That was damn funny!

 

cutts,
No offense taken. I was the one acting like a 4th grader, and, about the all famous quote, I wouldn't touch that with a ten foot pole.

 

And yet its so tempting Its actually pretty cool that we've been able to have these heated debates, and then shake hands, make good and then get on with it. Its much better to have these things hashed out and resolved rather than censored and left hanging. Best thing of all, there is some good tech here and there

 

I know this might be a silly question but I'll throw it out there.

I have an '89 F150 4X4 300 CID that'll be used as a puller truck. It will also be used offroad but mostly in mud or field hopping. It will also be used pulling against other trucks on dirt and on asphalt. I don't need clearance, I would like as much traction for the least amount of cash possible. Hillbilly engineering....errr fabrication is within the realm of possibility.

What would I need to do with the TTB for traction purposes besides going to a SAS?

I plan on adding traction bars in the rear but have no clue how to improve the front end.

Thanks

 

SAS doesn't do much if anything for traction! your best bet is a set of tractor tires and lockers front and rear. that's my suggestion so take it for what it's worth

-cutts-

 

Tractor tires would do a bad number on the TTB front. A minimum of a sterling or D70 rear would be needed.

 

he asked the cheapesty way to do it so i told him! he didn't ask about whther or not it would be bullteproof!

what about a small set of boggers?

-cutts-

 

Hmmm, dirt cheap and hillybilly engineering for mudding and pullin?

Weld those diffs front and rear, buy some used mud tires (ag tires would be great like fishy mentioned but be ready to nuke stuff), and steal somebodies solid axle while their parked at a red light

 

As fishy stated the sas wouldn't won't help traction only longevity, I actually found the ttb to be better in the mud than a solid, atleast in what I do, but they aren't anywhere near as strong, so drag for redneck engineering drag out the welder, and make it a locker, and while you are in there eliminate the C clip on the right side axle so you don't have to pull the whole diff to change the axle when you break it. and find a set of boggers in whatever size you want to run, although one thing I would look at is running a narrower ones on the front, ie if you run 35s, run the 35x14.50 or 35x16 on the rear, and use the 35x10.50 on the front.
One other thing on the ttb it has an advantage for pulling, more weight on the front end without having to add weights just incase the class you are running doesn't allow the addition of tractor weights to the front.

 

So stiffer springs or a type of a traction bar isn't viable or a good idea?

I plan on running Interco's TSL 34X9s for dirt pulling. I've not decided on a asphalt tire. I might stay with the BFG MT's that are on it.

 

stiffer springs maybe but a traction bar is to stop axle wrap, and unless you break a radius are you aren't going to get that with a ttb at all, and when you get to pulling hard the front end isn't going to be on the ground hard enough to really be pulling all that hard, about the only thing along those lines I can think of that might be a benifit would be longer radius arms to allow more axle drop but on that type of front end you can start to wind up with other problems such as bind on the axle joints and having the brake lines too short pulling the springs loose (make sure they are secured well anyway), and one other thing you will want to do is remove the stabilizer bar, because as the truck tries to lift the left front it will pull that tire off the ground faster but removing it will allow it to drop down independent of the right side, and keep biting

 

For a tug o war, you want to be taller than the other guy. The higher your attachment point is compared to his, the more weight you will take off of his back tires and add to yours. Simple physics rule this one. On pavement, the guy that puts the most torque to the ground without spinning a tire will pull the other one. Once you start spinning on pavement, you actually lose traction. However, a tire that is slipping a slight amount ( 2-5% or so) will have maximum traction. If you have an auto, this is an easy thing. If not, be prepared to cheat to win. In dirt, horsepower, weight and wheelspeed is usually the winning factor. I've never run a tug, but I've pulled a lot of things with heavy equipment and trucks and I can tell you that once you spin a tire, you lose a lot more than you gain unless you are digging into a surface that allows the tire lugs to grab more traction from their digging in and removing material. As for recommendations. If you have the 300 with an auto, you need as much gear as you can and a higher stall to get that motor above 1600 rpm into the fat of the torque. Peak torque should be around 2500-3000 rpm in that motor if it's stock ( memory is fading these days). That means you want your rpm at stall to be around there and not spinning a tire. Short of that and with no money, I'd say weld the diffs. Fill the tires with water ( you can buy the tool at ag stores ) hide weight wherever you can, and use the lowest air pressure you can to get a bigger footprint. Gearing will be an issue you will solve on your own. If you have the stick, then I would pull in granny in 4 hi if you have the power on dirt, or 2nd and low range. On pavement I would say granny in 4 low and hope you have enough torque not to stall. Ladder bars, or the like will be necessary on the rear, but remember. You don't want to shock the tires too hard, or they will break traction and you will lose. ( So don't wind it up to 6 grand and dump the clutch in granny low ) As for the fronts, you want as much weight transfer to the rear, so get rid of weight or anything that limits the downward movement of the frontend, ( aka swaybar ). ( unless the guy you are pulling is taller than you, then you want the front to pull as hard as possible to make up for the rear being pulled off the ground. Another good point right now is motor and tranny mounts. You will want to chain that motor down. When you hit the end of that rope and things start jumping up and down, you don't want that motor to flop over on it's side and eat the radiator. ( or worse) The tranny mount might need a little help if it's old and weak, especially with a manual tranny.

Good luck. With a 300 six you're gonna need it.

 

I've already sheared the extension housing mounting holes due to bad motor mounts. The extension housing has been Beefed up with a 1/2 plate welded to the bottom, The crossmember has been strengthened with 3/8s steel plates top and bottom, all mounts are brand new and I plan on chaining the motor on both sides.

Most organized pulls here run a 26" hitch height but for most other pulls there isn't a spec. I plan on a 4-5" drop hitch turned upside down.

I'm not too worried about the 300, the winner of the biggest pull I've been to in the 9500 lb class was a 300.

I've got a decent 300 engine that is almost completely installed, it should fire Friday. It it's not up to par with the current build, there's always the giggle gas.

 

There's nothing like a sleeper inline 6 running on giggle gas to give 460's fits of rage.

 

Has anyone seen the traction bars in JC Whitney for $80? They are called the off road traction bar kit. They look like they bolt to the u-joints and the bar goes to the rear near the shackle. any experiance with these? For the money I don't see how you can go wrong unless someone has tried them and they totally suck.