73-87chevytrucks.com
73-87 Chevy _ GMC Trucks => 4 Wheel Drives => Topic started by: Irish_Alley on May 13, 2009, 01:11:47 am
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A little wile ago will having fun in the mud head a snap from the front drivers side and it stalled the engine. unlocked the hubs and was able to drive out with out no problems ended up parking it for a couple of hours due to a fuel problem that i thought was electrical problem from something getting wet. while backing up the drivers side front locked up even tho it was still unlocked once i went forward it unlocked itself and i was able to back up again took the hub apart didn't find nothing out of place but a snap ring, so we put everything back togeather and haven't took it out in the mud since then. the other day i got stuck locked the hubs and tried to get out the front was making all sorts of clunks and bangs so i got out unlocked the hubs and thats when i saw my u-joint still in the axle side shaft but out of the wheel side shaft. it was so messed up i ended up having to cut the shafts out with a torch. now on my journeys to find a good shaft we took apart an axle that came out of a blazer since they were both 44's figured they would match up the out side splines did but the inside ones didn't . so this brings me to my question i found out there are like 3 diffrent types of 44's something like a 6f 6hdf 5 hdf and a 5f how do you tell the difference between them and wheat years did they come out. have pics will post later
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Are you sure they are dana 44?
http://www.coloradok5.com/axleguide.shtml
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Are you sure they are dana 44?
http://www.coloradok5.com/axleguide.shtml
I know that in a catalog of a popular parts supplier they often mention getting the ID number off of a Dana 44 axle to make sure you get the right parts, and I can only assume this is because they are indeed different depending on when they were built. It's stamped into the axle tube, so if yours is a true Dana axle, I'd look into the ID number. You'll probably find your answer there.
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yes im sure but what got me was when i went to autozone and tryed to pick up a wheel seal for a 75 3/4 this is what i got
http://www.autozone.com/autozone/catalog/parts/partsShelf.jsp?categoryDisplayName=Drivetrain&fromType=parts&fromString=search&parentId=cat10001¤tPage=1&filterByKeyWord=wheel+seal&isSearchByPartNumber=false&navValue=11200256&categoryNValue=11299999&fromWhere=&itemId=prod10936&displayName=Wheel+Seal+-+Front&searchText=wheel+seal&_requestid=199237
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http://www.autozone.com/autozone/catalog/parts/partsShelf.jsp?displayName=Wheel+Seal+-+Front¤tPage=1&categoryDisplayName=Drivetrain&navValue=11200256&itemId=prod10936&parentId=cat10001
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(http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m387/rebel_cowboy_83/P1010876.jpg)
(http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m387/rebel_cowboy_83/P1010877.jpg)
(http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m387/rebel_cowboy_83/P1010878.jpg)
(http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m387/rebel_cowboy_83/P1010879.jpg)
(http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m387/rebel_cowboy_83/P1010880.jpg)
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Ouch.
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Ugly! :o
Is this a common area to fail on the dana 44 if you have big mud tires?
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By design this is where they fail most. If you are going to be doing a lot of mudding I would recommend getting beefier axles and u-joints. Let the front shaft u-joints be the weak point since they are much easier to replace :) You will probably also need a stronger ring and pinion gear set. Ultimately you want your drive shafts to be the weak points because they are much easier to repair and you can even carry spares when you go out mudding. Of course sometimes things that shouldn't break do but that is another story.
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I have never known of more than one 44. I have interchanged hundreds of axles over the years from different 44's have never had one not fit. How about a pic. of your front axle cover?
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For a 73-76 Chevy 1/2T there was only 1 version of the D44..
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mine is 3/4 not that it matters only the spindle is diffrent but the one axle we tried to use was out of a mid- late 80's blazer i think. the axle i found that matched i don't know what it came out of the boys said it had 3. ratio but it too was 6 lugs
(http://i333.photobucket.com/albums/m387/rebel_cowboy_83/0312091706-1.jpg)
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Mid to late 80's Blazer would be a 10 bolt not a 44. 10 bolt axles are a tad diameter smaller than 44 axles.
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That could be the problem. but for a 10 bolt to be confused with a 44 by two people, thats what i don't understand. have to go back and take a look at it to see.
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I see people advertise 8 lug 10 bolt's & Dana 44's as 1 ton axles all the time on Craigslist, and Flebay. So for them to think 10 bolts are 44's isn't to far fetched!
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I see people advertise 8 lug 10 bolt's & Dana 44's as 1 ton axles all the time on Craigslist, and Flebay. So for them to think 10 bolts are 44's isn't to far fetched!
it is if I'm one of them lol
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I see people advertise 8 lug 10 bolt's & Dana 44's as 1 ton axles all the time on Craigslist, and Flebay. So for them to think 10 bolts are 44's isn't to far fetched!
It seems like just about every 1/2 ton truck that had an 8 lug conversion done to it gets passed off as having a 1 ton drivetrain when it's being sold.
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77-91 Front axles on the 1/2T Chevys were 10 bolts
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Didn't say you were one, just saying they get mistaken allot.
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I may be stupid here but I have been looking at my 1979 GMC k2500's front axle and it has 12 bolts and the tires have 8 lug's. I'm not saying it is or it isn't a Dana but how would one tell? From looking at it and the picture posted of the front end of the broken truck's front end it looks exactly like it. But then mine is a later year so that may make a diference.
I know I haven't gotten stuck yet with it and it pulls like no other truck I have owned maybe I'll take some pics and post them of the front end and rear end and let you guys tell me what they are. I realy have no idea of what is what when it comes to axles except the u-joints needed to be replaced in mine as when i first shifted it into 4H lock it made a loud clacking noise. No noise now though. Just pulling power and lots of it.
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I think all the talk about which rearends may have some readers confused...
The one pictured on page 1 of this thread is a Dana 44.
If it is squared off on the bottom with "ears" it is a 10 bolt (along with an oval cover)
If it is a tapered cover as pictured, it is a Dana 44.
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Had me confused lol Ohh well mines not a DANA but it pulls like heck I have this one under the front
GM CORPORATE 10-BOLT
This 10-bolt, with a larger 8 1/2-inch ring gear diameter, replaced the Dana 44 that was used in the front of some pre-1977 GMs. It can also be found in the back of 1983-91 1/2-tons and in the front of 1983-87 1/2-tons.
And the large GM 14 bolt under the rear end. I think i'll be fine with these. Nice to know what axles I have now :)
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Well as it turns out it was a ten bold ::) and the sad part is my buddy the one who i thought would know better knew it was a ten bolt. i guess he just wanted to see if it would work or not
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Well as it turns out it was a ten bold ::) and the sad part is my buddy the one who i thought would know better knew it was a ten bolt. i guess he just wanted to see if it would work or not
I beleive this is what they teach the kids at advance auto all the time! If we don't have the exact one just try something that looks like it will fit. It seems to me that I always wind up with the wrong part at advanced auto lol