[QUOTE=fordsrgrt]checkout this link it explains the hd 44 http://77cj.littlekeylime.com/Dana44_2.htm[/QUOTE]

my hubs look exactly like the ones shown in pic #24 in the above link. they are real big, which led me to believe it was probably a d60, but according to this it is a hd dana 44. although my truck is a '77, it has a production date of 12-76 so the dates shown are probably right.

[QUOTE=fishmanndotcom]dunno what numbers will be cast but the best way to determine if its a D60 or a D44HD is the hubs. if the housing where the hub goes into the rotor assembly is straight then its a 44 if the housing where the hub goes into the rotor assembly is curved a little bit its a 60

-cutts-[QUOTE]

i'm not sure what tou meant by the "housing where the hub goes into the rotor assembly". on my axle, the housing for the hubs does not go into the rotor assembly. it sits on the outside of the rotor assembly. the whole hub assembly must stick out 3 or 4 inches from the rotor, but the housing itself is straight, not curved a little like you say for a d60.

the reason i want to know for sure what axle i've got is because i want to buy new locking hubs for it. i saw hubs for a regular d44 at the parts store and they looked puny compared to mine. mine was much larger in diameter and the 6 bolts holding it on are like 3" long, had to use a 5/16" allen wrench to remove them. not sure what the size of the bolts were in the hubs i saw at the store, but they looked even smaller than 1/4" bolts, and only an inch or so long.

 

that is what my hubs also looked like on my 1971 chevy, and it seems from your description the same allen bolts and everything, mine had disk breaks on it, i never purchased anything for the front end, so no help on what specific parts to order, i think it may be best to take it to a 4x4 shop in the area and get them to look and order the right hubs, or take a pic and post it on here so some experts can look at it.

 

they are exactly like the ones in pic #24 in the above link. i know it's not the greatest picture. could take a better pic with my digital camera. will try to get one this weekend.

 

if i remember right ford did some wacki things back then.there HD44 was nothing more than a 44 center section with dana 60 spindles and bearings ,hence the bigger hubs on these trucks.i could be wrong but thats the way if was explained to me

 

actually no, a lot of jeep trucks diffs were on the driver side

i dont know how to bettrer explain it so here are 2 pics.... the first is the D44 and the hub assembly is flat and straight, you could put a straight edge on it. the second pic is of a D60 and the hub assembly is slightly curved... may be hard to tell but it is not flat.

https://www.ford-trucks.com/lc/lc.ph...b/INSTALLR.JPG

https://www.ford-trucks.com/lc/lc.ph...grind/pic2.jpg

-cutts-

 

Looks as though you have explained yourself quiet well, a bit confused I am.....as to why folks keep challenging this.

 

fishmanndotcom- thanks for the pics. unfortunately mine doesn't look like either of those. are those housings part of the rotor itself? mine is not. the housing is held onto the rotor by (6) 3" allen head bolts- the ones that hold the lockout on. i will try to get a good pic and post it. the link to the smaller pic is:



http://77cj.littlekeylime.com/Dana44_2.htm

pic #24

 

jeep switched sides on their diffs in 1980 thats why the hp 44"s are so popluar with the yj"s,as they are on the same side, prior to that they would use waggies 44 front on the cj"s. Sparky sounds like you have fords hd 44 which is like i said a 44 with dana 60 outers according to what i have read.as far as im aware of jeep never had a hd 44,only ford which had the mix of 60 outers and 44 housing.ps easiest way to tell what you have is check the bolts that hold the cover on 1/2"=44 and 9/16"=60

 

ok, i just uploaded a bunch of pics of my front axle parts to my user gallery. it seems that fordsrgrt may be on the money. after looking closer at my front hubs, it seems that they are very similar to the pics posted by fishmanndotcom. the hubs are slightly curved like the d60, but it looks like i have balljoints instead of kingpins. so this would mean a d44 with d60 outers like fordsrgrt suggested? if this is the case, would i need to get new locking hubs for a d60? are these the same hubs as a d44 hd? please check out my user gallery and let me know what you guys think.

 

You got yourself a 44. Looks like You have an external type hub

 

definitely a D44... the old model D60's use kingpin (until around 91.5-92)

also the hub/rotor assembly is straight across as i described (although not very well, lol)'

-cutts-

 

my hub/rotor assembly is definitely curved a little (like the d60 you described), but the rest of the axle seems to fit the d44 description. also has the dual piston calipers. guess i got a 44 with 60 outers like fordsrgrt said. still wondering what lockouts i need to order. not sure if i should order d44 hd lockouts or d60 lockouts. guess i will leave it to the pros. sent jeff's bronco graveyard an e-mail describing my hybrid axle and asked them if they could determine the correct parts for my application. i hope they can correctly identify the parts i need, cuz i really don't want to pay shipping for these suckers more than once (they are kind of heavy). thanks for all of your time and replies. i appreciate it.

 

You don't have a local 4x4 store anywhere close so they could match something up in person?

 

don't know of any nearby. just the average auto parts shops, and most of them have little to no expertise on 4 wheel drive stuff. especially the older stuff.

 

dana 44's never came with dana 60 outers....well except maybe those crappy low pinions dana 60's, but those arent really anything more than a dana 44 with 60 u joints.

and to 1970custom....i was just refering to tube sizes...i figured it was a given that the diff can be on either side