5.13 or 4.88 Installer doesn't want to do 5.13
02-02-2015, 03:32 AM
#41
JK Enthusiast
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Sun Prairie, WI
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Your profile say you have the X, and I do as well. Personally, I refused to even go above 4.56 gears with the d30. I shopped around and found a d44 out of a rubi for a few hundred bucks. Now I am confident about going 4.88 with 35s and 37s down the line.
I would look around old junk yards and in the for sale section here for a good priced axle near you and then go 5.13 gears. If by some chance you regear (usually min of $1000 to $2000) and then one set breaks as your trail difficulty increases, your out another $500-$1000 to fix the broken gears. Do that once or twice and you've already spent enough to have bought an axle from the beginning and "do it right".
The dilemma you're caught in is that 5.13 gears in a d30 are weaker than what is desirable. Going to 4.88 can help remedy that slightly, but then you fall into that sluggish feeling you're at now. It's a catch 22. If you truly mean LIGHT trail rides you MIGHT be able to get away with the 5.13s.
Nobody can concretely tell you if you will or will not be fine, you have to make that call. Best of luck
02-02-2015, 03:46 AM
#42
JK Enthusiast
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02-02-2015, 05:42 AM
#43
This thread is getting pretty lengthy but the bottom line is shit is going to break. My old man (35's, 4:56, and light 2 door) broke the R&P on his D30 3 times and blow up his ARB locker on the 3rd break. He had the stocks shafts through all 3 times and they never broke to save the R&P. He finally upgraded and has been fine ever since. I have other friends that are running a D30 on jku's with 37's and they have been fine. If I were you, Medic, I would do whatever feels right to you. If you got into a spot that would break 5:13, That same place more than likely would of broken the 4:88's too.
02-02-2015, 08:13 AM
#44
JK Super Freak
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If I was to get a new axle, am I looking at replacing both the front and rear axles? And trails I would be doing would most likely just range from bumpy trails to climbing over 2 ft boulders. But that's only like a couple weekends out of the year, the jeeps my DD. So I don't think I would be too afraid of breaking my axle with it only being a weekend toy, unless I'm wrong and I can easily break the axle in 5.13 as a DD
02-21-2015, 09:11 PM
#45
JK Freak
Thread Starter
This post has gotten way more ATTN than I thought it would. We do not wheel easy. Definitely not a mall crawler. We tackle trails the rock bouncers go on all the time just slower lol. Knock on wood my Dana 30 has been great so far. It is beefed to the gills tho. I know I know people have the opinion as to not putting money into a D30 but to say I don't have the money to run 37's correctly or don't need them or whatever is immature and you sound like a bragger that I would like to prove wrong on the trail if you even really wheel. Sure I could drop 5,000 on a axle tomorrow no problem I have the money to do that. Not bragging!!! I choose not to because I like having money in the bank more than under my jeep. Getting mad over someone saying they haven't had troubles is dumb. I'm asking for opinions and real world info. Reading 20 post between people arguing doesn't help answer my question. Thanks guys and gals