12 bolt axle swap

[swift220]

the rear end my jimmy has gone to crap. its a 12 bolt with 3:07 gears 4X4 so its got the 6 lug axels. I have located a 2 wheel drive with the right gears but its got the 5 lug axle's will my axle's swap in without any problems and can anyone else foresee any other problems that I may encounter. I haven't seen the new one and if Im gonna run into any problems with it I would like to know in advance before i drive off to go get it
thanks for the help

 

[Zeus33rd]

I'm exactly the same situation. Fuxed 12bolt rear with 3.08's...I found a 2 wheel drive 12 bolt the other day with 5 lug shatfts. Will it work?

 

[shoeless]

As long as the shafts are the same length and spline count, you ought to be able to pull your 6 lug shafts and put them in the other one, but I don't know about the spring perches or shock mounts. Might be time to break out the tape measure and check out distance between perches and such.

 

[4X4HIGH]

You cannot swap 5 lug for 6 lug or vice versa. The axles are different lengths. As far as mounting, I do believe that the 12 bolt will bolt in place but you just can't change axles.

 

[4X4HIGH]

Fill out your profile so people know where you are located and what you have. Sometimes this will help others to help you faster.

 

[wheelnut46]

I always thought 12 bolts were strong. In the car world everybody dreams of having a 12 bolt. In fact the only thing better is a 9 inch ford. And "better" is speculative. Why do they break in 4x4 applications? Is it the big tires?

 

[Blazinaire]

Actually I swapped the axles out of my old 12 bolt (6lug) into a 2wd housing (5 lug). This is the axle that is currently in my truck. The axles are the EXACT same length 2wd or 4wd so it doesn't change anything. As for spring perches and shock mounts, they are the same on either axle. I didn't run into any problems when swapping axle shafts, just pulled the cover, pulled the pin, pulled the c-clips, swapped axles and reassembled. I did have to change my E-brake cables due to different lenghts but I was swapping from a '75 12 bolt to a '74 12 bolt installed in an '87 that originally had a 10 bolt.

 

[ChevBlazin]

From what I remember the spline count is the same on 4x4 10 bolts as it is on 2wd ( i think later models may differ) maybe this also applies to 12 bolts?? and about the car 12 bolt, if you've seen one they are totally different, at least they look different, maybe ring gear size is the same. Yes big tires do make the difference, also cars are not using low range trasfer cases to induce breakage.

 

[A&P]

You can swap 2WD and 4WD axle shafts. They're the same length and both count out 30 splines. Go For It.
-Ben

 

[swift220]

Thanks for the help thats what i was hoping to hear Now I just have to go get the thing and get to work on it