Crazy question.
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From: Bristol TN.
Crazy question.
Don't think that I'm crazy or anything but i have a question about my 51 1/2 ton pickup. I recently won a 1977 ford ranger short bed pickup on ebay with a 302 in it..."I couldn't beleive I won the bid". anyways the engine runs good and it has an automatic and it might even have a 9'' rear, everything I was wanting to put in my 51. What I was wandering was...could I take the body off the 77 ranger frame and put it under my 51 body. I know its wild sounding but could it be done you think with not too terribly much fus? Or am I just opening a huge can of worms thats not worth messing with? The only reason I'm thinkning about this is everythings already set up frame wise all I would have to do I would think is to measure a lot, and figure where the steering wheel will go through into the cab. I was thinking if the frame would happen to be a little long in the back I could cut some of the frame off at the back where the bumperis and relocate the bumper. I would have to see if the wheel base is the same, or if not, that it is not that much of a difference so it could still work.
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From: Durham NC
As has been said many times before: there are things that possibly COULD be done. That doesn't mean they SHOULD be done. Frame swaps IMHO fall into the latter catagory. It is FAR FAR FAR (did i mention far...) easier and more sensible to transplant the Ranger running gear into your truck than to attempt a frame swap. So far AFAIK there has been only one completed sucessful frame swap that has shown up here, and that individual will tell you it's not anywhere near easy to do. He did it simply because he wanted 4x4 drive which is much more complex to transplant.
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From: Moro Bay, AR
I'm with AXracer on this one. The only reason I would attempt this swap would be for 4X4. It is much easier to swap running gear and later model suspensions than building all the body mounts. Also the later model truck is going to have a wider track width, the tires are going to stick out of the fenders!
If you decide to follow this path, Good Luck and post pics.
If you decide to follow this path, Good Luck and post pics.
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From: Bristol TN.
Thanks guys thats what I was needing to know. I'll prolly just strip all the good stuff from the truck I want and transplant the motor,trans, and such. I was just thinking....maybe it could be done.....with the frame swap. Thanks again guys
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From: SE Wisc. (the Rust Belt)
The rear end out of the '77 will be too wide to fit under your F-1, you need a rear end out of a pre-'73. You may be able to use rims that have a deep offset on the '77 rear end to bring the outer edge of the wheels in.
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From: Durham NC
If it is a 9" 31 spline in good shape with the exact gear ratio you want to use, it might be more economical to have the housing and axles shortened than hunt down a narrower rear end. Race car builders shorten 9" rears regularly, since they are the axle of choice in almost all types of racing it's pretty easy to find someone locally with experience at doing it.
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From: Bristol TN.
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From: Durham NC
Depends on the shop. At the shop where my brother works it's 2-300 depending on how short it's going and what type bearing retainers are being used. They have an adjustable jig they use to put it back together they do so many.
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From: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Originally Posted by AXracer
So far AFAIK there has been only one completed sucessful frame swap that has shown up here, and that individual will tell you it's not anywhere near easy to do. He did it simply because he wanted 4x4 drive which is much more complex to transplant.
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Joined: Oct 2004
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From: Durham NC
Originally Posted by Fomoko1
Dueller did a major frame swap with his 51, have a look through his article.......https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/5...ap-v1-5-a.html
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From: Queanbeyan Australia
It is worth saying that we as a group aren't opposed to the CONCEPT of frame swaps, it's just that no one has sofar identified a viable one for our trucks that is less work than doing a suspension and running gear swap.
When someone finds a good swap, we will be more than happy to push the concept.
...........just as an example.........48-54 Chevs fit real well on an S.10 chassis
When someone finds a good swap, we will be more than happy to push the concept.
...........just as an example.........48-54 Chevs fit real well on an S.10 chassis
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well i swaped mine with a 61 frame so it wasnt very much differnt and was really easy. just suspend the cab over the frame and position the mounts and tack weld um on so they dont move. i did mine for 4wd but usiing a newer frame might pose a problem i would take lots of muesurements. if the frame are the same width and the wheel base is the same it miight work.
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From: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Originally Posted by AXracer
Oops forgot about that one, but 6 x 40 hr weeks of work to do it doesn't sound very easy to me. I'd estimate it would take 30 - 50 hrs total for someone of Dueler's experience to do a full suspension transplant to a stock frame.
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From: Durham NC
Originally Posted by halfdone
It is worth saying that we as a group aren't opposed to the CONCEPT of frame swaps, it's just that no one has sofar identified a viable one for our trucks that is less work than doing a suspension and running gear swap.
When someone finds a good swap, we will be more than happy to push the concept.
...........just as an example.........48-54 Chevs fit real well on an S.10 chassis
When someone finds a good swap, we will be more than happy to push the concept.
...........just as an example.........48-54 Chevs fit real well on an S.10 chassis
Heck FMC did a frame swap on their 53 panel. If you have the fabrication skills a frame swap requires why not follow their lead and just build one from scratch that fits or buy one of the Art Morrison ones?
As halfdone says show me a swap that is either less work or has something that measurably improves the vehicle like the Jag suspension swap and I'll be doing one myself.