A YJ with an LS, 40's, Coilovers, & Spidertrax Axles
- Thread starter Fouledplugs
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OP
Interesting, that’s hard to beat. And their lead time is great too.
I called around a few more Dana dealers for prices on the builder housing with no inner knucles (C’s) and NorthRidge 4x4 gave me a $1,700 quote. A lot cheaper than Clemson 4wd.
Like you, I was just curious at what cost was on it. I think it’s awesome that Dana offers it.
B00mb00m
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what super 60 housing is $995? thats a good price
on the fusion 4x4 site they have the elite HP 60 housing starting at 1300 and the super HP 60 starting at 995. but then you click onto it and it shows the same housing and same 1295 so i guess it's not correct.
and forgive my ignorance but can anybody explain the difference of what a 14 bolt is.
WOD offers a shaved 14 housing for 1250. i know they are pigs but how does a shaved 14 compare to the 60 for hang?
B00mb00m
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14B is low pinion I believe so its not something I'd consider for front axle.
this is 1 of the best prices i've found for a Dana 60 complete axle.
https://emeraldwest.com/motorsports/products/crawl-king-kingpin-60-front-axle/
IDK whether to build or buy really. by the time you piece it together your not far off a few of these. i have to much wheelbase to stay 35 im gonna want 39's eventually.
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B00mb00m
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Well that's interesting. I've never heard those guys, they're not exactly in my neighborhood but they're only a few hours away (south of Portland). I called up and talked to the sales guy. They only run the 60 casting, so if I went this direction I'd have to buy a new locker but they got the best price around and even beat Fusion. For JK tube length + 3" on each side = $1230 + ship.
OP
The factory GM 14 bolt, when shaved, can match or exceed the factory Dana/Spicer low pinion Dana 60 and even the factory Dana 44.
A factory Dana 60 uses a 9.75” ring gear for rear axle applications and legacy front axle applications. The GM 14 Bolt uses a 10.5” ring gear.
Some folks shave the GM 14 Bolt down to around 10” for max ground clearance.
All axle ground clearances are measured from axle centerline to lowest portion of the differential center section.
- GM 14 Bolt ground clearance: ~6.5”
- Dana 60 ground clearance: ~6.0”
- Shaved Housing: ~5.5 - 5.8”
- Shaved Housing Shaved Ring Gear: ~ less than 5.5” (it varies). *More ground clearance than a 8.5” ring geared Dana 44.
OP
I believe he already has a Dana 44 in-hand and the achilles heel of the 44 is the 44 sized balljoints when paired with a tire taller than a 35.
Yup. I went from a high pinion, Pro-Rock 60 to a shaved 14 bolt - and the ground clearance is about the same. The 14 bolt certainly looses a bit of pinion clearance, and it is quite a bit heavier, but after smoking the Pro-Rock five times I’ll take the trade off.
B00mb00m
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Correct, the JK44 seems to be sufficient for me with 37s but I'd like to get unlocking hubs + 35 spline outers+ big ball joints. Its hard to tell for example with the UD60 housing how much worse is the casting for up-travel vs a Dana 44? Everyone talks about ground clearance but not how it integrates on the top.
B00mb00m
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WOW 5 times. Your were smoking the gearset? Yours was a high pinion? Guess V8 has something to do with that. I was talking to the guy at Emerald WEst and he was saying theyve been running these UD60 (HP) housings in rear applications as well. They started with a load bolt addition but then pulled the load bolt and now run them as is.
I don't know if I'd trust a 60 in the rear with 39-40"wheels unless it's 40spline FF. Maybe the front could be ok with 35 spline.
This one has me scratching my head as to why. I wheel almost exclusively with 1st Generation Broncos. They all run the stock 9" in the rear and stock 44 up front. They also all run V8s and 37" tires. The only breakages I've ever seen with them have been a few front U joints and one blown hub. This is over a 5+ year history. I'm not aware of any ball joint issues with them, but they don't daily drive these either.
Yes, the Pro-rock 60 was a high pinion. 1 ring and pinion, 2 bent shafts, 1 broken shaft - all before the Hemi. The pro-rock was also semi float - which had a bunch to do with it. With the Hemi, last fall I killed the R&P, along with destroying the ARB carrier - broke the case in 4 places. That was kind of the last straw...
This one has me scratching my head as to why. I wheel almost exclusively with 1st Generation Broncos. They all run the stock 9" in the rear and stock 44 up front. They also all run V8s and 37" tires. The only breakages I've ever seen with them have been a few front U joints and one blown hub. This is over a 5+ year history. I'm not aware of any ball joint issues with them, but they don't daily drive these either.
I have a Tera Low CRD60 rear axle and like Jeff it is a semi-floating design. I broke on R&P with 35 " tires and then the R&P again with 38" tires and both times with the Dodge 5.2 V-8.
I have broken 1 u-joint/axle shaft on my HP44 and that was with 38" tires in the snow and I was working the wheel lock to lock. But this was with a Spicer u-joint & Alloy USA axles. I went to Longfield 300M u-joints but only had a few runs on them before I parked it for the overheating issues. I now have RCV axles in it. The "OLD SCHOOL" Dana 44/HP44 has a different ball joint design than the TJ/JK axles. I never had any issues with my BJ's even with the 38 TSL SX tires on Hummer rims.
If I blow up another R&P in my HP60 rear axle I'll most likely follow in Jeff's lead and do a 14 bolt rear. But I so also have a low pinion Dana 60 housing that I could try building. I could use it also. If I was to do the 14 Bolt I'd get the CRD60 retubed and make a steering axle out of it.
OP
Maybe the 14 Bolt is a bad example, but sometimes a low pinion shines when it comes to uptravel. But to advocate for the other side, a high pinion is very helpful for down travel.
OP
That is an excellent price. I gave him a call yesterday and talked to him about the high pinion 60 he sells.
What I can really appreciate is the fact he’s transparent about his housings. He confirmed over an the phone and his website that he uses genuine Ultimate Dana front high pinion 60 center sections.
It just confirms my suspicion that Dana is the source for all these axle builders. I love the idea that Dana is likely pumping these centers out to all these builders like hot cakes.
For those of us with a shorter WB a high pinion rear axle is a GOOD thing for driveline angles. It has been my reason for NOT wanting to go to a low pinion axle unless I really need to.
I'd also like to look at what it would take to convert my semi-float axle to a full float. But with out doing something about the R&P I don't feel it would do anything. So at this point I have crossed fingers my rear axle will live.