the 44 has a bad knuckle design it is hard on parts period
the 30 trussed is sweet light stout
the 30 with abs has factory large u joints 229x same as dana 44 and chevy 10 bolt
try pm ing scotty85 he may share how he made a 30 with knuckle swap hybrid setup for lockouts for cheap mostly labor
i did eat a couple unit bearings however correct torquing of the axle nut should keep this to a minimum with 33 inch boggers i only changed 1 or 2 over a couple of years so maby you got mud in a tire or something shaking the crap out of them
if you can weld a truss can be burnt on in a couple of hours in the rig i actually bent and used a long chevy tie rod its thick long and i had lots of them the aftermarkett bolt ons are junk i only wish i had skiped the 44 era in the xj i run a 60 now and yes with 37 13.00 boggers it is a tank shaved with 20 lbs of air i have 10.5 inches under front diff air down to 10 psi i hang on everything i go over :mad:
i guess if i had a 2 seater cj and no weight on board it would be ok scotty85 has good luck with a 10 bolt but he knows how to keep the wheel straight before hiting the skinny pedal
and he is rather light compared to me
just sharing my opinion that is actually real life experiance ..
put a arb in the 30 and roll with abs axles lock up the rear
you can always ask around naxja anyone who runs a 44 spent a lot of money on it or hasent wheeled it much
however a rubicon 44 if im not mistaken has 30 knuckles so it is probally ok
but still unit bearings i like unit bearings if you do granade a axle you will not be hunting a spindle before you can put youre wheel back on and chances of knocking a balljoint apart are way less likely , also faster service time and no grease to deal and less spare parts to carry
just not easy to find or cheap