My plan is to swap in an 8.8, I'd shoot for 3.73 gears, I have a local guy who will do the shortening for me. I want to know how much I should shorten it to comfortable fit around a 235. Thanks for any tips!

 

That sounds like a cool upgrade plan! To determine how much you need to shorten the axle to comfortably fit around a 235 tire, you'll need to consider the width of the tire and the clearance needed within the wheel well. The ideal way to figure this out is to measure the total width of the tire and then calculate the clearance needed on both sides to fit it comfortably. Once you have those measurements, you can work with the local guy to ensure the axle is shortened appropriately.

 

You don't need to shorten it at all to fit a 235. They are only about 1/2" wider. I have 275 50's on mine and its not shortened at all. Though it does stick out a bit. I will be going to a 235 myself.

 

Sub'd

I have alerts set for the salvage yards around me and have an extra mazda housing I can pull brackets off of...Still sticking with my 3.9 mazda diff for now, but will pick up an 8.8 when I can get to it. I have a list of makes and models to look for, but its pretty extensive. Pretty sure I have seen 1/2 dozen alerts this week that would work.......

interested to see if anyone is running one with the factory watts linkage. It would seem the pivot bracket might be a problem but have not looked that deep into it.

 

Don't bother with the Mazda brackets, they are really flimsy and they attach to a much smaller diameter axle.

Get a set of four individual link mounts from Allstar or something, it'll be way easier. Spring mounts also easy. Shock mounts are just little tabs.