Like the title says. I'm looking for responses from people who upgraded their front or rear dana 44 or 30 to a prorock axle full assembly. Seems pretty straight forward. I would need to swap knuckles and brakes off of my D30. Anyone have experience doing it and how difficult was it? I have limited access to a garage with a lift but had thought about trying to do it in driveway.

 

I personal have not changed our Dana30 yet,but have done others,basic tools,floor jack,jack stands, as long as the driveway is flat you should be good to go

 

The prorock44 is a pretty easy swap that most people could do in the driveway I you get one with gears and a locker in it.

 

I did mine in the driveway but have the jack stands and tools to do it. Got mine from David at Northridge with locker and gears installed. Had to bring over my Dynasteer ball joints, RCV's outter knuckle and brakes. Even dropped one end off the jack stand onto my ankle. Not recommended.



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Got mine from David too and installed it myself. I had the ball joints installed so it was a very easy swap and easily done in a garage or driveway with basic tools and skills. You will need a 13mm 12 point socket to remove the hub bearing if you are going with the RCV setup as they have thier own bolts provided. Have fun and if you need advise just ask. Rick

PS have a buddy with you as those axles are heavy!

 

Two 6 ton(min) jack stands will get you the body height you need safely. If you have access to two floor jacks will make it easier. I suggest to strip the housing while under the heap (rotors, knuckles, axles) for stability sake and makes it a little lighter moving it around. Have help coming out and going in with the new housing, going to want to roll on you due to weight of the yoke. Don't ask your wife or girl friend(ask me how I know this). After it's back under the heap put the heavy stuff back on..

 

Thanks for the responses and advice everyone. It doesn't sound too bad. I would buy the axle with gears and locker already set up as I wouldn't dare mess with that stuff. I've got some jack stands, a pretty nice floor jack, and lots of hand tools. I've put on a coil lift, installed a 1310 driveshaft, and swapped out a transfer case in my driveway. Basically, just wanted to hear from others in case I was overlooking something. Now I just need to decide whether I'm going 44 or 44/60.

 

Good luck with your install. I just ordered the PR44 Unlimited with ARB, RCV shafts, Reid Knuckles, and Dynatrac Ball Joints from David at Northridge4x4.

During my decision making process between the 44 and the 44/60, I chose the 44 because going with the 44/60 would require getting new wheels with the 5x5.5 wheel lug pattern. I also discovered that my Rock Krawler HD Tie Rod, Track Bar, and Drag Link components wouldn't work on the 44/60. The 44/60 requires different steering components because it is basically a Dana 60 with a 44 differential housing. It is also heavier and wider than a 44 and I didn't want my Jeep to get any wider than it already is. When I started adding the cost for everything that I would need for the 44/60 that including replacing items like my wheels and steering components, I opted for the 44. Even with all of the upgrades that I added to the 44, it is less expensive than the 44/60 and that doesn't include the additional cost of new wheels and steering linkage components that the 44/60 requires which increases the 44/60 even more.

The reason that I was looking at the 44/60 to begin with was because I wasn't sure how well the stock 44 unit bearing would hold up to a 37" tire, but I've seen a lot of people with 37" tires and their unit bearings seem to be holding up. If the unit bearings start failing, I could always do a Spyntec hub conversion on the 44, but I'd have to replace my 5x5 wheels with 5x5.5 wheels. Adding the cost of the hub conversion to a 44 brings the cost closer to the 44/60 purchase price though. I also thought that the hubs would allow me to disconnect the front axles and driveshaft to save some wear and tear while making the steering a little lighter, but I don't know if that really is that big of a deal. I've heard some people say that they gained a mile or two mpg by unlocking the hubs too, but I don't have first hand knowledge of it. Another benefit of the 44/60 is the axle's wider width if you don't mind a wider stance with your Jeep. You won't need to run as much backspacing on your wheels and you can more easily install coilovers because you have more room on the axle to work with. Of course now that EVO has bolt on coilovers that fit on a 44 without significant modifications, the wider axle isn't really that much of a benefit.

I don't know if this helps you decide on which way to go, but this is what I used to base my decision on getting the 44 Unlimited with all of the bells and whistles. If you don't already have wheels and suspension components that will be replaced with the purchase of a 44/60, the 44/60 might be the better option for you. I probably would have done it if I didn't have to buy my wheels again in a different lug pattern. The cost of new wheels adds 1K-2K+ to the price of the 44/60 depending on the type of wheels that you get.

 

Thanks b09roadking. You've given me some things to think about. I'm not that crazy about my wheels which I bought second hand, so changing those out my not be so bad but only if I can find some used ones to replace with the right bolt pattern. I currently have stock tie rod and track bar but I do have ORE drag link flip kit. What I gather from your post is that none would work with the 44/60. This extra expense might keep me with the 44. I'm also planning on buying 37s, flat fenders, and upgrading steering box so I have to keep this all within budget. Let me know how your install goes. Congrats on getting one hell of an axle.

 

I also contemplated this and went with theUnlimited D44 Pro Rock with ARB and RCV Shafts and synergy ball joints. For the trails I run here in Florida its overkill but plan on heading out west and up north in the near future so better to be prepaired. Also the hybrid is basically a D60 with the D44 pumpkin like roadking said. That being said with the RCV shafts eliminating the U joint weakspot they are comparable axles without the added width, weight and need to get new steering wheels ect... I personally don't think you will have any issuses with 37's as long as you don't go crazy with the gear ratios.