Hey Ford folk :-)

I have a mess of parts and i want to throw it all together... like dumping a box of lego's... of course i have a few compatibility questions... if no body knows i guess i will find out either way when i get to the farm and start ripping into it.

I have a 1986 F250 4x4 ext cab long box. bed is trashed and the gas tank is trashed but it will run on a boat bottle with some Reg Unleaded in it. Truck is a gasser (460 / C6 / NP208)

I have a set of axles from a 77 F250 (D44HPHD and D60)

I have an NP205 as well.

SO the thought comes to mind... demo the trashed bed and tank shorten the ole girl up for custom bed (not too short.. like 5.5 or so) and build neat SAS'd Farm truck. (a poor boy version of that beast they built for offroad adventure)

the Kicker... i also have a 78 D44HP set up for coils from an f150. i have the buckets, track bar and mount, radius arms and mounts. all the steering... i got the whole front suspension minus the frame.

compatibility question: Can i convert the HD knuckles and brakes etc'' to the coil sprung axle? And do a coiled front end for a good ride?
are there other options with all these front end parts?

Ideas welcome! Please chime in...

Peace, War, and 4x4
Jimmy

 

well crap im in the superduty section... and i cant figure out how to delete the darn thing... sorry guys. i will keep workin on that

 

Seems like a good fit in the SD section.

 

Yes. The "3/4 ton" knuckles will fit the coil sprung axle. Years ago, I was in the process of a very similar project. I ended up going with the leaf sprung axle and selling the coil version. Leaves were cheaper and easier to deal with for me at the time.

Your '78 model axle has the wedges cast into the housing instead of welded to the tubes, the 77 & down F-150 years had a solid tube, and I believe were stronger. However I've never heard of the 78-79 models breaking, but if your intentions are to beat on it, it may be something to consider. If you choose to swap the knuckles the coil axle, it should be a very simple, straight forward swap, if I remember correctly. Everything knuckle-out

Keep in mind with the coil set-up on that 80s frame, I'm pretty certain you will a minimum of 4" lift to clear the engine crossmember, trimming and bracing the crossmember may still be a good idea also.

Check out Fullsizebronco.com, search SAS or solid axle swap in their forums. There will be TONS of info there, I'm sure there is plenty here also, but back several years ago when I was 'wheeling every weekend, that place had all the info you could ever need on building a 4x4 Ford

 

I have been all over FSB and i really didnt see the answer to this part

how far can/should i move my axle forward to stop tires from rubbing the cab? i want to run 37s with the potential to go bigger when i find a d60. 40 or 42 would be max... i am NOT afraid to remove metal... lol just not the firewall.

 

this is where i am drawing inspiration.

some more than others.. i will be building a bed of some sort....unknown style yet.

 

I believe I moved mine only about 1", and still had to do some trimming at the very bottom of the fender with 37s. It's been a few years since I've been in the loop on this stuff, but I think most guys were moving the axle 1-2", much further than that and I think you run into other clearance and steering alignment issues.

This was my old rig. Rest his soul.

 

Ok... finally getting on it

460 is running strong now, c6 shifts good, NP208 is out and NP205 is in! Ball joint 60 being rebuilt and geared... bed is off and I am looking at frame chop/bed building/ wheelbase changes etc.....

My new concerns:

Best carb set up for off camber stuff?

Anything I should know about D50 TTB to D60 swap? Best Springs for this and 37s?

Also need a big favor from a patient person... pointers on roll cage / tube bending and welding...

 

p.s. the coil game was too pricey for now so I'm trying to SAS the front on leafs... got a D60 Ball Joint from 95 F350...