rear gear
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Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,532
Likes: 29
From: northeast Ga
rear gear
I have been working on the 54 panel,getting ready for the motor.I looked on the vin tag and it shows a 392 rear gear.Are the other gear sets for the stock rear end and what wold be a good choice to run with a 351 w and a c6 trans? the motor has been rebuilt with a mild cam 0-5000 rpm ,performer intake and holley 600 cfm carb.
Senior User
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 299
Likes: 0
From: Topeka, KS
Some other folks will be along soon to give some actually USEFUL advice, but for what it's worth, my understanding is that new gearsets for the stock rears are hard to come by and pretty expensive. If it's like mine, it's a Dana 44. 9 inchers are stupid strong, reasonably plentiful, and have an almost infinite number of gear ratios. There are some that are close to a bolt-in for our trucks. Again, someone will be along that actually knows something and can give you more specifics. The 3.92 will probably work fine, for that matter. Pretty low for the freeway, but will let you burn through rear tires like a teenager....
Post Fiend
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 7,493
Likes: 7
From: Erie, pa
A 9" is almost a roll out/roll in swap.
There are chunks available for the DANA 44
http://www.drivetrain.com/dana44.html
There are chunks available for the DANA 44
http://www.drivetrain.com/dana44.html
Cargo Master
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 2,063
Likes: 38
From: Valley Center, California
There is a discussion or tech article in this Forum somplace I saw that listed rear end swaps (Width being the primary issue) for various Ford Trucks. It included the wheel bolt pattern which was good info also.
I bolted a '62 or '65 (I forget) F-150 9" in my '49 directly with no modifications of any kind.
With your combo, I would probably opt for a 3.00 - 3.25:1 Ratio and not go deeper than 3.50 for a daily driver. 3.50s are great around town, but if you're out on the highway much, you do spin the engine more than I think is necessary. Tire height also has an impact.
Just my take on it.
I bolted a '62 or '65 (I forget) F-150 9" in my '49 directly with no modifications of any kind.
With your combo, I would probably opt for a 3.00 - 3.25:1 Ratio and not go deeper than 3.50 for a daily driver. 3.50s are great around town, but if you're out on the highway much, you do spin the engine more than I think is necessary. Tire height also has an impact.
Just my take on it.
Hotshot
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 15,882
Likes: 88
From: Durham NC
Even your slightly warmed over 351 is pushing the strength and reliability of the stock rear end. Rather than spending money on a nearly non existent gearset and difficult to find maintainance parts, do as suggested and replace the rear end with a Ford 9 or 8 inch rear axle, especially if you "occasionally" might get a "cramp" in the right foot that causes it to push the gas pedal a little harder than needed. Go to the articles and specs tab at the top of the page and skip over all the late model stuff until you find the article on rear end swaps for the 53-56.
Junior User
Joined: May 2007
Posts: 55
Likes: 0
From: Onalaska, Wisconsin
So Im going to be having the same setup in my '58 F100, but my truck has a 9in rear end in it when I got it. Would you suggest nuthing higher than 3.50:1? When its together its going to be a city driver with the possibilities of goin down the highway....Would it make sense to get two doifferent gearsets and swap out the "city diver" one for the "high-way driver" one and vise versa or just get one standard set?
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Fleet Mechanic
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 1,532
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From: northeast Ga
width
Is the panel truck rearend the same width as the pickup?Also are the spring mounts in the same place? I would not want to get a pickup 9 inch and then find it is different.
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Post Fiend
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 7,493
Likes: 7
From: Erie, pa
Originally Posted by DR Smith
Is the panel truck rearend the same width as the pickup?Also are the spring mounts in the same place? I would not want to get a pickup 9 inch and then find it is different.
Postmaster
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 4,190
Likes: 2
From: Riverside, So Cal
Originally Posted by WindsorF100
So Im going to be having the same setup in my '58 F100, but my truck has a 9in rear end in it when I got it. Would you suggest nuthing higher than 3.50:1? When its together its going to be a city driver with the possibilities of goin down the highway....Would it make sense to get two doifferent gearsets and swap out the "city diver" one for the "high-way driver" one and vise versa or just get one standard set?
I love the 3.50's for around town. Really zippy. The 3.00's were still OK, just not the punch that the 3.50's have. A buddy wants to swap me his 3.25 rear for mine. It seems like a good idea and we'll do it over the summer. I'm thinking that will be the perfect middle ground ratio. But again, the tire diameter will have a big effect, so choose that first, then decide on the rear ratio. (I'm running P295/50R15's).
The 9" rear axle is definitely the way to go. Very plentiful and inexpensive. An easy swap. Look for a 57-72 9" truck rear axle.
I would recommend against having a second rear to swap out. Way too much work. You'll get very tired of that idea quickly. Just pick one and go with it.
Have fun!
Hotshot
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 15,882
Likes: 88
From: Durham NC
It would definitely be easier and probably cheaper to go with an AOD tranny than swapping rearend pumpkins when you want a different ratio. Changing the pumpkin is a very messy ~ 2hr job on a lift.
Cargo Master
Joined: Apr 2007
Posts: 2,063
Likes: 38
From: Valley Center, California
For two gear sets, I agree about the 3rd member swap. It's not worth the hassle. If I kept two gear sets I'd go to 3.7s and REALLY zip around town. Took me about 30 minutes. Was always fun to boil the baloneys after the swap though :-) I used to change my 3.0s to 3.7s for our antique drag races and even that got to be too much. But then again, my body doesn't bend as well as it used to.
3.25s are probably a good bet and common. I have never owned an AOD vehicle but I've helped install them, and they are beastly heavy. Must be fun to drive though.
3.25s are probably a good bet and common. I have never owned an AOD vehicle but I've helped install them, and they are beastly heavy. Must be fun to drive though.
