Axle swap or R&P

[chevyjeep]

OK, to start out with my 82 CJ5 has a narrow track AMC20 in the rear and a wide track Dana 30 in the front. Don't ask me why cause I have no idea. But trust me, I've measured both several times with the same results. When I got it I noticed the back looked way narrower then the front so I put spacers on the back.i didn't realize it was a narrow track till recently. I just figured the back was just that much narrower. I don't know if it came from the factory like this or was a PO thing but it looks factory.

Ok sorry, I got side tracked on that. The real question here is I have 2.73 gears and they quite frankly suck off road with my 33s. So I'm looking for the cheapest (no im not a cheap scape. I'm just on a really tight budget) way to lower my ratio. I have a 83 "parts Jeep" that was rolled but had a good drive terrain minus the T-5 tranny. It has 3.31 gears so my question here is could I or should I swap the axles from the 83 into my 82? Or could I just pull the 3.31 R&Ps out of the 83 and put them in my 82. The problem is the 83 is missing the whole brake assemblys on the back and the front Dana 30 is missing the Hubs and axles. I could swap all the missing parts from the 82 over to the 83 axles I guess. But I just recently(this is when I found out it's funny narrow wide axles!) Put new bearings and seals in the back axles and pinion seals.

Wow that got long fast! Thanks for any input.

 

[Lumpy Grits]

The 3:31 will still SUC w/33's-But better than 2:73...
Swap both of the axle assemblies, and go to Moser 1 piece rear axles.
LG

 

[chevyjeep]

Yeah I know I need atleast 3.73s but the 3.31s will be better! Anything will help at this point.

Oh I see I forgot to mention that the 83 already has one piece rear axles ...not sure what brand tho.

 

[Posi]

I would swap the 83 wt axles in because it has one piece shafts.
However, it will only give you a 5.35 increase in crawl ratio.
This may or may not be enough gearing for your intended type of wheeling.
Side note: all CJ5 's came from the factory with NT axles.

 

[jp360cj]

Another vote for swapping the whole axle assemblies. As long as the rear has the backing plate, and is the same size as your current rear brakes, then you can swap everything over. Everything on the front is the same.

If you haven't already, pull the covers and inspect the guts. I would pull the rear shafts and inspect the wheel bearings, and also pull the front hubs and inspect/replace those. Anything on your front will swap over to the 83 front.

The 3.31s are a 21% reduction over the 2.72s. That should be a noticeable improvement, plus you'll be ditching the rear spacers. If you decide to regear even lower in the future, at least you won't be putting money into mismatched axles.

 

[chevyjeep]

Well I really don't know lots on crawl ratios. But Google does! .... say I was in 4low 1st gear at 1,000 rpm. I should be at 3.9 mph with 2.73s and with 3.31s I will be at 3.2 mph. Would I even notice this on the trail?

Posi, I do use it as my DD when it's not raining but, Ive been to Moab twice and thats where I really needed 4.10s!! I just had to ride my clutch a lot. But my intended wheeling is moderate trail riding.

 

[Hedgehog]

Swap the axles, setting up Diff gears is expensive or tedious if you do them yourself. Swapping axles is a fairly straight forward affair.

 

[Posi]

You won't notice much of a difference between 2.73 and 3.31, neither will give you much control even on moderate trails.

 

[chevyjeep]

OK thanks for all the input! I know the 3.31s are not that much better but I was just trying to decide if it was worth the time and effort to swap the axles for that small gain.

 

[tarry99]

OK thanks for all the input! I know the 3.31s are not that much better but I was just trying to decide if it was worth the time and effort to swap the axles for that small gain.

No question your gear ratios suck!

Have you considered putting a 4:1 gear in the Dana 300 Transfer Case ?

Without changing anything else...... off road it will act as if you have 4.11 in the back........maybe a $800+/-

 

[chevyjeep]

Yes I have looked long and hard at the 4:1 for the Dana 300 ! And I like that idea. But for $800 I'm going to wait for that awhile. Wish I could find a used kit for cheaper

 

[chevyjeep]

OK just for an update... I went ahead and swapped the 83 WT under my 82. So now I have matching WT axles front and back! I haven't bleed the brakes yet so I haven't test drove it yet.