UNSTUCK
But stuck more often.
Atta boy Kevin! Didn't it feel good to say that?
Fair warning though, it's a slippery slope from here. We'll have you in a Jeep in no time.
Let's talk axles.
- Thread starter Kevin B.
- Start date
Atta boy Kevin! Didn't it feel good to say that?
Fair warning though, it's a slippery slope from here. We'll have you in a Jeep in no time.
- Location
- Smithfield Utah
There is a LOT to be said for that one. Maybe we should be looking at a donor SuperDuty axle instead, with 6-lug unit bearings.
It's true a lot can be said lol. Oh and sorry, looking back I sounded like I was trying to undermine what you said about D44's. Maybe it's just me but I hope I didn't come across that way :sick:
I've kicked around the idea of using 80-97 TTB D50 parts from the knuckle outward (stub shaft, hubs, spindle etc), 60 C's (assuming you can buy just the 'C') pressed onto a D44 center, and custom inner shafts (whether they be 30 or 35 spline). Doable? Probably. Retirement project? Probably
To the op, I think you're on the right track with the aftermarket Toyota housing and shafts. I'm just gun-shy when it comes to the 4 stud knuckles (assuming that's what you have) which is why I mention the Dana stuff.
R
rockdog
Guest
What are your end goals for your truck? Street driven, off road only? What size tires and how hard do you plan to wheel it? I think you need to take all of that into the equation. Money is always a factor for sure. But I have changed my share of burfs and have no love for toy axles. You can spend a lot of money on them and still be no where near as strong as a stock 60. You can run leafs with a 60. I've done it. Maybe that's overkill for your app. But I have seen a lot of guys dump a lot of cash into toy axles and wish in the end they had just sunk the money into a 60. The 44 option is viable with cromo shafts I guess, but I have seen these snap like twigs. Not trying to beat the 60 drum, but it all comes down to what the end use of your rig is going to be.
- Location
- Grand Junction, CO
Agreed! Factory parts, easily available and strong (for Toyota parts).
Or spend $800 (I guess the parts are now $1000) on highsteer from Hellfire Fab and keep it on leaf springs - http://hellfire-fabworks.com/product/fj80/
chicken77
throttle jockey
I'm going to have to go with rockdog on this one, I started with stock birfs then dirty 30's and sixshooters and blah, blah, blah until I had a built Toyota axle and still wanted more with no where to improve. If you think you might EVER want D60 strength and build ability just bite the bullet now and save your self time, money, and hassle. But on the other hand if you are happy with Toyota 8" strength and never plan on running anything bigger than a 35" tire I would go with the Waggy......... Just my two cents as some one who has been down this snow ball road before
I thought about this but, he will have to figure out a steering solution. Pricing fj80 front axle HP elocker goes for $600+.
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SUPERFLY
CaptainRob
- Location
- sugar house
I have personal experience with the rock assault and I can say that in your situation its really the only way to go, I really don't see a good debate for anything else. under 800 dollars and it comes with the new long side shaft your 3rd bolts in, your knuckles bolt on, its the ONLY fully fabricated Toyota axle on the market that uses BIGGER stronger and NEW knuckle ball ends(all others use old recycled 30+ year old sometimes bent factory ones) ive bent, ripped apart, snapped in half and shot ring gears out the front of 12+ different Toyota housings over the years. ive raced on my tg for over a year now and its one of the few parts on my truck I don't worry about. keep in mind you will need longer steering tie rod and drag link
long story short call Low Range they most likely have them in stock ready for pick up
- Location
- Stinkwater
Doesn't seem right, does it? It's the width I'm looking for primarily - stronger is a bonus. But I might yet go to Longs or something with the new housing at the same time - buy once cry once, a wise man once told me.
There's wisdom here, thanks.
When I bought the TG high steer I went with six stud arms, with an eye to a set of knuckles to go with them down the road. Unless Carl talks me into the hybrid axle, anyway.
Good questions. When I started this build my intent was to aim for a versatile go-anywhere sort of weekend warrior, able to travel 500 miles on the freeway or 200 miles of dirt comfortably, wheel a moderately hard trail, and still get me to work on Monday. Right now it's on 33s with an OME lift, 5.29s and rear locker, 4.7 tcase. It's almost as capable as I want it to be - if I could finish it right now, I'd put in a doubler, widen the track, stretch the wheelbase a touch, drop the suspension a hair, and add a front locker. More armor, gussets, trusses, all that little stuff. 35s... maybe. When my current tires wear out I'll make up my mind, but certainly no bigger than that. Six-shooters and Longfields would be nice, but are probably the sort of stuff that I'll upgrade to if/when I break stuff and happen to have the cash to improve. They aren't a priority. I haven't broken anything on this truck yet (knock on wood), and I think I can restrain myself from pushing it farther than it's built for.
You and Rob and Sage and whoever else said it make good points - there's absolutely the temptation to just go big, and at some point I will. But if I don't define a hard finish line and keep my eye on it, there's no telling where my ADD will take me. Going big will happen - maybe on the next truck, or the one after that, I dunno, I have six or seven "next trucks" queued up in my head
. I have a specific purpose in mind for the Bastard, and I think big heavy beefcake axles would be overkill for it. In passing. I think that's getting wider than I want.
Your two cents is worth a bit more than that.
But not as ugly, right? I don't think I could handle that.
You lost me, these are FJ60 axles?
Good to hear you've had good luck with yours. I haven't been super happy with the quality of some of the TG stuff I've bought in the past, so I'm still a little wary of putting the RockAssault towards the top of my list. Your experience makes a difference, thanks for the input.
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- Location
- Stinkwater
You bring me tons and 40s and I promise to use them.
R
rockdog
Guest
Well I think you will be ok with toy axles for what you want out of your build. If you planned to go 37s or bigger I'd say that's an absolute waste of money. The truck I just finished for my son replaced his old one with a built toy axle. Longs and all the other stuff that goes with it. It was on 37 sticky's and beat hard and put up broke. Many times front axle broke! I got sick of working on it. That's why his new rig has a 60.
But the rig you are building is for a whole different purpose it sounds like. And a stock width 60 would never fly for street driving.
But the rig you are building is for a whole different purpose it sounds like. And a stock width 60 would never fly for street driving.
- Location
- Stinkwater
Ok, but can I get my motor running first?
Yes by this weekend so you can accompany me to AF canyon
flexyfool
GDW
- Location
- Boise, Idaho
It seems like a lot of work to get a slightly wider axle. Why does it need to be wider? How about 1" spacers?
Consider a limited slip in the front. It will be beneficial when crawling, be tolerable on snowy roads, and not require the endless fixes and upgrades that a locker in a small front axle demands. I believe lockers do not belong in rigs running front 30s, 44s, 8s, etc. Sure, the rig may not go up some obstacles. But, taking a strap or winch and keeping the rig together is better than grenading the frontend.
Consider a limited slip in the front. It will be beneficial when crawling, be tolerable on snowy roads, and not require the endless fixes and upgrades that a locker in a small front axle demands. I believe lockers do not belong in rigs running front 30s, 44s, 8s, etc. Sure, the rig may not go up some obstacles. But, taking a strap or winch and keeping the rig together is better than grenading the frontend.
- Location
- Stinkwater
Well, I'm running spacers already to match the IFS width rear. Any more spacing and my scrub radius would be miserable. I'll actually be gaining several inches if I get as wide as I'm looking to, because the stock '85 front WMS is 85. It's pushed to 88 with 1.5 hub adapters, so if I can out to 61 or 62 that'll be a significant improvement to me, and I'll like not having the spacers too. I don't trust them.
I had a TrueTrac in the front of my last truck, and frankly I hated it. It was useless any time I unloaded a front wheel, which is exactly when I wanted it most. It also caused some nasty understeer on slick roads with the hubs locked, it just wasn't my favorite at all. Good points about lockers and small front ends though. I'm going to risk it and hope the selectable keeps me out of too much breakage... I'll keep the open diff on the shelf just in case though.
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- Location
- Stinkwater
You won't catch me within fifty miles of AFC this weekend. We're talking about hitting Skyline south of US6, and you should come.
You should also fix your sig. I don't look anything like that.
I don't want to fix my sig, I just did. I can't show the original picture anymore because my stupid pay pal is broken
Also not sure I want to get that far into the boonies yet, still finding some stuff to fix on the new rig don't want to get stranded. Got the steering sorted out, few more odds and ends I need to get on. Was thinking of going up the backside AFC from Midway toying around on that side as a shakedown
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