ericfx1984

I need some help narrowing this down... I do not plan to go any bigger than MAYBE 315 / 75 / 16 (measures 35 x 12.4 x 16 ) but for NOW I am happy with my 285 / 75 / 16 (measures 33.25 x 11.25 x 16, on a 16x8 wheel)

I guess another option is to do a little to both axles...???

I have the following axles... I would like to do gears... but it is out of my price range right now... right now lockers are higher on the list (or at least A LOCKER)

C 8.25 (29 Spline) with 3.55 gears and an open carrier

I was thinking just throwing a locker in there and building a box tube truss... I could build one for around $20-30

maybe some alloys (under $350 a pair on Ebay)...

the sad thing is it seems like it only costs a TINY amount more to get a full case locker (500-600) instead of a lunchbox (400-500)... lol and then it is just a hop skip and a jump to get a selectable locker like ARB or OX (around $850-950)

THE BIGGEST THING that building the c 8.25 has going for it is that it is already sitting on the floor of my garage... meaning no down time (I do not have an extra d30... not yet anyway)

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or I could focus on the HP D30, also 3.55 gears and Open carrier... and the 'BIG' joints

for a locker I could spend as little as $200... OR I could hit the junk yards and pull a volvo d30 limited slip... might spend around $20-$50

as for a truss I could just do a premade... Ballistics looks great and is around $100 shipped, which is crazy cheap

alloy inners and outters, but that will run me in the $600-800 range pretty quickly... and then WHY NOT just up grade to 30 spline...???

SeriousOffroad

You'll be miles ahead if you bank your spare change and do it all at one time.

Re-gearing will get you back in the power band for the 4.0L and that means less money in the tank.

4.56 front and rear FTW.

A lunchbox locker can be added to the rear axle without removing the carrier, so that can be done at a later date.

A selectable for the front should be installed when the new gears go in. That way you're not paying for a gear install twice.

Make sense?

CO wheelin

I'm in a pretty similar situation. I've got the 27 spline 8.25 now and threw in a lock-right and love it but I also do my "wheeling" on rocks in the mountains here in CO, probably different from what you do. I've saved up some money and have been shopping recently for a different setup and will be going with 4.56 gears.

The awesome thing about the 8.25 rear ends is that the axle shafts are identical length. If you don't mind carrying a spare shaft, just grab one from a junk yard and save yourself $330 by not getting the alloy shafts.

One big difference with the spider gear replacement lockers is the ring and pinion aren't touched, so no setting up back lash. Can you set up your own rear end? If not, add that labor to the cost of a full locker.

If you don't drive like a maniac on the street, an auto locker is fine. If you drive hard/fast, the auto locker could cause you to lose control on wet/snowy/icy roads.

I chose to build the rear first because while climbing, a lot of weight transfers to the rear, so that's where you'll need the traction.

I'm hopefully going with a selectable locker in the front simply because it's harder to turn when your locker is engaged, regardless of style of locker. I also drive in the snow during a large enough part of the year and the selectable offers better traction on slick roads.

Another option for the front would be to use ZJ axle shafts. Not sure at the moment what else would need to be done to run those but they're thicker.

Hope some of this info helps, your driving conditions on and off road may vary so some of it won't apply.

ericfx1984

yes sir it does...

thanks for the advice

SeriousOffroad

No, not really.
ZJ shafts are the exact same as later model XJ shafts that use a 297/760 u-joint.

Alloy shafts are pricey....BUT, the strength is incredible and the piece of mind is priceless.