JK Diff Upgrade

Hell_Fire

Hell_Fire

New member
Hey guys

So have been thinking of getting ARB lockers for a wile now, but recently started thinking of maybe just to upgrade the rear diff on my JK with a Dana 60 then put in an Airlocker as I know myself I would want to fit bigger tires at some stage 37" or 40"

Living where I do Jeep parts are a bit scares and :furious3: expensive, importing is sometimes the only way but selling more of my organs to buy upgrades is not an option:D ultimate goal here is to get the Monster to be the badest JK in SA.

my Questions are.

1) Can I fit a Dana 60 with the standard Dana 30 in front? ( my JK is a Sahara) will do the front if it ever pops.
2) what els would I need to change to fit the Dana 60 in the rear?

hope some of you guys can help me find some answers.
 
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If you put 37's or 40's on your rig and keep the D-30 up front, it's not if it more like when. D-30 are a stretch with 35's. That's if you gusset and possibly sleeve it.

What I have seen most often is folks upgrade the front to a 60 before doing the rear. Not that it doesn't happen. You have a D-44 in the rear. The front is the weakest link already. I'm sure others will chime in and give more details.
 
A d60 from dynatrac has a minimal width of 68.5" so ur d30 will be significantly smaller in width, that spacers will not overcome
 
Serg5000 said:
If you put 37's or 40's on your rig and keep the D-30 up front, it's not if it more like when. D-30 are a stretch with 35's. That's if you gusset and possibly sleeve it.

What I have seen most often is folks upgrade the front to a 60 before doing the rear. Not that it doesn't happen. You have a D-44 in the rear. The front is the weakest link already. I'm sure others will chime in and give more details.
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The only "weak link" in a d30 vs 60 is the ring and pinion is smaller. so when u regear the teeth will become long, thin and weak. Other than that the tubes and knuckles are exactly the same between the two stock axles
 
StrizzyChris said:
The only "weak link" in a d30 vs 60 is the ring and pinion is smaller. so when u regear the teeth will become long, thin and weak. Other than that the tubes and knuckles are exactly the same between the two stock axles
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d30 vs d60? not exactly. a d60 will not only have a much bigger r&p but, it will also have bigger tubes, knuckles and shafts. there is nothing the same between them. even if you meant to say d44, the tubes and knuckles are the same as a d30 but, the shafts are beefier in a 44, have more splines and they also have bigger u-joints.
 
So it's safe to say, that updating the front D30 is a better choice then leaving it and updating the rear D-44 with a 60. Things are getting clearer. :)
 
Serg5000 said:
So it's safe to say, that updating the front D30 is a better choice then leaving it and updating the rear D-44 with a 60. Things are getting clearer. :)
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not exactly. i personally wouldn't throw more money than i needed to at a d30 and if it were me, i would save up for a prorock 44 and just run your d30 until you can afford the upgrade or, need to replace it. so long as you stay within the 37" tire range, the factory rear 44 will hold up well enough.
 
Glad you shed some light on this. I just purchased 37" Toyo's from Frank and I have a D-30 up front and a D-44 rear. I am 3/4's of the way to purchasing a ProRock44 unlimited. I don't plan on going to bigger tires then 37's do to the cost of what needs to be updated. I hope 37's will quench my thirst. Thanks for all your input.
 
Serg5000 said:
Glad you shed some light on this. I just purchased 37" Toyo's from Frank and I have a D-30 up front and a D-44 rear. I am 3/4's of the way to purchasing a ProRock44 unlimited. I don't plan on going to bigger tires then 37's do to the cost of what needs to be updated. I hope 37's will quench my thirst. Thanks for all your input.
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i think it will or, should i say, it should. while we love our 40's, 37's and a good lift are all you really need to get you going just about anywhere.
 
wayoflife said:
i think it will or, should i say, it should. while we love our 40's, 37's and a good lift are all you really need to get you going just about anywhere.
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After upgrading to the ProRock44 Unlimited, I will toss on the 37's with the 3.25" Lift I currently have. With the bonus we from work at the end of the year, I will be purchasing the King coilovers your running on Rubicat. I should be good to go on that end of the build after these mods take place.

But make no mistake. I will find something else to bug you about.:brows:
 
Thanx a mill guys for all the info.

Wayoflife - so U recon the standard 44 will hold with 37's :D will I need to do a regear or will the gears be fine?

WOW OK did some quick reading on the prorock 44 and this sounds like real winner, and its way cheaper!! I am with Serg on this if 37" can do the job then maybe its not worth spending the extra cash just for a few inches on tire tread.

one thing I am a bit concerned about is the side shafts, what would be a good replacement for the standard ones?
 
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Hell_Fire said:
Wayoflife - so U recon the standard 44 will hold with 37's :D will I need to do a regear or will the gears be fine?
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you can get them to work, you really just need to make sure to get the axle c's gussetted and, run a set of chromoly shafts with full circle clips. we pushed our new 2012 with all stock factory 44's to the limit over the last 5 weeks and wondered if it would last. it didn't - ended up breaking a driver side shaft due to u-joint failure. if we had a chromo shaft with full circle clips, we would have been fine. i personally wouldn't run anything higher than a 5.13 r&p as well.

WOW OK did some quick reading on the prorock 44 and this sounds like real winner, and its way cheaper!! I am with Serg on this if 37" can do the job then maybe its not worth spending the extra cash just for a few inches on tire tread.

one thing I am a bit concerned about is the side shafts, what would be a good replacement for the standard ones?
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i know that rcv's are all the rage right now but honestly, they aren't needed and i would recommend that you save your money and just get a good set of chromoly shaft with full circle clips. superior, ten factory, alloy usa all make decent shaft and most used to come with full circle clips. i don't know if they still do but, i would check on it before placing your order.
 
StrizzyChris said:
The only "weak link" in a d30 vs 60 is the ring and pinion is smaller. so when u regear the teeth will become long, thin and weak. Other than that the tubes and knuckles are exactly the same between the two stock axles
Click to expand...

wayoflife said:
d30 vs d60? not exactly. a d60 will not only have a much bigger r&p but, it will also have bigger tubes, knuckles and shafts. there is nothing the same between them. even if you meant to say d44, the tubes and knuckles are the same as a d30 but, the shafts are beefier in a 44, have more splines and they also have bigger u-joints.
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wow...have been working the past 5 days strait and thats what I get for using my cell phone on a 15 min break. I MEANT to compare the stock d30 and d44...d60 is a whole new ballgame...little league tball vs mlb

but yes the shafts have a higher spline count in a 44 as well.
 
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StrizzyChris said:
wow...have been working the past 5 days strait and thats what I get for using my cell phone on a 15 min break. I MEANT to compare the stock d30 and d44...d60 is a whole new ballgame...little league tball vs mlb

but yes the shafts have a higher spline count in a 44 as well.
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:cheesy: get some rest my friend :yup:
 
Serg5000 said:
I thought we all worked five days straight:thinking: You must live in france where they only work four days.:bleh:
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Only 5? I bet you get to stop after 8 hours too huh? :) When I started my boss told me "we are pretty flexible here with schedules...you can work whichever 70 hours a week you want."
 
MTG said:
Only 5? I bet you get to stop after 8 hours too huh? :) When I started my boss told me "we are pretty flexible here with schedules...you can work whichever 70 hours a week you want."
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8 hours a day would be nice. But yes we work five days a week. Two weekends a month. We only have three months to service over 300 turbines and keep up with faulted machines as well. I would really like an 8 hour a day job. But then again. That wouldn't leave much jeep money.
 
StrizzyChris said:
I work 12.5 hour shifts in the ER... but two of the 5 I did a 16 so thats 70 hours in 5 days...yup i was BEAT! :icon_crazy:
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Hey bud, I was just having a little fun. I hope I didn't offend you or anyone.
I bet your smoked by the time you got off for the week man.
 
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