So I bought this....





and it's about 85% camperized on the inside. 1992 E350, 7.3 idi with a smidge over 100k on the clock. Runs like a champ.

Plan is to finish out the camperization, which isn't going to take much, and convert over to 4x4. The conversion itself is pretty much a no-brainer as that trail has been well blazed and the conversion kits are readily available.

My issue is with axle choice. I like the idea of the rear dually, but wheel/tire combos are pretty non-existent if you want to run larger tires, and spacers between the rears are not really an option because of the conversion requirements, so...

I'm thinking I'll need to convert over to a SRW configuration, but...As you can see the box is wider than the front end and as it sits now the wheel pretty much fills out the wheel well the way it should. I'm concerned if I just buy an F350 SRW axle my rear tires are going to be recessed back inside the wheel well too much. I don't want to run different offsets between front and rear, and I'd rather not run spacers if I can get away with it.

Can I buy a front axle from an SRW truck, a rear axle from a dually, run the rear minus the inner wheel, and end up with the same overall look I have now?

Iirc (and it's questionable) the dually axle from a pickup is wider than the dually axle from a cab and chassis, correct? I'm guessing these E350 cutaways the ambulances are built on are a cab and chassis config, correct?

I prefer to pull the front axle from an '02-'04 since it will be a true D60.

The rear I'm less clear about. 1999 -'07 are all 10.5 sterlings (SRW trucks), but with '05-'07 being a bit wider, or that's my understanding and how much wider I'm not sure. I'm not sure any of these are suitable.

The dually trucks I know even less about. D70s? D80s? How wide, etc etc.

Hopefully that's enough info for someone to get me rolling.

 

So, is your goal to run wider tires on all 6 wheels? What tires do you have now?

Yes, a DRW Super Duty would use a DANA 80 rear differential.

Some companies, like Rickson Wheel, make a DRW to SRW conversion. http://ricksontruckwheels.com/drw-to-srw.php

 

You can also use Super Singles. Mostly these are used for the F series trucks, i don't remember if anyone has used them on a E series.

 

My preference was to run taller tires on the dually setup, 37", which is turning out to be a bit problematic.

It seems the only practical way to get the tall tire is to run a SRW rear end. I'm fairly fine with that, but I want my rear tire PLACEMENT to remain pretty much the same. I don't want my single rear tire to end up sitting way inboard from where the outside dually tire sits now.

My front axle is likely to end up an 02-04 D60. If I bought an axle SET, from the same SRW truck, I'm guessing my rear tire is going to end up inboard as I mentioned, so the question is....given the front axle is pretty much set, what type of rear axle would I need to buy to keep my rear tire pretty much in the same position it is now?

Make sense?

 

Wait, I don't see anything?

Sent from my iPhone using IB AutoGroup

 

Dont see what, the big ambulance picture at the top of the thread? Anyone else not see?

 

Nice Project! You may want to check out Expeditionportal.com
I'm sure they can give you a few pointers.

 

Do not run the outer dually wheel without an inner. It loads the wheel bearings severely, the dual wheel set up balances the load. The easiest way to go to single rears and maintain the side to side tread spacing is with Super Singles, although they would still be narrower than the duals, big rigs do this a lot and just put up with a slightly narrower tread width. To get a single wheel to line up in the same place as the outer dual is now would require a custom built axle