i found a set of dana 44s from a wagoneer, i think they are out of a 1979. from all my research i have found that i should be looking for a dana 44 from a 1980-91 waggy. will these axles still work? and is it worth changing from the 8.8 to a dana 44 rear? would i have to make fully custom driveshafts for the rear too?

 

Keep your 8.8. A waggy 44 is ok depending on what/how you wheel the truck. But a 8.8/44 combo would work well togeather

 

yes i know it will work good together but i want to know about strength. the 44 front and rear combo sounds good because they will be the same width and bolt pattern. and there are lots of jeep guys that would love to buy my 8.8.

what it all boils down to is the strength factor of the rear 44 vs 8.8

 

the dana 44 rear is weaker than the 8.8

 

really? that actually surprises me. is it weaker than the 27 spline i currently have?

 

keep the 8.8 rear. It is stronger.

The '79 axle wont work. It is passenger side drop. You need and 80-91 axle.

Keep looking.

 

No it is stronger than the 28 (not 27) spline.

The strength of the 31 spline 8.8 and D44 are REAL close, with edge going to 8.8. Factor in c clips, ease of swap, what rear is available and you sometimes find the 44 better off. For a Ranger a 31 spline Ex axle is a no brainer, much better/easier than any D44.

 

ya i was thinking about swapping in the expo 8.8 for the higher spline count and disc brakes. i found an axle from a 1989 wagoneer a guy is parting out so i will be picking that up hopefully saturday along with a welder. SO EXCITED!!!!

 

i gots me a dana 44 out of a 1988 waggy!! cant wait to strip it and order more parts. i will be getting an expo rear end from him soon too. also going to be getting a set of chevy knuckles and high steer kit for the 44 from the same guy soon.


the expo rear has 4:10 gears to match the truck right now... the only difference between the 31 and 28 spline axles is the carrier? so i should be able to put the expo in, regear and lock the original housing using another 31 spline carrier and then just swap the expo shafts in when im ready to do my swap??

is there a better approach to building the rear?

 

No, the tubes are different as are the wheel bearings.

 

It's actually funny you posted this, my buddy (Chevy guy) and I were argueing on Thursday about what is stronger, a rear D44 or a rear Ford 8.8. He says 8.8s are junk but he just hates Fords haha. If you talk to Jeep guys who are impartial they will tell you the Expo 8.8 is better. Especially with Superior's 8.8 kit. Not Ranger 8.8s though, 28-splines are a deal killer.

You made the right choice 100%, if I were to SAS tomorrow I would want a built Expo 8.8 and a EB D44.

 

i need to know 100% if there is a difference in housings between the 28 and 31 spline 8.8s. what are the differences in the tubes and bearings? i dont know why they would be different

 

tubes are different i believe at 3.25 on a 31 spline, and i would assume the bearing would be larger for the larger OD shafts, read through this http://www.therangerstation.com/tech...plorer8_8.html

 

Read post #10.

A 31 spline shaft is bigger than a 28...bigger shaft = bigger bearing= bigger tube.

 

you obviously do not know much about axles. i work on transports and there are several axles that are the same diameter with very different spline counts. just cause the spline count is higher does not mean the shaft is larger. that is what i want to clarify

 

Yeah, you are right....I've only answered every question about the axles you are referring to. No kidding spline count does not equal shaft size, but in this case I DID ANSWER the question ASKED. I did not realize you asked "does spline count refer to shaft size for EVERY axle"....I though you only asked about the 8.8...sorry guess I misread....

Good luck on the SAS when you don't even know the difference between the 27 (psst, it's a 28) spline 8.8 and 31 spline. Personal attacks will not get you answers.....

 

no and no are not much of an answer smartass. i want real info on how they are different and you did not give anything but smartass comments

 

Whats the big deal. No it won't fit. What other info do you need? Who the fawk cares the reason you can't use it because it won't fit. Move on to the next question.

 

all i wanted was it confirmed by a reliable source. dan did that for me. a no doesnt cut it

 

He said like 4 times that the bearings were bigger.......if the bearings are bigger than the carrier would be to.

Very true about the tube size though, it doesn't always change between different shaft sizes.