After destroying my 2nd set of ball joints and a cv axle in the past 6 months Ive decided it is time to put a set of dana 44s under my Blazer!
Any advice from members who have solid axles would be greatly appreciated!
I am currently hunting for an old Wagoneer or wrecked k5 to steal axles from.
I would like to build this with as many "stock" parts as I can find so when stuff breaks I can go down to Advanced Auto to get new parts.
I will be keeping the tire size at a 31 until they wear out enough to buy a set of 33's. As soon as I get enough parts to cut up some ifs I will start a build thread.
Ive been looking at the ORD bolt on kit and was wondering if anyone has any experience with this kit?
I have a welder but I am not very confident in my welding skills.

94-04 Chevy S10 Solid Axle Conversion (4wd) - Solid Axle Conversions

 

A front axle from a K5 will have the differential on the "wrong" side. Stick with the Waggy axles and you should be fine. There are narrow and wide track Wagoneers. Either one will work, but your wheels may stick out a bit, depending on what offset you use.

There are a lot of other concerns, like moving the front axle forward for tire clearance, which will require a different steering box. The steering in general is probably the trickiest part of the swap. Your master cylinder should work ok with the Wagoneer brakes, but you won't have ABS anymore because they have no wheel speed sensors.

The bolt-on kit is cool, but pretty expensive. You'd probably be bucks ahead with weld-on stuff, even if you had to pay somebody to do the welding for you. You definitely want it done right.

 

I would say go to a local metal shop and pick up some scraps, and practice your welding for a little bit each night while you collect the parts to do the swap. By the time you're ready to do it, youll have more than enough experience to weld it up.

That will save you 600$ from the Ord kit, allow you to choose exactly how you set it up(height, shackle angle, leaf spring widths, wheelbase stretch, etc), plus you learn a valuable skill and get a way better sense of accomplishment knowing you built it yourself.

Just my .02 on that.

If you're looking to keep the project cheaper and more simple, go with a driver side drop front axle(k5s are passenger drop as Tom said), otherwise you will have to swap transfercases as well.

All wagoneers are narrow trac. Unless you're going with large tires(your post says you're not) narrow trac is your best bet, otherwise you'll have an extremely wide stance.

Cherokees had a wide trac option, and the fsj pickups were all wide trac to the best of my knowledge.

K5s are full width axles and will have a wider trac also.

Like Tom said, no ABS anymore. You might as well do away with the whole module and put in a proportioning valve in its place.


If you have a 3 button t-case (np233, np1 rpo code) you can swap in a fixed yoke front output shaft from a np231j keep t-case to make your front driveshaft situation easier

 

This is my recommended route for a damn near bolt on setup.

ORD Hanger Kit
Wagoneer 3" Lift Springs (This lets you run an SUA setup and still have lift)
Wagoneer Dana 44s (86-91) (The AMC 20 from those years is also an ok axle)
Astro 2wd (95ish I think) Steering Box (This swings the pitman arm forward) (You can use the Wagoneer Pitman I believe)
Wagoneer Steering linkages (Bolts up in this setup)

You can also go SOA with the stock Waggy front springs but that involves welding on new perches.

You can also use a YJ Wrangler Dana 30 for an SUA "bolt up" experience. On those its recommend you do the "one piece shaft" and I would recommend you do the "WU Knuckle" swap for the bigger breaks and better steering setup.

As far as rear axles if you go a Dana 30, disregard using a Dana 35 (I'd personally use the stock 7.6 (redrilled bolt pattern) before a Dana 35 in these trucks.) List below of decent 5x4.5 axles.

You'll also need to swap the front output of your transfer case like stated above. Most likely need a custom front shaft made. Rear (if you're a 4dr) I've read you can use the second half (carrier bearing to axle) of an extended cab (2wd or 4wd I'm not sure) shaft.

 

Thank you for the correction.

 

i made all my own brackets like 10 years ago and i pretty much had no clue what i was doing. its pretty simple just need a bracket up front and one in the back to hang the leaf springs from. theres some bolt on ford shock towers you can use too, no idea on the part number.

i used k5 axles, just ditch your stock transfercase and put np208 on the back and away you go. only custom thing i had to buy was the drag link from the astrovan box to the flat top knuckle. the wide axles are great for tippy situations and for bouncing off trees, really helps safe the body as the tires take all the hits

its been a fun capable little truck, no clue on street manners though, it only sees on and off the trailer at the off road park

 

I just found a good deal on a dana 30 front axle and chrysler 8.25 rear. I will definitely get to practicing with my welder however, a friend of mine is a professional welder and is willing to do the finish welds if I tack everything in place where I want it. I cant find Waggy axles anywhere near me, I have 1 more junk yard to check before I settle on the d-30. No need to worry about not having abs as mine doesnt work anyways.