Maybe I should have put "trigger warning" in the subject line.. Seems like this topic has strong opinions both ways.

I just committed to the CV axle swap. Reasoning was - if something breaks I can still make it home. When a CV breaks I don't think it can hurt your ball joints or knuckle. I'll almost always be carrying my wife and kids with me and will have limited cell signal. I won't be on anything beyond a easy/moderate trail but I really just want all the peace of mind I can get.

According the internet (which is never wrong) the part numbers are CH8220 and CH8221 and they drop right in. RockAuto has them in stock. I noticed the trackmotive brand offers a "HDX" version of most of the their cv axles. So I searched CH8220HDX and CH8221HDX and sure enough they have the cv axles in the HDX too. So I went ahead and ordered those.

When I get them in and on the road/trail - I'll report back. They'll either work or they won't.

 

Have run both types. I found no difference in strength or longevity. 35's on 6" lift. Ymmv

 

I switched to cv's this spring. Alot less binding when turn sharp and smooth. I bought them from O Rilies with a life time warranty. Just throw the worn out one in the box and exchange for new.

 

The Trakmotive HDX have a lifetime warranty also. I read somewhere that Trakmotive is the supplier for O'Reilly.

 

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I wish I had known about these when I was rebuilding my u-joints a few years ago. I always thought the only option were the $1K CV axle sets.

 

Yeah I learned about them from watching dexj youtube videos lol. Then found others on forums that had done it. Figured I would pull the trigger. Happy I did it.

 

I noticed that the axle tube debris shield is not used on these. Now more easy for debris to get into the tube, or does the CV boot act as a debris shield?

 

The CV boot somewhat acts to prevent large debris. Water and mud could still get in but they can also get in with the little plastic shield.

Before I decided on the CV shaft I had thought about getting the outer tube seals that are greaseable. I found that some were better made than others but no matter which brand I looked at, I could find report of water getting in past the seal no matter how much grease people pumped into the seal. So then I thought about if the factory plastic shield keeps out large stuff but lets water in but also lets water out, that has to better than trapping stuff in the tube.

I'm not big on deep mud holes or deep water crossing with my XJ. The occasional shallow creek or mud hole is going to happen, but at least I know that the majority of water will drain out if it get in.

 

Yeah, the aftermarket ones don't seem 100% effective at stopping water and appear to need frequent lubing. I'm thinking more of debris build-up in the axle.

 

It would be nice if there were an easier and faster way of pulling the shafts to scrape out the build up. Keep the hub and bolts never seized real good lol.