I finally found a dana 30, non CAD with 3.73 gears.
it was out of a 85 "wagoner" Cherokee.
The dana 30 has CV axles as opposed to U joints.
This will be a DD seeing mild, occasional wheeling, 3.5" lift, 31-32 tires.

Are the stock CV axles up to it? the boots are torn so I would be replacing the CVs while I rebuild the outers (ball joints, bearing hubs, etc)
Should I swap in later 297 U joint shafts? I have a 2000 LP D30 for parts laying out back.

Is installing U joint shafts a bolt on affair? or is there custom work to be done?

Thanks,
Slack

 

You already have the u-joint shafts, so I would swap them in.

 

So it is a bolt in swap? same everything else?

 

Isn't happening, no way in hell the 2001 U joint shafts are working with the 85 Hub bearing unit.
only way this will work is if you swap in the 2001 knuckle, Bearing hub, rotor and caliper.
The 85 and 2001 bearing hubs are so vastly different in the way they mate with the shafts.


Slack

 

Just to clarify, you could install U joint shafts in an early XJ D30 that had CV shafts, problem is the bearing hub on the earlier CV D30's seals ON the axle shaft, While the later Bearing Hubs are sealed units.
So when You pull the CV shafts out and install the U joint shafts, then remount the Bearing hub,, the back of the hub is open to allow water/mud into the bearing.
I mic'd the surface on the CV shaft and the sheet metal "thing" on the U joint shaft, the U joint shaft surface is about .08 smaller in Dia.
I took sheet metal ring off the u joint shat and test fitted it into the back of the 85 bear hub, it is to small to make contact with the lip of the seal.

So if you want to swap in U joint shafts into your early CV Dana 30, you NEED to swap in later year knuckles, SEALED bearing hubs, rotors and calipers.
I am sure there are a bunch of people who have swapped in U joint shafts, and wonder why their bearing hubs only last a year.

 

The later model axles use sealed unit bearings with both CV and U joint shafts. I am not sure what year they started using the sealed unit bearings.

 

The AMC hubs were used through 89.
Odd thing is U joint axle shafts were from the factory pre 1990.
But the late model outer shaft does NOT seal upto the early hubs grease seal lip.

So was the early outer shafts different? or was the early hub on U joint axles different from the hubs on the CV axles?

Either way, you can not just take late model U joint shafts and swap them into early model CV axles. Well you "can" but the hub bearing is not sealed from the elements.