Is there a difference between 4x2 and 4x4 frames?
As for your last statement about everything to make the 4x2 into a 4x4 is on the 4x4 chassis......thats what I'm doing. swapping everything from the 4x4 onto the 4x2. Are we talking about something different here? I'm not using any driveline componants from anything except the 4x4, for sentimental reasons.
The best and least amount of labor will depend on what you have to work with. The best scenario for you is if you have a good 2wd truck with clear paperwork, good body, and both it and your 4x4 donor have 300, 302, or 351w engines and the same rearend ratios. If this is the case, all you have to do is swap the tranny/transfer case in, install the front axle from the 4x4, add the driveshafts from the 4x4, and you are done. You can leave the rear springs on the 2wd like they are, though you might want to add the lift blocks from the 4x4.
If the 2wd has engine or body problems, or a different family engine than the 4x4, and different gear ratios, then that makes it more complicated and more work, but certainly doable.
I am also going to transplant the drivetrain from my father's 4x4 into a 2wd truck. I was wondering if the frames are identical in strength or not, so this has been helpful.
It would also seem much more difficult to remove the cab of a truck and all that is involved with that, than to just bolt in a new front end. Take off the cab and you have to disconnect fuel lines, brake lines, electrical, throttle linkages, everything that connects to or goes through the cab from the engine bay, etc..







