Hey guys,
I'm not sure, but I think my truck may have a Dana 60 front axle, but I'd like to see a picture of one to make sure.

Thanks in advance!
Matt

 

kingpins, 9/16" headed bolts on the cover, and 4" hubs will get you started with what to look for. what year is your truck?

 

Its a '76 Highboy. Well, since the hubs on it are like cofee cans, I guess its a pretty safe bet, lol.

 

well not so fast. 78 79 were the only years for them in dentsides. there is a HD d44 in highboys that used 4" hubs.

 

So more than likely its a D44 HD? It has more of an oval shaped diff. The truck is at my brothers place right now so I can't get any pics. Also, did the 250's come with the NP205 transfer cases?

Matt

 

Jbradley nailed...D60 has 9/16 bolts, the D44 has 1/2" IIRC. My bro-in-law (UTfball68) has a stock D60 under his 77...so they were out there, just few and far between. And yes the 250's had the gear driven 205's...which is usually the preference. The 203's were chain driven fulltime units which were prone to chain stretching and worse mpg's.

 

Here is a picture of a Dana 60....notice the cap that I circled in yellow, that is a dead giveaway for a kingpin Dana 60.

 

Ok, I have a question. I believe the axle under the front of my 75 F250 is a Dana60, though I can't tell either, It is a closed Knuckle, and has monster hubs with drum brakes on it. I don't have the ID plate on the axle. I was told that there were both D44 and D60 with closed knuckles, and the difference was the amount of Diff, not covered by the Diff cover. My Diff Cover seems to be right on edge with the Diff, not sure if that helps, I can grab a pic though tomorrow if anyone can help identify it without a BOM or Data plate.

It does have King Pins though, that I am 100% sure of, and I know that LMC doesn't carry the right Warn hubs for it, as I ordered a set and then had to return it, according to LMC the size of my hubs and my vin number show it is a heavier GVWR axle, a 1ton, which leads me to believe its a D60. But who knows, as old as it is, and as many people have owned it, hard telling what it has and when it got that way.

 

I just saw a pic of what was advertised as a 74 D60 front axle, the pic was poor and the axle was upside down but it looked like a high pinion drum brake axle with hubs simular in size to the D44-6CF. Were the drum brake D60's high pinion?

 

Using the diff cover to determine axle size is only applicable to the rear axles that share the same diff cover. D60 rears and D70 rears share the same cover, only the D70 axle will leave some of the sealing surface exposed, and the D60 fits flush. This method does not apply to the front diffs.
It was already mentioned that using two wrenches is the easiest. D60's require a 9/16" wrench to remove the diff cover, and a D44 only uses a 1/2". This is provided that the original fasteners are still there.

74-75 trucks F250 CC trucks were the only trucks to have these closed knuckle front ends. These were low pinion drum brake units, and used puny 30 spline axles, and tiny u-joints.

76-7 trucks, als F250 CC's used an open knuckle low pinion axle with disc brakes, and it still had puny 30 spline axles.

Both of these are not very desireable.
These should not be comfused with any closed knuckle D44 with drum brakes and and large external style front hubs. These hubs / lockouts were crazy huge, and is often mistaken for something more desireable. Again, these were not a very desireable front axle.

The low pinion axle is not as strong as a high pinion unit, and early 60's had small shafts.
This is why the 78/9 front D60 is so desireable. THis is hands down the strongest axle on the market. Install non tappered shafts and 35 spline outers, and you have the real deal of front axles.
Still breaking parts? Install some chro-mo shafts, and you have to be a real bad biy to break these componants.
Dont be fooled by some early parts that only share the designation D60. Not all 60's were created equal.

 

Thanks 75, always a big help. Looks like instead of refurbing a puny axle, I will just upgrade to a better one. I was wondering besides the 78/9 Dana 60 high pinion, can you think of any other Dana 60's out there that will be direct bolt ons?
Thanks in advance

 

don't exist, check out the tinians latter model 60 install in the off road forum, not a bolt in but if you have the fab skills it would be a lot cheaper

 

Probabaly a good choice, I mean I have seen guys throw a buch of money at an axle, and in the end they still dont have the quality or strength that they first desired.
Unfortunately the only D60F that is a direct bolt in for our rides is that of the 78/9 D60F. This also fits late model chebby trucks that want to eliminate the IFS, and install a live front axle.
Because of its long driver side axle, this is the easiest axle to install under Broncos, and F150's that wish to retain the stock radius arm front suspension.
The same is true for full width Heeps, and other makes and models.
Since the high pinion is the most desireable it brings the most money, but is most worth the effort.
They are atrocg from the beginning, and can only get stronger with upgrades.
I have seen guys tryt o modify these older axles, only to spend more money than it would have cost to just buy the correct one in the first place. Just what I have seen and experienced.

Some have used the later king pin axle, but with our frame width, it makes it a little bit of a task to get these later model axles under our trucks. These are not a bolt in unit, and these will require a double cardan joint up front if they are used with a 205 case. The front driveline will have to work at a compound angle and will vibrate some at higher speeds. Not that this is a real big deal, but sometimes it becomes an issue.
Yup, our trucks are fairly rare birds when it comes to the all mighty D60F. They are out there, but the majority of the poeople that have them know it, and get as much as they can.
I spent almost 1700 bucks onmmy last one, but to me, it is worth it.
I recently had a local shop (Dynatrac) make some modifications and re-tube a later model HP D60 F and this cost way more than finding the correct one, but it was during a build, and I could not find a local one, so I bit the bullet and spent waaaaay too much coin. Again, it was better to have it right so it was still a justifiable expense. I still keep my eye out for the "good" ones and have two extras now. Always on the lookout for more too.
Loke money in the bank!

 

listen to 75 f350 he know what he is talking about he nailed it. i have been building these 79 fords up for years and the best axle is the king pin dana 60 high pinion front end. by the way i love your trucks. my brother always talks about them and shows me pics. he said he told you i got my 49" iroks on hey! you should see these bad boys on my truck. by the way this pic is my brothers front dana 60 h/p king pin axle with cross over steering. mine is a lil better than his cus i have high steer though but i dont feel like going outside right now and taking a pic of it.

 

so here are the bod boys i have!