Yea they are huge in comparison. It’s unreal in person.
A YJ with an LS, 40's, Coilovers, & Spidertrax Axles
- Thread starter Fouledplugs
- Start date
Well, I didnt start with the Ford SuperDuty 05+ unit bearings in mind and build in towards the axle center section. I built from the center section out. The 05+ unit bearings just fell into place, so to speak.
To answer your question and to keep it short; 4 related reasons; king pins, utilization of unit bearings, and much better OEM brakes all in one package. And finally, I enjoy supporting rock sports, I want to support those who support the sport of rock crawling.
My views:
The old Dana/Spicer and Reid Dana 60 kingpin stuff is outdated in my opinion and needed a refresh. Crappy brakes, weak spindles and stub shafts was not something I desired for this build. I wanted kingpins and unit bearings.
Reids super kingpins were re-engineered and built from the ground up for big unit bearings, bigger tires, bigger axles, and the largest u-joints and stub shafts on the market.
Elimination of ball joints. Does a true one ton front axle really deserve Dana 44 sized ball joints? Kingpins are proven to be stronger and more reliable than ball joints.
Does 1/4” increase in ball joint size really equate to one ton strength?
**(Dana 60 lower ball joints are 1/4” larger than a Dana 44 and the Dana 60 upper ball joints are the same size between the Dana 60 and Dana 44.)**
The kingpin spread on the super kingpin is 1.5” larger than the legacy kingpin 60’s from Dana/Reid, which adds to a lot of strength.
As written, my axle housing will ship from Spidertrax on 5/17/21. The folks at Spidertrax will try to get me in while between some bigger weld jobs to have the 4130 chromoly skids welded onto the housing. Then it’s out the door to me.
Once I get it in hand, I’ll get it to my axle builder and hopefully he and his team can knock it out quickly.
Once the builder has the housing, he will be cutting down the axle tubes to match my specs, pressing/welding the inner knuckles, and assembling the outer steering knuckles. He will also be drilling the high steer arms to match the steering arms on the knuckle. From there I can use it for mock up.
Once I get it in hand, I’ll get it to my axle builder and hopefully he and his team can knock it out quickly.
Once the builder has the housing, he will be cutting down the axle tubes to match my specs, pressing/welding the inner knuckles, and assembling the outer steering knuckles. He will also be drilling the high steer arms to match the steering arms on the knuckle. From there I can use it for mock up.
Look forward to seeing how this turns out. It sounds like it's gunna be GREAT.
I came to the realization that from the frame down to the tires, it’s gonna be so awesome.
Frame up, it’s going to look rough
the tub needs some love. It’s not damaged, just needs paint. My overall plan is to eventually pull the tub, paint the bottom, outside body panels, and interior or rhino line it. Regardless I want to keep carpet in it, or at least try carpet out.
Wow! That knuckle alone has to weigh 40-50 lbs. Everything else that goes along with this must be massive!
Oh, it is not that heavy, it is huge, but not a total pig. The super kingpin knuckle weighs in at 36lbs.
Reid’s super kingpin inner C - 21lbs
Reid super kingpin steering knuckle - 36lbs
The super kingpins weighs a mere 16 lbs more than factory like Dana 60 kingpins.
The true majority of weight will come from the factory F350 brakes. I could go with a light weight Spidertrax 14 inch rotor, their aluminum hats, and forged aluminum Brembo calipers and would result in a 28lb weight lose. But the OEM front brakes are worth their weight in my opinion. They are very difficult to beat in reliability and performance.
At the end of the day, it can be changed if need be.
It’s also one of the many reasons I chose to go with a chromoly spidertrax housing. They are very light weight and very strong.
Not a lot of updates.
My PRP seats are scheduled for delivery this coming week. However, I will not be home, as I am away this week.
Still waiting for my Atlas. Could not find a mock up case and really need the case to set the engine and trans. Once this is done, I can start the suspension.
The front Spidertrax axle housing was delivered. I’ll take it to my builder soon to have the tubes cut down and knuckles welded on.
My PRP seats are scheduled for delivery this coming week. However, I will not be home, as I am away this week.
Still waiting for my Atlas. Could not find a mock up case and really need the case to set the engine and trans. Once this is done, I can start the suspension.
The front Spidertrax axle housing was delivered. I’ll take it to my builder soon to have the tubes cut down and knuckles welded on.
hallelujan37
New Member
I know I’m not the only one excited to see an under pic of this Jeep. Some serious shinyness I could only imagine
B00mb00m
The Church of Cutting Brakes of Atlas-Front Digs
Supporting Member
Ride of the Month Winner
Interesting note on the trailgear housing. Why did you go spydertrax over trailgear? 950 sounds quite reasonable, as i'm looking for something to put Currie C's on and a Currie 44 housing with no C's is 1800.
Thanks!
I’m on the fence about painting the axle assemblies, could clear coat the raw steel or paint them black…
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jesseshoots
TJ Enthusiast
would look pretty slick cleared and showing the burn coloration.
Have not had good luck clear coating bare steel. Tried on my shocks and they got real rusty within a year.
I'd probably try Steel-It black or grey
Thanks for the input. It just came up in conversation yesterday as food for thought.
Wonder if powder coating opens up a better clear product..
Possibly, but it's going to get chipped somewhere eventually, and I'd imagine it wouldn't take long for water and rust to get underneath and ruin the rest of it.
And I'm pretty sure powder coating usually requires sandblasting before coating which is just going to get rid of the marks from the welding
clear vs black is moot as far as protection and touch up, choose what you like, they both have the be scuffed and reshot when scraped up no matter the presence or absence of tint.
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