Is there really such a beast??

[Budman56]

Just seen this on craigslist http://sandiego.craigslist.org/ssd/pts/2971630059.html does this really exist?
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[jocko]

good question - I'm not personally aware of a Dana 44 in a HALF ton truck, I would have assumed maybe only on heavy duty trucks, but even then... I have to admit I'm not positive on this - am sure someone knows this answer for sure though, so bump for ya.

[markeb01]

It’s from a GMC. My 1960 GMC ½ ton two wheel drive came with a coil spring/trailing arm Dana 44 from the factory, except mine was custom ordered with a 3.92 gearset:

[Captainfab]

It sounds as though you may have the Dana 44 confused with his big brothers Dana 60 and Dana 70.

If I'm not mistaken, the suffix refers to the rating of the differential. ie: Dana 44 = 4,400 lb rating, Dana 60= 6,000 lb rating, etc.

Originally Posted by jocko

good question - I'm not personally aware of a Dana 44 in a HALF ton truck, I would have assumed maybe only on heavy duty trucks, but even then... I have to admit I'm not positive on this - am sure someone knows this answer for sure though, so bump for ya.

[monolith]

My 64 GMC 1000 has a dana 44. Open diff, though.
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[Budman56]

Originally Posted by Captainfab

It sounds as though you may have the Dana 44 confused with his big brothers Dana 60 and Dana 70.

If I'm not mistaken, the suffix refers to the rating of the differential. ie: Dana 44 = 4,400 lb rating, Dana 60= 6,000 lb rating, etc.

so capt do you know if it will bolt into my 66 c10?

[Captainfab]

Yeah it will bolt in, as long as your '66 has trailing arms. The one unknown is what style of pandard bar is on the Dana 44 in the CL ad. Regardless, that is something that is easily dealt with.

Originally Posted by Budman56

so capt do you know if it will bolt into my 66 c10?

[jocko]

Originally Posted by Captainfab

It sounds as though you may have the Dana 44 confused with his big brothers Dana 60 and Dana 70.

If I'm not mistaken, the suffix refers to the rating of the differential. ie: Dana 44 = 4,400 lb rating, Dana 60= 6,000 lb rating, etc.

Thanks Captainfab! I learn something new every day on here.
And you were spot on, I was thinking of the heavy duty danas, wasn't taking into account the actuall #'s (44 vs 60, etc)

[Budman56]

so here are the photos of the rear axle, but it looks exactly like the one I have now, so does this make mine a dana 44? the only difference is the mounting point on the axle mine is in the pumkin, this axle has both panard bar mounting locations. This one looks like a 12 bolt? how do I tell if it realy is a dana 44? what should I be looking for on my axle, it seems to me that I could look at getting a new pumkin with 373 gear for mine instead of buying this axle for $400.00. what do you guys think?

[markeb01]

Although the photo is a little fuzzy close up, it doesn’t look like a Dana to me. The cover style is different and the bolts are in different locations. Here’s a comparison showing what the Dana 44 cover looks like on mine:





And here’s a cleaner picture from Wikipedia showing one in a 2009 Jeep:

[awbrown]

Sure looks like a 12 bolt to me ........I was thinking on danas the series number was cast into the webbing on the bottom..

[suzq044]

looks like the 12 bolt to me too; im pretty sure that's what we have on PJ, and the cover looks the same.

Not our photo; just google:

[Captainfab]

Yes that differential is a '65-'72 12 bolt, that someone has welded on a '63-'64 panhard bar mount. It also looks like it has leaf spring pads, just inside of the trailing arms. Looks to me like someone has done some modifications to this differential. You can get a new Eaton posi for $400.00 or a little less, gears would be about $250.00, then you have bearings, seals and misc small parts, another $150-200.00. But then you have the installation costs, unless you can do it yourself. If the one on CL is indeed a posi, and has the gears you need, it may not be a bad buy, even if the posi needs rebuilt. I would see if the guy will let you pull the cover and have a look inside. Then you can see just which posi it has. There are 3 different versions.

Edit: Had another look, and I think what happened to that differential is it was a '65-'72 that someone installed under a '60-'62. Those leaf spring pads may acutally be the trailing arm mounts for the '63-'72, which is why they are inboard of the current trailing arms. Plus the shock mounts and locating are the '60-'62 style.

[suzq044]

it looks kinda like the rear-end setup that's under PJ -- helper-springs 'n all

this is the only pic I have.. sorry :\