Crane Diff Covers or else?

[Kejtar]

I looked at the Crane's and I somewhat like them... but they are pricy I know I know you get what you pay for.... but what do I get if I pay a little bit less??

My dilemma is as follows: the D44 has a flimsy diff cover (feels as though if I punch it hard enough I'd bend it). Problem is that I just dropped a lot of $$ into gears and lockers and I have overextended the budget already twice (and by no small amount at that). Anyways, is the basket type protection good enough (I got one on the front and I like it but the diff cover on the 30 is a lot more stout!) or is there a less expensive Crane like product without a fancy name that you guys know about?

 

[GSequoia]

Why not build your own now that you weld?

 

[kraziexj]

http://purplecranium.com/products/c-49_spider_rock_guards.html

I just found these recently. they include a .500 thick CNC plasma cut flange, .625 Rd. Cold Rolled Steel legs. And for that they aren't that costly.

 

[shimmy]

i have a crane high clearance cover on my 8.25 and it looks awesome! i painted it yellow so it would stand out, and colored the crane part black.

brandon

 

[GSequoia]

http://purplecranium.com/products/c-49_spider_rock_guards.html

I just found these recently. they include a .500 thick CNC plasma cut flange, .625 Rd. Cold Rolled Steel legs. And for that they aren't that costly.

I do have a problem with that setup. One of the arms gets in the way of the fill plug, they should change that.

Sequoia

 

[woody]

I have heard that a HP44 cover (from a ford front) is heavier duty than the rear XJ44 cover. (plus the plug is higher so to allow a bit more lube in there.)

Rusty & Warn both make similar flat-plate armor bolt-on covers, and places like TOR have the tube kind. I may end up with a Rustry's cover this year :dunno: but I don't think I wheel hard enough to crack a stock cover.

 

[dennisuello]

$140

http://purplecranium.com/products/i-115_dana_44_rock_crusher_cover.html

 

[ChuckD]

Remi, just weld some crap to you OEM cover or even better, on ebay you can get one of the 1/8" thick ones pretty cheap.

TBH, that's plenty of protection. You just need something to just thicken the area or act a a deflector. Who cares if you can't drive a truck over it. If you hit a rock that hard, you'll do more damage to many others things before messing up your Diff!

 

[Warthog]

have you looked at T&J Performance?
http://www.tandjperformance.com/products-bpp-diffcover.htm

 

[juicexj24]

How about the Warn Diff guard? I'm putting one on this week for the D35, and two on my bros Rubicon. Flat plate front unlike some of the others out there that are tubes. Juice

 

[Kejtar]

Hmm Chuck, maybe you're right, some scrap metal welded to the bottom reinforcing it might be the best way to go for now. But I will keep looking: maybe I get lucky and find something good for cheap

 

[shimmy]

in the front i run poison spyder rock ring. these work good too.

 

[ChuckD]

Hmm Chuck, maybe you're right, some scrap metal welded to the bottom reinforcing it might be the best way to go for now. But I will keep looking: maybe I get lucky and find something good for cheap

If you find some ring for say $30, it's probably worht it. Otherwise, spending anymore on a cover would just be a waste, IMHO.

I've beat my D30 cover pretty bad, it's 1/8" thick. If I added some metal to the bottom, would be perfect.

Otherwise, if you going to replace the cover, you might as well get a locker to go with it. OX comes to mind. :sunshine:

 

[Kejtar]

Otherwise, if you going to replace the cover, you might as well get a locker to go with it. OX comes to mind. :sunshine:

I got a front Detroit.. and man.... they ripped me off: cover was not included LOL

 

[ChuckD]

I got a front Detroit.. and man.... they ripped me off: cover was not included LOL

That's a total bummer Dude!

 

[Kejtar]

That's a totally bummer Dude!

yeah like far out dude

 

[Bones]

Here’s another brand. It's a Missouri Off-road Outfitters cover shown here with an over the axle truss/coilover set up.

IIRC you can also get the M.O.O.cover with cap bolts like the aftermarket 8.8 covers are avaiable with.

On the other hand, you can go more "low tech" and get a Ford front HP 44 cover. Mine is thicker than the military cover it replaced and has a higher fill port for additional fluid capacity. I also installed a diff guard from Glen Wakefield at Rocky Road Outfitters. Glen lists some stuff on eBay occasionally and often you can get the listed stuff cheaper than on his web site.
Here is his new style:

Mine is the older style and is a bit "squarer" in the rod. It is a very beefy piece of iron. The loops are SOLID stock not tube. The flange is 3/8" to block the cover form peel back.

If you are interested I have my old military diff cover (about twice as thick as the stock) available for a price. It has been drilled and tapped higher up to accommodate more diff fluid. I replaced it with the Ford unit when I recently upgraded the axle just because I found a deal to good to pass up on the new cover.

Bones :skull1:

 

[Kejtar]

Bones I sent you pm..... if you didn't get it, email me @ [email protected] and we'll talk

 

[Jeff 98XJ WI]

For a home made tough cover, do what a recent post showed...cut down a wrecked Ford TTB axle housing to just the diff cover area. That yields a stock style stamped cover 1/4" thick! Otherwise, just get a FRONT D44 cover and bolt it on the back. They are just as thick as the stock front D30 covers. Ford high pinion units have the raised fill hole, but a Chevy low pinion unit is just as thick. If you want more beef than that, add a strip of metal to a Front cover or add one of the commercially available guards. Jeff