boxburn

I'm about to buy a Dana 30 just for it's diff cover plate as it's cheaper than trying to buy just the cover, go figure. A few details about my original:
It's done 122K, had a good number of sea water dunks in its lifetime (hence why I need a new cover).

• It doesn't seem noisey
• Hasn't caused me any issues so far
• Is only used for on-road use

Is it worth rebuilding this 2nd axle like I am with my D35? This axle has only done 70K so I'm told.
Are these axles pretty reliable and durable in my driving circumstances?

I'm just weighing up what it's worth doing with it once I have my cover plate.

Thanks

00t444e

Dana 30 front axles are worth rebuilding for sure, they can handle 35s in mostly stock form depending on how you treat it. The Dana 35 rear is nothing but a paperweight as far as I'm concerned, I wouldn't spend a dime on one, you can swap it out for a Chrysler 8.25 pretty easily.

boxburn

Not that easily over here. Lots of parts can be difficult to get hold of so when my D35 packed in, I was very lucky to find another locally, if a 8.25 were available, I would have considered it.

Back to the point of the D30, I'm guessing if they're a good axle, this one I'm about to get is likely to be in reasonable internal condition, especially as the D35 from the same vehicle is quiet, straight and happy.

For anyone who's wondering, it's only £80 for the axle with 2 wheels and good tyres on it. I can only find uprated diff covers online and cost £150+ so the choice is obvious.

dave1123

Hell yes! Take your old cover and put it on the new axle, store the axle away until you think you'll need it or sell it if you don't want it. Either way, you should get back most if the money you spent and/or have peace of mind that you've got a spare.

I made a big mistake letting my damaged 2000 WJ's NP242 transfer case go for the core charge. I know I could have fixed it but I needed my daily driver NOW and figured I'd never need another t/case. NOW, I could have fixed it and put it in my XJ, bolt in swap! D'oh! (famous quote from Homer Simpson) Now it will cost me about $150 USD for a junkyard unit that I don't have any history on.

RocketMouse

X2 on that one. Some parts are just worth holding on to for future rebuild if necessary. On the bigger parts at least I totally agree with you. Sometimes having that history portion on a component is well worth the cost of admission.

awg

If you dont have a leak, noise, or some other concern with your existing assembly, I would just slap the "new" cover on it, and keep the replacement unit on hand, in case of future trouble...which may never occur...unless you like spending money and rebuilding diff assemblies

boxburn

That's probably what I'll opt for. I mostly opted to rebuild my D35 as I've never worked on a diff and do enjoy the whole learning process of doing so. I've watched a few videos on doing it, even some who use an impact gun on the crush sleeve . I'm more following the FSM way of doing it. Once I've done the rear, I've been through the process and if this spare one should be alright being a D30, I'll be happy to just keep it spare.

Thanks all for the replies and I picked it up today. My spares pile is beginning.

Morat

Keep it spare, you never when when someone might need it

dave1123

Boxburn, once upon a time....I worked in a gas station part time helping a nice guy who needed a warm body with wrenches. He had a Chevy dealership right across the street and he used to service their loaner cars. These were used trade-ins that were still in good shape. He replaced a rear diff seal with an impact gun and destroyed the axle! I was there when he did it and told him he did wrong, but I was just a young kid that didn't know anything, right? That rear axle didn't last a week in service! Rebuilding a differential is like being a surgeon. You need to know what you're doing and use care, the right tools, and dial indicators. Using a shim .001" too thick can half it's life expectancy. I mean I've rebuilt automatic transmissions before, but diffs are best left to the professionals. I also found out the guys in heavy truck repair get a kick out of working on the small ones! One guy fixed my Camaro Positraction when I blew it up for a case of beer! I just paid for the parts....and the beer!

boxburn

At least I have a spare if it goes wrong . I'd hope that my rebuild lasts longer than a week, using the correct tools should help. I should stay away from the D35 rebuild videos as most do it without any of the correct measurements, and a lot of it looks good to me.

So far I've acquired a nice bearing puller (we've never had to pull bearings at our place, we always press them in/out). A low range digital torque measure so it can bleep at me when the pre-load drag is correct. I'm pretty sure there's a DTI a friend has which I can borrow when needed. As for shimming, I currently have just the originals lined up how they came out. When the time comes, if it's in spec, great, if not, I can get the shim pack easily enough.

You have to start somewhere and with it being my own, it's not so bad to try to do it correctly. You'll know down the line when it's done and in if I messed up, I'll say, Dave1123 warned me but I didn't listen.

awg

a tip is to get the old bearings and hone the respective inner or outer, which allows you to slip fit certain bearings during assembly

new bearings pressed on when all is right

This is especially useful on spacer & shim fit diffs, not work as well for crush sleeves like D35

I have a video that shows how to determine certain critical measurements without the special & expensive Pinion Depth Gauge tool