papajohn18

i have a 2012 jku sport with 35s and 3.21 gears. been on 35s for a few months now and I'm not horribly bothered by the gearing, its definitely sluggish but what does one expect. i was getting ready to upgrade to 4.56 gears, full artec armor on the D30, diff covers, balljoints and I'm back and forth on a rear locker. am i better off waiting and saving the money for a pr44 and rear locker ? i wheel only a few times a month and but its mostly mud and creek beds not really rocks. i do plan on hitting harder trails and obstacles as i get more experienced.
thanks for any input

doooodo

I was in a similar boat, and opted for the axle swap route after doing the math. I was just going up to 4.10s for cost reasons, so finding rubi takeoffs worked for me. If you're going to 4.56s, the math *might* be different.

papajohn18

thanks for the input, rubi front is a route I was looking at as well just had trouble finding one.

i thought building the d30 would be sufficient for the wheeling that i do, but i was told that my c's are bent and id rather do it right the first time around.

TheDirtman

I would not put a dime into a D30 but it is tough on the front from the limited offerings out there. Rubi upgrade would be good to gain the lockers gears, and bigger diff. For the money a used one can't be beat but they still use the same weak housing as the 30. The aftermarket swap in housings are expensive for what you end up with in the end. Building a 60 with lock out hubs is the best route to go if you can fab it yourself but many don't have the skills or tools to do it. Greatlakes4x4.com is a huge for sale board that has just about everything for off road and I see lots of axles listed there just know what you are looking at.

It really comes down to your budget and with the wheeling you do a rubi with C gussets should be find for what you wheel.

dentondanner

I was in a similar boat with a 2012 JKU Sahara Auto with 3.21 ~ Did a lot of research and as others have said, you have to really be honest with yourself and ask what your budget is and what type of wheeling you intend to do. For me, my type of wheeling is offroad wooded trails/fire breaks when hunting, trips to the beach, trips to camping sites, trips to the mountains, more of a recreational vehicle for me, not really looking to rock climb. I decided with some recommendation and researching to reinforce the front dana 30 with an Artec Truss full kit with C gussets and shock skids; ball joints only have 24000 miles so they were good. Went with Detroit True tracs front and rear along with 4.56 gearing. I have a Metal Cloak 2.5 lift. I drove around with the 3.21 with a FlashPaq with 87 Tune and it peeped it up alittle but could still tell there was a strain. Shift points are also adjusted with the tire recal. If you intend on a lot of long distant highway driving 4.56 might be a little much. It is fine for me (tolerable) as my trips are generally in the 4 hr range. Again, just depends on your honest assessment of what you want to do with it.

tarpon4me

FYI, i've broken more shit in mud than ANYTHING else.

nthinuf

Come up with a side-by-side comparison with the components you are considering and see what makes sense. Or maybe not 'sense', but at least put it into better perspective.

An example:
https://www.jk-forum.com/forums/modi...-build-274896/

We all understand the budget thing - but I'm with Dirtman. If you are even considering a 44 or 60, don't put a dime into the 30.