Some FSJ D44 axle tech...

[Monkeyevil]

Waggies only came in narrow trac.

Cherokee Cheifs are the only ones that were available in wide trac and narrow trac.

The rare 4 door Cherokee Cheif IS NOT available in widetrac.

J-Trucks are ONLY available in wide trac.

The quick and dirty way to tell if it's widetrak (65" front, 62" rear) is to look for fender flares..

Widetrack



Narrowtrack





75-79 are passenger side pumpkin, disk brake,

80-91 are driver side pumpkin disk braked.
2.72,3.08,3.54 are the most common gear ratios

some 80 and newer had a vacum disconnect you should steer clear of

the rears 79 and older are dana 44s, mostly offset ( Quadratrack) but some where centered.

80-85 ( or 86) where amc20 rears, but heavy duty, way better than the CJ amc20, some or all after 85 ( or 86) where centered dana 44 rears again

all rears 1980 and later were centered.

6 lugs = 1/2 8 lugs = 3/4 ton


Rear width varying from 58" - 62
Front width varying from 60" - 68"

Front was closed knuckle till 1969

From 1967-1969, all 44 fronts used the 5-74x u joint inside of a closed knuckle.

From 1970-1973, all 44 fronts used the smaller 5-260x axle shaft u-joint

Axle shaft diameter = 1 5/16"x30 spline Inner; 1 1/4"x19 spline Outer (1974-present), 1 1/8"x10 spline Outer (1967-1973) Note: 1967-1969 trucks had 1 1/4"x19 spline Inner axles

No limited slip or locking differential was offered.

Carrier breaks are 3.73 and down; 3.92 and up

Thanks to IFSJA.org and Pirate4x4.com for references.

[JohnnyJ]

Hopefully a little more clarification:

75-79 are passenger side pumpkin, disk brake,

Open that up to 74-79. One exception: Early Cherokee (74-75) had drum standard, disc optional.

3.08 (standard), 3.54 (tow package) are the most common gear ratios in these years; especially when picking from FSJs with V8s.

80-91 are driver side pumpkin disk braked.
2.72,3.08,3.54 are the most common gear ratios

Fuel economy drove them to use 2.72 (standard) and 3.31 (tow) for these years

Based on 4 basic types of D44s (pass drop or driver's drop, wide or narrow):

-The outers will interchange on all 74 to end of production
-No interchange on inners between 4 types. For instance, the long inner between narrow passenger and narrow driver's drop are different lengths. Same for the short side. Also wide vs narrow are different on both sides.

Other useful info:
- Most 74-75, and a few 76 will have flat top knuckles. Will need to be machined and drilled on both sides, since unlike Chevy, they didn't use the idler arm on the driver's side.
- Early parts also use small spindle, which allows for easier conversion to ford hub & brakes to get 5x5.5

You can mill the big spindles down to small spindle size, in the case you need the small spindles and can't find thempirate4x4 link)

And you'd want the small spindles for how to convert your 6-lug FSJ axle to 5-lug:

4Bangler said:
You need:

Six bolt spindles that use the same BR37 inner wheel bearing the Ford Hub uses, basically, look for an inner wheel bearing surface of about 1.75" vs 2.00", these can be found on most pre '76 1/2 ton Chevys and FSJ's, pretty much any six-lug axle with flat-top knuckles will have them, but the only way to be sure is to pull the hub and measure the inner bearing surface diameter. Later Ford TTB spindles will bolt up but are 1/4 too short between the inner bearing and the spindle mounting flange, so the rotor will rub the caliper mount.

Once you have the spindles, go down to AutoZone and plunk down $30.99 ea for NEW Ford 5 on 5.5 hub & rotor assemblies complete with new wheel studs and bearing races installed, AIMCO part # 5492.

The rest is all the stock Chevy/FSJ style brake parts.

Good article on flat-top knuckles, where to find, etc: Mr.N\\\\\\\\\'s Guide

[Monkeyevil]

sweet thanks

[PavementPounder]

Originally Posted by monkeyevil

Waggies only came in narrow trac.
80-85 ( or 86) where amc20 rears, but heavy duty, way better than the CJ amc20, some or all after 85 ( or 86) where centered dana 44 rears again

I thought they used the heavy C20 through the end of the SJ run.


I also thought flat-topped knuckles were available through 1978.

[JohnnyJ]

Mid-86 is when they went to a centered rear D44.

I haven't seen anything on flat tops post 76, but you never know. It's worth checking, though. As a habit, I check most any Chevy/Wag D44 for flat tops in yards as I go through. You never know what you'll find.

[PavementPounder]

Originally Posted by JohnnyJ

Mid-86 is when they went to a centered rear D44.

I haven't seen anything on flat tops post 76, but you never know. It's worth checking, though. As a habit, I check most any Chevy/Wag D44 for flat tops in yards as I go through. You never know what you'll find.

I found a 1977 Waggie with flat-tops recently. Its the one that gave up its motor to Sandals and now resides with 88yj if anyone wants a picture to confirm.