AXLE SWAP OPTIONS

[JackstandJohnny]

call stan at northridge; you can order up a brand new rear 44 with gears, lockers etc for 2500.  bolt in.   any kind of axle swap you consider, if you can't weld and do the work yourself, is going to be very costly.  any axle will cost $$$$ to swap in.......

if you could find TJ axles with 4.10s that'd be an option too i guess........ but the condition of said axles may be questionable, and if you are going through all that trouble, it would be a wise idea to have them rebuilt....  and if you are just going to pay someone to install them, might as well just regar yours.......

or,keep your stock axles and regear them. be prepared to drop about 800 - 1000 on gears, plus another 1000 - 1500 on install...  a 'super 35' kit will run you an additional 1500 or so, if you go with an ARB air locker.  

axles are a great upgrade, but by far the most expensive.   long story short............ break out the wallet... its gonna cost you; there are no 'cheap' options with axles.
take a look at these.... go big or go home
http://www.northridge4x4.ca/proddetail.php?prod=PKG-DANA44-REAR&cat=38

http://www.northridge4x4.ca/proddetail.php?prod=PKG-DANA44-FRONT&cat=38

[Immortal]

can hurt fuel economy.

What the hell is fuel economy? Haven't seen that unicorn since I sold my CRX (and then proceeded to buy 3 Jeeps).

[Raspberry]

There is some great information regarding gearing here:
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showpost.php?p=377955&postcount=1

[cLAY]

Haha! Tell me about it! I just bought 5.9 ZJ. 13mpg and requires premium to boot.

[Immortal]

but it will go like a raped ape(man)!!

[cLAY]

For a stick I agree with the above link. However after owning a few offroad autos and sticks and converting a rig from auto to stick and another from stick to auto I can say with all confidence that an auto can get away with less gearing than a stick. Why? Because the torque converter in an auto acts like a torque multiplier and takes up the slack. The ONLY time in an auto that you will see a difference is in a downhill descent, the auto will almost freewheel while a stick will out brake it EVERY time.

My dad's XJ has 33s and 4.10s with an auto and works VERY well on street and trail. Also it feels better than my 5psd XJ did with 4.10s and 31s except for downhill. Best part is that I got those diffs for $300 for the pair from a 4cyl XJ and spent $200 on a used lockright for it. So for $500 bucks we got a set of bolt it diffs with a locker and 4.10s. Its been pushing 33" Bias Ply Truxus for 3 years now. He carries the shafts from his old axles, just in case but has never needed them. Hard to beat that price and he is never going over 33s so no worries there.

You really need to be honest with yourself about how far you want to go with this hobby and how much you want to spend, in the short and long term. Don't forget that you could always re-sell those 4.10 diffs down the road if you change plans. Nothing wrong with growing and changing things as your rig evolves even if it does cost a bit more money.

[FiEND]

going with 33" tires, 4.10 is OK.  no 5th gear on the highway unless going down the cochrane hill.

buying and swapping axles would be my choice of the two options.  this will leave you with your old axle shafts (front and rear) to carry around when you wheel....  rear shafts being more important.

this combo will allow you lots of time to see if you like wheeling enough to start saving for a better axle combination... which is more than just axles.  shafts and lockers and gearing then comes drive shafts and slip yoke etc....  you never know where you will finish off.

[Raspberry]

...  you never know where you will finish off.

...do we ever finish off? If there's a light at the end of this tunnel I haven't seen it (maybe I'm just going deeper into the tunnel )

[BlackYJ]

There's nothing wrong with going to a rear d35  if staying 33" and under, lots of bolt on upgrades to make it comparable to a D44 without the hassle of getting new mounts put on and you can build it in stages to offset the cost. Now if the axle is in poor shape and needs a rebuild anyway you may be better off finding a TJ D44 rear and having it regeared. I don't think the standard TJ D44 came with 4.10s from the factory(correct me if I'm wrong), except the Rubicon which is big bucks and hard to find used. 

4.10s is good with 33s if doing lots of street driving, 4.56s with 33s are better offroad but run a higher RPM on the highway and can hurt fuel economy.

If you think you might go bigger than 33" then bite the bullet now and spend some coin on a HD rear end.

I agree with Clay, there is nothing wrong when a D35 for 31s or 33s as long as you watch the skinny pedal when wheeling.  THAT IS THE BIG CAVEAT.  I ran my D35 with an ARB for serveral years on 31s and a couple on 33s with 4.10s and no issues.  I am still running 4.10s with the 4.0L and it is a little sluggish on the highway for 5th gear, but you can still use 5th gear.  I would say as long as the axles are in good shape, then go for the 4.10s.

[Spinalguy]

Maybe i misread it. i THOUGHT he already has a 30/35 combo and he wants to swap a 30/35 combo in because it came with 4.10's?
Just seems like a waste of time and money.

[BlackYJ]

Maybe i misread it. i THOUGHT he already has a 30/35 combo and he wants to swap a 30/35 combo in because it came with 4.10's?
Just seems like a waste of time and money.

That is correct, but he would be going from 3.07s to 4.10s which would make a HUGE difference

[jeepjones]

I've been bagging the hell out of my D35 for years running 33" tires on my TJ and haven't had any problems at all, you guys have to quit giving the D35 such a bad rap. I think it all comes down to the driver, knowing not to mash the skinny peddle while in the rocks unless your driving a buggy is just common sense.

[Bnine]

I've been bagging the hell out of my D35 for years running 33" tires on my TJ and haven't had any problems at all, you guys have to quit giving the D35 such a bad rap. I think it all comes down to the driver, knowing not to mash the skinny peddle while in the rocks unless your driving a buggy is just common sense.

Bagging a jeep is a matter of perception. My perception of bagging a stock 35  on 33's mean inevitable failure. Yours obviously is different.

There are people here that have seen a d35 break on a DIRT ledge no less then 3 times in a row, with three different drivers.

Conversly, some of those guys saw my wife hit that same dirt ledge almost 20 times with all 4 wheels off the ground and not break her trussed super 35 on beadlocked 33's at 4 psi.

I can take you up a line in mclean that if you are locked front and back, running 5 psi or less, I will garruntee that you have no better then a 50/50 chance of busting a stock d35.

35's can be modded to be fairly reliable while locked on 33-35's, but it does take money, and without that money they are very unreliable offroad.

The more tire and or traction you add to them without modifying them accordingly, just adds to the risk you being "that guy" we've helped off the trail so many times.

In short, no, we dont have stop giving the 35 a bad rap. There are more then enough incidents within this club to substanciate what the guys are saying about the positives and negatives of the d35.

[FirstTimer]

Thanks for the great info guys.  I would upgrade to 44s right off the bat if my financial situation permitted it and if I knew this was something I would be willing to just empty every pocket into.  But at this point I am still just getting started, and don't get me wrong have enjoyed every minute, but at this point I need to be making more money and get more experience with my vehicle (how i drive and and how to fix it) before I do any huge upgrades like that.
And yes I am swapping out 30/35 for a 30/35, and one option is a fraction of what it would cost to re-gear my currrent axles and the other option is about the same price but I would be gaining lockers as well.  Plus in both cases, as mentioned, I would be have tones of spare parts so if something does break I wont be stuck.

I do have another questions though, this time regarding brakes.  If I go to 33s i've heard the stock brakes are sufficient.  Whats the consensus on this?  I would like to stay with a 15" rim so I don't lose to much clearance.  What options do I have in this case for improving my stopping power with the bigger tires?
Thanks again!

[Raspberry]

... I do have another questions though, this time regarding brakes.... 

That's a good question. In the summer I run 33's and I find the brakes... could be better. I have read on NAXJA that the front disc brakes on a D30 can be upgraded using WJ (Grand Cherokee) calipers (that are two piston) and rotors (which are larger). As for rear brakes, the only real option is to upgrade from drums to discs. There are disc brake kits that you can get to convert your rear axle. However if you're also considering an axle upgrade and/or gears, you could just grab a stronger rear axle from the junkyard that already has disc brakes (eg Ford 8.8 ) and that kills two birds with one stone.