Hey y'all.
I am looking for advice/opinions. I was an avid reader on hear a long time ago and had big plans and ideas but life has changed. My TJ was originally going to be just a toy, bought it and started working on it with goals for 35s and an LS swap. About a year later I had been upgrading but not gotten to the engine yet, the 4.0 started knocking real bad and I found it had a broken piston skirt. So I parked it and started getting serious about the V8. But then my wife had a lot of medical issues that put everything on hold, financially, time to spend on the Jeep, etc. I was considering selling it (the Jeep not the wife) but I would lose a lot of the money I have invested since a jeep that doesn't run doesn't sell for much. Financially things are looking better and so I am thinking of keeping it as a daily driver/weekend warrior with a somewhat less ambitious plan and selling my current daily driver once the TJ is street worthy again. So know I am thinking of building a stroker since the engine needs to be rebuilt anyway and if things stay stable, engine and money wise, adding in Jezza's turbo kit just for some extra fun.
By know you are wondering when I am going to get to the part about axles. When I bought the jeep it came with a Dana 30 up front that was not straight but driveable and a Ford 8.8 in the rear (there is a guy locally that builds a lot of 8.8s for jeeps so at least I know it was done properly) that came with an Artec 8.8 for TJ triangulated truss kit not installed. Since the 30 already had issues I replaced the front with a Pro Rock 44 right off the bat when it was still running and was planning on a Pro Rock 60 for the rear later. Since I am planning to stay at 33s and no LS, the amount of money for the Dynatrac axles seems unnecessary. And even more so I am concerned about the weight. The front axle alone is at least 450+ lbs (including JK outers and brakes), no big deal with a V8 but that seems like a lot of added unsprung weight for a 4.0 (4.6). I am wondering if I should just sell both axles and get a pair of TJ 44's with upgrades. I think they would hold up fine even if I had a little fun with the skinny peddle after the turbo is installed but will defer to the opinions of the much more knowledgeable people on here.
So basically just wondering if people think I should keep the pro rock (the 8.8 will go away at some point one way or another) or if the 44's would stand up to what I want for less money and less weight.
I am in no rush on the axles since I am still planning out what I need for the engine and that obviously takes priority, so I have time to keep my eyes out for deals.
I am looking for advice/opinions. I was an avid reader on hear a long time ago and had big plans and ideas but life has changed. My TJ was originally going to be just a toy, bought it and started working on it with goals for 35s and an LS swap. About a year later I had been upgrading but not gotten to the engine yet, the 4.0 started knocking real bad and I found it had a broken piston skirt. So I parked it and started getting serious about the V8. But then my wife had a lot of medical issues that put everything on hold, financially, time to spend on the Jeep, etc. I was considering selling it (the Jeep not the wife) but I would lose a lot of the money I have invested since a jeep that doesn't run doesn't sell for much. Financially things are looking better and so I am thinking of keeping it as a daily driver/weekend warrior with a somewhat less ambitious plan and selling my current daily driver once the TJ is street worthy again. So know I am thinking of building a stroker since the engine needs to be rebuilt anyway and if things stay stable, engine and money wise, adding in Jezza's turbo kit just for some extra fun.
By know you are wondering when I am going to get to the part about axles. When I bought the jeep it came with a Dana 30 up front that was not straight but driveable and a Ford 8.8 in the rear (there is a guy locally that builds a lot of 8.8s for jeeps so at least I know it was done properly) that came with an Artec 8.8 for TJ triangulated truss kit not installed. Since the 30 already had issues I replaced the front with a Pro Rock 44 right off the bat when it was still running and was planning on a Pro Rock 60 for the rear later. Since I am planning to stay at 33s and no LS, the amount of money for the Dynatrac axles seems unnecessary. And even more so I am concerned about the weight. The front axle alone is at least 450+ lbs (including JK outers and brakes), no big deal with a V8 but that seems like a lot of added unsprung weight for a 4.0 (4.6). I am wondering if I should just sell both axles and get a pair of TJ 44's with upgrades. I think they would hold up fine even if I had a little fun with the skinny peddle after the turbo is installed but will defer to the opinions of the much more knowledgeable people on here.
So basically just wondering if people think I should keep the pro rock (the 8.8 will go away at some point one way or another) or if the 44's would stand up to what I want for less money and less weight.
I am in no rush on the axles since I am still planning out what I need for the engine and that obviously takes priority, so I have time to keep my eyes out for deals.