35's Fit!

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Tue Apr 14, 2009 9:41 pm

ramlebliberty wrote:

tjkj2002 wrote:

ramlebliberty wrote:

Tokyojoe wrote:

That definitely seals the deal for me. No SFA! No way no how! I would rather buy my toy fun car than do that. I'll take a completely restored 1967 Austin Healey BJ 3000 Mark III for $30k over the SFA anyday.

sfa can be done for under 8k... its not arbseths kj (which is beautiful, and my wife agreed to that

) but its functional, and kick arse... OHV KJ's rig is running 36" swamper iroks right now. And since he had the current shop work re-axle swap it he only had 1 minor problem with it (i think he had some bearings in his rear axle go south, nothing associated with the swap) and hes done some serious wheeling with it. He of course spent more than 8K, but he had to have it completely re-done after the first guy jacked it up. I was quoted at $6000, and thats with front & rear long arms, front hpd30, 4.56 gears, front coilovers, rear coils & shocks, both driveshafts, all the steering components, and labor, some other details also. I'm sure other shops can preform the swap for a compairable price. Lets face it, not all of use is crawling moab every weekend and need prorock60's. Of course doing a simpler sfa swap will make it easier to stuff larger axles and tires under your rig in the future :wink:

just throwing it out there... if your on the southeast coast get in touch with ohv_kj if you want info on the shop that does the swap

The HPD30 won't last long running 36" IROK's under a heavy vehicle,he'll get away with it for a little bit.The rear bearing failure is another victim of to large of tires for the axle,at least can accelerate it drastically.As yet no one has gotten a SFA KJ done for less then $10,000,highly doubt it can be done for less then that and still be able to safely drive it.

the bearings went bad with 33's
his is safe to drive, hes driving it over 100 mile to uhwarrie, wheeling all weekend, then driving it home. the setup he runs can be done comfortably under 10k.
i wouldn't run more than 33's, but he's upgrading to 44/60 or 14 bolt soon.

Yep and us that want to run 35"+ tires can not use a D30 in the front and the 8.25 is at/above it's limit with that size tire also.My axles I'm building is safe to use for up to 42" tires if I so choose.And as long as I'm doing a SFA might as well get a t-case that will not blow up either and give me a better crawl ratio that actually saves parts when offroad.

Oh and why not just spend the money the 1st time instead of spending it twice to upgrade the axles later on.If people really like to waste money like that please tell them to send some my way,still got parts to buy to do my KJ right the 1st time.

ohv_kj · **Posted:** Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:47 pm

well lets just say he is a believer in what i have...yes in might brake and yes the limit of the axles are there..but when ppl like you say it can't be done... i laugh...it seems all you have knowledge in is your initial jeep, "kjs are better here, kjs should this" again, until you build something like what i drive, your point is useless... i have seen plenty of Cherokees and such running a big tire on smaller axles...it's all about how you drive...i like a challenge...oh to let you know my jeep rides better then most jeep i felt w/ long arms...and the reason ramble likes telling you all about our shop is because he has seen what we have and knows it is safe... i have put 10,000 miles on it so far and it is fine...keep your rock60 and i'll build my junk yard axles all day...

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Tue Apr 14, 2009 10:56 pm

ohv_kj wrote:

well lets just say he is a believer in what i have...yes in might brake and yes the limit of the axles are there..but when ppl like you say it can't be done... i laugh...it seems all you have knowledge in is your initial jeep, "kjs are better here, kjs should this" again, until you build something like what i drive, your point is useless... i have seen plenty of Cherokees and such running a big tire on smaller axles...it's all about how you drive...i like a challenge...oh to let you know my jeep rides better then most jeep i felt w/ long arms...and the reason ramble likes telling you all about our shop is because he has seen what we have and knows it is safe... i have put 10,000 miles on it so far and it is fine...keep your rock60 and i'll build my junk yard axles all day...

Just remember that a XJ is also about 1000lbs lighter then a KJ.You got to take into effect the weight of the vehicle in axle selection.Sure you can say the D30A came stock but it was a IFS design that supported zero weight.My KJ is sitting at 5500lbs right now and is way to heavy for a D30.Hey my front axle is a "junkyard" axle,took $4500 to make a good axle,you'd be very hard pressed to match it's strength for cheaper,heck it would be about $5000-$6000 to build a good front HP60,if not more.Sure my rear RockJock60 cost more then a regular rear D60 or C14 but I get the D60 strength without the weight,it weighs only 380lbs complete which is about 200lbs-300lbs lighter then a stock D60 and/or C14 but has the same if not more strength,that alone is worth the price.I'm trying to keep my KJ under 6000lbs but may not be able to.A 3ton vehicle needs big axles and beefy parts that cost more to begin with but will be cheaper to maintain then upgrading later.

JJsTJ · **Posted:** Wed Apr 15, 2009 8:14 am

tjkj2002 wrote:

ohv_kj wrote:

well lets just say he is a believer in what i have...yes in might brake and yes the limit of the axles are there..but when ppl like you say it can't be done... i laugh...it seems all you have knowledge in is your initial jeep, "kjs are better here, kjs should this" again, until you build something like what i drive, your point is useless... i have seen plenty of Cherokees and such running a big tire on smaller axles...it's all about how you drive...i like a challenge...oh to let you know my jeep rides better then most jeep i felt w/ long arms...and the reason ramble likes telling you all about our shop is because he has seen what we have and knows it is safe... i have put 10,000 miles on it so far and it is fine...keep your rock60 and i'll build my junk yard axles all day...

Just remember that a XJ is also about 1000lbs lighter then a KJ.You got to take into effect the weight of the vehicle in axle selection.Sure you can say the D30A came stock but it was a IFS design that supported zero weight.My KJ is sitting at 5500lbs right now and is way to heavy for a D30.Hey my front axle is a "junkyard" axle,took $4500 to make a good axle,you'd be very hard pressed to match it's strength for cheaper,heck it would be about $5000-$6000 to build a good front HP60,if not more.Sure my rear RockJock60 cost more then a regular rear D60 or C14 but I get the D60 strength without the weight,it weighs only 380lbs complete which is about 200lbs-300lbs lighter then a stock D60 and/or C14 but has the same if not more strength,that alone is worth the price.I'm trying to keep my KJ under 6000lbs but may not be able to.A 3ton vehicle needs big axles and beefy parts that cost more to begin with but will be cheaper to maintain then upgrading later.

....and maybe some day we will see it finished. :wink:

So hows it coming along anyway?

I agree w/ some of your points Troy but it is interesting that there is one SFA KJ that is still running the factory 8.25 and stock shaft equipped junk yard HPD30 and has been wheeling for 3 years now and still going strong. (knock wood) Like mentioned, it has a lot to do w/ how you wheel. We all know that Seth beat the crap out of his rig on several Very hard trails before the D30 gave up w/ 35's and I suspect that any D30 equiped rig probably would have had a similar fate under his heavy foot.

Bottom line is you can build a very capable, safe and strong rig w/ decent enough, "Cheap", parts and wheel for a very long time or you can overbuild for more money and never have to upgrade. (or somewhere in the middle of those)

I decided recently that my KJ is at pretty much where it will stay. No bigger tires, no exo cage, no V8 swap, no Rockwells or portals, etc. I'm gonna wheel and enjoy it and then start a new project when I can. I guarantee I will get every penny back in enjoyment out of this rig, heck I'm almost there already AFAIC.

ramlebliberty · **Posted:** Wed Apr 15, 2009 8:11 pm

JJsKJ wrote:

tjkj2002 wrote:

ohv_kj wrote:

well lets just say he is a believer in what i have...yes in might brake and yes the limit of the axles are there..but when ppl like you say it can't be done... i laugh...it seems all you have knowledge in is your initial jeep, "kjs are better here, kjs should this" again, until you build something like what i drive, your point is useless... i have seen plenty of Cherokees and such running a big tire on smaller axles...it's all about how you drive...i like a challenge...oh to let you know my jeep rides better then most jeep i felt w/ long arms...and the reason ramble likes telling you all about our shop is because he has seen what we have and knows it is safe... i have put 10,000 miles on it so far and it is fine...keep your rock60 and i'll build my junk yard axles all day...

Just remember that a XJ is also about 1000lbs lighter then a KJ.You got to take into effect the weight of the vehicle in axle selection.Sure you can say the D30A came stock but it was a IFS design that supported zero weight.My KJ is sitting at 5500lbs right now and is way to heavy for a D30.Hey my front axle is a "junkyard" axle,took $4500 to make a good axle,you'd be very hard pressed to match it's strength for cheaper,heck it would be about $5000-$6000 to build a good front HP60,if not more.Sure my rear RockJock60 cost more then a regular rear D60 or C14 but I get the D60 strength without the weight,it weighs only 380lbs complete which is about 200lbs-300lbs lighter then a stock D60 and/or C14 but has the same if not more strength,that alone is worth the price.I'm trying to keep my KJ under 6000lbs but may not be able to.A 3ton vehicle needs big axles and beefy parts that cost more to begin with but will be cheaper to maintain then upgrading later.

....and maybe some day we will see it finished. :wink:

So hows it coming along anyway?

I agree w/ some of your points Troy but it is interesting that there is one SFA KJ that is still running the factory 8.25 and stock shaft equipped junk yard HPD30 and has been wheeling for 3 years now and still going strong. (knock wood) Like mentioned, it has a lot to do w/ how you wheel. We all know that Seth beat the crap out of his rig on several Very hard trails before the D30 gave up w/ 35's and I suspect that any D30 equiped rig probably would have had a similar fate under his heavy foot.

Bottom line is you can build a very capable, safe and strong rig w/ decent enough, "Cheap", parts and wheel for a very long time or you can overbuild for more money and never have to upgrade. (or somewhere in the middle of those)

I decided recently that my KJ is at pretty much where it will stay. No bigger tires, no exo cage, no V8 swap, no Rockwells or portals, etc. I'm gonna wheel and enjoy it and then start a new project when I can. I guarantee I will get every penny back in enjoyment out of this rig, heck I'm almost there already AFAIC.

.... seems as if theres only 1 non believer

bottom line, this would get more SFA KJ's on the trail... sorry they wont have gold plated axleshafts, coilovers cast from diamonds, and seats stuffed with the feathers from bald eagle chicks. But for the price, you get a rig that by far annihilates any IFS KJ. It gets rid of the weak 30a, lets you run 33's confidently, and drives like a dream.

We can argue until our faces are blue about this, but the bottom line is the guy stated for 30k he would rather forget about a sfa kj and go with somthing else... well for 6k he can have a sfa kj and have it be a very stout rig for what it is.

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Wed Apr 15, 2009 8:43 pm

ramlebliberty wrote:

JJsKJ wrote:

tjkj2002 wrote:

ohv_kj wrote:

well lets just say he is a believer in what i have...yes in might brake and yes the limit of the axles are there..but when ppl like you say it can't be done... i laugh...it seems all you have knowledge in is your initial jeep, "kjs are better here, kjs should this" again, until you build something like what i drive, your point is useless... i have seen plenty of Cherokees and such running a big tire on smaller axles...it's all about how you drive...i like a challenge...oh to let you know my jeep rides better then most jeep i felt w/ long arms...and the reason ramble likes telling you all about our shop is because he has seen what we have and knows it is safe... i have put 10,000 miles on it so far and it is fine...keep your rock60 and i'll build my junk yard axles all day...

Just remember that a XJ is also about 1000lbs lighter then a KJ.You got to take into effect the weight of the vehicle in axle selection.Sure you can say the D30A came stock but it was a IFS design that supported zero weight.My KJ is sitting at 5500lbs right now and is way to heavy for a D30.Hey my front axle is a "junkyard" axle,took $4500 to make a good axle,you'd be very hard pressed to match it's strength for cheaper,heck it would be about $5000-$6000 to build a good front HP60,if not more.Sure my rear RockJock60 cost more then a regular rear D60 or C14 but I get the D60 strength without the weight,it weighs only 380lbs complete which is about 200lbs-300lbs lighter then a stock D60 and/or C14 but has the same if not more strength,that alone is worth the price.I'm trying to keep my KJ under 6000lbs but may not be able to.A 3ton vehicle needs big axles and beefy parts that cost more to begin with but will be cheaper to maintain then upgrading later.

....and maybe some day we will see it finished. :wink:

So hows it coming along anyway?

I agree w/ some of your points Troy but it is interesting that there is one SFA KJ that is still running the factory 8.25 and stock shaft equipped junk yard HPD30 and has been wheeling for 3 years now and still going strong. (knock wood) Like mentioned, it has a lot to do w/ how you wheel. We all know that Seth beat the crap out of his rig on several Very hard trails before the D30 gave up w/ 35's and I suspect that any D30 equiped rig probably would have had a similar fate under his heavy foot.

Bottom line is you can build a very capable, safe and strong rig w/ decent enough, "Cheap", parts and wheel for a very long time or you can overbuild for more money and never have to upgrade. (or somewhere in the middle of those)

I decided recently that my KJ is at pretty much where it will stay. No bigger tires, no exo cage, no V8 swap, no Rockwells or portals, etc. I'm gonna wheel and enjoy it and then start a new project when I can. I guarantee I will get every penny back in enjoyment out of this rig, heck I'm almost there already AFAIC.

.... seems as if theres only 1 non believer

bottom line, this would get more SFA KJ's on the trail... sorry they wont have gold plated axleshafts, coilovers cast from diamonds, and seats stuffed with the feathers from bald eagle chicks. But for the price, you get a rig that by far annihilates any IFS KJ. It gets rid of the weak 30a, lets you run 33's confidently, and drives like a dream.

We can argue until our faces are blue about this, but the bottom line is the guy stated for 30k he would rather forget about a sfa kj and go with somthing else... well for 6k he can have a sfa kj and have it be a very stout rig for what it is.

Sure but running 33" tires is not the same as running 35" tires which this topic is about :wink:

.A HP30 will live with 33" tires but will not live long with 35" tires.Plus I don't consider a regular D30,LP or HP,much of a improvement over the D30A,just more after market support is about all.

JJsTJ · **Posted:** Wed Apr 15, 2009 9:43 pm

Quote:

I don't consider a regular D30,LP or HP,much of a improvement over the D30A

that is the silliest thing I have ever read on this forum. :lol:

But since it is your opinion, its all good. :wink:

When your rig is done, I expect to see it on the level of trail that you have overbuilt it for. If you don't have 4' boulders rolling around Under your rig...........

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Wed Apr 15, 2009 9:54 pm

JJsKJ wrote:

Quote:

I don't consider a regular D30,LP or HP,much of a improvement over the D30A

that is the silliest thing I have ever read on this forum. :lol:

But since it is your opinion, its all good. :wink:

When your rig is done, I expect to see it on the level of trail that you have overbuilt it for. If you don't have 4' boulders rolling around Under your rig...........

Already been told these are trails..............
http://www.traildamage.com/trails/index.php?id=147
http://www.traildamage.com/trails/index.php?id=36

These I'd like to try,maybe after I walk them 1st and have a full EXO installed :shock:

http://www.traildamage.com/trails/index.php?id=159
http://www.traildamage.com/trails/index.php?id=141
http://www.traildamage.com/trails/index.php?id=160

And you get the meaning of what I was meaning about a D30,still uses the same ring gear diameter and lockers across the board.Granted you can upgrade to 30-spline axles in the D30 but still have those tiny gears.Great for light rigs with 33" tires.Like I have said I'm to heavy for a D30 and it will self destruct trying to turn 116lbs each 35x13.50x15 Toyo's.If your planning on not going above a 33" tire then a HP30 is fine,not my 1st choice but your KJ is not mine either.

Neatus · **Posted:** Thu Apr 16, 2009 1:02 pm

tjkj2002 wrote:

your KJ is not mine either.

Exactly....
I have a an HP Dana 30 and I will be using it. It will be enough for what I do. You guys should all build your rigs for what you use it for. You all know what it is you want and if you decide to push your Jeep past its limit then expect some problems. Keep it within what it is intended for and you will be golden.

allyrand · **Posted:** Thu Apr 16, 2009 5:37 pm

this is all very entertaining stuff here...keep it coming while I wheel the crap out of my 3 year old SFA with an HPD30 and the Corp 8 1/4 on 33s..maybe sometime in the next few years we can all wheel our SFAs together

tjkj2002 · **Posted:** Thu Apr 16, 2009 6:13 pm

allyrand wrote:

this is all very entertaining stuff here...keep it coming while I wheel the crap out of my 3 year old SFA with an HPD30 and the Corp 8 1/4 on 33s..maybe sometime in the next few years we can all wheel our SFAs together

Not doubting a HP30 will live with 33" tires and a lighter rig like yours allyrand but this thread is about 35" tires which a HP30 and 1000lbs more KJ over a XJ will not like with 35" tires.It's so common of a problem that there is kits to strengthen the D30 axle tubes,even the front D44 axles in TJ's/JK's.If I put a HP30 under my KJ right now with zero weight increase it would bend the housing on a 3 trail easy.Like I said I'm expecting 6000lbs easy when done so a beefier front axle is needed and on top of that I'm going to run 35" tires that are about 50lbs more each then your 33" tire/wheel combo.

JJsTJ · **Posted:** Thu Apr 16, 2009 9:08 pm

allyrand wrote:

this is all very entertaining stuff here...keep it coming while I wheel the crap out of my 3 year old SFA with an HPD30 and the Corp 8 1/4 on 33s..maybe sometime in the next few years we can all wheel our SFAs together

at the mall?! Seriously. :lol:

allyrand · **Posted:** Thu Apr 16, 2009 10:59 pm

Quote:

at the mall?! Seriously. Laughing

yeah like the day I strapped you off of that curb stone! :-)r

Sport · **Posted:** Sun Apr 19, 2009 8:26 pm

allyrand wrote:

this is all very entertaining stuff here...keep it coming while I wheel the crap out of my 3 year old SFA with an HPD30 and the Corp 8 1/4 on 33s..maybe sometime in the next few years we can all wheel our SFAs together

Your jeep inspires me.

ARBSeth · **Posted:** Tue Apr 28, 2009 11:28 am

I beat the ever loving crap out of mine before it bent.

What did it was a 3 step hop like on Double Whammie in Moab only about 2' taller out on Fordyce. Think Little Sluice with out the walls to kill your car. JJ would know...you ever taken your girl out there, man? Goooood times.

Anyway, lots of guys run 35's on D30's TJ, XJ or otherwise. Troy, if you're killing one on a grade 3 trail, it's a right foot problem, not a housing problem. Yes, the KJ with all the bracketry to hang an SFA is heavy, but no so much that a skilled driver couldn't make a D30 last for quite some time without issue. I knew I was going to kill the axle on that shelf, but I would be damned if I was going to let a bunch of JK/TJ's make it while I watched in an ARB Logo shirt! She made it home, but was never the same afterwards.

So keep an open mind... and don't trash other guys junk... everyone drives differently. Most of the guys on here would be just fine with a D30.

So there

See you guys around!

Guest · **Posted:** Wed Apr 29, 2009 4:24 am

ramlebliberty wrote:

.... seems as if theres only 1 non believer

Nope

ThunderbirdJunkie has had a 2wd KJ for not even a week now, and it drives him nuts.

If he were doing an SFA, he'd rather go junkyard D30 with fresh bearings and a locker than go gonzo-balls-out-1-ton-axles like troy. Large part of that is...get back wheeling, quicker.

ThunderbirdJunkie is not that rough on his junk, and a trussed D30 HP with some 33s would do JUST DANDY under his little crapbox. Just because somebody else (absolutely no offense, Troy) wants to spend a year's salary on building the nastiest KJ on Earth does not mean ThunderbirdJunkie needs or wants to do so.

That being said...JJ/Allyrand...you guys are both running XJ HP D30s with TJ arms and stock brackets and such on the axles aside from the coilover setups, correct?

ohv_kj · **Posted:** Wed Apr 29, 2009 8:52 am

no not really... no stock brackets ...and stop talking about yourself in 3rd person...it's weird

Sport · **Posted:** Wed Apr 29, 2009 9:24 am

ohv_kj wrote:

no not really... no stock brackets ...and stop talking about yourself in 3rd person...it's weird

Sport finds it funny but kinda weird.

JJsTJ · **Posted:** Wed Apr 29, 2009 11:56 am

ThunderbirdJunkie wrote:

That being said...JJ/Allyrand...you guys are both running XJ HP D30s with TJ arms and stock brackets and such on the axles aside from the coilover setups, correct?

Mostly correct.
I have a high mount trac bar bracket installed, same as you would see on a modded D30 in a TJ. Otherwise, the rest of the brackets are stock.

stumpjumper_09 · **Posted:** Sun May 10, 2009 12:58 am

This is just way too good of a conversation. The worlds first 60k kj vs. budget build usa. and i'll sit here with my stick and try to stir the fire :twisted:

35's Fit!

Who is online