Dang man sorry to hear it, that really sucks. Im in the process of trading them out for some 35's so hopefully thatll make it better. I wanted to find a 44 before I regeared it but I just couldnt hold off anymore but I plan of upgrading axles someday. Thanks for the compliments though! I love my round headlights

Planning on going to the jamboree this year, plenty of time to fix your jeep

 

It's all good man, part of wheeling lol. I had good luck when i had 35" km2s.

I've got some goodish news though, I opened up my d30 today to see my carnage and it took me a while to spot it because my ring and pinion looked great. The carrier had actually cracked all the way around. And lucky me I've got a spare 3.73+ carrier laying around. So I'm gonna talk to the guys at East Coast Gear Supply this week about resetting up my d30. I've also still got the spider gears from when i replaced them with the aussie locker so I'll be swapping them back in. Not what I wanted to do but it is the most budget friendly choice for now.

 

Just got some 35 maxxis bighorns so i think im gonna be happy with them but dang man thats good at least, a lot cheaper than a new ring and pinion. But are you running a locker???

 

Bighorns are a good tire, nice pick up. But yessir I have an aussie locker up front lol. I'm surprised it took this long for something inside the differential to go boom boom.

 

Danggg yea pretty brave running those tires with a locker haha

 

It's all about throttle control. But that's the main reason I never spent the cash on chromolies and nice joints. There's guys that I wheel with that run 35s on locked 30s and beat the living **** out of it all day long without a problem and I go 20 minutes into the day and bust my carrier lol.

 

Its crazy how much just a little bit more tire can affect a lot. But arent yours just half and inch taller and narrower?

 

Yeah they measure as tall as the 36" TSL I carry as a spare. They're like 11.5" wide and bias ply. Amazing tires on the hills and mud.

 

Yea mine are bias as well. Theyve done great so far offroad

 

Little update..bought a complete Waggy dana 44 off of a buddy. He was going to use it under his jeep so we already had put the bracketry on it. He decided to go a different route so here I am with it. We used brackets from Rusty's offroad, just needs a trac bar bracket. As for the rest of it...it's junk. Right now I'm just tearing into it and will be calling East Coast Gear Supply to regear it soon.

My plans for it:
-4.56 gears to match the 8.8
-Yukon grizzly full case locker
-ford hubs to get a 5x5.5 lug pattern and use an adapter for the 8.8
-warn locking hubs
-flat top knuckles
-stock shafts for now since the budget will be killed
-decent truss

 

But I do need some input on using ford hubs/rotors. I've done some research and the popular thing to do seems to be using chevy 44 calipers, caliper brackets, knuckles, and small bearing spindle off of a mid 70s. Is this the way to go? Any input is appreciated. Thanks

 

Figured I'd update this thing on my lunch break. I've been slowly gathering parts for my waggy 44. Right now I've got the axle torn down to bare housing.

So far I've got:
Alloy usa chromoly shafts and 760x joints
4.56 ring and pinion and master install kit
hub/rotor assembly for a '83 F150 with all the bearings and seals
new ball joints
wheels (not in the pic)
alloy usa axle tube seals
welded carrier

Left to get:
Chevy small bearing spindles (should be here monday)
warn locking hubs
5x4.5 to 5x5.5 adapters for the rear
Solid diff cover
Steering
I'm sure there's more that i can't think of right now

I'm taking my axle and gears to East Coast Gear Supply to have them installed hopefully tomorrow or early next week. After that I'll throw it under the jeep and begin assembly and making the steering.

 

If all goes well I'll be bringing a 44/60 8 lug with rims combo home with me next week.
Hoping to get them under the Jeep before to long.
My issue is control arms.
I have research to do.
Looking forward to you're build.

 

Nice, that would be my preferred combo to have but I just got too impatient looking. They're pricey but check out TNT trusses. I got lucky and got my waggy 44 from my buddy that had it under his jeep. I might order a tnt truss with the driver side uca mount just to have a truss and my uca looks a little sketchy though. Let me know if you have any questions, I've gotten pretty knowledgeable with d44's lately.

 

I cleaned and primed my 44 housing today. Also painted the diff cover orange...lol.


With it being such a beautiful day I decided to take the ole heep for one last spin before tear down. I had to take the front shafts and drive shaft out before it could go anywhere but it was worth it. I yanked the doors off while I was at it.