Hi all, I'm a newbie here, but not to old Fords. I have recently picked up a Regular cab 2 wheel drive F350 dually, and loved it 'till it snowed. This thing couldn't pull a wiener off a plate. And I refuse to drive around all winter (In Canada) with two back wheels off. So I have to convert to 4x4. The truck has a 460, 4spd standard. I want to also swap to a five speed. Any ideas what I should be looking for?

 

A new truck. Just kidding. Seems like a LOT of change though. In any case, what year are we taking about?

 

a new truck
and i am not kidding

 

I would look for a later model (around 86-up for the axle, around 89-up for the 5 speed) chassis cab or 4x4 f350. It will have the 5 speed and transfer case you are looking for, as well as the front leaf springs and solid front 4x4 axle.

I have been preaching that the frames are different, and unless you custom make shackle brackets for the leaf spring mounts, it will not bolt up. I believe this is still true with the f150 frames, but someone lately has mentioned that a f250 and f350 2wd frame, may have the bolt holes already there for the 4x4 leaf springs.

Be warned though, the frontend you are going to be looking for is a very popular swap, so it may get a little expensive to buy these parts used.

P.S. You need to figure out what gear ratio you have now in the rear, so you can get the front to match.

 

Thanks for the help from the believers. I will NOT be looking for a new truck! I build street rods and 50's customs from scratch, putting a transfer case, tranny, and front end in is not the end of the world boys. Thanks for letting me know what to keep an eye out for. I know I have 3:73's in the rear, I just put 'em in there. Did these things use a Dana 60 in the front? Also, I never thought to ask, but what am I going to have to do to run my dually wheels on the front?

 

Meteor1956,
You could build a real jewel from an old truck for less than 1/2 what the new trucks are selling for these days.

A lot depends on the year of your truck. 80-86 are my favorites.
Ford used Dana 44 with the twin traction beam front axle setup. Unless you find a heavy duty 3/4 ton, all others were relegated to the TTB. The Dana 60 solid axle was an option for the F250 HD and the all F350's. Be aware the front Axle could set you back about 1k when and if you fond one. The came with 3 gear options: 3:54, 3:73 and 4:10. The 4:10's seem to be the popular ratio, so you may need to do a gear change. To run the dually style offset rims?? I believe you need to find the offset spacer for that style rim. Another note: Watch what year axle you get. I believe the cutoff for the lug pattern is 96. After that, Ford went to a metric 8 lug pattern and your wheels won't work. Good luck.


86CREW4ME

86 F350 Crewcab 4x4, 6.9L IDI, Non Turbo, C-6, 4:56 gears - underway partial restoration
86 F250 Regular Cab, 4X4, 6.9L IDI, Non Turbo, C-6, 3:54 gears, - Bad Engine - Temporarily on hold.
86 F250 Super Cab, 4X4, 6.9L IDI, Banks Turbo, Gear vendors OD, 4 speed manual, 4:10 gears, 92K miles - Rollover parts truck
93 F150 Lightning, Stock
64 F100 - Stock, 400M, C-6, 3:25 Gears - Truck in family since 1969
70 Ford Bronco - Disassembled completely for restoration

 

You are going to need the dually front hubs to put on the D60.

They are pretty easy to find considering many people swap the other way around (dually hubs to single hubs).

Straight axle D60's go for around $1k like someone has already mentioned.

Unless of course you find a D60 that already has the dually hubs.