Need replacement Dana 44 axle shaft

[tholmes3]

I broke the ujoint, axle shaft (on passenger side) and outer axle shaft that goes through the hub assembly on my Dana 44 axel of my '72. I have been searching around and some people on ebay and such have Dana 44s but dont think that the shafts would work on a 72 ford bronco. What is swap out specifications? What are the dimensions to look for? What do i need to be aware of? What is a good price for a used axle shaft, outer shaft, adn u joint from a Dana 44?<br><br>T3

 

[eastcoasthop]

I've got front shafts out of a '76 that I'd be willing to part with. u-joints are exploded, yolks are in good shape though.

 

[rulebreaker]

The stock Bronco Dana 44 axle shaves are weak because of the small 1" cap U joints. I would upgrade to the 1 3/16 cap U joint axle shafts. I got mine out of a 69 Chevy Dana 44. The Drives side go in without modification, as does the Passengers side outer shaft. The inner will need to be annield/cut down/resplined/rehardened. Cost me $160 at a local shop. A Jeep buddy of mine thinks you can take the axle shaves out of a Jeep cherokee with dana 44 and put them in a Bronco without modification. The pig on a Cheerokee is on the PS so you would just put the PS on the DS of the Bronco and Vis Versa. I dont know this for a fact it is just speculation. I know the outers form the Cherokee will work but not certain on the inners. These same shafts can be bought new from Warn and I think Mossure but they are pricy. Good luck!

 

[cracker]

I know fro certain that th right side of early Chevy D44 will fit the left oside of the EB. I don`t know of any direct replacement for the right inner. I would suggest buying a good inner shaft for the right. I would be worth the money. I bought a good shft and just keep replacing the left as necessary. I have never had a problem w/ the right side...knock on wood, but I have had numerous breakage on the left. The letf has more stress due to its short length and lack of flex.

 

[tholmes3]

The right inner shaft is the one comming out of the differential on the passenger side? (i need that one)<br>&<br>The right outer shaft is the one going through the hub assembly and joint the inner shaft at the ujoint, right? ( need one of these and a u joint)<br><br>I would be glad to take your shafts of your hands if they will fit my 72, stock. Just to make sure, where the bake occured on mine was at the ujoint on the PASSENGER SIDE. Both shafts broke and the ujoint as well.<br><br>Is there a keeper in the front differential to release the axle shaft? How hard is it to replace these shafts?<br><br><br>T3

 

[tholmes3]

Wouldn't all Dana44 axles have the same dimmensions? If i pulled the inner/outer shafts and the ujoint, shouldn't it work on a 72 EB?<br><br>T3

 

[cobranco]

The Wagoneer inner axle shafts won't fit. They're too long. The outers will fit, as well as the inner/outer (passenger side) from a 1976 and older 1/2 ton Chevy. All these will have the larger 1-3/16" u-joint. I bought a Bronco passenger side inner axle shaft (heavy duty) from JBG, got the outers and pass. side axle shaft (pass. side of the Blazer) off a '75 Blazer from the local bone yard. When looking for Chevy axle shafts, you want the '76 to '73 pass. axle shaft. After '76 they used the Corporate axles, and those won't fit. Some of the older (ie. 1969) axle shafts used the smaller 1-1/16" u-joint. Be sure to measure the u-joint before going thru all the work of removing them. There is no inner clip holding them in. Just remover all the outer stuff and pull 'em out.

 

[red67]

So buy putting in Chevy D44 shafts, you are only getting the bigger 1 3/16 U joints. The axle shafts are still the same diameter? <br>

 

[moabers]

Another tidbit from this months Peterson's (I am pretty sure this one) is that Spicer is discontinuing the 297's U-joints, and replacing them with a newly developped 720X. Spicer just built these for the Jeep Rubicon, and their testing showed that they are 10 times more durable, and much stronger. ( I can't remember all the details of the article) They should be retailing for ~$20ea.

 

[4byford]

The new spicer axle shaft u joints I bought that are replacements for the 297X are listed as 760X on the box, not 720X. They were about $12 at 4 wheel Parts.

 

[howiebilt]

Forgive me for asking this ... Is this the first time you have broken the passenger side axle ? Have you tried relieving the yokes and using snap rings ? The most common failure of the early bronco u-joint is the clip working off of the cap and the cap working out of the yoke and then everything breaks and you have a mess . If you are an occasional wheeler , I would suggest you find a stock axle (cheap) and do the snap ring to it . It really increases the longevity of the u-joint (and axle) . If you wheel often and are having problems keeping your axles intact , then upgrading is in order and the chevy short side will fit perfectly on your drivers side but the long side will have to be shortened . There are several shops around the country that shorten and respline and they average about 80 bucks per axle . Good luck

 

[rulebreaker]

[quote author=red67 link=board=5;threadid=11330;start=0#84687 date=1037912708]<br>So buy putting in Chevy D44 shafts, you are only getting the bigger 1 3/16 U joints. The axle shafts are still the same diameter? <br><br>[/quote]Axle shafts are larger also

 

[351YJ]

[quote author=eastcoasthop link=board=5;threadid=11330;start=0#83293 date=1037454964]<br>I've got front shafts out of a '76 that I'd be willing to part with. u-joints are exploded, yolks are in good shape though.<br>[/quote]<br><br>eastcoastshop, I believe I saw you on POR and you are in Lanc, right? Let me know how much you'd want for the shafts for the d44, I may be interested and could pick them up. If you want to email me, it's wrangler351@hotmail.com<br><br>Thanks, Colin

 

[tholmes3]

These are some that I was looking at:<br><br>http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=1873088564<br><br>What do you think? I mud pretty hardcore about 5 times a year, in La Grange, Texas mud. Other than that, I do mild offroading and mainly ranch driving. This set has served about 30 years, so i think i am good.<br><br>T3

 

[tholmes3]

When people say left hand or right hand side, which is which? In my case, the passenger side shafts and ujoint need replacing, which i the longer side, right. ( would go look, but its not here)<br><br>T3

 

[NOTPRETTY]

It can be confusing and I suggest a call to Jeff's Bronco Graveyard. They are in Michigan. They can get you exactly what you need at a decent price. Or...call James Duff...they may be closer.<br><br>www.jamesduff.com/<br>www.broncograveyard.com/

 

[cobranco]

Here are the options for replacing the (right side) PASSENGER side axle shaft on your Bronco: <br><br>1: Buy a used inner/outer shaft (cheapest).<br><br>2: Buy a new stock inner/outer shaft.<br><br>3: Buy a longer shaft from the boneyard and have it cut and re-splined. (may require an outer with a 1-3/16" u-joint), depending on the donor.<br><br>4: Buy a heavy duty shaft from one of the vendors. (will require a new/used outer with the 1-3/16" u-joint) (best choice IMO).