Got 35s on a 30, for now. Just running c gussets but will be going with new axles this year hopefully.

I wheel hard but smart, everything else upgraded, control arms, steering, 1310 shafts, etc.

I don't believe in sinking 2g's into the 30, wheel it till it breaks and replace it. Sleeves, trussing and all that crap costs too much unless you burn em on yourself which is the route I took. I still didn't want the added weight of all that garbage on the axle since it will go away eventually.

 

That's kinda what I was thinking. I mean sleeves are the next best option so I can continue wheeling and go up to the 35's but trusses I'm not doing. My C's were a cheap buy for extra insurance and I'm glad I did the balljoints too the stock joints are terrible. I need to upgrade my drive shafts anyway that's a no brainer too but I want to get the 30 a little more stable first for when I decide it's time for new tires. I'll probably go with the weld in sleeves the Synergy beat in ones I don't care for.

 

great article, thanks...probably be sticking with 33's now though

 

I've been running 35's on my '11 with D30 for over a year. I haven't done any crazy wheeling but on the trail at least monthly. I am planning on upgrading with EVO's axle sleeve, c gussets, and truss. I'll change ball joints while I'm in. I run 4.88 gears with a zip locker. No problems so far. I did upgrade to a Tom Woods front drive shaft. Not planning on chromoly axles until I break one.

 

D30 with 35s. No locker which will make a huge difference, but my axle has held up to a bunch of obstacles. I've been through rock creek crossings and hill climbs and everything. I will be moving to 37s and tons but that's a different story. You might be fine on a 30. Idk. Everyone seems to have a different story. My advise is, when you break it, replace it

 

I use to have a Dana 30 front 44 rear. Ran 35s for years wheeled the heck out of it instagram el_jeepo never had issues must have been lucky lol. Also ran 37x13.5 for a little bit before upgrading my axles to get lockers and better gearing plus dumped the Dana 30
And 44 at the same time. But when I was there never had issues with 35s no upgrades and stock axles. Have a 2007 Jku

 

Just had an ARTEC Axle Armor kit installed on my D30 (truss, C's, LCA skids). Did synergy ball joints, Poison Sypder diff covers, 4.88s, and ARBs front and rear at the same time.

Tried to talk to as many experienced people as possible before making the decision. All seemed to agree that smart driving and the added armor is more than enough for a D30 with 35s.

I'll update on this thread after a few months and some trail miles....

 

Newbie here... What is a truss, C's, LCA skids... I'm running 37's on a Dana 30 and figuring out that isn't the best idea!

 

I know that the original question was about re-gearing and beefing up the D30. However, If it were me, instead of spending the money on re-gearing (which is not cheap as you know) I would recommend finding a Rubicon D44 WITH THE GEARING I WANTED. My 2011 JKU Sport had 3.21 gears and a D30 in front. Knowing I was going to go to 4.88 gears I located and found both front and rear D44 Rubicon axles on this forum from someone upgrading to D60's. I was able to get the gearing I wanted AND LOCKERS (front and rear) for not much more than just re-gearing both front and rear axles and still having a D30 and no lockers. nthinuf raised this option as well.

Of course I still had to buy the reinforcement items but that is the same cost for a D30 as a D44 so that was a wash.

Having said that I ended up spending about the same amount of money as if I had actually purchased a Rubicon. Subsequently I actually purchased a 2013 JKU Rubicon 10A after all.

my $.02 worth......aw what the heck, make it a nickle.

KG6SLC aka Eugene

 

A truss is a long metal piece welded along the top of the axle housing.

LCA skids are protection for the lower control arms where they connect to the axle housing.

C's are the curved pieces of metal at both ends of the front housing, right behind the tires. The top bends up and toward the tire, bottom bends down and toward the tire, kinda looks like a C. Gussets are pieces of metal welded to those upper/lower C's.

Inner sleeves are metal tubes that slide inside both ends of the axle housing, and are either welded in, or in one version, just hammed in for a tight fit.

Outer sleeves you don't hear much about, but it is a clamshell type sleeve fitted around the outside of the housing to help add thickness.