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You get what you pay for....

I believe you will want at the 'highest', 4.11 gears.  Others like even
'lower' gears like the 4.56 I think it is for 33's.  The 3.73's are too
high still and will make very little difference.

Because you aren't going to Baha it off road or run bigger than 33's,
the D35 rear will be fine.

I doubt you will want a rear locker or even a limited slip due to your
snow load.  I am in Canada and have the same snow.

A locker or limited slip is called a 'Low side finder' and does not
track in a straight line well in snow, especially with a short wheelbase
Jeep.  Some can't even run the trails in the winter, because they have
to crabwalk up an off camber trail and the trails are too narrow for
this.  When you see a pickup or something crabbing it's way up a snowy
hill sideways, that is due to a locked rear end or too much gas on a
limited slip, not fun.  If I was going to run a limited or locker, I
would want it in the front.

It is a different story on dirt, where the limited slip or locker shines.

With an open diff, one wheel acts like a rudder and you track straight.

My $0.02,

Mike
86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail in '00
88 Cherokee 235 BFG AT's - Gone to the rust pile...
Canadian Off Road Trips Photos:  Non members can still view!
Jan/06 http://www.imagestation.com/album/pictures.html?id=2115147590
(More Off Road album links at bottom of the view page)

Your first post showed up here, but I will reply to this one. Sixth gear
in your transmission has a .84 gear ratio, meaning that it will reduce
your RPM by 16% when you use it.

I'll assume your stock tires were 29". So with the 3.07 gears your RPM
in 5th gear at 60MPH would have been approximately 1750

Assuming 60MPH at highway speed, your RPM will be as follows:
3.73 with 31" tires = 2040 RPM
3.73 with 33" tires = 1920 RPM
4.11 with 31" tires = 2250 RPM
4.11 with 33" tires = 2100 RPM

These won't be exact because of the tires. They rarely measure the same
as their advertised size. Anyway, if you're definitely going to 33"
tires, I would personally just go with the 4.11s. Even with the 31"
tires your highway RPM wont be excessive, and the driveability in 5th
gear will be a little better than with the 3.73s and much better than
with the 3.07s.

There are a lot of articles out there about the D35 rear being too weak
for off roading with big tires, but for your application you should be
OK. The Dana 30 front is more than adequate.

One note about changing gears. Make sure you find a reputable shop that
knows how to do this. It is not difficult with the right tools, but it
is definitely not for the average home mechanic. You may also want to
look into a locker for the rear axle, which will give you more traction
off road, but some of them can make driving in the snow a little tricky
unless you have one of the switchable lockers. Regearing can get
expensive when you start upgrading to Dana 44s, lockers, etc. so be
prepared to spend some pretty serious cash. You may want to keep your
eyes open for a used D44 with the gear ratio you decide to use. They are
out there.

Chris

4.56 is as close as it gets to how it was stock.

Carl

Real Jeeps use 5.38s on a stock Dana 44.
       God Bless America, Bill O|||||||O
mailto:LWHughes3rd@aol.com http://www.billhughes.com/