gear and axle questions

[bdrake1]

i am about to get new gears and rear axles. i have a 71 and want to go with 31 spline but do not know what bearing size it is.i also thought about a spool for the rear but not sure how bad it is on the tires.i maybe would drive it once a week on the streets,maybe even once a month.also have 35 inch tires and maybe go with 38.will 4.56 gears be enough or go with 4.88?

 

[bronko69er]

I'll start by asking the standard questions:
How fast do you want to go, and at what rpm?
(Ex. 60 mph @ 2800 rpm)
What tranny do you have?
Then tell us what tires you want to run 35's or 38's and we can make recommendations on gearing.
Yes a spool will wear the tires faster, how much faster I can't say, but for the ocasional street driving you should be fine. If it were a daily driver I'd say go with something other than a spool.

 

[bdrake1]

right now i have 35s but after i get everything right i will run 37or 38.the trans is a 3 speed i want a np435 but can not find one.

 

[bronko69er]

And what about your cruising speed and rpm?

 

[SteveL]

once you get it all right it with 35's it won't be right with 38's. Also once you go over 35's you may want to think about a 60 up front. For 35's 4:56 is the mid range gear. 4:88 is the performance gear for a 35. I currently run a spool in my 72. I would prefer to run that over a detroit for my $$ for a non DD. Sure it wears the tires a little(mostly up front), but so does a detroit. The spool is more consistant on the road. With either you can't hit the gas around corners. zThe spool will save you $500 to spend elsewhere.

 

[RajinCajun]

I vote go the lowest gears you can get... It will make it lots of fun with the 35's... BUT like stated above, if you plan to wheel it hard I wouldn't go over 36's with the D44. I would say go 4.88's or 5.13's.. honestly you will never have to low of a gear on the trail.. However it will make your highway trips a little slower