Axle swap or not?

That gave me a headache...talk about nickle and dime...it all adds up fast 😲

Ya it does add up fast. Trevor was saying something about raising the track bar mount off the axle. Have you guys raised the track bar or did you leave it on the axle like stock?

raised

"finder_87" wrote: Ya it does add up fast. Trevor was saying something about raising the track bar mount off the axle. Have you guys raised the track bar or did you leave it on the axle like stock?

Put it above the axle to avoid the binding that the lower bracket creates during flex. This will greatly increase your jeep's reliability.

"JohnDF" wrote: That gave me a headache...talk about nickle and dime...it all adds up fast 😲

It's a pain to look at, but I'm not sure I've ever seen a 4x4 shop that's run that well. You know what you're getting and you know what you're paying for. You can argue labor rates and parts costs, but you know what it's going to take. I would be extremely surprised if I came back to pick up something and the price was higher than the quote.

Foothill used to do the exact same thing...except they'd charge you for EVERYTHING including silicone, welding rods, washers, shop towels, etc...

"JohnDF" wrote: Foothill used to do the exact same thing...except they'd charge you for EVERYTHING including silicone, welding rods, washers, shop towels, etc...

That's a bit much.



I'm used to guys like Wes and Adam that squint at it and throw out numbers. 😀

"Bender" wrote:

I'm used to guys like Wes and Adam that squint at it and throw out numbers. 😀

I like it that way...makes me think I'm getting a deal...even if I'm not 😂

Ya WFO is a stand up shop. But guess I need to save some more pennies before I do the swap. 😳 Thanks for your help guys.



Do they sell a raised track mount or are they all custom fabbed?

"finder_87" wrote: Ya WFO is a stand up shop. But guess I need to save some more pennies before I do the swap. 😳 Thanks for your help guys.

Do they sell a raised track mount or are they all custom fabbed?

It's an easy mod at at a shop. Your existing track bar can be flipped and shortened (or just cut down) depending on the location.

Here is my invoice from my axle swaps(plus a few extra items), HP44 front and Dana 60 rear from Varozza 4x4 Outfitters in Placerville. I bought the front with 4.88's gears and an ARB already in it, but it ended up having a few things wrong with it. For installing all this and rebuilding a junkyard rear axle it was around 36 hours of labor @ $65/hr. Ben does great work for a small shop, just don't expect it to be done in a weekend.

Ben Varozza

(530)306-4925

[email protected]

http://www.varozza4x4.com



2 spindle seal/bearing kit $7.95 $15.90

2 front wheel bearing/seal kits $47.95 $95.90

2 rear wheel seal $32.00 $64.00

2 rear wheel bearing (outer) $17.00 $34.00

1 rear u-joint $15.00 $15.00

1 u-bolt kit -1330sp $6.50 $6.50

1 front caliper hardware kit $16.00 $16.00

1 gear oil $12.50 $12.50

1 brake fluid $7.00 $7.00

1 front bracket kit $410.00 $410.00

1 Currie Antirock front sway bar kit $299.00 $299.00

1 Front Track Bar $100.00 $100.00

1 D44 Hy-Steer kit $340.00 $340.00

1 Rear bracket kit $350.00 $350.00

1 Dana 60 Ring & Pinion 4.88 $179.00 $179.00

1 Dana 60 open carrier 4.10&up $70.00 $70.00

1 Dana 60 master install kit $125.00 $125.00

1 Dana 60 Disc brake kit $600.00 $600.00

1 brake lines $20.00 $20.00

1 ARB compact compresser CKSA12 $139.00 $139.00

4 Wheels- black rockcrawler series 17x9 $110.00 $440.00

1 ARB solenoid, bulkhead fitting, air line, & switch $89.00 $89.00

4 valve stems $2.50 $10.00

32 chrome lug nuts 1/2-20 $1.25 $40.00

1 Warn Chromoly front driver inner axle shaft $195.00 $195.00

16 rear wheel studs $2.79 $44.64

1 Optima Battery-yellow top $172.00 $172.00

1 Dana 60 rear Alloy HD diff cover $115.00 $115.00

1 Dana 60 1330sp yoke $68.00 $68.00

2 front axle u-joint 5-760x $19.95 $39.90

SubTotal $4,112.34



If I had to do over again I probably wouldn't. Probably just upgrade shafts and stayed with 35's. I do love the extra stability on the trail and the confidence that I'm probably not going to break, plus I got more nuts.😎 I've got quite a few pics on my Jeep number 3 blog here http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fu ... D=26979987

IIRC, regearing and locking stock axles was about 2500



$ 500 for rear ARB (in box, never installed private party sale)

$ 700 for Front ARB ( back when deals could be found)

$ 1100 to regear both axles, including gear sets, master install kits, gear lube, silicon seal, some paper towels and 15 cents per drop of loc-tite and labor.

$ 200 for u-bolt style yokes, diff guards and my home-grown $56 compressor to run the ARBs.



This was 7 years ago



since then I've put alloy shafts in the rear and had one $300 front axle repair.



Its still not stout enough to run strawberry 😳

"Dan-H" wrote:

Its still not stout enough to run strawberry 😳

You need Mogs for a trail that 😲