I'm gonna have to bend it back straight with press, then maybe top and bottom truss it. It was sleeved and gusseted before the bending. NO I don't jump it, but I do fall off of rock ledges and rocks. Front tires look like / \ at the bottom. Took capenters level and a few people along with me at a 4x4 shop eye balled it and the ends are bent up. Lookin for some good trusses for front Dana 44.

 

I have the full-width D44 truss from TnT. So far, I'm very happy with it.

Get a welder that you trust (completely) to install it. Also, if you're running less than 4 inches of lift, you're going to have issues with potential interference between the track bar bracket and the bottom of the frame.

 

I have a 4" lift and 3/4" spacer in front, Got a good welder/fabricator I'm gonna work with,,,, He was sayin we'll get a 20 ton jack, I Beam, straps and we'll bend it back. I wanna brace it up kinda like the Iceland hill climbers (top and bottom welded in bracing. Kinda like a I beam (1/2" plate on edge, I beam style) inside a boxed section, top and bottom. his guy I'm workin with has been around a while and has seen a lot of stuff from back in the 70's till now. He says he can brace it up to where it won't ever bend again unless I drop it off a cliff.

 

Sounds good.

If you're going to use the trackbar bracket that comes with the TnT truss, you'll probably want to flip your drag link as well to keep your steering geometry in line. When I drove my JK with the trackbar bracket in place and the draglink still in the stock position, the bump steer was HIDEOUS!

 

Thanks for the heads up on the Drag link flip,, When we took that 6 foot carpenters level and looked across it at the sxle tube the ends were a good 1/4 to 3/8's bent up. We'll get it straightened out and braced up/reinforced using at least 3/8's to half inch plate on edge and boxed.

 

What happened to the good old days of a truss bar underneath the pumpkin going to either side of the axle housing Ground clearance?

Just curious why we don't see them anymore as it seems a simple solution to not bending the axle housing

An upsidedown triangle seems just the ticket to keep from bending the axle housing



Any idea's?

 

I was thinkin the same thing, I use to see all kinds of Chevy blazers and half tons runnin around with one of those on there back in the day. I'm not really concerned with groung clearence. I will try to source one of those or make one. I'm workin with a guy who could make one and he probably had a couple back in the day.

 

Jknockers, that sucks about your axle, especially with your already upgraded setup. The fab shop doesn't happen to be on Broadway, just west of the 101 does it? Anyway, it sounds like the truss is one solution, definitely don't see many JK's going that route these days. I just know from personal experience with my CJ-5, CJ-7 and J-20, trying to get a bent axle straightened is possible, just won't be exactly perfect, especially with your sleeves since since there is now even less clearance inside the tubes, which means there is less room for error. Definitely interested in how your issues come out my friend

 

Thanks for the lookout GCM, NO my fab shop isn't that one. This guys on Southern and way out by the county line. Anyway, we'll get her close (anything is better than what I got goin on now). I'm trying to squeezzzz every little bit out of these dana 44's OR you will be readin about how I'm basically goin your route. The only thing I don't like is that a rear 60 Full float is not a 1/2" thick tube. Maybe it's an upgrade, I'll have to call Dynatrac. I want at least 1/2" thick tubes if I'm going 1 ton full float 8 lug stuff.

 

Got it man! You are correct on the Dynatrac, I think my full floats are 5/16" DOM wall thinkness....but man I have seen seen the cutaways on their display axles at the shop in Huntington beach and HOLY S*#T, those things a pretty thick brother! You are starting to get into Dana 80 territory with that request!!. Good luck though, there is absolutley nothing wrong with squeezing every bit out of the stock gear before upgrading.