78/79 60 or 05+ super duty 60

Van-go

Van-go

Not an old man
Joined
Dec 11, 2014
Location
Greensboro
So I have both axles sitting here and just wondering which one I should use for my buggy.
For the 78/79 I have chromoly inners and solid knuckles with 4 wheel supply high steer arms.

the 05 is bone stock.

pros and cons of each one.
 
The 78=79 has a much greater resell value as it fits nicely into many vehicles such as a YJ. I like the older axles because I can pack the bearings and don't have to buy a hub assembly.
 
Also, already have a truss for the 78/79 as I was originally going to use it, but happened upon the 05 60 for cheap.
 
UTfball68 said:
Sell the 78/9 stuff and dump the cash into the SD 60.
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Chris_Keziah said:
05+, it's stronger in every aspect. Plus you can off the 78-79 stuff for enough to build the 05.
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True. I’m definitely tempted to do this.
You know I am a hoarder and would probably save it to bolt into a YJ in the future. lol
 
If I build the 05 up I feel like I should go ahead and go 40 spline with 1550 joints.
I’m new to these axles so does anyone know what it would cost parts wise and what all I need?
I know I need BJ eliminators
Axle shafts
U joints (should I go spicer 1550 or 300m)
40 spline carrier (probably a spool)
Truss etc.
Do I need different knuckles to go 40 spline?
Only considering 40 spline in case I start ruining gears in the 60 and I can swap to a 14 front and use all the same parts for it.
 
Van-go said:
If I build the 05 up I feel like I should go ahead and go 40 spline with 1550 joints.
I’m new to these axles so does anyone know what it would cost parts wise and what all I need?
I know I need BJ eliminators
Axle shafts
U joints (should I go spicer 1550 or 300m)
40 spline carrier (probably a spool)
Truss etc.
Do I need different knuckles to go 40 spline?
Only considering 40 spline in case I start ruining gears in the 60 and I can swap to a 14 front and use all the same parts for it.
Click to expand...

Personally I'd throw a stock set of 1550 shafts and a fresh set of ball joints in it and rock out. No need to go full bore on it out of the gate. Pearman ran stock 1480 shafts with 40" Sticky Treps and a healthy 5.3 for about a season before he broke a stock shaft. Truss I'd either go with Artec or build something similiar to what Busted Knuckle has been doing with their tube trusses.
 
Depends on a few other things. What rear axle do you have/plan to run? Need to match it's width somewhat. Also, do you have wheels already? I know re-drilling is easy.
If I were starting from scratch, I'd build the 05 up SD60. In your case, I'd run the 78/79 60 as it already has all the goodies that are needed to make up for it's short comings.
I run a 78 model, Solid knuckles, bad ass shafts and joints, always on big stickies and I have beaten the ever loving piss out of it. No issues whatsoever with a good bit of weight and woopow under the hood.
 
I'm running a 78/9 in my YJ trussed, 35 spline 4340 shafts, super joints, solid knuckles, yukon lockouts, zip locker, and artec arms. I have spent a small fortune on this axle. Especially because I paid too much for it to begin with. If I were to do it over again with a dana 60. I would buy a cheap SD60 cut the C's off and run Reid super KP knuckles w/ 40 spline big bell's. Then you get best of both worlds strength of housing with ease of UB's along with the strength of KP knuckle attachments. Cost difference would be too much difference from what I already have considering I have seen SD60's go as cheap as $150. Piece of mind when mashing the skinny pedal is nice.

Or.... you could sell both and build a 14B front.
 
Hard call. You already have everything for the older one. But I'm a fan for the 05+ because they're plentiful, affordable, and the aftermarket support is really getting good. I don't see a problem running unit bearings, they're plenty strong and simple to replace, most parts stores have them. As Chris said, My buddy Pearman is running ball joint with stock shafts. He's wheeled hard on 40" Stickies for a long time, still on the stock selectable hubs. When the shaft finally let go, he went ahead and upgraded it but he got lots of hard wheeling out of the stock setup.
I would sell the old axle, use that money to buy gears, locker and Artec truss and rock out. I installed a Barnes truss on a Chevy KP D60 with Chris one night, then 3 nights later turned around and installed an Artec Truss on the same axle with my buddy Curtis. Having back to back hands on experience I can tell you the Artec was miles ahead in fit an finish.
 
Chris_Keziah said:
Personally I'd throw a stock set of 1550 shafts and a fresh set of ball joints in it and rock out. No need to go full bore on it out of the gate. Pearman ran stock 1480 shafts with 40" Sticky Treps and a healthy 5.3 for about a season before he broke a stock shaft. Truss I'd either go with Artec or build something similiar to what Busted Knuckle has been doing with their tube trusses.
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x2. i would also vote for a front locker vs a spool.
 
I feel like this pic uniformly depicts why going SD 60 over any other is the correct decision. The additional ‘beef’ just makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

F4688C3D-3780-4124-80A3-5B898A1D5E8B.jpeg
 
77GreenMachine said:
Hard call. You already have everything for the older one. But I'm a fan for the 05+ because they're plentiful, affordable, and the aftermarket support is really getting good. I don't see a problem running unit bearings, they're plenty strong and simple to replace, most parts stores have them. As Chris said, My buddy Pearman is running ball joint with stock shafts. He's wheeled hard on 40" Stickies for a long time, still on the stock selectable hubs. When the shaft finally let go, he went ahead and upgraded it but he got lots of hard wheeling out of the stock setup.
I would sell the old axle, use that money to buy gears, locker and Artec truss and rock out. I installed a Barnes truss on a Chevy KP D60 with Chris one night, then 3 nights later turned around and installed an Artec Truss on the same axle with my buddy Curtis. Having back to back hands on experience I can tell you the Artec was miles ahead in fit an finish.
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You wanna buy the 79 60 for the turd?
 
I also vote for the 05+ axle. Big brakes with no crappy caliper wedges, lots of beef, and they've got a helluva lot better turning radius. I can u turn my CCSB Duramax on a curbed 4 lane road and stay inside the outside lane. The unit bearings are massive, but I will say that the stub shaft c-clip sucks ass!

I've also got a 78 Dana 60 in my half ton and while I wouldn't pull it out for an 05+ setup, it'd be nice to change it to a newer axle and some coilovers like my HD has. I ditched the stock Ford brakes and converted it to 2500HD rotors and calipers. Slip on rotors are nice!
 
Van-go said:
You wanna buy the 79 60 for the turd?
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No cause I could buy a SD axle and gear it, and weld it for what a reasonable price for that axle would be lol. Unless you’ll take $400 for it all. I could buy, gear match and install a SD axle for only twice that.
 
77GreenMachine said:
No cause I could buy a SD axle and gear it, and weld it for what a reasonable price for that axle would be lol. Unless you’ll take $400 for it all. I could buy, gear match and install a SD axle for only twice that.
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Where ya gonna mount a leaf spring perch on that SD axle without having to shorten the pass side? Assuming you're referring to your YJ.
Food for thought.
 
Jody Treadway said:
Where ya gonna mount a leaf spring perch on that SD axle without having to shorten the pass side? Assuming you're referring to your YJ.
Food for thought.
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True. I’d have to buy a truss, then dreadfully remove all the brackets off the axle. I already have about everything needed to 3 link the front of my Jeep so that would be a good time to do it.
 
77GreenMachine said:
True. I’d have to buy a truss, then dreadfully remove all the brackets off the axle. I already have about everything needed to 3 link the front of my Jeep so that would be a good time to do it.
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:bounce:
 
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