JT4x4
The Mud Pit => Wrenching => Topic started by: kirksjeep on January 04, 2009, 05:42:47 AM
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Were back from MD, so it was time to get working on the YJ again. I finished the brakes on the new Dana 30 and bolted the tire back on. I also managed to get the Dana 35 out of the rear. The Dana 35 is SMALL!!! I can pick the Dana 35 up by the axle truss and move it around with out much problem. I would guess that it only weights 120 lbs or so. The 8.8 is very heavy, I can only move it with a jack or dolly. More to come. ;)
http://s380.photobucket.com/albums/oo242/kirksjeep/Axle%20Swap/?albumview=grid
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No, new pics yet, but I have decided to add a few "custom" touches to the 8.8 install. I decided to make my own U-bolt skid plates using the stock Explorer plates as a base. After 30 minutes of trimming I managed to make the stock ones square and flat. I then chopped up a section of an old bumper I had to get some flat steel. After some welding and grinding I set up my new drill press to make the holes for the nuts to pass through. I drilled out the bottom big enough for the nuts, but I forgot to make them big enough to get a socket into. I don't have a 1" drill bit, so I need to pick one up and make the holes a little bigger.
I also cut the axle truss off of my Dana 35 and mocked it up to fit the 8.8. On the LSD 8.8 there is a sensor on the axle housing, so I removed it and made a small plate to bolt onto its place. I then ground the sensor guards, which wasn't necessary, but I already had the grinder right there. The last part I got done was to cut the outer lip off of the disc brake backing plate. The stock ones have a 1" lip all the way around, that are known to collect mud and little stones. I heard that most people just remove the backing plate, but I wanted to keep it, but just make it less likely to pick stuff up. It now looks like the backing plate for the front disc brakes. I only got one side cut off, so far, so I have some more grinding to do.
When I get the U-bolt skids done and finish cutting the lip off of the other backing plate I'll post up some more pics.
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nice
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Sounds like your making progress. You will be in good practice for when you sell me the other 8.8 you have and help me get it installed in my XJ. ;D
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Kirk!!! http://newlondon.craigslist.org/bar/980457524.html (http://newlondon.craigslist.org/bar/980457524.html)
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hook it up kirk. easy money, i'll help you weld.
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I already wrote the guy back to make sure he has all the needed parts. Depending on how complicated he wants to make it, I may take the job. BUT, I need to get mine finished first!
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no i dont have all the parts yet i wasnt expecting to do the swap yet but i let my freind use my jeep and he blew my dana 35 so i figured i should just do the swap i dont mind waiting till your done with yours if you would like to do it i would also be willing to do what ever i could to help out
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Welcome! Introduce yourself on the General thread. I was the one that responded to your Craigslist post.
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dirt_kx, I have a spare Dana 35 ;)
Depending on how much snow we get I may be able to put some more time into the swap tommorow. I'm going to pick up a 1" drill bit tonight after the meeting, so I can finish up the U-bolt skids. Hopefully the Tera flex shock relocating bar and lower adaptors show up before the weekend, so I can mock them up and get everything in place.
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I picked up a 1 1/8" hole saw from Lowes on the way home from the meeting. After doing a little searching for the right drill press speed, it turns out that most buggy builders recommend Lennox Bi-metal hole saws, sold at Lowes, so I lucked out and bought right stuff the first time.
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The first U-bolt skid is done. It took about 5 hours from start to finish. The second one is about 2/3 done and only took 2 hours to that point. :) The hole saw worked awsome and after 8 holes the teeth are still very sharp. I also got the Tera Flex shock bar and mounts in. The strange thing is, I ordered them from Oconee Off Road (Sale, %15 off and free shipping), but they were shipped from Quadratech. ??? I paid $107 from Oconee and Quadratech wanted $107 for just the bar, plus $25 for the lower mounts and shipping.
LINK TO NEW PICS
http://s380.photobucket.com/albums/oo242/kirksjeep/Axle%20Swap/?albumview=grid
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The NFL Playoffs are interfering with my progress. I did manage to pick up some small hardware stuff like the bolts to attach the drive shaft to the 8.8. After the Ravens game I am headed to the garage for a while. I don't plan on leaving until the 8.8 is in and mocked up with tires, shocks, and the drive shaft
GO RAVENS!!!!!!.
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word
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I ran into my first snag last night. I got the axle in position, drive shaft on, wheels on, off the jack stands, but the shocks are becoming a PITA. The Tera Flex shock relocation bar causes the passenger side shock to hit the tail pipe. It looks like my only option is going to be to cut my tail pipe off just behind the muffler and try and modify it to work with the shocks. I figure worst case, I might need to get a new tail pipe bent up and welded on. I won't have much time to get to it until Friday. :-\
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i have seen that a few times. i just cut it off. then had a custom job done
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The thing that sucks, my exhaust was custom bent, and its still in great condition. I am hoping a few minor tweaks will make it work.
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I ran into my first snag last night. I got the axle in position, drive shaft on, wheels on, off the jack stands, but the shocks are becoming a PITA. The Tera Flex shock relocation bar causes the passenger side shock to hit the tail pipe. It looks like my only option is going to be to cut my tail pipe off just behind the muffler and try and modify it to work with the shocks. I figure worst case, I might need to get a new tail pipe bent up and welded on. I won't have much time to get to it until Friday. :-\
tail pipes r overrated
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I managed to get the tailpipe out without too much damage to it, but now it looks like I will need a new muffler to make this all work. The outlet of the muffler is directly in front of the shock now that the shock mounts at the top are more inboard . My muffler is a flowmaster 50 series with a center outlet and looks to be about 14-16" long. I just ordered one of the flowmaster super 44 (off road/ diamond plate exterior) with an offset outlet, and it is only 12" long. The good news it that the shock tabs are on, so tomorrow I will pull the axle back out and finish the welding and put some paint on it. I am also waiting on my Solid Diff cover to arrive. They are still 1/2 off, so with shipping it was only $65. I'll try to get some pics before I pull everything back out.
here is a link to what I ordered.
http://www.jegs.com/i/Flowmaster/389/942447OR/10002/-1?CT=999
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haha i still dont believe that u need a tailpipe lol
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Everything is mocked up and tack welded. I checked all of my measurements again and noticed they were off so getting everything back in the right place took a little while. I'm not sure how the axle shifted an 1/4" but it did. After I got it back in place I put some good tack welds on the spring plates and then pulled the axle back out. I stripped some more of the rust off of the housing and started to finish weld everything when I ran out of welding wire. :'( I was going to head out tomorrow and pick up all the stuff to makes the brakes work anyway so I'll pick up another spool of welding wire while I'm out. I took some new pics, for everyone to see how much more work this is then most of the forums on line make it out to be.
Here is the link to the new pics:
http://s380.photobucket.com/albums/oo242/kirksjeep/Axle%20Swap/?albumview=grid
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Nice! You might as well get 2 spools, that way you have enough for the next project, too
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Nice! You might as well get 2 spools, that way you have enough for the next project, too
Ya then you have one for a coffee table :D
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I picked up some welding wire and finished all the welding. I'm not sure if it was just me or not, but the Lincoln brand welding wire seemed to do a better job then the harbour freight brand I had. I also finished cleaning all the old paint and rust off of the axle and gave it a few coats of fresh paint. I also cleaned up the back end of the frame and the rear leaf springs. I also found that the shackles where hitting a tab on the rear bumper at full compression. With a little work with the grinder the shackles will now bottom out on the bottom of the bumper and it looks to give just the slightest (1/4" or so) more flex. I also cut the old flowmaster off to get it ready for the new muffler. I looked at the wife's Liberty and I might try to fit the flowmaster on her Jeep. The stock Liberty is a center in, center out, but it is about 30" long!!! I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel with this project. ;)
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x2
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So let me start by saying, I have new pics, but they are on the camera, which is in the garage and I really don't feel like going back out in the snow.
Today I went out and bought the hard lines and fittings for the brake system. I also bought a brake tube bender, and I already have a cutter and a double flair tool, so I should be set. I managed to wrestle the 8.8 back into position for the last time. It seems to get heavier everytime. I put the U-bolts and U-bolt skids on, and the drive shaft. Anyone looking to do this swap, Ace Hardware in Norwich sell the grade 8 bolts to mate the drive shaft adaptor up to the 8.8 pinion. I put the claipers and pads back on and mounted up the soft lines. I little trick I picked up on reading about this swap on the internet, is the grind the little tab on the back of the caliper off so that the soft line can be bolted on at any angle you want. I turned mine straight up instead of to the back to hopefully keep them from snagging on anything. Still have a whole list of stuff to do, but atleast it is in.
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So let me start by saying, I have new pics, but they are on the camera, which is in the garage and I really don't feel like going back out in the snow.
Today I went out and bought the hard lines and fittings for the brake system. I also bought a brake tube bender, and I already have a cutter and a double flair tool, so I should be set. I managed to wrestle the 8.8 back into position for the last time. It seems to get heavier everytime. I put the U-bolts and U-bolt skids on, and the drive shaft. Anyone looking to do this swap, Ace Hardware in Norwich sell the grade 8 bolts to mate the drive shaft adaptor up to the 8.8 pinion. I put the claipers and pads back on and mounted up the soft lines. I little trick I picked up on reading about this swap on the internet, is the grind the little tab on the back of the caliper off so that the soft line can be bolted on at any angle you want. I turned mine straight up instead of to the back to hopefully keep them from snagging on anything. Still have a whole list of stuff to do, but atleast it is in.
what are you going to do for a driveshaft? I've heard that the u-joint bearing caps are the same diameter, so all you have to do is press the ford flange onto the jeep shaft, but i've never tried. if it's that easy then i'll be on my way to the junkyard tomorrow to get an 8.8 for my xj
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I bought a new Tom Woods drive shaft from a shop going out of business in FL, and the guy threw in the Jeep to 8.8 adaptor for FREE! Can't beat $185 for the drive shaft and adaptor including shipping. My YJ uses 1310 U-joints and a stock Explorer uses a 1330. In some late 94's and all 95's and up switched to the slightly larger 1330 u-joint. I have read about some ford rangers and astro vans with the 8.8 used the 1310 U-joint and would bolt right up. M.O.R.E. sells the adapter for $40, but I have heard that the Spicer ones go for $25.
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I bought a new Tom Woods drive shaft from a shop going out of business in FL, and the guy threw in the Jeep to 8.8 adaptor for FREE! Can't beat $185 for the drive shaft and adaptor including shipping. My YJ uses 1310 U-joints and a stock Explorer uses a 1330. In some late 94's and all 95's and up switched to the slightly larger 1330 u-joint. I have read about some ford rangers and astro vans with the 8.8 used the 1310 U-joint and would bolt right up. M.O.R.E. sells the adapter for $40, but I have heard that the Spicer ones go for $25.
shit thats too easy then. mines going into the whimpstar then
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Here are the pics I promised. The only new things are that my flowmaster and solid diff cover arrived today. The Flowmaster Super 44 is twice as heavy as my old flowmaster, very impressed with the quality construction. The Solid diff cover is heavy ( as expected), but it also came with silicone gasket maker and new bolts.
You will also notice how dusty my truck is. My entire garage is covered in a layer of dust from this project. :-\
Links to new pics:
http://s380.photobucket.com/albums/oo242/kirksjeep/Axle%20Swap/?albumview=grid
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Looks really good, Kirk. I hear you on the dust issue. I'm still finding dust in my garage from my swap!
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that flowmaster is sic!
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looks good, nice work.
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You're going to like the way it sounds. Do yourself a favor though, when i installed my super 44, i cut the resonator out and straight piped it. (TRUST ME you'll be happy with that if you do it) if you'd like to hear what it sounds like w/o one, give me a call and you can hear mine.
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You're going to like the way it sounds. Do yourself a favor though, when i installed my super 44, i cut the resonator out and straight piped it. (TRUST ME you'll be happy with that if you do it) if you'd like to hear what it sounds like w/o one, give me a call and you can hear mine.
he's just trying to get you near his tailpipe :D
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:-[
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hahaha
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Sweet deal kirk. Roger & ed on deck next for the 8.8
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think i should put an 8.8 into my xj?? hahaha welded 8.25 should be good enough right :D
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Sorry no new pics, again I left my camera in the garage. :-[ Today was my first day back on the Jeep in almost two weeks. I installed the shocks, made up the hard brake lines, bleed the brakes, installed the Supper 44 muffler, modified the exhaust hangers, and modified and installed the tail pipe ( yes Paul I kept the tail pipe). YJs don't have a resonator, so it is cat-muffler- tialpipe. It is louder then the Flowmaster 50 series, but not as loud as a Flowmaster 40 series. I haven't had it out on the road yet, so I can't make my final decision if I really like it or not.
Tomorrow I am headed out to buy some diff fluid. I have some friction modifier for the LSD some where around here, I just need to find it. I also need to pick up the parts to modify the YJ emergency brake, but it looks like I might be driving the Jeep for the first time in over a month. ;)
Anyone who is interested in this swap, here is a write up for how to modify the stock emergency brake lines to work on the 8.8. The process should work for any YJ, TJ or XJ that came with drum brakes.
About 2/3 the way down:
http://www.jedi.com/obiwan/jeep/ford88.html
any here is another one but just pics, no write up:
http://tony4aro.myjeeppage.com/photo3.html
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Sorry no new pics, again I left my camera in the garage. :-[ Today was my first day back on the Jeep in almost two weeks. I installed the shocks, made up the hard brake lines, bleed the brakes, installed the Supper 44 muffler, modified the exhaust hangers, and modified and installed the tail pipe ( yes Paul I kept the tail pipe). YJs don't have a resonator, so it is cat-muffler- tialpipe. It is louder then the Flowmaster 50 series, but not as loud as a Flowmaster 40 series. I haven't had it out on the road yet, so I can't make my final decision if I really like it or not.
Tomorrow I am headed out to buy some diff fluid. I have some friction modifier for the LSD some where around here, I just need to find it. I also need to pick up the parts to modify the YJ emergency brake, but it looks like I might be driving the Jeep for the first time in over a month. ;)
Anyone who is interested in this swap, here is a write up for how to modify the stock emergency brake lines to work on the 8.8. The process should work for any YJ, TJ or XJ that came with drum brakes.
About 2/3 the way down:
http://www.jedi.com/obiwan/jeep/ford88.html
any here is another one but just pics, no write up:
http://tony4aro.myjeeppage.com/photo3.html
Well seems like you have your hands full. It's amazimg you had time ti install a tailpipe. lol
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I finally hooked up the parking brake today. I used the steel cable locks with the 1/8" thimble and the 3/16" U-bolts/ locks. I loosened the cable adjuster until I only had about 1/2" of threads left. I cut the springs on the ends of the cable to remove about 2" of spring. Getting the thimble and the locks on was a little tough, but not too bad. The hardest part was bending the cable around the thimble part. I spent a lot of time making adjustments to the cable and even pulled the rotors and adjusted the parking brake pads so that they just clear the inside of the rotor. It seems to work ok. I wouldn't use it on a steep hill, but it will work on flat ground when I need to keep the engine running to use my OBA.
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I finally hooked up the parking brake today. I used the steel cable locks with the 1/8" thimble and the 3/16" U-bolts/ locks. I loosened the cable adjuster until I only had about 1/2" of threads left. I cut the springs on the ends of the cable to remove about 2" of spring. Getting the thimble and the locks on was a little tough, but not too bad. The hardest part was bending the cable around the thimble part. I spent a lot of time making adjustments to the cable and even pulled the rotors and adjusted the parking brake pads so that they just clear the inside of the rotor. It seems to work ok. I wouldn't use it on a steep hill, but it will work on flat ground when I need to keep the engine running to use my OBA.
how about plumbing in a mechanical valve on the rear brakes??
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ive seen (for older tacomas) a mechanical disk brake on the drive shaft jsut behind the transfer case. supposed to work great
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My Dad used a mechanical valve on hos old van and it worked pretty good. I am satisfied with the holding of the parking break as it is, but if I want to make it better I'll keep that in mind. I also thought that someday I may plumb is a line lock and I could use that also.
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My Dad used a mechanical valve on hos old van and it worked pretty good. I am satisfied with the holding of the parking break as it is, but if I want to make it better I'll keep that in mind. I also thought that someday I may plumb is a line lock and I could use that also.
my neighbor has one on his forklift thats where i got the idea from.
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I just looked at the pics and I may be mistaken but the one of the 8.8 from the drivers side looked like you had the caliper on the wrong side. If I am seeing it right it appears that the bleeder screw is on the bottom. If that is the case, it is on the wrong side and you will never get your brakes bleed all the way. Just something for you to look at. Other than that, it looks great and you will be happy with that for a rear end.
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Both the calipers have the bleeder screw at the top. The reason it looks strange is the way the soft line connects to the caliper. I used a passenger side soft line for driver side to make it work, plus I ground down the tabs on the back of the caliper so I could mount the lines at any angle I wanted.
The emergency brake for these axles is like a mini drum brake inside the disc. I think the reason that it doesn't seem to have as much holding power is the small size of the parking brake shoes.