GO 4LO

Not sure if anyone else here subscribes to Four Wheeler, but this month, they did a comparison article on the Dana 80 vs. the AAM axles. They list the 1150's axle tubes as .56" thick in DRW configs and only .212" thick in SRW configs. Can that be right? Less than 1/4" wall tubing?!?! Just found it hard to believe....
Chris

GO 4LO

Just noticed I put 'axle tube dia' as the topic title - should have been 'wall thickness' not 'dia' - sorry! Anyway, btt.
Chris

Mopar_Mudder

While it is possible I don't put too much faith in some of the info them mags give out. As a matter a fact I let my subscription run out on that one and a couple of other. You could try and contact AAM direct and see what they have to say.

y-knot

Yes I saw that article and found it pretty interresting. I must say going to the 11.5 AAM Axle was not a step up, they must have saved some money though. Anyhow, I called up West Coast Differentials and ask a few questions. One was I wanted to know if there was a source for a full spool for the D80. And I also asked about the AAM, and it's strengths and weaknesses. They said the figures in the article were correct, and yes they do have a very thin axle tube.

GO 4LO

Thanks for the info, guys.
Mopar_Mudder, I know what you mean about these inaccuracies sometimes - like a couple issues ago, where they said the first gen Cummins had the NV4500 behind 'em .
y-knot, did you find a full spool for the Dana 80? The Ford 9" in the back of my little Jeep is spooled, and to be honest, I think I prefer it over the Detroit and Lockright I had in other axles, even on the street. Now, if only I could bring myself to spend enough cash, I'd get an ARB!
Chris

y-knot

No I called everyone that has an add in any type of truck magazine, and it seems no one makes a spool for the D-80.

GO 4LO

Time to break out the welder, I guess .
Chris

Mopar_Mudder

Well I guess either way I got the dually so I can say "My axle is better then yours"

ARB are cool for sure. I run them in the front an back of 2 different trucks. My 83 1 ton and 76 Ramcharger, their is no other way to go.....

tony

I hope this is not an ignorant question, but what does DRW and SRW represent?

1sttruck

I glanced thru the article last night. The AAM seemed to have thicker walls where the center section was pressed with the tubes, it had a higher GAW, the axle diameter was bigger, etc., while the DANA had a higher torque rating, thicker walls than the SRW AAM (but thinner than the DRW), and it had a number of years of service behind it's belt. I have the AAM 11.5, which seemed to be a good thing as the AAM and Dana axles reviewed were both contenders for heaviest duty axles among light duty trucks.

Mopar_Mudder

I will have to steal the mag from a buddy so I can give it a read, sounds interesting. I was wondering about axle diameters and such. Do they talk about the front axle at all?

All the info is good, but one thing they never talk about it the type and quality of material. Bigger isn't always better if weaker material is used. A good example is that they Dana 60 front is actaully stronger then the Dana 70 front (we are talking back in the 70's here) as far as axle shaft strength goes. They both use a 35 spline inner shaft but the Dana 60 shaft is of higher quality.

bulabula

Tony, Dual Rear Wheel and Single Rear Wheel.

Mopar is spot on. Not having seen the article, there's more to rear axle reliability than wall thickness.

I wonder if GM have the same differences in their AAM axle trucks as well?

GO 4LO

bulabula, the article mentioned both the GM and Dodge 1150's. I'm not sure if the 1150 or the 1050 is used in the GM SRW configs though.
Mopar_Mudder, at the bottom of the comparative specs chart, Four Wheeler said this in reference to the .212 thickness number: " This varies and can be increased or decreased according to the manufacturer's order and the GAW required. Don't be alarmed at the thinner wall material. Most manufacturers are using higher-grade tubing, which is stronger for its size."
They did not mention the front axles at all. They did in a previous issue, though. It was one of those articles where they attempt to assign a horsepower and tire size limit for each axle . The 1150 was rated at 300 hp and 44's or so (this is by FW, not the mfr.). Don't remember the 925's rating offhand. The AAM925 uses shafts that are around 1.3" dia. and has a higher weight rating than the 2nd gen Dodge D60. I'd still take an old kingpin D60 over one of these new jobbers.
Chris

Mopar_Mudder

AMEN to that

The older (king pin style) 60 fronts have a 35 spline (1-1/2") inner shafts and 30 spline outers. I believe that the 2 gen Dana 60 fronts used a smaller shaft but not sure on that.

Take an old Dana 60 front and through 35 spline outer shafts on it and it will be pretty indistuctable. Thats what I ended up doing, that 30 spline outer shaft is the week link and I got sick of replacing them all the time

I love it when the try to put tire size and ratings on axles, they are getting better at it but for the most part they give an axle way to much credit in my opinion. But it all depends on the driver, I know guys that get away with Dana 44 fronts runing 40" tires and never break anything, go figure.

GO 4LO

Yeah, I know what you mean. The front Ford 9" in my little Jeep only has 1/2-ton outers, and I got away with 38's for about a year (back to 36's now since it's my dd).
For my other Jeep I decided to go a little bigger: