cause of Axle Snap

Anheuser

New Member
Joined
Apr 24, 2006
Location
Kannapolis
This is a stupid question but here goes:

I have a Dana 44 rear axle and a 30 front with 30 inch tires. Soon to be 33 inch tires with a 3 inch suspension lift.

My question is, what causes your axles to twist and snap and what do I need to do to not snap them?

Are too large tires or lockers on too small axles the cause?

Thanks.
 
Heavy foot, too big of tires for axle size, Lockers, driving style, terrain, Many causes. With 33's you should be OK unless you are a hammer down kinda driver, then yes, you will learn to change axles.
 
yeah unless u just hold down the gas and close your eyes you "shouldnt" snap a 44 if you do lock it up. a full locker or selectable locker will more likely help to snap it than a limited slip,

i think you would be ok on a rear 44, it took a 5000lb cherokee and 37's to snap my rear 44.
 
I always heard there were no stupid questions, just stupid answers :) Most times I see an axle shaft snap it's the result of the tires spinning and then grabbing traction. The sudden change of load is too much for the shaft to take. The larger the tire, the larger the load change, the greater the chance of breakage. Lockers cause both wheels to be spinning thus doubling the chance of one grabbing and snapping a shaft. Rarely have I seen one snap in a "crawling" situation tho I managed to do it myself once :) With 33's on the 30/44 comboI think your chance of breakage is minimal even with lockers and a little tire spin. With a little caution you should be just fine.
 
I see an axle shaft snap it's the result of the tires spinning and then grabbing traction.
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X2

You can run really big tires on a weaker axle and be fine with easy street driving (as long as you upgrade the brakes).

When you start applying your engines full torque load (trying to spin tires on dry pavement, spinning tires balls to the wall through mud, spinning tires while hung up on a rock (enough to make smoke roll some) and then you catch grip) is when things tend to break.

You combo sounds good on 33's, you could probably get by with some abuse.
 
CYJKrawler said:
I always heard there were no stupid questions, just stupid answers :)
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Or, stupid people who ask questions:D (not pertaining to anyone on this thread :) )

CYJKrawler said:
Most times I see an axle shaft snap it's the result of the tires spinning and then grabbing traction. The sudden change of load is too much for the shaft to take. The larger the tire, the larger the load change, the greater the chance of breakage. Lockers cause both wheels to be spinning thus doubling the chance of one grabbing and snapping a shaft. Rarely have I seen one snap in a "crawling" situation tho I managed to do it myself once :) With 33's on the 30/44 comboI think your chance of breakage is minimal even with lockers and a little tire spin. With a little caution you should be just fine
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good answer. exactly what he said
 
Ok, thanks guys. My jeep is my toy and daily driver, so if I break it I’m up the creek. Axle shafts aren't too bad to replace but if I can help it I'd rather avoid the breakage.
 
Axle Snap

My experience has been that axles break most frequently following this scenerio:

Once the front wheels are launched vertically skyward,

Followed by plenty of gas pedal,

Experiencing a brief few moment of anti-gravity wheelstanding,

Finished off by an Xtremely ROUGH Touch and GO AGAIN Landing....

Damn Cheap Imported Steel... MUST BE THE PROBLEM !!!!


:gitrdun: :bounce2:
 
Anheuser said:
Ok, thanks guys. My jeep is my toy and daily driver, so if I break it I’m up the creek. Axle shafts aren't too bad to replace but if I can help it I'd rather avoid the breakage.
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buying a set of chromolly shafts (like Alloy USA, Superior, etc)...and keeping your stockers for spares...is a wise move...:D

I've been running 36" Iroks on a 30/44 setup for over a year and a half...and while I do know it's a ticking time bomb, anybody that goes with me knows I'll wheel it anywhere that's physically possible...and I've never broken a shaft or a u-joint...(knock on wood)...

I attribute this to a couple things:
1. chromolly shafts
2. full circle clips for u-joints (another benefit of the chromolly shafts)
3. only give it enough gas to get over what you need
4. proper gearing to crawl instead of wheel spin (4.56 gears and 4.3 t-case)
5. selectable lockers (ARB) so I only lock when needed...less stress on the shafts over the long run


I also take pride in the insult/complement that somebody told me at Devil's Playground one day, when I didn't quite make it up a line somebody else was trying:

"The only thing holding you back, is common sense"


Greg
 
upnover said:
Heavy foot, too big of tires for axle size, Lockers, driving style, terrain, Many causes. With 33's you should be OK unless you are a hammer down kinda driver, then yes, you will learn to change axles.
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Uh-oh, looks like you'll have to change your driving style, Anheuser.
DSC_1734.jpg
 
Ha, yea I was more than a little disappointed I won't be able to barrel through the mud like that anymore without feeling guilty.
 
Mud doesnt really break stuff. It just wears stuff out 3 months later when you least expect it, and theres no way to stop it, and it gets to EVERYTHING that rotates or rubs.
 
jeepinmatt said:
Mud doesnt really break stuff.
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correct...it's not the mud...it's the solid ground/rock on the other end of the mud pit, or in the middle of the pit, that your tires hits and grabs traction when it's running 5K RPM...:lol: :lol:

Greg
 
Whats breaks axles is torque + leverage (big tires) + traction. Worst case scenerio is one wheel with %100 traction (front, locked of course), with the others either in the air or spinning, and a lot of engine RPMs multiplied by a lot of gear reduction. A lot of times this is sudden like when one tire find a nice sharp rock to grab while the others are spinning. Oh yeah and throw in the wheel turned hard to help things out a little.
 
bigwaylon said:
I also take pride in the insult/complement that somebody told me at Devil's Playground one day, when I didn't quite make it up a line somebody else was trying:
"The only thing holding you back, is common sense"
Greg
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Please note that it was not Greg's common sense that was holding him back, but rather someone else's. And as far as his statement that he'll try any line physically possible - I've seen him try a few that weren't physically possible. Look at this one:
DSC03449.jpg

He DROVE this - no winch, no pushing, no body damage.
Stewart
 
Keep your foot off of the skinny pedal
if you have a Automatic trans that helps alot.
and realize that they are places that you just can not go.

Lockers help alot. They keep the wheel spin under control.

you can easily brake just about any axle if you are being Stupid.
 
bigwaylon said:
"The only thing holding you back, is common sense"
Greg
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I like that. Another one that goes along with that which I have seen posted before is "Let the size of your wallet guide your right foot", or something like that.
 
stewartgivens said:
Please note that it was not Greg's common sense that was holding him back, but rather someone else's.

Stewart
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actually...it was my common sense...same sense that got me to back off that rock to the side in the pic above...right when the oil pressure went to zero, I decided that was enough...:D

Greg
 
And the common sense that I did not have when I kept going up the rock and put your rig on its lid:D

Hey, the spotter dissapeared so I didn't see the signal to stop :driver:
 
Ridgerunner said:
Lockers help alot. They keep the wheel spin under control.

.
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Lockers help snap not save....

Just to clarify
 
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