Dana 44 Gear Question

I recently purchased a 1969 CJ5 with a Dana 27 front end and 44 in the rear . The rear gear is stamped as follows 11 26 68 DANA 18515 A3058 41-11 . So for the new guy trying to learn how do I tell what the Ratio is?

Phill

 

So my next question would be was this a factory setup or something someone changed out.

 

Numbers indicate factory to your Jeep.
Date of manufacture (Dana) 11-26-68

 

just thought it was strange to come from factory on a jeep with a F134 in it.

 

Why does that strike you as strange?

 

just from some of the stuff I have been reading I didn't think they put that low of a gear with the F134. But I have a lot to learn and its enjoyable.

 

I don't think 3.73 was a stock ratio with a 4 cyl.
Most V6 Jeeps came with that, likely someone swapped axles in search of a more highway friendly gear ratio.

 

Check that the front axle is the same ratio. There is something fishy here.

If a dealership ordered a Jeep with an F134 and 3.73s, Jeep probably would have allowed it back then. But it would have to be special ordered. The main problem is that the F134 does not have enough power to propel the CJ at highway speeds with 3.73 gears. The 5.38s and 4.27s that came in these Jeeps were optimal ratios for the limited power of the F134, giving the best compromise between RPMs and top speed.

 

I just finished rebuilding the F134 the compression was at 75,70,65,90 front to back. I just tore it down put new bearings in and new rings. Compression in at 115 across the board now. It takes a few minutes to get there but it will now top out at 62 mph . I am doing a full brake rework and upgrading the master cylinder to a new duel Reservoir and new pad and drums. I will pull the front axle cover tonight when i get home and see whats in there.

 

Apparently it's either not the original rear axle or else the engine was changed from 225 V6 to an F-134
You better check what ratio is up front.

You will either want to regear the Jeep or change engines.
What you have is an unrealistic drive train combination.

 

I've run 3.73s for 20 years in my 3b with the 134 and love it. Even with 33s. Granted, I'm running a T-18 trans, so I have the luxury of starting out in a lower gear, but with a healthy f-head, it pulls highway speeds on the flat just fine.

 

OK I just opened the front cover and glad I did. looked like oil in it had not ever been changed. but the gears look good. the stamp on it is 9 24 68 41-11 so it matches the rear gears. so that is good news. Any way to tell if these axles are the original ones?

 

Was there a tag under one of the cover bolts ?
Even then, we can't prove originality to your specific Jeep.
The build date codes on both axles coincide for the reported year of your Jeep.
As mentioned axles and/or engine have been changed.

 

I know the engine is original and the puzzling thing is that the date on the front and rear gears match the year of the jeep. This is all new to me

 

As a new person to Jeeps, you will learn that an all original Jeep is a true rarity, and as soon as you post something is "factory" you will get numerous replies that " it can't be" After owning more than 2 dozen Jeeps, I don't believe Jeep made more that ONE in a row that was the same! LOL Good luck!

 

The axle date typically proceeds he build date by roughly 2 months.
Do you have a timeline on the build month ?
3.73 was never an option for F-134 engines but as Tim noted earlier it may have possibly been a special order.