Good point, spinning tires are culpable for most snapped axleshafts. Only experience and maturity alter the human desire to throttle over and through an obstacle.

Fred, there is only one reason you have a D60 in the back of your jeep....you had a D35.
D35 breaks looking at its own shadow. BJ will argue with some lame "well they are in a lot of jeeps and they are not all broken" BS. Sorry, the day you decide to install lockers and go on trails that you need lockers for...the d35 regardless of tire size, or skinny pedal use or not, the d35 will break, it is only a matter of time.
Chef Mark fixed his D35 4 times (no locker) before having me put the 8.8 in.

If you are going to lock up a d35 though, make it the cheapest locker out there, why, so less money will have been wasted.

If you are going to put a locker in the front(in the mean time)before you get a 8.8 or D44 in the rear. Put an ARB in the front, not some POS cheapo locker.

If a budget says no "worth having" lockers or axles are in the cards, buy a winch, ok, a GOOD winch, OK, A WARN winch.

SD

Oh no, Fred, that is wrong, mashing the skinny pedal is the only way to proceed when maturity and experience tell us that is the best way. That takes into account for wind speed, tire to earth friction properties, laden or un-laden, Blood alcohol level, money stashed away for throttle days, tire pressure..... Build your rig so you can "get it" when you need to.

SD

SD,

you forgot the showoff to the hottie in the seat beside you factor <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/notooth.gif" alt="" />

<img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" /> LMAO <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" />

Josh, You and I both know no one should build cheaply; nor should one invest any money on the D35. But, the reality is that not everybody does the same narly trails that Chef Mark does. On 4x4 wire, the writers never really know well the individual they're responding, how they drive offroad, what type of trails they'll commonly attempt, ... or, whatever. We see posts frequently about Jeeps having the D 35 w/ lockers, and the owner says that he, or, his buddy, have been wheeling with that setup for years without problems.
Money, money, money ... I suspect that many new Jeep owners find their stock Jeep capabilities too limited when compared to other built Jeeps they meet on the trail. It seems that avoiding difficult trails is not an option even when weighted against the actual cost to build a Jeep correctly. Too bad that many inferior aftermarket products prevail, it only tempts four wheelers to attempt getting by with a cheap short-lived modification that causes more problems.
I really did abuse the D 35 on the YJ. I ran 33s and 35s for tires, and maybe you didn't know that I had full floating hubs and beefier alloy axleshafts before the tube separated from the pumpkin. Yeah, you can say I wasted money. However, I would not now have traded those experiences for the ultimate solution. Incrementalism, Yes! However, I really enjoyed myself! No ... I wouldn't have changed a thing.
But, what if my four wheeling venues had been only easy trails? How long would the D 35 w/ Detroit have lasted in this scenario with only 30s or 31s for tires? I suspect many, many more years. The D 35 doesn't fail with light duty as you suggest. It's more common to get the front axle bouncing in the air and snap an axle under full throttle. Yep, did that, too. Simply pulled out the inner axle and went out to the highway with 3 WD and a rag bunched up as a plug in the tube to keep oil in the differential.
The D 35 axle usually doesn't break, the tube housing bends or separates, and most commonly, the axleshaft snaps and sometimes takes out the gears and/or locker. I was getting pretty handy at changing out the rear axleshafts! <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/lol.gif" alt="" /> Not a major repair IMHO! Fortunately, I never had to change an axleshaft in mud, nor have any damage to the differential gears.

So Good to hear from you, where've you been, Super? I totally agree; better to get a good winch and recovery gear if you truly don't have the funds to build a Jeep properly. I was just thinking now of the shade-mechanic's botched built-up Jeep that one of the guys in your shop had purchased several years ago. Obviously, if you don't have the training or skills, building your own Jeep could be an expensive project, too!
Just rambling here, this afternoon. Just wanted to say hello and say my what if ... See ya down the road. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

i had a d35 with the super 35 kit. still the darn thing broke as soon as it found out it was going to have to run 33's & actually get dirty. i switched to ford 9 inch out of a 67 bronco, put a locker in it & a locker in the d30 & thats all & more than i ever need! i am more than happy now

What actually happened to your D 35?

i took her into a section of the ocala national forest here where i live & got thru 5 miles or so of hills & sugar sand & when we arrived at a mud hole i got cross rutted & the 35 let go with a very loud bang. tore it apart at my shop & the carrier had 2 large cracks in it & the pinion gears was dented beyond recognition, passenger axles shaft was bent too.

Curious to know what ratio was in there... Sounds to me like the 3:07 and low range is what broke the carrier.
Big Jim <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/pfft.gif" alt="" />

All right the dana 35 is going to be a headache it sounds like.I think i'll lock the fornt dana 30 and look for another rear axle. Any suggestions iam think maybe the junkyard for a dana44 or nine inch how easy is it to get these to fit. also i've looked into soom package axle kits ranging from mild to wild the plan for may jeep over all is a middle ground between rock mud and i love to hual ass in through trails and breaking things is part of life. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />