Another question for you guys...

R

Redsdawnmist

New member
I have been pondering my SOA project and, taking the advice from you all, I decided to go and find a d44 front axle. I found one at a nearby pick and pull type place. It's off a 1979 Jeep wagoneer. I read in the bb that I would not have to do the cut and turn on this axle because the castor is already acceptable. Anyone know this for true or not?
 
:gringrin: imo, and I aint no xpert here but if the axle is already SOA, and im not sure bout the waggys ,it should be ok for off road use. If this is going to be a driver then you definitely need to check it at the ball joint seat with a smart tool. If it aint at least 5 degrees you will have some wandering and other drivability issues. One way to find out is to look up the alignment specs for the donor vehicle. They should tell you what the caster is for that axle and you can make adjustments as needed but dont use aluminum shims in the front. They will get eaten by the corosion worms and leave you with loose u-bolts and really bad alignment gremlins.trust me ive seen this in action on the trail and it aint pretty.also depending on the lift you will need to you front pinion angle and drive shaft lenght.
 
Depends on the lift & the angle of your springs.

It's not SOA by the way.

Waggy's have 5-6* built in a believe, the pinion is already pointing toward the tcase.

I'm SOA on 2.5" bds yj springs.
I did not have to cut & turn.

I did have to put a Mark williams offset/extreme angle u-joint on the front yoke of the tcase for eliminate binding while wheeling.
 
There is a great write up in the axle section on the ultimate 44.
I too am running a Tom woods "offset" joint at the t-case.

It really depends on your budget. Most jy axles are just that, junk. Don't get me wrong about jy shopping, but you really need to think this through. If your looking to just do SOA on the cheap nothing wrong with the stock d44 axle with disk brakes. If you have a d30 with drum brakes then keep shopping.

Pictures of said Scout would help a ton
 
Thanks guys for the input. I will get some pics up in a little while. My pc took a digger and all the pics are on it. Needs a new motherboard. I have a donor to put in it though, just gotta get to it. :)

the axle I was looking at is at barger mattson in twin falls, near where I live. It's a pull and pay sort of place. I was told that it was a d44 w/ disk brakes but I haven't made it down there to get it yet. I wanted to get your guys' opinions on it before I dedicated myself to it.

Btw, my Scout is a 1965 Scout 80. Champagne series even. Dana 44 in the rear with a Dana 27 up front. As it sits now, it has a 152 4 cylinder w/ the 3 speed transmission and a twin stick transfer case. I hope this is enough info for you guys because I don't have the pics to post yet.
 
First off, before shellin' coin for any axle I'd get the bom number off it and post here so we can see what the "original" build on it was. Hopefully the bom number appears in the published dbase.

The actual "effective" caster (in relation to the road/ground) is gonna be determined by how it's mounted to the vehicle, not the position the outers were welded at the point of oem manufacture. And someone could have already fooked with that boneyard axle moving spring perches around, modding hanger positions on the frame, etc. No tellin'!!

And then there is the "straightness" issue regarding any used/takeoff Dana axle assembly.

Folks such as Darren and Jeff have worked out the numbers for the "cut and twist" on these items over many years of doing it on many different vehicles, each one is somewhat unique depending upon frame/suspension conditions and mods. So they can put an axle in the jig and make the axle outer angles what they determine to be the "best" for the customer's intended use and setup.

My point is...that Jeep axle "might" have a different amount of positioning of the outers as compared to a Scout II spec axle...but the "difference" was spec'd originally for the intended oem application with all the suspension components hung in an engineered position for the Jeep! The oem setup of that axle has to be referenced off all the critical datum points called out in the original axle specifications. No different than the same methodology used in manufacturing all similar axles!

The only angle that truly matters...is the actual angle measured when the entire assembly is attached to the vehicle, and the vehicle is sitting under normal load conditions complete with the wheels/tires to be used in service, just like when it's on an alignment rack.
 
However that axle May be worth looking at either way. It May be the fabelled trifecta. Meaning it May have the flat top knuckles, small spindle and Chevy style backing plates. It May be a very good canidate for the internal hub, Chevy/Ford brake rotor swap/upgrade.
 
Exactly Chad!

Before beans are dropped, it needs to be eyeballed by knowledgeable eyeballz so them beans don't go to waste based on urban myth!
 
If I May I'd like to drop in on this thread. I want to swap both axles out of my 1969(pending LST) 800. (unsure if it is an a) I want to know what the best possible axle combo would be. Highest priorities are price, strength and ease of installation. I want to run 35 inch tires maximum. This will be a trailered, off road vehicle only. Right now I'm pretty sure it has the d27/d30 combo. Not too sure on anything else but the 152 4-banger which I think I want to keep and just gear up in the axles and convert to a d300 with a 4:1 swap. So,...out of all the axle/spring swaps out there in a stock vehicle what is the best option so that I can use the steering off the donor vehicle, dont have to turn the knuckles, and wont require to much mod. On the spring perches?


1) vehicle model.:Scout 800
2) production date/or year model.:1969 (or so the po says)
3) two wheel drive or four wheel drive.:4
4) type of transmission (and transfer case if applicable).:manual and dual stick ???? (t90 and t18?)
5) if 4x4, which axles front and rear.:d27/d30
6) which engine variation.:152cid
7) which ignition system variation.:stock
8) which fuel system variation.:stock
9) which brake system variation.:stock
10) non-oem modifications present which May impact a response.:light wallet:nonod:
 
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