Convince me not to get a 14 bolt rear

[Tom Schenk]

1984 CJ7 w a bad rear axle.

Any reason why I shouldn't go with a 14 Bolt full floater?

Current setup is SOA w/ 1.5" lift springs and 33's but will be going to 36/37/38" tires with new axle. Also will be adding 300hp later this year.

[SHNIPE]

38+ get a 14. if you use anythiing less youll hang it up on the smallest of rocks. 300hp means bigger tires. get it!

[desertfabmotors]

1984 CJ7 w a bad rear axle.

Any reason why I shouldn't go with a 14 Bolt full floater?

Current setup is SOA w/ 1.5" lift springs and 33's but will be going to 36/37/38" tires with new axle. Also will be adding 300hp later this year.

Yes 14 bolts are big, but are the best bang for your $$. You grind off the 1/2 lip is easy to do and it helps the diff slide over instead of getting hooked.

Otherwise you will go where you want with a bullet proof rear. Sometimes you need to chose a different line. No different than having 35's or 40's sometimes you need to choose a different line. It is called driving not follow the leader.:)

[over's tj]

I did about 2 hours of research on them and I couldn’t talk you out of it, Pirate has some good info..

(unless you have any leads on them for cheap in the Phx area!)

the SRW width I believe is 67" wms-wms and I think that is about perfect for a TJ w/ coilovers

like was said above they need to be shaved/cut and disk brakes need to be adapted, it will be nice to have one less thing to worry about

[Tom Jacobson]

Nothing against the 14 bolt itself, but are we assuming it'll be part of some other major upgrade in your CJ? Or are you going to start a new trend of 14bolt/D30 combo? ;-)

[SHNIPE]

lol Tom. Its all the rage. For those 2wd 3rd gear launches man. Crawlin is for pussies!

[chopped7]

lol Tom. Its all the rage. For those 2wd 3rd gear launches man. Crawlin is for pussies!

werd.

if you can get an 8 lug rim on whatever your front end is, go for it. or just carry 2 spares. you can rub a little vaseline on the bottom of the 14b so it will slide over the rocks better. check that, with the price of gas these days, the cost of petroleum jelly is probably outrageous. maybe astroglide would be cheaper.

[lancetkenyon]

D80.......

[brian lujan]

or go for the big dog a ROCKWELL baby, and shave the bottom.

[Tom Schenk]

I'm sold. Looking for a 14 bolt full-float with 4.56 gears. What about a 10 bolt front? Those are passenger drop right? Any problems I should know about with them?

[Sean K.]

14B.....big, heavy, strong, cheap. The downsides are heavy and big. I prefer the D70, but they are more $$$.

As for the 10 bolt.....D44 is better, but mainly b/c they don't have the odd shaft changes and they have bigger bearing cap bolts.

All that said, you should just bite the bullet and buy a front 60. After the initial purchase cost of the boneyard housing, the Corp 10, D44 or D60 have very little difference in parts cost for things like steering arms, knuckles, shafts, ujoints, lockers and gears. Might as well just eat the extra $1K or so and get a much better axle.

Sean

[Fire Ball]

As far as strength there are those who believe a GM 14 is even stronger in some ways than a Rockey.

A 14 bolt is gonna have something like 2" less cledarance than a dana 44 or 9". The pinion is higher than a 9" though.

You may be dragging it on everything but you probably won't break it :D

[chopped7]

x2 on the 1 ton front end. if you go with 1/2 ton do a d44. they are more buildable than the 10 bolt. your front end will limit your tire size. a d44 rear will out last a d44 front on the same size tire. d44's f/r will gain you ground clearance over the 14b. you will basically have unused beef with the 14b rear and 1/2 ton front. building a 44 front to hold up to what the 14b rear can take will cost as much as buying a d60. decisions, decisions. i was up against the same choice for my axle swap and went with d44's f/r for weight and clearance.

another thing to consider is the weight of the 14b. i think everyone has been on a steep decline and had the as s end lift. i know most rock crawlers don't care much about unsprung weight but the fact is, gravity is gravity. when the back end gets light on a steep decline, do you want the extra 500lbs. or whatever it is of the 14b to be the difference maker that puts you on your lid? with 300 ponies you should be able to power out of a situation like that unless there's a big rock in front of you. a 14b will be harder to unplant but once it gets going, it will be harder to set back down than a 1/2 ton rear.

there is so much to consider with an axle swap and so many different opinions it will melt your mind researching it all. just do whatever you can afford. i, for one, am not impressed with the 3/4 ton setups. i think you're adding weight and sacficing ground clearance for axle strenth you can't use. but you can dump d60 money into a 1/2 ton front end to keep up with the rear. to each his own though. good luck with your swap.

[Heinz57]

in uphills and downhills I want the unsprung weight. 14b is a great rear end for the price, pinion shaft is about the same as a Dana 80 and parts are plentiful. A little shave and ground clearance will be less of an issue. Just sit back and say...what do I want to do with the rig now and down the road and develope a plan to get there without spending money twice or more on the same stuff!!Go with a one ton front for sure You can only build a 44 so much, that is when you will say "wish I would have....done a 60 or equivelant!"

Good luck!!

[desertfabmotors]

x2 on the 1 ton front end. if you go with 1/2 ton do a d44. they are more buildable than the 10 bolt. your front end will limit your tire size. a d44 rear will out last a d44 front on the same size tire. d44's f/r will gain you ground clearance over the 14b. you will basically have unused beef with the 14b rear and 1/2 ton front. building a 44 front to hold up to what the 14b rear can take will cost as much as buying a d60. decisions, decisions. i was up against the same choice for my axle swap and went with d44's f/r for weight and clearance.

another thing to consider is the weight of the 14b. i think everyone has been on a steep decline and had the as s end lift. i know most rock crawlers don't care much about unsprung weight but the fact is, gravity is gravity. when the back end gets light on a steep decline, do you want the extra 500lbs. or whatever it is of the 14b to be the difference maker that puts you on your lid? with 300 ponies you should be able to power out of a situation like that unless there's a big rock in front of you. a 14b will be harder to unplant but once it gets going, it will be harder to set back down than a 1/2 ton rear.

there is so much to consider with an axle swap and so many different opinions it will melt your mind researching it all. just do whatever you can afford. i, for one, am not impressed with the 3/4 ton setups. i think you're adding weight and sacficing ground clearance for axle strenth you can't use. but you can dump d60 money into a 1/2 ton front end to keep up with the rear. to each his own though. good luck with your swap.

I would want more unsprung weight in this situation. Think of it as someone standing on the frt. when it gets light to bring it back down.

This is why I run 150lb of weight in each frt tire on my rig.;)

[lancetkenyon]

I would want more unsprung weight in this situation. Think of it as someone standing on the frt. when it gets light to bring it back down.

This is why I run 150lb of weight in each frt tire on my rig.;)

Water, lead shot, or a fat midget?

[FrenchChili]

a fat midget?

I was wondering why Lance was absent in some if the pictures while Dave was 4x4ing!

[desertfabmotors]

Water, lead shot, or a fat midget?

I run shot during the competition season, but take it out in the off season. Can not drive very fast with shot,;)
Also running that weight in the tires is hard on driveline parts, you have to run the high dollar joints and shafts to survive

[over's tj]

Im looking for a 14b for cheap, as long as the basics are there

(it will be shaved w/ 5.38s, detroit and disc brakes)

Q: if I want a good cheap calipers for the 14b and want a parking brake still, what should I use?

Anyone have a crusty old one taking up space???

[DrewDog]

Been running a 14 bolt for over a year and no complaints yet. As stated above, "best bang for the buck."

[lostoffroad]

another option would be a 10.25/10.5 sterling. im anti 14bolt just because everybody i wheel with runs them. the sterling has 1.5" 35 spline shafts factory and the clearance of a 60 without shaving. i make disk brackets for them also. as far as bearings and hubs, the sterling kills the 14 bolt. just my opinion though.

ive been running my sterling for about 6 months and had zero issues. i run a 400/c6/ 203-205 doubler and i weigh at least 5k probly closer to 5500lbs. i also run maxxis creepys and have wheeled almost 60 trails all above 4.0 since i put it in.

[lostoffroad]

oh and for calipers with parking brake you would use the 78-79 cadillac eldorado rear calipers.

[wolf tracker]

check out ecology for the 14 bolt they have the best price i've found.

[Tom Schenk]

another option would be a 10.25/10.5 sterling. im anti 14bolt just because everybody i wheel with runs them. the sterling has 1.5" 35 spline shafts factory and the clearance of a 60 without shaving. i make disk brackets for them also. as far as bearings and hubs, the sterling kills the 14 bolt. just my opinion though.

ive been running my sterling for about 6 months and had zero issues. i run a 400/c6/ 203-205 doubler and i weigh at least 5k probly closer to 5500lbs. i also run maxxis creepys and have wheeled almost 60 trails all above 4.0 since i put it in.

What do/did these come in and what is a common width?

[lostoffroad]

they came in ford f250 and f350 trucks from the 80 to present. you would want a 94 or newer as the pinion yoke splines are longer and better. most call it the long pinion sterling. mine i think was out of a 94 or 95 f350. i can measure mine and let you know the width. it was the same as my old 60 though as far as i can remember.
also in 99 they switched to metric. you can get one at ecology for cheap i know of at least 5 down there that are perfect.

[Tom Schenk]

they came in ford f250 and f350 trucks from the 80 to present. you would want a 94 or newer as the pinion yoke splines are longer and better. most call it the long pinion sterling. mine i think was out of a 94 or 95 f350. i can measure mine and let you know the width. it was the same as my old 60 though as far as i can remember.
also in 99 they switched to metric. you can get one at ecology for cheap i know of at least 5 down there that are perfect.

what is considered cheap for these? what gear ratios are common?

[over's tj]

Thanks Chris, Wolf!
are the brackets the same for the Caddy vs using the common GM fronts? recomend what ones, bolt or weld or spec. brand

any ideas on if the common rotors used for 14b swap are same no matter what caliper and can anyone confirm correct application to get (I got conflicting answers so far on rotor)

oh and for calipers with parking brake you would use the 78-79 cadillac eldorado rear calipers.

[lostoffroad]

the gm front calipers would be the same as the caddy ones. i like bolt on cause then if you kill the housing you can take them off and put them on your next one.

the sterlings should cost pretty cheap. i know at a few u pull it yards any 1ton rearend is 225 and half that on their half price days. i know some body who has one. but he wants to sell the whol truck.

[over's tj]

I now have a 14 bolt! and a hp Ford D-60

pulled the 14b today, 108 in May!! at a u pull it, last one at Mesa Yard, $125

used a fork lift to put it on my Rams tail gate, I was able to barrow a hoist (Thanks Dave) for unloading

also spent more then 3 hours with the power washer on it (mostly cleaning driveway after)

now, do i chop that bottom first or mock up suspension as is :confused:

[Heinz57]

Congrats. Not sure if this has been done but if you could locate a piece of AR400 or AR500 plate it would make for a long lasting bottem plate on your shave. As far as which to do first don't think it matters, not sure.

[over's tj]

Is that a high nickle content steel or just a more durable steel, any special welding needs with it? will Davis steel have something like this avail?

Thanks

Congrats. Not sure if this has been done but if you could locate a piece of AR400 or AR500 plate it would make for a long lasting bottem plate on your shave. As far as which to do first don't think it matters, not sure.

[Heinz57]

It is easy to weld steel, used to plate military vehicles and loaders and such. Doesn't gouge and will last just about forever. Not sure if Davis has any chucks but they may, it is pricey but worth the price.

[Sean K.]

AR plate is not easy to weld....at least according to Kerry Han****. He told me it was very brittle when welded. FWIW.

Here's a link to more info.

http://www.hobartbrothers.com/aboutus/cracking_mystery/

Sean

[over's tj]

I have to look into that plate for the future, NOW, I have to get going on linking this thing up and finish making room for these axles, I just got axles and tires under Jeep for mock up and I got a decent plan for link setup and where the air shocks/CO will go

It looks like 108" WB is doable with 0 rear break over (37s) the final 39.5 or 42s are later

I think I am going to remove the rear (factory upper shock mount/crossmember) and the rear bumper crossmember and just narrow the rear frame for clearence for shocks and tire articulation, not sure yet as I may just back half it

I think narowing the stock rear frame will be less work but not look as trick

Photos to come, and I will ad to or start a build thread if anyone is interested

[Tom Schenk]

Thanks for all of the input guys. I picked up a 14 bolt / Dana 44 set today. I'll probably put the front in this weekend and the rear to follow next. After that, I dunno, 38's I suppose :)