Ok, well here is the deal. I have a 1990 F250 with a cummins dropped into it using the original ZF tranny and the rest of the ford bits. Well after several thousand miles my axles are starting to give out. Rear is just outer seals crapping out and the front (D50 TTB) is toast. I have a line on a sweeet set of 3.55 geared F350 axles that were on a 2000 truck for dirt cheap (compared to the other d60s I've seen). Will these bolt up relatively easy? I measured real fast when I went to see the axles and it looks like the frame is a bit wider on the new models. This is no big deal on the rear as I can move the perches, but the front the housing is one piece. Anybody try this one? I know I have seen a 90's f350 with the later axle on it but never looked to see how they did it. Will the steering bolt up or is this more of a project than one should mess with?

 

I know one thing is the wheel lug bolt patterns are different so also will need a set of the newer design wheels

 

Awhile back I bought a set of the mag wheels from the 96 trucks and it came with a slightly different looking spare. Well awhile later it came down to using the spare and the bolt holes would not line up! That is when I found out about the 99+ metric hubs...
At any rate, I am not opposed to getting the later style wheels. I just need a bullet proof drive train and what I have isn't cutting it. I'm just praying that these things will just bolt on. The rear is the 10.5 - and from what I have found searching that should bolt up right? That would mean a set of rear discs!

 

Well, it seems my excitement was all for nothing. If these axles were on a 2000 truck, there was no option for 3.55 gears, only 3.73. That's not the worst of it, apparently the 2000 F350s were only fitted with dana 50 front ends! In other words - the guy selling this stuff is full of *&% --- which means there is no way I will consider this. To give him some credit the 50s and 60s used the same housing but different internals.

Well back to searching for a kingpin D60...


Oh yes - to those who dug this up in the archives wondering if the axles will fit their trucks? Yes - with modification. Rear spring perches will need to be moved in. Front is really close - you could move your spring mounts or use the original drivers mount (part of the pumpkin) and move the passenger mount in. The steering I haven't found any information on, but from the looks of it it should just bolt right up to the original box... Don't take my word on it as that was after about 30 seconds of looking and half assed measurements. If you found a set of 03 up 350 axles they should be the D60... so have fun!

 

'99 - '00 F350s did in fact have Dana 60s, its the F250s that had a solid Dana 50 for the first couple years of the Super Duty. I know this for a fact. So either that set of axles came out of a F250, or the front axle is actually a Dana 60. So I would check that out and if it is a good deal, it did in fact come out of an F350, and you are ready to do the work to make them work, ****** them up.

As for the 3.73s, that's better than 3.55s, so no loss there. Good luck, welcome to the forum, and get some pics of this Cummins Ford you are building posted!

 

didn't ford start using balljoint d60s instead of kingpin d60s around the 99 2000 year

or is that all in my head?

 

Ah - good to know. As far as the ratio goes... if I could have a set of 2.45s I would. Even with the 3.55s I have now 80-90 is pushing it and I have PLENTY of power to spare. Mileage is around 23 - 27, and if I could find a lower ratio 30 could be in my sights. I originally had 4.10/4.11s in the truck and it was nearly undrivable on the street due to the 60-65MPH engine RPM.

Anyway - yes the axles I saw today were from an F350 so I bet that was a d60. After reading all the horror stories about the late model ball joints and "unit bearings" I think I'll spend the extra cash on the kingpin axle anyway. They wanted 1K for the set of 2000 F350 axles with 190K miles on them which need brakes all around and front hubs... or I could go get a kingpin axle with 45K for about the same price that will bolt right up.

Thanks for the welcome to the forum... New to the world of American trucks - I've been building German cars all my life. How exactly do you post pictures on here? Is there a minimum post requirement of some kind?

 

I think the last year of the kingpin Dana 60 was '91 and the balljoint 60 appeared in '92.

 

No, you have to host them somewhere else (like photobucket, flickr, or maybe your domain may have hosting ) then use the insert image icon in the reply box to link to them...

BTW Welcome to FTE

 

Well then - here are a few photos of the truck!

 

First pic - Out playing after putting in the cummins. Found some Trelleborg agricultural tires that fit the rims... awesome.

Second + third pic - new front clip install

Fourth pic - Engine sitting waiting to be hooked up during a rainstorm

Fifth pic - Used the old front clip for the plow truck body project.

 

After you have 25 posts (IIRC) you can set up a garage here on FTE, it will be in user control panel, you can set up a signature line with details about your truck there also...

 

Nice looking project. Gotta love the Cummins, esspecially when its no sitting in a crappy Dodge.