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For this swap, is it recommended to do some unibody strengthening? The Sterling 10.25 is obviously heavier than the D35 I have, so will there be more stress on the unibody?
And for the spring perches, they're almost in the perfect spot to swap in but are off by around an inch on both sides. What route should I go with this? I'd really like to avoid cutting the old perches out, grinding it clean, getting new ones and having them welded at the right angle. Could I re-use the stock ones already on the 10.25?
For this swap, is it recommended to do some unibody strengthening? The Sterling 10.25 is obviously heavier than the D35 I have, so will there be more stress on the unibody?
And for the spring perches, they're almost in the perfect spot to swap in but are off by around an inch on both sides. What route should I go with this? I'd really like to avoid cutting the old perches out, grinding it clean, getting new ones and having them welded at the right angle. Could I re-use the stock ones already on the 10.25?
you should avoid this swap all together. you will want anti wrap perches, lots of uniframe plating, redo shock mounts, all sorts of stuff. what front axle are you putting in? otherwise it's new 17" rims for you too. gotta clear them 1 ton calipers.
you should avoid this swap all together. you will want anti wrap perches, lots of uniframe plating, redo shock mounts, all sorts of stuff. what front axle are you putting in? otherwise it's new 17" rims for you too. gotta clear them 1 ton calipers.
I already bought the 10.25 and read up on it so I'm pretty committed.
For the perches, I'll be running an anti-wrap bar anyways so I dont think that'll be a major issue.
Shock mounts are pretty basic too. already have them mocked up and tacked in place.
From my research, it seems like unibody plating is an essential so I plan on doing it anyways. For the front, I'm still hunting for a front D60 or maybe a D44...I'd rather a 60 as I'm running 38.5's. The best I could find was one that a guy wants $600 for and he's almost 200 miles away from me.
I'm doing the conversion on the sterling to disk brakes and have a set of 15" rims that'll fit my 8 x 6.5" pattern. I'll bu using 3/4 ton chevy calipers and was told that it might take a bit of caliper grinding, but nothing major since it's the 3/4 ton calipers. Any truth to this?
Also, when I swap the rear in, will my main XJ leaf hold up to the heavier diff? I have a bastard pack with Blazer springs and the overload that's netted me ~5" of lift. Would like to stay in that ballpark if possible too.
I already bought the 10.25 and read up on it so I'm pretty committed.
For the perches, I'll be running an anti-wrap bar anyways so I dont think that'll be a major issue.
Shock mounts are pretty basic too. already have them mocked up and tacked in place.
From my research, it seems like unibody plating is an essential so I plan on doing it anyways. For the front, I'm still hunting for a front D60 or maybe a D44...I'd rather a 60 as I'm running 38.5's. The best I could find was one that a guy wants $600 for and he's almost 200 miles away from me.
I'm doing the conversion on the sterling to disk brakes and have a set of 15" rims that'll fit my 8 x 6.5" pattern. I'll bu using 3/4 ton chevy calipers and was told that it might take a bit of caliper grinding, but nothing major since it's the 3/4 ton calipers. Any truth to this?
Also, when I swap the rear in, will my main XJ leaf hold up to the heavier diff? I have a bastard pack with Blazer springs and the overload that's netted me ~5" of lift. Would like to stay in that ballpark if possible too.
Your initial question was super basic so I wasn't sure how much you had going on. And I never reuse anything. I always run aftermarket bracketry. And you'll definitely need a 60. $600 is a steal for a ford 60. Usually you won't pay less than $1000 for one but some people luck out. Running the 15's is so scary. You need 17's! The 60 calipers look scary thin with the amount you have to shave down. XJ mains!? Like stock XJ? Hell nah!
This is sounding a lot like a hack *** mudder build. There's a big difference between a frugal build and flat out building it wrong
Your initial question was super basic so I wasn't sure how much you had going on. And I never reuse anything. I always run aftermarket bracketry. And you'll definitely need a 60. $600 is a steal for a ford 60. Usually you won't pay less than $1000 for one but some people luck out. Running the 15's is so scary. You need 17's! The 60 calipers look scary thin with the amount you have to shave down. XJ mains!? Like stock XJ? Hell nah!
This is sounding a lot like a hack *** mudder build. There's a big difference between a frugal build and flat out building it wrong
For the perches, I measured and my leafs will land perfectly on the original perches. The center pin hole on the perches will need to be re-drilled. That’s about all that has to be done and minimizes my chances ofre-welding perches that don’t have exact same angles.
The 60 I found was without steering components or axles or brakes. I scored cheap parts for my XJ by just checking the classifieds at the right time. I’ll keep my eyes open. My buddy scored a d60/14bff set for $500 for his Chevso I’ll keep my eyes open for a deal like that.
I want to stick with the 15” rims just for the fact that I want to avoid buying new tires at ~$500-$600 apiece and use that money for long arms,heims, metal, etc. From my research, it looks like I’ll be good for grinding a small amount off the Chevy ¾ calipers so I should be set there. Just need to research alternatives for the front.
Some of the threads I’ve read made no reference on what they did for their rear main spring when swapping in ¾ and 1 ton rear ends. Some mention RC lift packs they already had, some mention bastard packs. No one even mademention of changing the main out (from the few build threads I read). What I was thinking was maybe using a 52” Chevy main and getting a spring shop to re-drill the center pin hole to match the offset of the XJ center pin (Chevy 52’s pin isdead center, right?). I was also thinking to maybe cut the eyes off the Chevy 52” main and re-drill the center hole and use it to support the XJ main. Just things I’ve been trying to research.
This isn’t a “hack *** mudder build”. My intent is to do extensive research and build everything perfect once so I’m not doing trail fixes all the time or spending more time in the garage than out wheeling. I use my XJ for hunting and camping in remote areas so mudding isn’t something I do, nor enjoy. I do trail rides and want to tackle anything that comes my way.
just run a complete chevy leaf pack and put all your lift height adjustment in the shackle. I'm running chevy 56's with a 7" shackle to net equal ride height to my front suspension, which is using 5.5" coil springs. XJ mains or redrilling a main are not the routes I would be looking into. it's a lot of work to put these big axles in and have them be reliable. do it right
like with the rims. if you're driving on the street man seriously... you have to run at least 16.5" hummer wheels. they're cheap and military tires are cheap too. theres a reason people spend loads of money on these swaps. mud or not, the stuff you're looking into is definitely the hack way of going about business. keep the research up and find some good friends who will tell you a bad idea when they see one
where are you looking at people running RC leafs on one tons? get on pirate4x4 Cherokee section. theres good builds and tech in there that will set you straight
I'll probably go with the chevy pack. Would it probably be easier to hunt for 56's vs 52's? They're the same width, right?
I don't do much street driving. I drive it around my block once a week just to get the juices flowing and then just to the trails (less than 10 miles one way). I drive it like its my child, so I'm not ripping around doing hard cornering and braking lol. The problem with classifieds where I'm from is that not many people are into offroading. It's not really huge here. Everyone has ATV's or dirt bikes basically. That's why it's hard to have buddies to ask questions, yet alone guys with XJ's. I have yet to see one where I live that's over 2-3" lift/31's/control arm drop brackets in the 10+ years I've lived here.
From the threads I read with diff swaps (I've read in full about half a dozen) I just saw no mention on what they did with their main leafs.
Thanks again for your help. I'm taking everything into consideration and trying to formulate a proper, complete plan.
I don't know a lot about chevy leaf springs really. I assume they're all 3" wide or whatever. I'll try to dig up a good leaf prong tech article for you when I get to a real computer.
Sterling install complete with no issues, no frame stiffeners, stock S10 leaf springs (not a bastard pack), D44 front on 38's.
All the crap people think is "needed" is b/c they have never done it.
theres all the numbers. couldn't find a tech thread on building good rear bastards or anything
Thanks for the great info. Much appreciated.
Originally Posted by 89whiteXJ
Sterling install complete with no issues, no frame stiffeners, stock S10 leaf springs (not a bastard pack), D44 front on 38's.
All the crap people think is "needed" is b/c they have never done it.
All the crap people think is "needed" is b/c they have never done it.
I know exactly what is needed because I have done it. putting in 1 tons doesn't mean you'll stop having breakage. not by a long shot. big axles are heavy enough to tear up whatever around them is the weak point. without upgrading EVERYTHING all you're doing is moving around the weak point. it's important to have frame plates, beef steering, upgraded brake system, wheels that don't require you to grind down your calipers, new bracketry etc.
and a locked dana 44 definitely isn't strong enough for 38's under any high torque or wheel spin situations
08-25-2014, 04:14 PM
