Guys , I'm going in search of a solid D44 from an older ford to change out my ttb as many others have on my 88 which has 3.08's. My question is did they ever put these gears in the solid axles? and how can I figure that out when I find one other than the spin the pinion and count the tire rotation. Thanks for any help , Scott

 

I don't remember seeing any solid D44s with 3.08s doesn't mean it wasn't done but just don't remember seeing any. Now the next question is do you really want to run 3.08 gears? And if yes the gears from your ttb will work in a solid HP D44 you will just have to set them up in it.

 

Why not go bigger if you are going through the trouble anyway. Since somewhere down the road you are going to go with bigger tires and then bigger tires!! Desert
racers run the TTB almost exclusively it is a tough axle if it can handle 100mph +
speeds and catching air every other 60 yards. If you are not getting bigger tires
and you mostly stay on the road keep the TTB why do all the work just so you can
say you have a solid axle with stock tires!! Turning the output and counting the input
spins is a pretty good way to figure the ratio since that is what it is a ratio of, the
number of input spins to one tire rotation!!

 

The 3.08 gear is available throug Yukon gear #YG-308-1. You will need to specify the pinion location for the axle since it is available in low and high pinion options.

On a nother note, I can't recall a 4x4 with 3.08 gears. Even my 86 bronco had 4.10's from the factory. That poor thing was a decent runner, but still lacked a little pop, I could not imagine a full size 4x4 with a gear any higher than 3.73 and little itty bitty tires.
To verify your new axle ratio, you are going to want to open up the diff cover, so you can inspect the condition of things inside. Would not make sense to buy a complete axle that migt have busted or severley worn components, so while you have it open, you can counte the teeth on the gears, or just look for the ratio marked right on the ring gear, Sometimes it is only the tooth count found on the ring gear, but you will just have to do a little math.

Desert racers invest a great deal of money to make the TTB work. Most class racers are limited to this style of set up, so they deal with it. It has limited wheel travle without extensive modifications, and some of the biggest modifications are to the shafts and joints themselves. You know, the weak parts. No reason to keep them, especially the extra (already weak and problematic) extra u-joint.
Not to mention the change in camber that occurs with the TTB set-up, and asociated tire wear when driven on the street. Something a desert racer is not so concerned with. Have yet to hear TT driver complain about his tires wearing out a little funny when he cruises it on the interstate.
The SAS is a reasonable and cost effective method of increasing reliability and decrease all of the problems associated with the TTB design.
If you were to ask any desert racer that has a TTB, they would rather have this

http://www.drivetechnologies.com/videos/truck.wmv

instead of what they are stuck with. The TTB is a decent axle and it's design has its advantages, but the disadvantages far out weigh the positives. Especially when the SAS is sooooo easy to do, and does not cost very much.

 

the 80s and 90s F150s and broncos had 3.08 gears, mostly with 5 spds though Ihad a 95 F150 300I6 5spd with them that I bought new so I know that was factory.

 

Thats news to me, but I have never deplt with those too much, it does seem very odd to me though, but it is what it is i supose.
Curious, how did they run? Were they pigs? Maybe the maunual helped some huh?

 

it really wasn't as bad as you would expect but then again the 300 is a torque monster and yeah I think the manual helped a lot.

 

Thanks for all the info guys. The truck is a five speed/300 with 3.08's and 32" tires and with some engine mods it surprisingly has a lot of low end grunt even with the 3.08s. Mostly I play in the dirt and rocks. I don't object to going to a different ratio in the rear if need be, I was just wondering if 3.08's in a solid front was a futil search. I will probably just take what I can find and change the rear gears if need be. thanks guys

 

Most dana 44's come wit 3.50 gears.

 

WSP like I said if you do the D44 swap with a High pinion axle the gears that are in your TTB will work in it so you wouldn't have to buy new gears, just a setup kit and then set it up in the solid axle. But personally I would rather change the rear gears to whatever you find in a D44 front as it's bound to be lower.

 

Yeah, I would have to agree with the decision to change the rears to match the front D44. The 44 is bound to have lower gears, and since you are going to have to set up at least one axle, it might as well be the rear (easier anyway).
The end result will be a lower ratio which can do nothing but good for your ride. That little extra mechanical advantage will be a plus.

 

I know that if I stick up for a TTB here, I will probably be crucified, but...

Desert racers arent "stuck" with a TTB. If they dont like it, why do manufacturers such as Giant Motorsports make kits for adapting I beam suspensions to Toyotas and such? The TTB is widely known to be one of the most used front suspensions in the desert. It is strong, and can be easily modified for large amounts of suspension travel. "Extensive modifications" not really needed, you can cut and turn your I beams (relatively simple) and get 5 inches lift with no TTB drop brackets, and still have your front end aligned no problem. Its not as bad as people believe.

Here, take my hammer, drive the nails. I'm ready.

 

Not going to hammer anything Josh, you are fairly right. They make the conversions because thay offer greater travel over than a conventional a-arm front end found in the yota, and the gear is stronger than that which is found in the yota. Camburg has some cool kits for them, and for thier application can be fairly rugged, there is no arguement there. My point was, for the time and effort it takes to make a TTB decent, one could just as easily install a straight axle, and for potentialy less money. Inverted Y steering problems are resolved, and the camber problem on the street is no longer an issue.
I have seen the TTB work well, and have seen them on the trail. Plenty of guys have made them survive, but none of them were able to correct the problems addressed above that is solved by the solid axle. Further more, the solid axle also has a ground clearance advantage accross the entire axle, and less moving parts. Less moving parts means greater reliability on the trail. Less moving parts also means better tire wear on the street.
There is no arguement that the TTb has its place under a desert truck. compared to rather short factory a-arms, some desert racers simply do not have any other options if they plan on running a 4wd. The ones that do not have super deep pockets and are in Trophy Trucks, or 2wd's.

 

The other thing to remember is that if he id going to put a solid D44 under a previous TTB truck, the crossmember hangs lower than the older late 70's trucks. So, that being said, without extensive cutting and modifying of the original crossmember, he will need at least a 4" lift for the solid D44 to clear the crossmember. And since he's putting the lift on anyways, might as well put the bigger tires to go with it. Oh, and you can fit 38.5's with no problems under a 95 with a SAS and 6" lift........

 

Oh, and Monster, I love your little toy so much, I have to build one to race out here in Virginia! So here comes another 514 stroker moter in a ranger pickup.....


Well the body of one at least..........