Thread: 44 sas or TTB?

i wanted to do a SAS on my bronco ii, but ive foiund it to be a pain in the ass to find a driver side drop front axle at any of the 4 junkyards around me. i was thinkin maybe instead of an SAS i could get some 44 beams and cut/turn them.
im not a super hardcore rock crawler but i wanna run 37 inchers & lockers so i can get through some mud and screw aroundat johnson valley.
what kind of articulation can i get with TTB compared to a solid axle, would the beams hold up or should i keep looking to do the SAS.. assuming both setups would cost the same

What year is your Bronco II? Because it is already a hard job to put Dana 44's on a 2nd Gen and even harder on a 1st Gen. It is not a simple cut and turn job. Strait axle is going to be your best bet for crawling and muding. Also strait axle is going to be cheaper. Your best bang for the buck would be to research what truck came with a good rear and front end you want to use. Then just go buy a beater and use it as a donor. The stock drive train is really not going to like the 37's either. My Sami run's 31's and that thing goes everywhere when it comes to crawling.

there is dana 44 ttb brackets being made for your bronco now to bolt on f150 ttb,this willl be your cheapest strongest option
http://www.dezertrangers.com/vb/show...70#post2316770

its a '85
the thing is, either way im gonna have to make new mounts for everything and im gonna be using coilover shocks so the shock/spring mounting will be pretty easy. as far as ttb brackets go i dont think itll be too hard to fab them up as long as i get the measurements right. if i go SAS im gonna link it. so im not worried about that stuff, im just wondering on how well a TTB would hold up strength-wise compared to a solid axle, as well as travel numbers and handling since itll be driven on the street too

im planning on either a 4.0 or 5.0 swap to go along with the axle conversion as well

Originally Posted by simon5ay5

there is dana 44 ttb brackets being made for your bronco now to bolt on f150 ttb,this willl be your cheapest strongest option
http://www.dezertrangers.com/vb/show...70#post2316770

check out the 2nd link in my signature i have a dana 44 w 5.0 on my ranger and if done right it can haul ass

with 37's, you are going to put the hurt on any D44. a TTB D44 is every bit as strong as a solid D44. hell a D35 TTB runs the same u joints as a D44. I'd consider the D35 just about as strong as any 44.

my ranger has a D35/exploder 8.8 combo locked front/rear on 33's. it has been through the rubicon, and just about every trail in so cal minus the hammer trails. it has been part the way through a couple trails at the hammers in JV. with some better tcase gearing, i would be confident in getting it through the milder hammer trails.

if you are looking for something dual purpose, for sure leave it TTB. toss 35's max on it to keep the frontend alive and run either the 44 TTB or 35. I perfer the 35 cause it has much less unsprung weight, bolts in, and is as strong as a 44 where the weak spot is- the axle u joints.

if you want a v8 your gonna want the 44 over the 35 for the strength of the gears, i have seen plenty of full size broncos running 37in bajas out there i dont think your gonna run into much trouble with 37s on the dana 44

Originally Posted by simon5ay5

if you want a v8 your gonna want the 44 over the 35 for the strength of the gears, i have seen plenty of full size broncos running 37in bajas out there i dont think your gonna run into much trouble with 37s on the dana 44

if you are just tossing it in 4wd to get out of the sand every once in a while then yeah i agree, you will be fine with a 44 on 37's. but with a v8, locked up, in low range, at the hammers you will take out axle u joints on a 44 with 37" tires. unless you drive very very VERY conservitavely.

Originally Posted by mjlogan

if you are just tossing it in 4wd to get out of the sand every once in a while then yeah i agree, you will be fine with a 44 on 37's. but with a v8, locked up, in low range, at the hammers you will take out axle u joints on a 44 with 37" tires. unless you drive very very VERY conservitavely.

true...

You need to find an older Ford Highboy pickup..
If you already have the motor, then even better but try and find one with the 302 motor so the trans bolts up. Use those axles as well.. It should either be a dana44 front/9" or dana60 rear, or dana 60 f/r not 100% sure. But those axles will already match the outputs on the transfer case. Plus you'll like the full width axles on the narrow body. If you want to keep it narrower find a jeep with dana 44s.

imo, i think you should run jeep wagoner 44's and 35's max. 37's on a short wheelbase bronco2 would just cause trouble in the rocks or hills. That's just my 02c

yeah ive heard people say 37's on a 44 works fine. im running 31's on the stock d28 and ive pulled out fullsize suburbans buried in mud no problem, havent broke anyhting but a few wheel bearings and some driveline u-joints. im starting to think these dana TTB's are pretty damn strong considering my buddy has blown his dana 30 front end in his jeep about 4 times.. ive seen trucks with 44 front running them 39" military tires and they look like they do pretty well up at azusa canyon

if i do this im gonna go full width, i'd be stupid not to. and to spice things up a bit i'd push the front end forward to have something around a 90* approach angle and bring the rear end to about the center of where the gas tank currently is, so wheelbase would be increased dramatically.
when its all said and done i dont want the thing 10 feet in the air, i hope to have it sitting pretty low with about 70% of the wheel travel being droop. the larger wheelbase and low CG should keep her under control on the street as well as in the rocks

didnt the highboys come with closed knuckle front ends? heard those things are shit

Originally Posted by dezert dreaming

imo, i think you should run jeep wagoner 44's and 35's max. 37's on a short wheelbase bronco2 would just cause trouble in the rocks or hills. That's just my 02c

if i could find a wagoneer axle under $250 i'd do it, but that isnt gonna happen so the ford 44 should work fine. plus i wont have to worry about whether or not it has te vacuum disconnect or not

Originally Posted by mattmoya

yeah ive heard people say 37's on a 44 works fine. im running 31's on the stock d28 and ive pulled out fullsize suburbans buried in mud no problem, havent broke anyhting but a few wheel bearings and some driveline u-joints. im starting to think these dana TTB's are pretty damn strong considering my buddy has blown his dana 30 front end in his jeep about 4 times.. ive seen trucks with 44 front running them 39" military tires and they look like they do pretty well up at azusa canyon

37's on a 44 does work. i had a chevy 44 under my jeep on 37's. you just gota be careful with it in the rocks and think twice before you hit the gas if you are bound up. and if you arent blowing up that d28 on 31s then you arent trying hard enough haha.

ford axles is better than the wagoneer one anyway. high pinion. just gota find one with the weld-on rad arm mounts instead of the cast ones. or use a leafsprung one

Originally Posted by mjlogan

37's on a 44 does work. i had a chevy 44 under my jeep on 37's. you just gota be careful with it in the rocks and think twice before you hit the gas if you are bound up. and if you arent blowing up that d28 on 31s then you arent trying hard enough haha.

ford axles is better than the wagoneer one anyway. high pinion. just gota find one with the weld-on rad arm mounts instead of the cast ones. or use a leafsprung one

do the TTB's come high pinion?

all ttb's are high pinion

There's a Jeep Grand Wagoneer at the Pick-A-Part in Ontario that has a Dana 44 in it if you still want to do a SAS. I was just there Monday when they put it out.