So I've been reading and reading but I just cant figure out whats best for me. First off I have front D30, rear C8.25, both open. I'm wondering could I replace the front D30 with a D44 and lock it, and keep the rear C8.25 and lock it aswell and upgrade to stronget axle shafts? Or should I just upgrade the front D30 with stronger shafts, lock it and do the same thing to the C8.25? I mostly just wheel it through trails in the woods. I dont rock crawl. (just to give you an idea of what kind of wheeling I do). Also, I'm currently running 36" SS TSL's (the previous owner ran these, I wouldn't have gone that big on stock axles) but I want to keep the 36" tires. So with all that info what do you folks think is best for my rig? Thanks in advance!

 

With 36" tire I would go with D44. I have D30 disc stock locked in the front and saving up for the complete Yukon shafts since I run 33" tire.

 

35" tires are max for a D44 locked. 36-37 max open. (based on interwebs) but if your going to be doing a axle swap, and spending the money on brackets/shafts/lockers/gears, you should think about a D60 front, and a Ford 9" or D60 rear aswell, do it once. the main cost diffrence is in buying the axle. brackets and setup will cost the same. A D44 would work, but dosn't seam cost effective as you are hovering the max load that axle can handle already... if you do go D44 front, which would be "ok" get a HP ford axle.

 

Find a beater 70s ford truck for cheap (<$700) take the 9" / hp44. use those for 36s

 

front 44 will do good. imo i wouldnt run over 35s with a dana 30. you can try your luck with the 8.25 and if it works awesome and if you get tired of breaking it do a swap

its an inevitable money pit anyways right? lol

 

The previous owner was running the 36" tires for quite some time. He wheeled it quite a bit. I've had the jeep since December and have wheeled it some with no problems... Guess I'm just waiting for something to break running these 36"ers... So what do you consider to be max tire size on a built up( axle truss, cromoly shafts, inner axle sleeve) dana 30 with locker?

 

With the right parts a d30 can live happily with 37's.... but then you have to weight the cost out.

The plan would be 30 spline arb, RCV shafts, T&T truss, and knuckle gussetting.

For the rear I would do 33/or 35 spline chromo's and a truss, with disc brakes.


The 8.25 if it is a 29 apline unit is close to the same strength as a d44.

With all the money it would take to build the front d44, you could build a d44, or buy a used built d60....


Just saying

 

I'm going with the Chrysler 8.25, Dana 30 combo in my 93, I will be running 4.88 gears. the Dana 30 will have an E-Locker with 30 spline chrome-molly shafts, and a truss.
The Chrysler 8.25 will have a Detroit locker, and 1541H 29 spline shafts. The total cost is less than 3000.00 including shipping. I'm planning on running 34-36 inch tires with this setup and if I stay with these smaller size tires I will be just fine.