I've been reading about what you have to do for these. How many people have done it? I'm not too worried about the rear at most you have to mount perches but the front seems like a bit more trouble. I've been trying to figure out the simplest way to get the right axle with the right knuckles seems tough though. I also looked at just buying one from currie and other places but $2200 is pretty steep.
I just got done swapping in the 8.25 my D35 was roaring pretty bad. But now I saw this was possible and I want to try and under take in in the next year or two depending on money. I'd also want to do a re gear and maybe lockers while I had them out. I'm planning a lift 3-4.5 leaning towards Rubicon Express I hear lots of good stuff about them. Then I haven't decided on tires but probably 31-33.

 

I narrowed a Ford HP Dana 44 from an early 70's F150. The knuckles are a combination of Ford and Chevy parts so I could run a 5 on 5.5 bolt pattern. I cannibalized the coil buckets off a donor Dana 30 and built my own truss. Shafts came from a narrow track Waggy D44.

Narrow Track Waggy axles will fit with the right brackets. The downsides are;
1.) The bolt pattern is different (6 on 5.5), so you'll need 5 new wheels.
2.) The front is a low pinion, so it's only marginally stronger than a HP Dana 30.

The only Direct Bolt-in is a Dana 44 front from an 03-06 Rubicon...and those aren't 100% D44's.

 

Well, the bolt pattern will change with any front D44 swap, so the 5 new wheels will happen regardless. Also, there is endless debate on how much of an upgrade the low pinion D44 is over the 30, ranging from a huge upgrade to "about the same." Being someone with a LP D44 up front, of course I want to believe it is considerable. But as with ALL "upgrades" there is room for arguement and always people that have had bad experiences.
Anyway, yes, the front will be a lot of work with any swap. The LP D44 from the old wagoneers is more straight forward because they are already the perfect width for the XJ. The HP D44 from a Ford will be more work because you need to have it narrowed (unless you want to go full width), but is stronger.

Regarding those 03-06 Rubicon direct bolt ins, I would do more research. I have read that they bolt in, and that they do not. I do not have any experience with them. But as stated, they are considered a marginal upgrade, as they are not actual dana 44's.

Whether any of this is worth it, or if you should just go bigger now depends on where you want to go with your rig.

Oh, to answer the other question, a loooooot of people have done this, especially with Ford and Waggy axles.

 

The rubicon front 44 is a direct bolt-in and the bolt pattern is 5 on 4.5....same as a Dana 30. No new wheels needed.

Low pinion axles reqire more work if you want the correct pinion and caster angles at taller lift heights.

 

What about a 4.5" lift? I'm doing one on my lp 2000 xj. I'd jump at a d44 front. Got to be a bit better or it wouldn't be offered.

 

The only upside to the rubi 44 is the ring and pinion size. It has D30 tubes, knuckles and outers. It was an upgrade on TJs since they had LP D30s to begin with and it came with a factory locker. But for the 1000 plus they sell for there are much better and cheaper options.

 

Hey I'm new the the sight and new to the cherokee. I was wondering how I determine what axles I currently have in my xj. And insight is greatly appreciated. Sorry of I hijacked the thread, couldnt find on axle id.

 

That's a smooth hi-jack.


Got pictures of the axles? What year is the Jeep?

 

You probably have the Dana 30 up front you should look to be safe though. Heres a pic to show the different covers. For the rear you probably have a Dana 35 or maybe the older 8.25 27 spline. I just swapped my D35 for the 97-2001 8.25 its stronger has 29 splines.

 

You dont need d44's for 31-33" tires, stock XJ axles do just fine up to 35's and breakage is really dependent upon your driving skills and habits. Ive had no issues rock crawling on 33's or 35's on stock d30 and locked 27 spline 8.25, Yea i have to change ujoints often and only broke 1 ujoint when I was pushing it. But if your not breaking then your not doing it right lol btw I dd my jeep too

Rubi 44 is no better than a stock d30 because 99 times out of 100, the ujoints break 1st and both have the same ujoints. They just use d44 gears to have stronger internals for the locker, thats about it.

 

Back to my question now Thanks for the info good stuff.

How much is it to get an axle shortened and who would do that? I'm open to going higher later on so I'd want to go ahead and do a high pinion axle. Are HP D30s bolt in? What do they come out of?

Also I'm no to worried about changing my bolt pattern. I'm still on my stockers so I'd just go ahead and get new tires and wheels. As long as there are a good amount of options available its not a big deal.

 

This.

 

Your jeep came stock with a HP D30 in it. Having an axle shortened can be pricey but really depends on the shop and how well you know them. A good driveline shop can do it but if you plan on big tires I'd go full width for the added stability unless you have fender flare laws where you live.

 

I did the D44's F+R out of a Waggy, already had a LP front and didn't want to mess with narrowing axles so I just did it... I tried to put lots of details in my build thread, almost any axle swap will take the same amount of work and $$ to swap. its the parts that go into the axle that make the overall difference in cost IMO. I haven't had any issues and Wouldn't do it any other way for what I want.

Another option though is Early Ford Bronco axles, HP D44 (said to be 59-60" wide) front and ford 9" rear (said to be 58" wide). both can be Stronger overall then the Waggy axles. The down side is the 9" is a 28 spline and the front has the D30 joints, but using front F150 shafts, and buy 31/33/35/40 spline shafts and lockers for the rear can fix that... All an easy fix when locking/building axles already.... but it is work.. and $$ lol

TNT makes a nice truss for the front that's weld on and then bolts in. but costs a lot of $$ IMO, I pieced the brackets together for less then half the price of the TNT truss. but convenience costs $$.

My pinion angle isn't bad at 6" of lift and I have 7* of caster. but I also pushed my front axle forward 3" which helped a little.

All in All, if your just planning 33's then keep the stock axles, Its not worth the effort, work, $$ , or time. The factory axles are great with alloys to 35" tires and locked....

just my $0.35 cents lol

 

dont be scared of staying full width, run wheels with a good amount of backspacing and it wont be much wider than guys who run 33s on numerically low backspacing with stock axles