what is my options for front and rear suspension for the truck in my sig? im wanting to find a set of front and rear axles with 4.10's. i found a set in a dana 44 front and 8.8 rearend but it may possibly fall through. im looking and im seeing lots of ads for ford 9 inch rear ends and dana 44's out of late 70 model trucks. also i see lots of adds for dana 44 fronts and dana 60 rear ends. can i use these? i guess what im trying to ask is what is a direct swap in for my current setup and how much work are the others?

 

What are you trying to accomplish? Another D44 and 8.8 would bolt right in. the rest is going to involve some modifying, the 9" is going to take some mods and so is the D60. The closest to bolt in otherwise is the D44 (or D44HD) straight axles. The HD will have leaf springs though, and the D44 might have to have the spring bucket moved over.

 

I'm just trying to find another axle set that has 4.10's already in it.

Isn't the d44 what I have now? What all is involved in a d44hd as far as steering and what not? What about mounting brackets? Does anyone have a writeup about it?

 

You can buy gear sets for your 8.8 and D44.
Yes your front is currently a Dana 44 Twin Traction Beam. Which is an independent suspension that is really 2 parts. The Dana 44 HD is what they used in F250s in the 70s. It is the 8 lug version of the Dana 44, With a few stronger parts. I put one from a 77 Highboy in my truck in place of the Dana 50 TTB axle (which is a slightly tougher version of the Dana 44 in your truck). For the steering, I used what was on the Highboy, but I had to modify the rod that actually goes from the gear box to the rod connecting the left and right. As for mounting it, I had to move over the spring perches with a torch and welder, and I had to have U bolts made for it (I don't know if the ones from the highboy would have worked or not, as each one was broke somewhere so I didn't even try to use those) . The swap itself only took me and 1 other guy 8 hours to do, all the way from dropping out my other axle to having this one rolling.
I'd imagine somebody here has a write up on it. I did mine right before I found this sight so I didn't do a write up, and I didn't really take any pictures during the process except a couple of low resolution ones with my phone. It really isn't that difficult. I know that there are a couple people for sure that have it done, but you'd have to search a little for a write up. I will say that it made the truck handle a lot better though, and it doesn't wear tires at angles.

 

I'd like to try and swap in a D44hd if I can find the parts. I found a nice photo thread on full size bronco of one swapped into an f150. The guy had a parts lift but was talkin about having to modify the track bar? I'm not even sure what that is or if I need one.

I'd like to swap in a D44 hd but I'm not sure what all is involved in fabricating parts for it. I'm very limited on the fabricating part of things.

Here's the link to the writeup I was referring to:

http://fullsizebronco.com/forum/showthread.php?t=179294

 

Yes, you need a track bar! it is the bar that goes from the frame to the axle to keep the axel centered under your truck. Without it, it will wander side to side. It sounded like he had to shorten his. AKA cut and weld

 

I think I've decided on the d44 hd coil swap. Full size bronco has alot of writeups and info on them.

One last thing, what is needed to swap in a ford 9" rear?

 

To swap in the 9" rear is more work than it's worth. Your speedometer runs off of the rear end and the 9" doesn't have provisions for that. If you were going to put a different axle underneath, you could put the Sterling 10.25 or D60 underneath. Yeah I forgot to mention the trackbar. It connects the frame to the axle so it doesn't move side to side when you turn.

 

So the d60 rearend is one you can swap in without too much trouble?

 

Well if your getting rid of the 355ls I might be interested in those parts

 

The Dana 60 doesn't have a VSS either. If you care about a speedometer, cruise control, or a transmission that shifts correctly, you need a VSS.

Therefore your options are the sterling 10.25", Ford 8.8", or fab your own VSS and put it on any axle of your choice.

 

Sounds like I'll be sticking with the 8.8 rear then. What years had the solid axle? A guy within a reasonable driving distance from me has a d44 front axle with 3.50 gears complete with rotors and lockouts out of a 77 f150 for $150.

 

The TTB started in 1980 so anything prior to that was solid axle. You really want one from a 78 or 79, they are the strongest and most desirable. A regular cab F-150 would have had a coil-sprung Dana 44 but an extended cab F-150 had a leaf-sprung Dana 44. All the F-250 & up stuff had 8 lugs so if you're going to stick with the 8.8" then you need a 5 lug axle or carry two spares.

 

What's the difference between the 77 and the 78-79?

I might have to hold off on it for a little bit. I'm having trouble with my hood right now and might end up going with something else..

 

Earlier Dana 44 axles had a "closed socket" front end, along with drum brakes which aren't that awesome. The later 70s had the open socket front end which is much stronger. The closed socket front ends look like a ball socket where the wheels pivot, as far as I'm concerned they are junk. The open socket is stronger and is more likely to have disc brakes.