I have a 1976 f150 with 44inch tires dana 44 front and 9 inch rear end. I am soon planning on redoing the whole truck but cant decide which axles to use. Planning on building a 557ci motor for it and want to make sure the axles i choose can hold up to the motor and stress of the tires.

If anyone knows if a Dana 60 will hold up to the power or if i need to build it up i would greatly appreciate any advice. If there is other axles that would be better then im open for suggestions.

Thanks

this is what the truck looks like right now

 

I wouldn't even hesitate using Dana 6o's

 

so they should hold up to like 600hp?

 

they can be built to handle nearly everything. But for less than what you will have in them you could put in rockwells which are damn near bulletproof stock.

You can get a pair of rockwels for $1200 or less. But do your homework. They don't bolt in, they are heavy as a mf'r, they pretty much only have one ratio unless you pay $1000/axle for the 4.52's or whatever it is someone started making, and the options to get DOT legal brakes can be pricey. And they may have to be narrowed to be DOT legal. what are you building it for?

 

Yeah i have thought about the rockwells but kinda wanted to stay away from it because of the weight and gear ratio.

Im in school right now and actually use the truck as daily driver to get to school everyday but when i get home and rebuild it then it will just be driven on weekends and mudding events. Right now the truck has 5.40 gears in it and does pretty good on highway so would like to keep the gear ratio around that. Just looking for something that will handle the power and i wont have to worry about breaking anything.

 

The Dana 60 rear is not much better than the 9 inch you have now. The front Dana 60 would work good for you and depending how you drive it in 4wd it would be wise to upgrade the outter axles from 30 spline to 35 spline. For the rear youd be better off with a Dana 70 or a Corp 14. These are both way stronger than a rear Dana 60.
Thats a cool looking truck you have.

 

OK, daily driver, I'd rule out rockwells. I disagree with the above posted that the 60 isn't better than the 9". The 9" is a great axle and can be made to handle almost everything, when you look at full fabricated housings and such. I've seen many a 1200 hp drag car rocking a 9" rear. a stock 9" can be found for $50 almost anywhere. They are that common. But to make one worth a damn, youre gonna have over $1000 in it.

The 60 is a better choice for off road. It has larger diameter shafts from the factory and a much larger, stronger housing (which starts to matter when you look at bouncing things off rocks and such). Its larger housing will also accommodate lower gears than a 9". And finally, stock for stock, and then if you match them mod for mod, the 60 will be stronger. Currie and many others sell replacement axles that eliminate the tapered axles found stock in most 60's for about $300. And this alone makes them pretty friggin strong. Disc brakes are easy to find and cheap. The axles themselves are rarely cheaper than $500 though.

I don't think I'd recommend a 70. They are significantly heavier, harder to find parts for, and while they are a bit stronger, I don't think they are strong enough to justify the swap. The good thing about them is that they are dirt cheap (which should tell you something). Another disadvantage is that its hard to find them off single rear wheel trucks). Also hard to find with disc brakes. I've seen them complete off single rear wheel F350's go for $150. In fact I know someone selling one right now for that price and I thought about buying it just in case I every break my 60. But for the above reasons I decided not to.

The corp 14 bolt is a bulletproof axle and it would be great, but you won't see too many of them under fords!
Did any of them even come with spring perches in the right locations for a dentside? I'd have to read more about them. I never really considered them since they are chebby. They are pretty cheap and have good aftermarket though.

If you wanna stay with ford parts, the sterling 10.25 and 10.50 are both under lots of F350's from the past few decades and they are strong as hell, the 10.50 full floaters are considered stronger ever than the corp 14! Aftermarket is limited which is a disadvantage but also keeps them pretty cheap as well. They were also available factory with disc brakes which is nice for a swap/upgrade.

So those are a few options.
I really like your truck. I am surprised by how much I am diggin the blacked out grille and all that. It looks nice! Have you thought about painting the wheels gloss back to match? I think that would look really sharp.
You must be rich to be daily driving that thing. I bet you put $20 worth of gas in a day!

 

The 70's Dana 60 rear axle is laughable. It will always be laughable. There is nothing that can be done to stop the people from laughing at you.

All of the strengths and "mods" you speak of do not exist. You must have it confused with a different axle.

 

"The corp 14 bolt is a bulletproof axle and it would be great, but you won't see too many of them under fords!"

pure 100% hot steaming b/s. go to any mudbog competition or truck jamboree and tell me you won't find them under many fords. they are strong and cheap to build. and like said above, 70's dana 60 rears are easy to destroy, thats why you will find 14 bolts under fords. and sterlings with disc brakes are metric lug patterns so unless you get the unit bearing junk 60 front out of the same super duty, you're screwed. if it were my truck i would go dana 60 front for sure, and a sterling 10.25 2nd generation, or 14 bolt

 

14bolt rear, D60 front. cromo shafts and you will be set.

 

hillbilly boy, who the hell are you and why do you do this in EVERY thread I see you post on? you pop in, make some sort of declarative judgment without ANY supporting facts (like why you think the axle is week, why you think that upgraded shafts aren't available, why you think people would laugh at you [they won't, btw]), and on several different threads I've searched and posted FACTS about things that completely contradict what youre saying.

So I'll go ahead and do it here, too... I just wish you'd quit being such a drama queen flame war monger. Youre so useless!

1967-79 Full Size Truck/bronco Rear Axle Dana 60 D60 Rear Ring & Pinions Dana 60 Differentials Dana Bearings & Kits Dana 60 Axle Shafts Dana 60 Flanges Dana 60 Rear Dana 60 Brakes Dana 60 Tools For Sale

ratios from 3.30-7.17, a plethora of aftermarket traction aids, curry and strange both make aftermarket axles capable of holding 650 ft lbs, and on a side note, on, yeah, more ground clearance than a corp 14. AND brackets for disk brakes, plus lots of aftermarket rock guards, trusses and braces if you feel the need for them... the list goes on and on. Maybe your google was broken.

I'm not saying its the greatest axle on earth. But its a lot stronger than whats in there, it bolts up, and he hasn't said he's breaking the 44 yet.

*shrugs*



You can disagree with my advice but if you don't say why, then you aren't adding anything to the thread besides being a whiny little bitch.

And no one likes a whiny little bitch.

 

.....like I said. We must not be talking about the same axle. I'm talking about the 70's and 80's Dana 60 rear axle. Which axle are you referring to?

 

The average Dana 60 rear axle will NOT accept 35 spline axle shafts. This is why all your "upgrades" are pointless. No matter what you try and do, you're still limited by the whimpy housing. While it is possible to bore the spindles........you can buy an entire Dana 70 or 14 bolt for less than what it costs to make the 35 spline axles work in a Dana 60. Anyone with experience knows a Dana 60 rear is practically worthless for heavy use. That is why the people who know, all run Dana 70's or 14 bolts. The exception is the Dana 60 from late model E-350's. They are basically a hybrid axle......a Dana 70 with a 60 center section. They WILL accept 35 spline shafts. But come with only 32 splines. You need to settle down haster. You aren't making any friends by acting out. If you keep it up, you will begin to attention of the moderators. Consider this a warning.

 

Funny you say that, I report your most glaringly uninformative over assertive posts to the moderators. They make me want to go to forums with fewer *******s.

You can think its a "whimpy" housing (what is a whimp by the way? is that anything like a wimp?) but I've personally seen many people run them with limited slips on dent sides with 38" and larger tires and big block motors. I've seen a handful of broken shafts caused by sheer abuse and a broken ring and pinion caused from rowing from d to r without letting off the gas. lol.

And you can easily buy upgraded 30 spline axleshafts that will handle the power of what most engines and tire sizes on this forum will handle. Chromoly ones are available from half a dozen different manufacturers. Does that mean you'll never break one?
no. People break rockwell shafts running 44's all the time. Breakage happens. There is no axle you can put under your truck that will stand up to abuse after abuse after time.

You are standing here saying that "upgrades" are pointless when I'm posting links to chromoly 30 spline shafts. Its like you just want to stick your head in the sand and pretend that what I'm saying isn't true!

I'm not saying the D60 is the best axle in the world. But there are lots and lots and lots of guys that run them, many with relatively inexpensive upgraded shafts, ring and pinions, and traction aiding devices, with large tires and large motors, and experience relatively minor breakage.

He has said the vehicle is driven on the road but will be driven in the mud. Mud isn't that hard on axles. I think a Dana 60 would be fine. I suspect he will break a shaft eventually while he is boring on it. at that point in time he can upgrade to chromoly. And I doubt he will break another. He might, and if he does he could consider upgrading. But there isn't any point in hanging these gigantic pumpkins under a truck that limit ground clearance and weigh a ton more if the guy isn't going to need all that extra strength.

Rockwells are stronger than the corp14 and the 70 (and really, the 70 isn't all that fantastic either). But there are plenty of legitimate reasons why you don't want rockwells on anything less than a big *** play truck.

I don't think you can legitimately disagree with anything I've posted here. I put a lot of facts out there and gave my recommendation. You, on the other hand, just keep posting personal attacks with lots of attitude. Attitude gets you points in cheerleading, but not on a mud truck, and certainly not with me.

 

thanks for all the help and advice so so far guys didnt mean to start a war though. I am still partly confused on which to use considering there are two completely different views on the axle. I am going to do some research on my own and see what i can find.

I haven't broke anything in the front end yet but i have broke two housing in the rear end. It would crack the housing around the spindle bearing inside the main housing. After the second one broke i knew i needed to put bigger axles in but was getting ready to move to go to school at didnt have the time to change so i just bought a Strange Nodular housing. It is rated for unlimited hp but i still have my doubts about it holding up with the stress the bigger tires puts on it.

I have thought about the idea of putting 4 wheel steering on the truck. Now would you use two front axles and like get different cut gears for the rear to make it spin forward or do you have to convert a rear axle?

I actually only spend about thirty bucks a week on gas but that is a lot since i only drive like maybe ten miles a day. It gets around 6mpg. I have thought about powder coating the wheels black and actually plan on doing that on the next tear down.