Axle Dilemma

[goldwing2000]

Ok, so here's my problem. I'm going to install a new axles and I have a couple different paths I could choose. Current axles are a set of 3.42s, 10-bolt front and 12-bolt rear.

I have a 14bff with 4.10 gears that's going in the back. That's the easy part.

To go with that,
I have one 10-bolt axle with 4.10 gears but the housing is rusted to hell.
I have one 10-bolt axle with 2.73 gears and the housing is painted but showing some rust.
I have one Dana 44 with 4.10 gears and the housing is almost pristine.

Option 1:
Take the 4.10 gears out of the rusty axle and have them installed in the 2.73.
Cost: about $300. Setting up axles is a pain in the ass and I'm not willing to do it myself.
Benefit: I'll have the right gears in a decent housing.
Problems: The paint on the good axle isn't going to last forever, so I'll still have to do something about protecting it from rust.

Option 2:
Have the 4.10 axle sand blasted and powder coated.
Cost: About $260, including the knuckles
Benefit: No actual work to do besides removing the knuckles and draining the fluid. The axle will be completely impervious to salt and dirt.
Problems: Has the rust removed enough metal to affect structural integrity?

Option 3:
Install the Dana 44.
Cost: Pretty much free, since I already have the parts.
Benefit: Pretty much free, since I already have the parts.
Problems: The axle doesn't have the outers, so I'm going to have to swap over the 10-bolt parts. That leaves me with only one set of axle shafts, no spares. If I use a 10-bolt, I have three sets of shafts.

As of right now, the plan is to install the Dana just to get me going and then switch over to option 1 or 2.

 

[redneckdude]

if it were me, id just hit the 4.10ed 10b with a wire brush on a grinder then spray bomb it. $20 for the brush, $5 for some cheapo spray paint, and you are good to go.

 

[6.2Blazer]

Option 1 - just wire-wheel the housing and shoot it with $4 in spray paint. I obviously can't see the housing in person, but I've never seen one with more than a thick layer of surface rust on it......nothing that would affect the structural integrity.

Not sure why you would need to powder coat it, especially since you don't mention powder coating the other two options??? I'm sure it would be nice, but why?

 

[goldwing2000]

I'm not completely against spending money (like some of the people I've seen), I just want to spend wisely.
The rust is a little beyond the wire wheel stage. It's heavy, nasty scaly crap. Anything I could do at home, short of taking an angle grinder to it and removing LOTS of metal, wouldn't get all the rust. Spray bombing is more or less useless and the rust would just come back eventually.

The reason for the powder coating is two fold. One, because the powder coaters will blast it down to bare metal before they coat it. And two, because it looks cool as hell, it's tough as nails and the powder coating will probably outlast the rest of the truck.
The reason it's not on the other two options is because the other two axles are "good enough" to just stick under there and drive. The 4.10 10B HAS to have something done to it.

I'm all about permanent fixes. For example, I just discovered rusty floor pans yesterday and I'm going to be replacing them with 1/8" diamond plate and rhino lining the whole interior. I hate doing a job more than once.