How much should I expect to pay for gears?

[MaxxXJ]

I have a hp dana 30 front and dana 44 rear, I have 3.55's now and plan to go to 4.88's I'm getting 35x12.50's soon so I need to gear for them, I plan to tow a small camp trailer so idk that 4.56's will be deep enough.

Anyway, I have auto lockers front and rear and a carrier for my dana 30 for 3.73's and up. What should I expect to pay?

One shop quoted me 1600-1700, is that average?

 

[srmitchell]

I just paid 300 for gears and an install kit for my 8.25. I'm installing them myself, but 1600 sounds like a LOT for both axles. D30 parts are cheap. And D44's aren't rare when it comes to gear sets.

Seems too high.
BTW- I just bought Motive parts for the rear, and the front R&P in my 30 is alloy usa I believe, 4.56. No issues at all with the Alloy USA parts.

 

[jrowell]

Seems high. The parts would be around $700-800. There are a lot of capable wheelers in town that would install them for a couple hundred bones.

 

[Hillbilly XJ]

Rustys Off Road has gear packages for both front and rear including master install kits for each one for under $500 + shipping. I just installed a set with new lockers for my HPD30 and Chry 8.25. Gears and install kit's both were of good quality IMO from installing others gears for many yrs. mostly Richmond's.

The local 4w drive shop installed my gears and lockers front and rear for $200 each, I thought a very fair price.

 

[Johnnie Walker]

RWKhaus is probably the least expensive place you can buy your parts from. There are enough people in your area to get a good deal for labor on.

 

[Forceful Llama]

Found a place here that does them for 300 an axle and have a one day turnaround at most if you bring them parts.

 

[rockclimber]

whoever you go with, make sure they understand how to gear a D30.

and by "understand" I mean they know that it needs as much carrier pre-load as possible.

many people don't understand this and that is what causes most gear failures in that axle.

 

[cal]

whoever you go with, make sure they understand how to gear a D30.

and by "understand" I mean they know that it needs as much carrier pre-load as possible.

many people don't understand this and that is what causes most gear failures in that axle.

I need to just stop reading your posts..

 

[srmitchell]

whoever you go with, make sure they understand how to gear a D30.

and by "understand" I mean they know that it needs as much carrier pre-load as possible.

many people don't understand this and that is what causes most gear failures in that axle.

Why exactly?

 

[jeeperjohn]

You should not stray from the factory recommended specs or the gear manufacturer's specs. A good shop will charge about $400 per axle to install. You may find a local guy who will do it cheaper but check out their reputation before committing funds. There is goatman in your area. I think his shop does gears and he knows what he is doing.

 

[jeeperjohn]

whoever you go with, make sure they understand how to gear a D30.

and by "understand" I mean they know that it needs as much carrier pre-load as possible.

many people don't understand this and that is what causes most gear failures in that axle.

And what of bearing failures from excessive preload?

 

[rockclimber]

I need to just stop reading your posts..

feel free.

Why exactly?

case deflection in the D30 is the biggest problem. its why I have a broken ARB sitting on my bench

And what of bearing failures from excessive preload?

obviously you should not go over the maximum bearing pre-load, no need to damage the case, or cause excessive bearing wear. but plenty of gear installers don't want to get out a case spreader to get the maximum pre-load.

 

[sidriptide]

installation price is relative to who is doing the work and how much work they are doing.
my local axle guy will want 400 per axle if you just leave him the vehicle. if you bring him an axle in the bed of your truck it is usually below $200.
it all depends if he has to schedule lift time and do the set-up under the vehicle.
if he can do it right on top of the work bench under good lighting it makes him so much happier, that he will bump your work to the front of the line and charge you less.
also, if you are going to the local guy, make a point to buy at least some of the parts from him, even if it is more than interweb pricing.
it keeps him happier knowing you are supporting him, rather than just using him for labor.

 

[blondejoncherokee]

Used to be 200-300$ per axle. Now its more like 350-400$ per axle. Almost always cheaper to pull axles and bring them in. Around here it will bring it down from 350-400$$ per to maybe 200$-250$ per.

With 800$ in labor you could buy some legitimate gear setup tools. Actual clamshell.

 

[831_xj]

Maxxj give Arabia's Overkill a call. They are in Campbell and they did my gears. Guy that runs it is a super nice family man that has several built rigs himself.

Mine was about $800 labor for everything. my gears I bought from RWK haus supply for about $500 for both 8.25 and 30 w/ master install kits that have oem bearings. USA Standard

Good install no hums whines for 5k+ miles so far

 

[sidewaysstarion]

case deflection in the D30 is the biggest problem. its why I have a broken ARB sitting on my bench

You want to sell it?

obviously you should not go over the maximum bearing pre-load, no need to damage the case, or cause excessive bearing wear. but plenty of gear installers don't want to get out a case spreader to get the maximum pre-load.

But if you're not setting the pre-load to factory specs then you're not doing the install right? Do you even know how you set the pre load on a D30? Also were you running high strength permatex silicone on the diff cover, I hear that helps with case deflection.

I paid ~$250 per axle for gears and install kit and I paid ~$200 for the install, I'm running an 8.25/D30

 

[scottmcneal]

Why does he make it so easy for us? If i was rockclimber i would just stick to getting my blankie out of the hatch.

 

[rockclimber]

You want to sell it?

not particularly. it needs to go back in at some point.

But if you're not setting the pre-load to factory specs then you're not doing the install right? Do you even know how you set the pre load on a D30? Also were you running high strength permatex silicone on the diff cover, I hear that helps with case deflection.

:doh:
can you read?

 

[Digger87xj]

I usually charge 650 labor for an in vehicle front and rear gear change. Add'l 75 for ARB's and 150 for wiring and switch/compressor install. I also warranty my labor for 2 years.

 

[Hillbilly XJ]

The guy that did mine for $200 each is strictly a 4x4 shop specializing in Jeeps owns 4 2 of them can be street driven 1 is a diesel, very nice all are as you would expect. The other 2 are completely custom built from frame to cage, front to rear tube appears to be 1 7/8". Both are strictly Rock Crawlers which I know nothing about but they are different with different engines.

I had him do a lot of work on my XJ this time and told him I was in no hurry and if another job came in to do it just work mine in. If he has it a week or two makes no difference to me as he offered a nice discount for that option.

This is the second round of upgrades he has done for me and I've found no faults so far with 6 mo. after the first one. He did front end upgrades also last time and changed a lot. One thing he did was to setup the alignment (by sight & a tape measure) on it after he finished, it was better than was done at an alignment shop and drove better. I guess that comes from over 30 years in the 4x4 business.