just scored a dana 44 front

[bryanjeep]

I just got a dana 44 front out of an 81 grand wagoneer. This thing is beefy. I need to find a steering arm (tie rod) for it. Where can I get a cheap one. Then I need to figure out a way to mount it to my draglink. I am going to SOA.

Another question is. Do they make an aftermarket perch that will work for me? I know there are lots of aftermarket perches out there, but this one will need one perch to be offset. Half of it will be sitting on the pumpkin.

How will I adapt my Jeep brake lines to the caliper fittings? Same size?

 

[TwistedCU]

For the perches, check out Rubicon Express:
http://www.rubiconexpress.com/dynamic/mainpage.asp?folderid=275

 

[west747]

dana 44 front & rear

My Ford 3/4 44 used the same size banjo bolt in the front cailpers as my stock jeep ones....so if that waggy 44 uses banjo bolts you should be all set. :lol: You may need to lenghten the flexiable line or move the hardeline underneath the frame instead of leaving it on the top. Gotta have room to flex!! :lol:


as for the differential perch you may have to grind down the top of the differential and drill a center spring pin hole or weld another perch on. When i did mine i had the perch already built in on top of the axle but i had to move the center hole in about a 1/4 inch.(these axles used 3 inch springs so it was fairly simple) i beleive if you weld a perch on top of the diff it will be higher than the perch you weld on the axl;e tube...you will have a slight lean to one side in this case.

STeering can be the hardest part of a SOA and i would suggest a histeer/cross-over system...i ended up cutting and sleeving an old YJ tirrod bar to make my drag link and no it hasnt broken yet and i doubt it will untill i set up hydro. :lol:

 

[currupt4130]

for my steering i got a tj drag link and cut it off right where it bends, turned it so that it 90 degrees so it would go into my drag link correctly, took some length out of the staight part and sleeved it in both spots so it clears the spring just fine. if you have a d44 tho get some high steer knuckles

 

[west747]

are the knuckles on that waggy 44 flat top?...i have seen some in the JY that were but didnt know what year the waggy was.

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

Just grind into the diff housing a little bit for the driver's side spring pack to fit on the perch that's already there.

 

[bryanjeep]

Bounty, I am going SOA though.

 

[west747]

hmmm...i thought i had already mentioned the grinding opinion but you can never give enough advice...ehhh...bounty!!!! :lol:

 

[bryanjeep]

Just scored a rear 14 bolt (man I am on a roll)

Twisted, which one of those perches would I need?

West747,
I think the guy I bought it from said it uses banjo bolts. I guess that means mine will fit it. I know about the brake lines needing to be extended. Yes, if I weld a perch on top of the pumpkin side it will be higher than the passenger side. I thought maybe they made a perch out there with an adjusted height for this problem. I don't really have the money to go and buy new knuckles for high steering. I hopefully can make something that will work. I don't know what flat top knuckles look like. Here is a picture of the axle on the right. Is that a flat top knuckle?

Corrupt4130,
I guess I can use my old Dana 30 tie rod and use that for a drag link to the dana 44. I just have to find a tie rod first.

Bounty,
As far as grinding the differential housing down, will it hurt anything. What about drilling a center pin hole (will that hurt anything)? Can I get it deep enough without hurting anything?

 

[west747]

i cant be entirerly sure but.....i gonna have to say that it is a flat top knuckle....a flat top knuckle has a large flat surface on top of the boss.( top part of the knuckle). However you will need to get 9/16 studs put in in order to mount the hi-steer arms....check out pirates BB for a ton of info on this subject..

...nice lookin front axle...Does it uses a vac dissconnect?..what is the other one?? 20?

 

[bryanjeep]

It is a picture from the seller. The other one is dana 44 rear from a Rodeo. There was no way in hell I was putting an Isuzu part in my Jeep. Check out my other post.

 

[Junkpile]

It doesn't look like a flat top to me.

 

[west747]

yeah i couldnt really tell from the pic...Junkpile are any waggy 44's true flat tops? cause some of the ones i have seen COULD work as there is enough material there to throw 3 studs in. The only difference i can see in the waggy knuckles is that they just arent as huge as the chevy ones.

 

[bryanjeep]

What are these studs ya'll are talking about?

 

[Junkpile]

West, I don't really know. It seems like I've heard people say that they could bolt the arms on one side, but not the other. I've never noticed any SJ knuckles that had enough of a flat area to mount one though.


Bryan, The studs would go in the top of a flat top knuckle, and you use them to secure the arm on top.

 

[Bounty__Hunter]

West, you sure did, but what's wrong with a little reinforcement of hearing an answer from more than one jeeper?

My Waggy D44 knuckles are flat on top, but I don't know that they're perfectly flat, enough to attach steering arms. Seems to me they would require a little machining to be prefectly flat, and have the holes drilled and tapped for the studs. Check out Pirate (I know West, it's been mentioned) as there is an article specific to D44's and flat-top knuckles.

I'm planning on running a 'Zu rear D44, I don't care what it came from. As long as it works, IT'S STILL A DANA.

 

[jps4jeep]

Not all D 44's are flat top. But most all are, some of the F150's did not come with the flat top option. as for brake components, all those spicer parts share the same part # as the same year chevy. For example My D44 is out of a 79 FSJ, I used 79 chevyu calipers and brake components.

And yes it should be a banjo nut, and you factory line should bolt right up!

As for steering, I found this method to be easyest and toughest. I bought some DOM tubing, I took the tie rod end from the pitman arm for the D30, and the other end from the D44 and had my local machine shop make me a custom linkage! pretty cheap too! only took the machine shop a couple hours to get it back to me!