Picked up an upgrade last night (Thanks, Doc!)




8.25 rear



...complete with disc brake swap!


He also loaded me up with a few other miscellaneous spare parts and odds n ends.

Good to finally meet you, Doc. Good luck on your new ventures!

 

Nice score!

 

Thanks! I'm hoping I get REALLY lucky and it's a 29 spline. Came out of a 96 Police Package, so it's any man's guess.

 

fancy

 

Right? It's all high-falutin' and crap. Not gonna know what to do with all this advanced technology... feel like it's going to take off into orbit soon!

 

i liked when i switched to rear discs, many much more stopping

not as much a when i webt to wj front brakes tho

 

Yeah, that's coming later on. Lot more involved with that though.... as you're well aware.

 

Well, little bit of disappointing news regarding the axle. It's a 27 spline. Looking over all my options at this point, but the rear axle project is going to be on the back burner for now. At this point I'm thinking OX locker and some CHROMO shafts since I'll need a new carrier and shafts anyway. We'll see. Exploring the option of having the carrier and races machined to accept the 29 spline spiders and shafts... but I kinda don't want to waste the money if I'm eventually going to get a locker and re-gear anyway.

 

If only I knew about this a couple weeks ago, I just tossed my 3.07 geared 29spline axle out because of code enforcement, I kept the shafts for spares...

 

AAARRRRGGGHHHH!!!! lol... that's ok. Maybe I'll get lucky and find someone parting one out that doesn't know what they have.

 

So this is what I've got so far...

Opt 1) Take my carrier to a machine shop, have them hone the bearing races to 1.122" and the holes for the larger diameter spiders gears (don't know what that is at this point - no one lists specs for them), get 29 spline shafts and spiders, regear later. $285 plus the cost of machining... AND maybe even having to have someone set gear lash for me again since I have to remove the carrier to have it machined.

-This could happen as early as spring

Opt 2) Buy a new carrier, new shafts, new spiders, reuse my R&P $400 plus the cost of a shop setting up the gears

-This would probably be more like next summer.

Opt 3) Buy an ox locker, new shafts, 4.56 gears, pay a shop to set up the gears. Never have to touch it again 1400 bucks (ish) plus cost of shop to set up gears.

-Gonna be at least a year... maybe longer.


Opts 1 & 2 don't seem so bad... until you factor in my ultimate goal of the Ox Locker. Makes no sense spend at least 300 bucks just to rip all of that out and spend another 1400 later.

I think time and patience is going to be the winner in the end.

 

if it were me i would just grab an 8.8 with discs and 3.55s and slap a ruff stuff perch kit on it maybe 4-500$

or just run it as is, the 27 spline one arent exactly weak axles

 

I've considered that as well, but I'd rather use what I have.

And I dunno about using the 27 spline setup... I mean, the diff is open, I'm not hard on the skinny pedal, and I'm only running 32's well... 33's soon... I suppose I could and take advantage of the disc brakes in the meantime.

I'm just having a hard time swapping in an axle that, while the carrier is stronger and ring gear is larger, the axle shaft diameter is smaller.

I might just go ahead and do that anyway though. I'm not hard on axles.

Hell, Doc was running this thing with 35s and he beats on his stuff.

 

I'd just run it for now since you're open diff. You shouldn't have any issues. I need rear discs. I'm tired of putting new shoes on all the time.

 

Dangit, I wish I wouldn't have pulled the carrier out now. Maybe I'll get lucky and the adjuster wasn't disturbed on the driver's side.