[Dude-Man]

Well, after about 4 months ( :angryfire: ) the cover for my Dana 44 finally showed up! They said they were having problems with their material supplier....
Anyay, I'm impressed with it to say the least. VERY sturdy and weighs 5 pounds more than stock (8.5 versus 3.5)! 1/4" thick walls with a 3/8" thick ring. Welds were nice although there is some splatter here and there (will probably dremel off). The cutting on the ring could have been cleaner as evidenced in the pics. Again, I'll probably clean up the edges with a grinder. However, the ring (as seen in the pic) is not larger than the factory cover at any point which should help to keep it from hanging up on rocks (third pic down). I ordered the fill plug a 1/4" higher than stock so if in the future I need to change the pinion angle for a lift I can maintain my fluid level. (BTW the capacity of the case should be increased slightly now due to the design of the cover...) The large fill plug should sit recessed/flush when tightened down and the bung is well executed. Total cost of $134.99 shipped!
Now for some cleanup and then to the powder-coater.
Anyway, on to the pics!

Front:

Close up of bung:

Overlaid on top of factory cover:

Inside:

Imperfections on ring:

 

[kokopop]

Awesome. Wow $140 shipped not bad.

 

[B Slater]

That looks really good!

 

[2NDX]

YAHOOOOOOOO......I WAS THINKING THIS THING WAS BEING DESIGNED
BY SKUNKWORKS UNDER SUPER DUTY SECRECY..... NOW GET THAT THING MOUNTED, FIELD TEST IT AND REPORT BACK TO BLUE TOURCH COMMAND SO WE ALL CAN GET THE LATEST ISSUE ROCK BUSTER OF A COVER!!!!!

 

[Muzikman]

Not a bad price for a custom cover.

Just curious, you getting longer bolts or are you going to try and use the stock ones?

I would have probably gone a bit higher than 1/4" on the fill plug as with the shackles and AAL in the rear, it made it real hard to fill the stock diff.

Let us know how it goes and holds up.

Remember, do not powdercoat the inside as if it should flake off, you'll be grinding the flakes in the gears.

 

[Dude-Man]

Yeah, I thought about a higher fill but I don't ever plan on going over 265/75R16's and maybe and inch or two of lift. Holes line up perfectly with the stock cover so fit should not be a problem. Blue Torch included longer bolts which look like ARP with the 12-point head. Not sure, however, if the Dana in the X uses standard bolts or not....

 

[Dude-Man]

BTW The man to talk to is Wade. 1-866-RCK-CRWL

 

[usmc xterra]

Sure looks heavy duty for sure.

Before you powder coat that, take a look at the top of your cover now, You might want to zip off the brackets they forgot that hold the brake lines and the emergency brake cable and have em re-welded to that cover. Unless they thought of something else I missed.

On second thought, Man that Rustoleum held up nice on my skids, Consider that, no chip, easy to repair. DIY. MC

 

[Dude-Man]

Yeah, I'll probably just paint it on the outside (that way it wears like the rest of the diff).
I had them leave off the bracket 'cause I'll just fabricate my own with some angle iron or something. That way I can build it with any amount of brake line drop that I want.
Actually, I'd really like to replace them with some Earls braided lines anyway...

 

[usmc xterra]

Yea cool, I like to do that too, but I'll let what is there show some wear 1st then upgrade. MC

 

[Muzikman]

I am wondering if the solid brake line is still going to reach? There isn't much space with the stock cover. If that one sticks out more, you might have a problem.

 

[Dude-Man]

I may have to mess with the solid brake line as the cover sits almost a 1/2" higher than stock. Although even if I had to replace the whole line it wouldn't be a big deal. We'll see...

 

[RiNkY]

That thing is made of steel right? That's alot of steel there holding the heat in. I'd be concerned about the heat factor with something that thick back there, the factory cover is thin as paper for a reason I'm sure. Looks awesome tho.

 

[Muzikman]

That thing is made of steel right? That's alot of steel there holding the heat in. I'd be concerned about the heat factor with something that thick back there, the factory cover is thin as paper for a reason I'm sure. Looks awesome tho.

It looks like most aftermarket armored diff cover. They are all steel and rather thick. I don't think there will be much problem.

As for the reason for the thin stock cover. I assume it's like everything else, thinner is cheaper.

 

[kokopop]

The thinner it is the easier it is to stamp.

 

[Dude-Man]

Not too worried about heat buildup. One, the housing is iron and the cover is steel so heat-transfer will be good (a little slower but good). Two, there is more oil capacity now due to the increased volume (because of the design of the cover). Three, I run Amsoil Severe Gear which can definately handle any heat that diff can produce.
Better than the fairly insulating synthetic composite covers found on some Fords....


BTW The cover is 1/4" and the ring is 3/8" thick.

 

[Dude-Man]

FINALLY got around to putting the cover in and all I have to say is I'm happy! There were a couple issues however. First, the welding caused the cover ring to warp a little. Only .0024" so it was easy to have it machined perfectly flat. Second, the ring was a little to 'big' on the inside and two brackets in the diff were hitting the cover. A little grinding for some reliefs did the trick. Anyway, click on the tumbnails for a larger pic:

Diff drained and cover off:


The offending brackets near the edge:


Relief cuts made with a grinder:


Custom made e-brake cable bracket:


Cover on and painted. Looking good!


There is absolutely no way I'm going to peel a lip on this cover:


Sway bar fits:


Nice and thick cover. Ought to support the pumpkin well:


265/75R16 fits easily:


All done!

 

[OregonX]

Looks good!

:thumbleft:

 

[Dude-Man]

BTW Seems it didn't add much extra fluid capacity after all. The fill hole is 1/2" higher than factory so checking the level with my finger is pretty subjective. When I lift it and change the pinion angle that will be a godsend however....

From what I understand this "Super Dana 44" is also what's used in the Titan. Set up like this the X will have a stronger cover than that big truck plus it has a naturally narrower wheelspan for stronger axles too!

 

[stevet47]

Keep us posted on if you have any problems with the diff. over-heating. I ordered a cover from ruffstuff which is even thicker. I'm not too worried about it, but I suppose it could be a problem.