My 77 F250 Camper Special has the Dana 60 rear end with 3.04 gears according to the VIN.

I am looking to change it to something a bit lower for occasional towing of a 6,000 or 7,000 pull behind. It is also my daily driver so I need a ratio that isn't too low.

She has a newly rebuilt 400 with C6 trans and an Edelbrock 4 bbl carb, cam, and Torker cam installed which did increase my mileage to 12 to 13 mpg empty.

What has worked for you with my situation?

Thanks, Hawk

 

3.54's might work good, but they will lower your mileage. It might be hard to get 3.54's for your axle. I think Dana 60's with gears around 3:1 are actually Dana 61's.

 

cheapest way would be to buy another rear end (60 from the junk yard) to swap in, it's 100 around here, after swapping brakes over you'll know if you like the gear change or not.

 

The junkyard thing is good. Trouble is that in my neck of the woods a Camper Special F250 with a one ton rated Dana 60 rear is difficult, if not impossible, to obtain. I've seen only a couple complete trucks for sale as well in the last six months or so. They had either 4.10 or 3.04 gears. 3.55 is more to my liking....

Ah well, there is a local shop that does some of my repair work....

Hawkmcgee

 

I know a few guys who put in an under/over drive and love them.
Look for an 80s F250 diesel getting parted out. It will have the HD rear end.

 

is your 4x4 or 2wd? early 77 or late?

 

Rogue,
As much as I tow with it, maybe a couple times a year, I've been thinking about an AOD trans from a 460. Then not use OD when towing.

vic,

She is a 2wd, I'm thinking early '77 because she has single piston calipers, not double.

 

vic,

She is a 2wd, I'm thinking early '77 because she has single piston calipers, not double.[/QUOTE]

OK, I'll admit I don't know much about the rear frame on a 2wd, but is it perhaps the same spring pad with as a 77.5-79 rear Dana 60 in both 4x4 and 2wd?

Either way, you have some options for a cheap rear (if you have to pay someone to regear, you might be looking at $600 plus with new quality gears installed).

You can find and truck:

1. Rear 60
2. Rear Sterling 10.25
3. Rear 14 Bolt with 3.73s

Then buy new perches ($40 or so) and have them welded on to to match your spring width.

 

Very similar motor set up to yours with a 4 speed, 3.55's and 35" rubber. I get 10-12 mpg if I can manage to stay out of the gas. I was going to swap to 4.10's but driving it for the past year in many situations and I have never said to myself "man I wish I had 4.10's".

 

i think you mean E4OD, and you will need a standalone computer and Vehicle Speed Sensor swapped in if you want it to work right. not impossible to do, but in that case you would want a 10.25 sterling rearend as they have the VSS tone ring for the sensor already in the diff. the AOD was not spec'd to big blocks, they had difficulty holding together behind 302s unloaded...

i have a 460, C6, 3.73 gears and 33" tires and regularly get 12 mpg on the highway and not much worse than 9-10 around town. i wouldn't do what you are doing with anything less than 3.55 gears, but 3.73s will be better. don't forget, tire size has a HUGE impact on final gearing where the rubber meets the road. and you didn't mention what tire size you are running/want to run...

anything numerically lower than 3.31 is NOT a Dana 60, it is a Dana 61 with a goofy internal offset to allow the huge pinion of the numerically low gears to fit. you can get creative and swap D60 gears in with a ring gear spacer (i don't think the company that made the spacer is in business anymore...), but its generally not worth the effort.