Toyota FJ80: Chromoly fronts vs stock shafts

[Lka1988]

Some of you may already know that I stripped out my front axle shafts last month. I've been thinking of getting chromo front shafts, but I want to know how they would fare in a full-time 4x4/daily driver setup.

I've been running in 2WD (w/rear auto locker) for a while now, and I'm really starting to miss my 4WD, especially in the snow and ice...

Anything I should be aware of?

 

[Lka1988]

Here's a pic to show what happened to the shafts. Diff end.

Driver side (long shaft)...

Passenger side (short shaft)...

 

[cruiseroutfit]

As you know the Chromo axles will 'wear out' ie click long before a stocker. In most Toyota applications this is a non-issue because they day they see 10k miles actually turning is rare but in the full-time 80 Series situation, its a real deal breaker for most.

What I would do... part-time conversion kit and the chromo's.

 

[Lka1988]

Not talking about birfs, Kurt... Just the inner shafts.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Not talking about birfs, Kurt... Just the inner shafts.

LOL, a birf is a shaft, its an outer shaft. Specify would ya

Is there anything wrong with your inners? Seal surface issues?

If you are running stock or stock strength outer axles, the chances of having a failure of the inner axle shaft is rare at best, and that is with the stockers. Start running chromo outers (birfs as you call them ) and the inners are the next week link and should be upgraded accordingly. I wouldn't run them just to be running them though.

That said the type of failure you experienced is extremely rare, in fact I can only think of a few cases. If you can't find a clean set of stockers with tight splines and no wear at the seal surface, they chromo might be your only option.

 

[Lka1988]

Is there anything wrong with your inners?

See the pics above... Diff ends are stripped completely. Sounded a lot like a stripped drive flange, but there was no movement when I popped off the grease caps.

So it actually wasn't the birfs that popped, like what I told you a while ago...

 

[Lka1988]

That said the type of failure you experienced is extremely rare, in fact I can only think of a few cases. If you can't find a clean set of stockers with tight splines and no wear at the seal surface, they chromo might be your only option.

Rare for sure. I can get chromo inners from Longfield for $125 a pop. But I want to make sure that I'm not making a bad decision on this.... I was talking with Landtank on 'Mud about it, he says that when he twisted the rear shafts in his truck, he put in chromo shafts and those twisted easier.

But, those are rear shafts. I want to know about fronts...