you know i have always had the question lingering way back in the depths of my noodle but never really thought about asking. so since i am sitting here waiting for time to roll by i think i will startup a thread about it.

how do they setup rear-steers? do they take a D60 front and just run it out back? or would that not work?

OR

do they take a rear axle and weld on inner C's and use knuckles from a 1 ton front axle?

i am curious as i dont' hear much about how they set them up. i have even scoured pirate and found just a few posts about it. anyone here have experience with them or know anythign about how to do it?

there is nothing more unique than have 4 wheel steering and if i find it isn't all that hard i think i might undergo a project such as that! if i had 4 wheel steering my long wheelbase would no longer be any kind of an issue on Tellico whereas right now I scrape some serious trees/rocks running through the tighter turns!

-cutts-

 

You could go with either a front axle in the rear or a rear axle with the steering parts added-if you used a rear axle, obviously you would have to get axleshafts made and have some sort of way to keep the gear lube in the diff centersection. As far as the steering, I used a double ended ram with a 12volt hydo pump and a log splitter type valve- I rigged up an electrical switch to the handle so the pump would automatically turn on only when the handle was moved one direction or the other.

 

ahhhh so you CAN use a front exle and turn it around? that wont mess up the reverse gears though will it? or do you have to order a special r/p set?

this is pretty cool stuff! i like the idea of having 4 wheel steering AND full hydro front and rear! talk about a conversation piece

I have a 96 PSD F350 that I am tempted to yank the D60 front out of it b/c that would be worth it! hell i still have a D50 ttb i could put in the front of it!

-cutts-

 

yeah, its actually not that difficult... if you wanted to run a ford front 60 in the rear, you'd have to removed the reverse rotation gears and replace them with standard rotation... 4 link it, 16" coilovers, and you'd be set !!

 

so get a r/p set for a D60 rear and they will fit up in a D60 front? there's no difference? that's easy as hell! and i am assuming the best way to go steering wise in the rear is full hydro?!?!

-cutts-

 

Personally, I think I'd rather take a Chevy 60 (cheaper) and cut the knuckles off it and throw that out back. While I haven't done it like others, I don't think you'd to just throw the 60 out back, cuz the pumpkin's offset. If you take, say, a D60, 70, or 14-bolt, the pumpkin will still be in the middle, but then you'll need custom axles. You can sell your Ford 60 and probably buy everything else you'd need, including the custom axles, the rear axle, and the Chevy 60.

 

Time for a terminology correction so we don't confuse people. The gears in the front axle are not reverse rotation. They are reverse CUT. It's the design of the teeth in the ring gear and has absolutely nothing to do with the rotation. You cannot use a gear set for a rear D60 in a front Ford D60 because the Ford axle is a high pinion and the ring and pinion meet at a different angle. I believe you can use it in a Chevy axle though.

I've looked into this extensively and it seems to me that the best way to do this is to use a D60 rear, chop it and put C's and knuckles on it. You can have custom inner axles made for a relatively low price and all the rest would be standard D60 hardware (even disc brakes! ). I believe, but don't quote me here, that the inner seals from a front axle can be used in a rear axle. If you wanted to do it right and have something with some beed you could use a D70 and then buy Dedenbear C's which are avaiable for the larger axle tubes. Then you'd have a heavy duty 10.5" ring gear.

The thing is you'd want to set the caster on your rear axle and it would be reverse as compared to a front axle. If you're going to bother with the C's any way why not just use a rear axle and have your pumpkin centered without having to retube?

 

Or you can go and grab the rear axle from a quadrasteer truck and re do the hydraulics, or just grab the axles (if they are a 35spline axle), knuckles and such from it. But other than that Ivan said it the best.

 

The only thing that I found with the quadrasteer D60's (besides price) was that they're not set up to steer as sharp as front axles. They may steer sharp enough for some people's purposes but personally if I go through the trouble to do a rear steer I'm going to either inboard my springs or 4 link it and then have a rear end that can turn as sharp as the front. Now I don't remember if it's a limiter in the steering box (uses a rack/pinion setup) or the knuckle design. It's possible they could be modified to steer better . . . I just don't know.

 

A lot of people run rockies with a steering axle front and rear. I read an article aobut using a ford HP 60 in a rear steer app- they had to cut the tube and put the pig in the middle. having a HP in the rear gives you more clearance; however, you lose ring gear strength since you are applying power on the coast side of the ring gear.

 

this is what i was thinking.

now about those rockwells.... can you turn it bassackwards and run them like that? cause if you are gonna do it that's how i would want to!

-cutts-

 

Go Rocky! 1-up Pro! hehe

 

rockwells are even better- you don't have to turn it around; it has a drive flange on either side of the pumpkin. that is b/c of the tandom axles in the back.

 

I've been trying to tell people that flipping axles upsidedown and swapping HP,LP gearsets are not the answer to getting the axle to turn the proper direction for a long time now- why didnt I just explain it like you did??? You Sir, have a gift for explaining things, except for the axle seal issue- the tube is machined for the seal before it is pressed into the housing. I do know of one guy however, that built his own 60/44 hybrid axle and he epoxied his seals to the inside- seems to work for him, but it would be a hassle to replace those seals when the time comes!!

 

I think Ivan hit the nail on the head with his little how to.

Dont swap front for rear and up for down, you'll wind up with a head full o' aches.

I know this may not be the kind of info that people are looking for, but the other day I was watching (I THINK it was Modern Marvles) a show on monster trucks...many of them, for the rear steer, use the custom built axle housings, rather than chopping on a pre build, used axle.

Of course...many of them can afford $40k for an engine every other race too...