran the D44 front 5.38/IFS rear 5.29 combo for 2 years, and it worked pretty good. My rig now has a Chevy 14 bolt semi-floater (6-lug) with 5.38's and a welded carrier. It works great.

My Runner has a built D44, my FToy has a built Toy axle. I wouldn't trade either in either application......but don't polish a turd trying to make a Toy-width D44, or dump $$$$$$$$$$ trying to make a fullwidth Toy axle!

[MT4Runner]

Originally Posted by dillenger1

So what needs to be done to achieve a wide rear to match the front chevy dana?besides a t100 rear end

4.7L Tundra 8" rearend
Pre-1973 D44 1/2T 6-lug rearend
Chevy 14bolt 9.5" semi floater 6-lug
Chevy 14 bolt 10.5" full floater ($500 to machine down the hub to fit a 6-lug)
Ford 9" with 6-lug shafts

or...
8-lug (3/4T) Chevy D44 parts from the knuckle out and a D60 or 14bFF rearend.

[jtr]

Originally Posted by MT4Runner

4.7L Tundra 8" rearend
Pre-1973 D44 1/2T 6-lug rearend
Chevy 14bolt 9.5" semi floater 6-lug
Chevy 14 bolt 10.5" full floater ($500 to machine down the hub to fit a 6-lug)
Ford 9" with 6-lug shafts

or...
8-lug (3/4T) Chevy D44 parts from the knuckle out and a D60 or 14bFF rearend.

8-lug option with some insurance

[dillenger1]

whats hard about cutting and rewelding to waggy spec ,which is 3" away from toyota rear?This is a trail truck no rocks out here really

[MT4Runner]

Nothing hard about it. Just not worth it.
I have a buddy who had a narrow track 86 CJ7, and we cut down a Chevy axle to Waggy width (he refused to run a Toy axle in his Jeep, go figure! ) and it worked fine.

...I'm just saying that if you're going to end up with a slightly-wider-than-Toyota axle that it's not worth narrowing a D44. You can run bigger tires for less money on a completely built axle if it's a Toy front end.

D44 Chromo Shafts + Super joints = $850
Longs = $650

D44 gears + install kits are about $50 more than Toy stuff. Advantage=Toy

D44 high steer arms are over $100/ea.
You can get toy high steer arms for $129/set. (figuring that tierod/draglink will be similar cost). Advantage=Toy

D44 ball joints are weaker than Toy trunnion bearings (usually the weak link on a D44 with big tires) Advantage=Toy

D44 tie rod ends are less expensive than Toy FJ80 tre's. Advantage=D44 (but you can run the same 3/4T D44 ends if you ream out your Toy arms) Advantage=neither!

Stock, a Toy has better clearance than a D44. Advantage=Toy
Easier to clearance a Toy than a D44 for even more clearance Advantage=Toy

Toy housings are a bit weaker than D44 housings if you jump them. Advantage=D44

D44 is cheaper to build fullwidth (cheaper than widening a Toy or starting with a Diamond or Ballistic housing). Advantage=D44. If you narrow the D44, you lose that advantage.

Don't get me wrong, as I noted before, I have one, and I don't hate D44's....but narrowing one isn't really worth it for a Toyota application. It's what everyone did 10 years ago, but the aftermarket support is so great now for Toyota axles that that's where you will find your best bang for the buck.

[dillenger1]

theyre just to expensive i can rebuild a complete d44 for the price of a used toyota front around here.