build your own full float dana 44?

Bringing this thread back from the dead. I was working on my "new/extra" dana 44 with power loc today and I was thinking that once my dana 30 goes in, I'll have an extra set of spindles and hubs from my dana 25.

Has anyone swapped dana 25 spindles and hubs onto a dana 44? I know the 10 spline outer shafts aren't as strong as 27 spline, but I'd be using parts that I already have, and I'm not doing anything harder than forest service roads.

 

From what I've been reading... the dana 25 27 and drum 30 are what most people use. The disk 30 spindle is a little stronger and the custom spindle duffer is using with disk 30 inner bearings on inner and outer will be the strongest. (Sanity Check, D44 Full Floater)

That said the shaft will break 1st with torque. The load from hauling or jumping is what will kill the spindle.

 

Ok so after I posted, I started to read the thread a little deeper, and look into things a bit more... sounds like I could take the spindles and hubs from my dana 25, and they would be a direct fit for 27 spline shafts if I got some warn hubs for an intermediate. The only parts I'd have to buy are custom shafts and the hubs, right?

This project [creep] wasn't even in my mind until my lunch break, and thanks to covid 19 stay-at-home rules I've had a ton more time to work on my Jeep. I'm almost done cleaning up and swapping a dana 30 into the front, at which point I'll have a dana 25 collecting dust.

 

The D25/27 and drum 30 are all basically the same. All the hubs will work with all spindles. The inner bearings and seal on the D30 disk hub and spindle is different though.

You can even make the early D25 work with the newer bearings, you just need the right combination.

I went to all D30 disk hubs and spindles because the hubs are machined true for the disk mating surface and the disk spindles are thicker at the mount side. You need to bore the spindle to 1.31 ID and the inner mount need to be cut to fit in the D44 axle tube. The D30 spindle also uses a bearing in it, whereas the D25/27 use a brass bearing.

The axles need to be custom made. I used a D44 blazer axle spec'ed somewhere in this thread. I also went with 30 spline inner, as it opens up the available lockers etc.. Those cases will also fit in the old 10/19 spline d44 axles with the corresponding bearings. The D30 stuff makes it al interchangeable with the front too.

If you're really into it, you can take some ford hubs and make it work to have internal locking hubs. I haven't done it, but YOU can!

You can make a Full Float D44 out of garbage you have kicking around. Send the axle shafts out to Moser to have splines cut and be done. There are other issues with it, but that's really kind of it. If you're really interested, send me some of your spindles and I can bore them for you and send them off.

 

This is all great information, you rock!