A lot has changed, and a lot of money has been spent, but not on anything that shows...

To put this in my '83 Bronco, I had to regear it. I didn't want to spend the money on new Ford gears (~$350), and I certainly didn't want aftermarket gears, so I took a chance on a take-out set of Ford 3.08s (~$150 eBay), which of course required an install kit (~$40 RockAuto), new axle seals (~$15 RockAuto National/Timken 8835S), and a new pinion shaft lock bolt (~$5 Ford). When I pulled the axles, I noticed a serious groove in the RH axle due to bearing wear. Ford wants ~$250 for a new shaft, so I took another chance on a Dorman ($130 O'Reilly, made in India) which included a bearing (apparently made in USA by KOYO), a seal (no ID), lugs & nuts (no ID). But I bought a MotorCraft bearing (~$30 eBay), and reused the original lug studs. I paid a friend with a LOT of gear experience $150 to set up the gears, and I reassembled the axle. The original oil was clean, and what little metal was in it settled out, so I poured it back in & E6000'ed the sandblasted & painted cover back on. I'm tilting it back & forth to put oil into the wheel bearings before installation. I'll figure out the e-brake cables after the axle is in the truck (which is why I'm doing it to my DD first).

Ford 8.8" axle uses 10 lug studs D6AZ-1107-A ('83-00)
Dana 44IFS uses 10 lug studs D6TZ-1107-A ('83-96)
Ford TIB axle uses 10 lug studs F4UZ-1107-A ('94-96)

If I do this swap to the '93EB I'm building, I won't have to regear it (3.55 already). And if I find one with good bearings, I won't have to spend all that money again, either.

I pressure-washed & reused the pads (4C2Z-2001-BB) & e-brake shoes (4C2Z-2001-BB)

I haven't decided yet whether to replace or reuse the U-bolts...

Owner caption April 2019 · Photo 0 of 5000