I think its time.

4.0B2 · Nov 6, 2011

Overkill? NONSENSE! lol. Yeah for 35's it might be overkill. But why? Ground clearance?? You won't lose much clearance at all. I'm looking at it as if you have a v8 and did 1 tons you'd step up to 37's before it over. Lol. Sure 44/9 is an option... But I don't see the point really. Most people on here that do that seem to end up with 1 tons in a few years.

I can see both sides of this discussion. If you're a decent driver and have some skill and knowledge of how hard to push your rig.. The 35/8.8 would work. On the flip side; a v8 man. You wanna be able to push it and not break. Step out of your comfort zone occasionally. Which tons would be nice. And would give you room to upgrade tire size and stuff later also.

I think-- I would do the 8.8 and d35 stuff for now. And see where it leads you. If you plan on 35's.. It should hold no problem unless you floor it going up a cliff. You could even upgrade axles and stuff. But with the cost of superior88 stuff I'd spend that money on tons IF you need it.

Just look around. If you find a set of matching axles cheap. 44's or 60's or whatever then why not right!!? But if not do the 8.8 and d35

CHKNFKR · Nov 6, 2011

I'm with 4.0 on this one. The bigger your balls get the more shit you'll break. Sure you can go 35/8.8 for a couple hundred dollars, but then everytime you break something you'll sink another couple hundred into it. You could even upgrade the 35/8.8 and maybe get the strength of a 44/9 combo, but by the time you do that you'll have sunk 3x the cost of a stock 60/10.25 thats twice as strong.

Tons aren't overkill, they're smart.

5Tons are overkill....

4x4junkie · Nov 6, 2011

CHKNFKR said:
You could even upgrade the 35/8.8 and maybe get the strength of a 44/9 combo, but by the time you do that you'll have sunk 3x the cost of a stock 60/10.25 thats twice as strong.

You must not be aware of what a used Ford D60 front goes for, or maybe you're thinking it takes bucks to do a few upgrades to a D35 & 8.8"?

D35 axle = ~$200 (guessing junkyard, or less if someone parting something out)
Warn Jeep hubs = ~$190
Spicer 5-760X U-joints (3) = ~$70
Full-circle snap-rings = ~$5 (Home Depot) or you could just weld the caps in too.
Some steel plate for boxing up the back of the beams = ~$10

That's about $475 or so to have a D35 that should be stronger than an all-stock D44.
Even if you were to add the alloy stubs Bronco Graveyard sells (good for maybe at the most another 2-3% overall strength since no inners are available), you're still only at about $765.
You'll be lucky to touch a used D60 that doesn't need ball joints, rotors and everything else replaced (or is missing parts) for less than $1000.

The 8.8" really only needs a bit of welding to secure the tubes into the housing, the rest of it is pretty strong already (well, the stock carrier also excepted, but if you're adding a full-carrier locker, then it's a non-issue).

All that said, I don't think the tons are necessarily overkill either, however it will depend on what you're looking to get out of it. If you're wanting to "blow the cobwebs out" on like dirt hillclimbs or rocky terrain where some bouncing is to be encountered (shock-loading), the tons might make sense. To do so in slick mud where power application & traction (or lack thereof) remains relatively smooth, I don't think the need for them will be quite as great.

CHKNFKR · Nov 6, 2011

location has a lot to do with it too. around here tons are a dime a dozen. i flipped a pair and doubled my money to pay for the rocks.

Come to think of it, i ought to do that a couple more times so i can get the rocks back together....

85_Ranger4x4 · Nov 6, 2011

4x4junkie said:
You'll be lucky to touch a used D60 that doesn't need ball joints, rotors and everything else replaced (or is missing parts) for less than $1000.

I would be lucky to find any axle that didn't need all of that at any price. :icon_twisted:

With some smart shopping you can get a dead horse for a grand around or less around here and scrap what you don't want/need. Runners are all over on craigslist $3-10k, more towards three and customized trucks (rollbacks, service trucks) being in the higher end.

A couple weeks ago an '02 F-350 4x4 that needed balljoints and a bunch of wiring work was junked at the local dealer.

86MUDRCJ · Nov 9, 2011

I think I'm going to get a d35 cuz I think it would be alot easier to do,and I don't see my truck running anything bigger than 35's.

I think its time.

4.0B2

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CHKNFKR

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4x4junkie

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CHKNFKR

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86MUDRCJ

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