I have a 47 ford 3/4 ton and I want disc brakes I see many have used the speedway kit but they more often have the 1/2 ton spindles.

Whats the difference in 1/2-3/4 spindles ? and will the speedway kit work on the spindles I have?

was there a 3/4 ton ver in 47 ? or just the 1/2 and 1 ton ?

If so what do I have my truck has 6 lug split rims.

thanks for any help


Brian kc0kfg

 

Hmmm... seems I read somewhere that the 1/2 and 1 ton use the same spindle. That makes me think that a 3/4 ton probably would, too. My 1 ton has a 5x6.5 pattern, IIRC.

Dave

 

dave,
what year is yours? I have a 1940 one ton, was also wondering if you just did the front or also the rear? what about suspension, springs too? anybody ever done airbags? or just standard MII front end.

did you leave the rear standard with drums?

thx,
mpr

 

Mine is a '47. I just got it a few weeks ago and haven't had a chance to do much with it. I've been focusing on getting my other '47 put together for a car show in September. Eventually, I am hoping to restore the tonner, but that probably won't happen for a couple of years.

Dave

 

Go to the local wrecking yard and pick up a set of spindles/rotors,hubs, etc... off of a mid 1980's ford e250/350, or F250/350 truck or van that has disc brakes and 8 lugs on them.... these are the twin I beam setup. take these parts and go and buy two sets of new king pins for the year you pulled, I believe all the twin I beam king pins new are all the same.... then take your original axle to the machine shop and have it reamed for the larger king pin size for the later model van or truck hubs/spindles King Pins you just purchased.... have them install the newer hubs and spindles on your original axle.... Now you have 8 lug, disc brakes.

 

Johnny, would this work on f350s from 53 to 66?

 

Yes, they would be perfect . You could pull the 1/2, 3/4, or 1 ton spindles depending on the rating you wanted to haul around with.... Its a great trick. keeps the original suspension in place, not a lot of money, little fab work for your steering setup, power or otherwise. Then your set. I know that there are ps gear box kits etc... for the 53-56 Fords and from 57 up as well. But, if you are in need of saving your cash, you can use a PS Box from a Toyota truck in the mid 80's, as well as the Ford F600's from 1968-1980 with PS and straight axle. Same type of Drag Link setup for both. I have done a lot of these conversions and they work very well and save $$$. I hope this is helpful, let me know if you need any further details.

J

 

Seems a lot of people with the big 6 lug F350 pattern from 53 to 66 and want to convert to modern 16" wheels could do this swap. The rear is a piece of cake by swapping in a modern rear end, but the front has always been a big hurdle from what I see on these forums. Is the distance between upper and lower bushings on the old I beam the same as the newer twin I beam setup? What I mean, is the king pin the same length but just a different diameter?

 

Did you ever find out if the distance between the upper or lower bushings are the same? Also you said you have done a F600 power steering swap. I was looking at them and I didn't know if it was too big.

 

I think the Speedway kit requires you to change to 73-77 mid size rotors and calipers, which means they will not fit your original wheels, but it does fit together very nicely, I have seen them installed.

 

GB Sisson,
sorry it has taken me so long to respond, To answer your question. Yes,,, the distance is the same for teh King Pins as the twin I beam. So to clarify this setup:
Incidently I am building another 41 1.5 ton and I have just finished this setup for the fourth time.
1. For those of us that want to keep our stock front axles. I have done this from a 1936 Ford 1.5 ton front axles all the way to 53-56 Fords f100-and Big Jobs...
2. Use the Spindles assy off of the 1985 Ford E250-350 Van with the 8 lug spindle/rotors. The Ford Vans the Rotors and Spindle are integral... Use can also use the same years Ford Trucks with Dually Rear end,,, pull the front Spindles, and take the Disc Rotors with you as well. Remember,,, Most of the Ford Trucks, Vans from early 70's to late 80's with twin Ibeam will work for this.... These all have King Pins... and look for the vehicles with front disc brakes....
3. The conversion is simple. Get two sets of King Pin rebuild kits for the twin I beam truck or van you pulled,,, give them the correct years although they are all the same King Pin set... bout 12 bucks a set... the twin ibeam king pins are thicker.... take the axle and the pins to a machine shop and have them ream out your straight axle to the larger king pin size , this is a lot of work, have it done,,,
4. when assembling you will notice that you need a few extra shims to take up the extra distance when using the late model ford spindles,,,, this is the reason I stated to purchase two sets of King Pins. you will need at least three to four extra shims when assembling.
5. I would suggest using the larger safety set pin bolts,,,, have the machine ship drill the hole for the larger saftey pin bolt...
6. Notice when you start to assemble and slide the king pins in place... the notch in the king pin wont align perfectly to the safety set pin bolt.... what needs to be done is to take a grinder and make the notch in the new king pin wider so that when king pin is in place it is centered correctly in the axle. You will see this when you start to assemble.
7. One other note, when machining out the axle, machine the axle to accept one of the brass bushings in the set. so,,, you will have a brass bushing in each side of the axle, one in the top of each spindle and one in the bottom of each spindle.... so a total of three brass bushings per side. the reason to do this is so that you can see where to grind and measure the notch in the King Pin.
8. trust me this will all be very clear when you start.

I have built a jig so that I can also heat and put a 4" drop in my axles. I will attempt to take pics this weekend and post.
thanks
J

 

Larryejoh,
regarding the Ford F600 power steering box.
I have a 55 ford big job. I wanted power steering.. as you know the 53-56 ford f100 and big jobs have the same steering setup geometry... they have a push pull drag link setup.o
My solution was this: I had a 1969 Ford F600 24' box truck... It had the same push pull drag link setup, and it was a power steering box to begin with. It was a simple matter of removing it and doing some minor modifications to the 55 frame drill holes, re-enforce the frame section, weld some plate around to box and support just like the 69 setup... essentially copying that setup... its very easy and practically a bolt up affair.... use the 69 drag link and you may need to modify one end to fit to the orginal 55 ford spindle... hope this makes sense... let me know if you need any further details....

 

Thanks. When using those van spindles how did you mount the drag link from the steering box to the top of the spindle? I'm working on a 64 F350 but I think everything is pretty similar to the earlier trucks.

 

I was looking at a 74 F700 at the junk yard today. Did you use the F600 pitman arm? The one on the F700 is about 9.5 inches long and mine is 7.5 inch. Did you use the F600 steering column?

 

Great info here Johnny. And Larry maybe you should post a link to this thread in the slick truck section. This is really good info for the folks with 6 lug f350s. I don't know how to do a link. GB