Rear Axle Upgrade

silversurfer575

silversurfer575

Member
Hi! Pardon the dumb question...

Looking for some advice on upgrading my rear stock JK Rubi axle

I have a 2012 2 door Rubicon auto.

Stock 4:10 gears and stock locker.

Im going to be buying a PR44 Unl for the front (arb, 4:88, RCV, Reids, prosteers), and since Im doing that, would like to do the gearing, locker, and axleshaft upgrade in the rear at the same time.

Can I change the gear ratio, put 35 spline ARB, and 35 spline axleshafts in the same stock rear axle housing?

If not, are there any options where I can buy an axle housing and have it built for me like Im doing with the front PR? Ive heard a Trail rock 60 can be done, however, I want to keep the same 5 on 5 bolt pattern I currently run.

Thanks for your input.
 
olram30

olram30

Not That Kind of Engineer
I think we are stuck with 32 spline in the rear. Unless you had a sport or Sahara. I'm not real sure, something to do with the different length axles
 
Strike Force Zebra

Strike Force Zebra

-
silversurfer575 said:
Hi! Pardon the dumb question...

Looking for some advice on upgrading my rear stock JK Rubi axle

I have a 2012 2 door Rubicon auto.

Stock 4:10 gears and stock locker.

Im going to be buying a PR44 Unl for the front (arb, 4:88, RCV, Reids, prosteers), and since Im doing that, would like to do the gearing, locker, and axleshaft upgrade in the rear at the same time.

Can I change the gear ratio, put 35 spline ARB, and 35 spline axleshafts in the same stock rear axle housing?

If not, are there any options where I can buy an axle housing and have it built for me like Im doing with the front PR? Ive heard a Trail rock 60 can be done, however, I want to keep the same 5 on 5 bolt pattern I currently run.

Thanks for your input.
Click to expand...

35 splines in the front too?
 
silversurfer575

silversurfer575

Member
Yes. I would be using 35 spline in front. There is a lot of discussion and information about front axles but rear axle upgrade info is scarce

For the front, I hav to use a different housing if I want to do arbs. For the rear, would be nice to just buy axle shafts, gears and the arb without having to also buy a new rear housing.
 
Last edited:
J

Jaysend

New member
I've had a lot of shops and vendors steer me away from the 35 spline front.

I've also heard a lot of folks unhappy with 35 spline fronts. The shafts neck down and have the same outers so your not gaining much. Also lots of issues with leaking seals.
I think 32spline Rcvs would be fine up front. Out back, the 35 spline would be pretty slick.
 
wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
silversurfer575 said:
Hi! Pardon the dumb question...

Looking for some advice on upgrading my rear stock JK Rubi axle

I have a 2012 2 door Rubicon auto.

Stock 4:10 gears and stock locker.

Im going to be buying a PR44 Unl for the front (arb, 4:88, RCV, Reids, prosteers), and since Im doing that, would like to do the gearing, locker, and axleshaft upgrade in the rear at the same time.

Can I change the gear ratio, put 35 spline ARB, and 35 spline axleshafts in the same stock rear axle housing?

If not, are there any options where I can buy an axle housing and have it built for me like Im doing with the front PR? Ive heard a Trail rock 60 can be done, however, I want to keep the same 5 on 5 bolt pattern I currently run.

Thanks for your input.
Click to expand...

Honestly, I would save your money on the orange knuckles and use that money to get an HD tie-rod. Even with the additional inch of clearance, you're still gonna hit your tie-rod. Otherwise, your front axle setup sounds like a good setup.

Regarding the rear, you cannot run 35 spline in a factory Rubicon rear Dana 44. I personally would recommend that you run a Dynatrac Trail 60 and yes, you can get that at factory width and with a 5x5 bolt pattern.
 
wayoflife

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Jaysend said:
I've had a lot of shops and vendors steer me away from the 35 spline front.

I've also heard a lot of folks unhappy with 35 spline fronts. The shafts neck down and have the same outers so your not gaining much. Also lots of issues with leaking seals.
I think 32spline Rcvs would be fine up front. Out back, the 35 spline would be pretty slick.
Click to expand...

A lot of shops will try and steer you away from products they don't carry, don't make a lot of money on or on things they don't know how to setup right.

While I'm not a fan of RCV's if only because they aren't worth the extra $400 premium in my opinion, I have run a set them in 35 splines on a ProRock 44 and had zero problems with them. But hey, what would I know.
 
JKWrang

JKWrang

New member
wayoflife said:
A lot of shops will try and steer you away from products they don't carry, don't make a lot of money on or on things they don't know how to setup right.
Click to expand...

This happened to me. Northridge4x4 steered me away from a rancho setup in favor of a TF 2.5" lift claiming that he (the sales rep) had seen a lot of failing parts from Rancho. Now, fortunately I still like the ride amd the Jeep and am very happy - but it pays to do your own research, hear the real life field stories and know what you want. Shops do this - I would too if I didn't make a profit on special order items like what I didnt carry.


Edit: im not bashing Northridge4x4 either - just offering anecdotal experience on that subject - im happy with my purchase and their customer rep did a great job finding me the best price and IMHO a good kit for my needs.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using WAYALIFE mobile app
 
J

Jaysend

New member
True, but the vendors I was referring to sell rcv and recommended the standard 32 spline Rcvs. A very reputable axle builder (mentioned many times in this thread) warned me about the seal issues with the 35 spline axles.

I was already leaning toward keeping the tru lok so I was easy to convince.

Just sharing what I've heard, I have no first hand experience with the 35 sine arb. I did see the 32 spline Rcvs next to the 35s though.
 
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