Alright today i put the Dana 60 High pinion front axle under my
76 F250 highboy. And thanks to the help with the gear setup that was given to me from the great members of this forum it should last many years. On another note i found out the hard way that i need a droped pitman arm for it. Does anyone know where to get a 2 inch droped pitman arm for the 78/79 steering set up for the f250's. Also i need a set of caliper brackets for it as the previous owner welded the top part to hold the caliper on, unfortunately i found the weld rubed the wheel after driving the truck. And last but not least where to find the u bolt plate for the top of the leaf springs as the dana 44 ones are to short. For anyone that planes on doing the Dana 44 to a dana 60 highpinion swap heres what i found that is needed.

78/79 Front flex brake hoses
78/79 Dana 60 u bolts
upper bracket for the leaf springs, get what you need off the donor truck including the axle tube brackets that the ubolts go to.
Do your 78/79 steering conversion when you do the axle as i found i'm 2 inchs off on the pitman arm.
I also found that the pass shock does not work as the Dana 60s
is located to the front of the axle. unless someone knows how to easly relocate shock tower, I'm all ears, as i'll have to weld a shock mount on the backside so i can hook up the shock.
Other than that it wasnt to bad, i also replace my the tierods and painted the housing. Time wise it only took 7 and 1/2 hrs including painting the housing and putting all new brake parts on.

Thanks
David

 

i just did these swap about two months ago on a 1977 f250 highboy
first i switched the steering over to the 78-79 gear box then i put a dana 60 in the front
for the steering i bought a drop drag link that is adjustable and that worked well
I used the dana 44 u bolt plates on the top of the springs and they work fine
I didn't have to replace the brake hoses for the swap because they use the same caliper
The shock tower on my truck has to 7/16 bolts going threw the frame and i just unbolted them and in front of the axleon the frame there were to holes for the shock towers already there it was easy
The only problem I had with the swap was the driveshaft had to be shortened about 1.5 inches and going from the low pinion to the high pinion the driveshaft was about 2 inches from the crossmember so I added two springs per side to give me another inch or so

 

On mine i have a meyers plow setup so i dont have the bolt holes open. So i will have to weld mine on. As far as the brake hoses my 76 ones hit the spindle assembly and had to be bent out of the way (I dont recommend this). Also for the ubolts mine cant fit the top Dana 44 ones as the angle from top to bottom is to great. It pops off of the plate when tightened. As far as the drag link goes i had already made one, but have found i.m two inches to low in relation to my gear box. Now you can bolt the tierod threw the top of the spindle arm but its not angled to create a wedge effect. And may wallow out the spindle.


But thanks for the input

David

 

Try skyjacker on the pitman arm/draglink. Have fun with the snowplow/shock mount. Sounds like something I would try......A simple swap that takes months to iron out.

 

Well the shock mount is easier then i thought, made a nice one today and will weld it on tommorrow. The drag link will have to be pieced together should take a day to make one as the parts supplier for my work has a breakdown of size and shaft diameters on tierods so i just have to mix and match. But the news got worse from there, as i found out that my 78 stabilizer wont work as it does not have enough travel to it. I'll have to mount a universal one on it. But the worst problem i have now is that the yoke on the diff clears my headers by the slimist of margins and i dont think i can get my driveshaft in there. But i''ll get the draglink and shock done first, then tackle that problem. But i tell you what i cant wait to play with this puppy when its all done.

David