would this be an upgrade?

[fordy4]

I have a rear dana 70 in my garage that I am wondering what to do with. I am currently running a ford 9" with 31 spline currie shafts and a spool, with a dana 44 front with yukon shafts ctm joints and an ox locker. What I am wondering is if the dana 70 is a good upgrade over the 9"? I know a 9" can be built with 35 or 40 spline shafts with some money and end up being alot lighter, so do I want to put money in to the 70 or the nine? I am thinking of leaving the 44 in the front for a while if I can find some rotors to convert it to 8 lug. Would this be smart, or would the 70 totally over beef the 44? I want to run 38 inch tires and a 3.8 atlas. The motor is a 390.

 

[KToy]

i have some d44 8 lug spindles if your are interested in that swap so let me know.

and as far as your question. i run a 14b rear and i will never worry about it. too strong for my 4cyl to break if you ask me.

d70 too strong as well. but i do hear people break ford 9 inches. so its your call.

you have money invested into the 9 so maybe its a no for ya.

 

[PierCed_3]

I was wheeling with a guy and watched him snap his pinion gear right off where it attaches to the yoke. That was a fun day.

I know that 9's can be beefed up but that day just leaves a sour taste in my mouth for 9 inch rear ends.

 

[Ohms]

Nine inches can be built too withstand an incerdible amount of abuse. It just depends on budget. Nodular cases, Stronger Shafts....all of these things are available. It really just depends on budget. Look into Currie and you will see what you can do.

Look at Shannon Campbell-He is basically the biggest throttle jockey out there and he hasn't broke his nine inchers....Just food for thought...

 

[fordy4]

i have some d44 8 lug spindles if your are interested in that swap so let me know.

Ok, I sure will.
By the way, what exactly is involved in the swap. Spindles and rotors? Can I use the same hubs and everything?

 

[ROCKRUNNER]

I would keep the nine and put 35 spline shafts on it with the dana 70 hubs full floater and super strong. You can have the best of both worlds!

 

[KToy]

change out your your rotors and spindles.

i have the whole axle minus the axle shafts. it came with warn hubs and everything. but you should only need the rotors and spindles. one bolt on the hubs is broken off in the rotor but that leaves ya 7 bolts out of 8. your welcome to come take a look at them.

 

[Max Power]

I personally would stay with the nine inch. I think that people tend to over do it some times. There are disadvantages being to heavy. keep it light, thats what I always say.

 

[N-Smooth]

the 70 will be stronger for cheaper (it is already stronger)
you could get a fullfloat kit, nodular case, 35 or 40 spline chromoly shafts and make the 9" comparable, but it is not that cheap!

 

[Greg]

Have you broken the 9" up to this point? If not, why replace it?

If you were to break something, it would probably be a shaft. Upgrade to 35 spline & I doubt there would be a problem.

A Dana 70 is a pig of an axle, comparable to a 14 Bolt. I'd worry about replacing the front 44 before swapping out the rear.

 

[Caleb]

I agree with Greg, if its not broke why fix it? personally I love the versatility of the 9", there's nothing you can't do with a 9" that you can do with another axle. Parts are cheap and everywhere and there's a huge selection of parts.

 

[fordy4]

I would keep the nine and put 35 spline shafts on it with the dana 70 hubs full floater and super strong. You can have the best of both worlds!

This sounds interesting. How hard of a swap would this be? Would it require welding/and or custom shafts?
How strong is the pinion on the nine as opposed to the 70?

 

[fordy4]

Have you broken the 9" up to this point? If not, why replace it?

If you were to break something, it would probably be a shaft. Upgrade to 35 spline & I doubt there would be a problem.

A Dana 70 is a pig of an axle, comparable to a 14 Bolt. I'd worry about replacing the front 44 before swapping out the rear.

I use to break shafts alot on the rear until the upgrade to the currie shafts. I have not broke since, but would like to run bigger tires and an atlas which in my mind would require bigger axles. I would like to go with a 60 front eventually but was looking at a way to do it gradually. The 70 was free, and would be an easy swap except for the fact that I would need new wheels/tires.


By the way, isn't one disadvantage of the nine the low pinion position?(and obviously not full floating)

 

[Greg]

I use to break shafts alot on the rear until the upgrade to the currie shafts. I have not broke since, but would like to run bigger tires and an atlas which in my mind would require bigger axles. I would like to go with a 60 front eventually but was looking at a way to do it gradually. The 70 was free, and would be an easy swap except for the fact that I would need new wheels/tires.

If you're planning on bigger tires, (combined with the weight of a full size) then I'd say you need to do something. The Dana 70 might not be a bad idea, especially if there's a front 60 down the road.

A full-float, 35 spline 9" would be cool, but would be either expensive or difficult to do.

What size tire do you plan on increasing to?

 

[Cody]

My only complaint about the 9" is the low pinion. I drag it once in awhile and I've had to change out driveshaft ubolts because they get beat up pretty good. Other than that, I haven't broken anything on the 9" (knock on wood) which is still stock (except for the disks). I wish I could say the same for the front.

Cody

 

[fordy4]

If you're planning on bigger tires, (combined with the weight of a full size) then I'd say you need to do something. The Dana 70 might not be a bad idea, especially if there's a front 60 down the road.

A full-float, 35 spline 9" would be cool, but would be either expensive or difficult to do.

What size tire do you plan on increasing to?

I would like to run 38's.

 

[Greg]

I would like to run 38's.

I think your 9" would still 'survive' with 38's, but that size tire is right on the verge of being too much for a 9. Are the Currie shafts chro-mo?

If you wanted to get super-blingin', you could use the Dana 70 hubs & bearing pockets on your 9" for full-float shafts, like ROCKRUNNER suggested, have a set of 35 spline shafts built and swap out your 3rd member for a high pinion 'High9' 3rd... but then you'd be into a Ford 9" ALOT of money. Unless you have money to burn, swap in the 70.

Also, you should be able to get enough money out of the 9 to buy a detroit & gears for the 70.

 

[ROCKRUNNER]

The Shafts Of The Dana 70 Are 35 Spline It Costs $55 To Have Them Narrowed A Ford 9 Spool Is $175 And Everything Else You Would Need Is Free The Hubs Spindles Everything Just Cut The Ends Off And Weld Them Back Up. P.s. I Just Did This. And For Under $300 You Can Run With The Big Dogs 44"s Even!

 

[waynehartwig]

Something else to consider as well, is that Ford 9" stuff is a dime a dozen. Every place has parts for them, and they are cheap.

 

[fordy4]

The Shafts Of The Dana 70 Are 35 Spline It Costs $55 To Have Them Narrowed A Ford 9 Spool Is $175 And Everything Else You Would Need Is Free The Hubs Spindles Everything Just Cut The Ends Off And Weld Them Back Up. P.s. I Just Did This. And For Under $300 You Can Run With The Big Dogs 44"s Even!

I like the sound of that, but Don't I need a different third member to run 35 spliners on the nine?

Also, I don't know if my currie shafts are chro-molly or not, but would the stock 35 spline 70 shafts be that much stronger than the 31 spline curries?

Who would be able to shorten the 70 shafts for me?

Thanks