Like I need another axle project... Here goes...
I took a gamble and bought a set of complete & bent TJ Dana 44 axles. Visually, both axles have a banana bend on the passenger side, bent towards the rear of the vehicle). Someone did a little bit of work to them only to realize the investment wasn't worth it or didn't know what they were getting themselves into. Axles were blasted and new rear UCA mounts were welded on. I plan on stripping them down to bare housings, torching everything off.
Next, I'll straighten the tubes with the chain and bottle jack technique. I may even add some relief cuts in the oem tube, depending on the severity of the bend. I had some luck with back-side relief cuts only to re-weld and have the tube drawn straight to a set of JK axles.
With the brackets removed, I may add extra strength by welding outer sleeves (3", 1/4" wall to the front and 3-1/4", 5/16" wall to the rear).
Is there really any benefit to cut & turn a front Dana 44? I know the JK axles, it is beneficial but don't the TJ axles come with 10 degrees of separation? The only thing I can think of is with the front Dana 44 being low pinion, maybe a couple of extra degrees could benefit for caster correction on TJ's with 4"+ lift...
I took a gamble and bought a set of complete & bent TJ Dana 44 axles. Visually, both axles have a banana bend on the passenger side, bent towards the rear of the vehicle). Someone did a little bit of work to them only to realize the investment wasn't worth it or didn't know what they were getting themselves into. Axles were blasted and new rear UCA mounts were welded on. I plan on stripping them down to bare housings, torching everything off.
Next, I'll straighten the tubes with the chain and bottle jack technique. I may even add some relief cuts in the oem tube, depending on the severity of the bend. I had some luck with back-side relief cuts only to re-weld and have the tube drawn straight to a set of JK axles.
With the brackets removed, I may add extra strength by welding outer sleeves (3", 1/4" wall to the front and 3-1/4", 5/16" wall to the rear).
Is there really any benefit to cut & turn a front Dana 44? I know the JK axles, it is beneficial but don't the TJ axles come with 10 degrees of separation? The only thing I can think of is with the front Dana 44 being low pinion, maybe a couple of extra degrees could benefit for caster correction on TJ's with 4"+ lift...
