several questions about lifts and axles ...

[C. Babb]

Hello Guys, first of all thank you for reading this and taking time to reply. i have a kind of dumb question and tried searching but didnt come up with anything.
im interested in putting the solid front axle in my truck i have a 1996 K2500 with the 6.5TD with a 14 bolt 10 1/2 full floating rear end with 3.73 gears. now what all would i have to change, and what front axle (ie: ford dodge or 70's chevy) would i use for this? if im not mistaken the older chevy front drive shaft was on the passenger side correct? so this would narrow it down to dodge or ford? which would you prefer? and also would i have to go to a ford/dodge rear end also to match the gears?

another question that i have is, im looking to put a 6" lift kit on my truck and run 38" tires on 16" rims ... now comes into play as to what lift kit will i use? or would i just kind of have to piece a kit together from a ford/dodge 6" with a chevy 6"? or would it be impossible to lift it after this conversion?
another thing i was just thinking about is too, would it smarter to leave it with the ifs since if i do lift the truck the drive shaft will have alot of strain being at such a bend where as the ifs the front diff. is only lowered about 2" and the front spindles are lowered a little also...
thanks for any tips/pointers and knowledge of yours .. i will appriciate it alot! thanks again

-craig

[NH2112]

If I was doing it, I'd run a GM Dana 44 or Dana 60, and swap in a GM passenger-side drop transfer case. The Ford or Dodge front diff may not line up with the front driveshaft, and compound angles generally cause problems. As long as the gears are close, i.e., 4.09/4.10/4.11, 3.54/3.55, etc, you won't have any problems.

You'd probably get the best results by buying a lift for an earlier Chevy solid axle truck, then welding the spring hangers and shackles on the frame to fit the springs. You may also have to reposition the spring perches on the axle as well. There's a good chance that the steering gearbox won't be in the right place, so it'll probably be a pretty involved conversion.

[C. Babb]

sounds like way to much complicated stuff LOL just for the looking that i was looking for .. t'would be sweet to see, but i dont like paying others to do something that i could and i dont wanna do this one thanks for the reply though Phil

[JoeyD]

Offroad unlimited sells a spring hanger kit for around $850 that lets you bolt up front springs out of a 4x4 73-87 gm. You can get brackets for the GM or Ford axles.

[mhagie]

No offense, but why change unless you have some serious off-roading in mind.
I hope to someday research a way to put IFS under the 80 so I can have a decent ride quality.
Merle

[dandiesel]

I have '96 sub that comes with a 9.25" IFS and a 10.5" 14 bolt rear originally geared at 4.1 ratio. The truck does not do any towing and sees itself more in the highway. I am seriously considering to gear at a more practical 3.42 but couldn't seem to find ring and pinion set for my rear. Can anyone point me a aftermarket supplier? Do I need more parts than just the ring and pinon and install kits to get the job done? :confused:

[G. Gearloose]

Lots of info at pirate4x4.com, search for chevy SAS, don't ask, else get flamed because its been convered ad nauseum.

[TJ Moose]

Hey C Babb - what do you want to end up with? A lift with solid front end might be interesting just to have (especially if you're looking to do a pile of fabbing) but if you're looking to make a trail rig - any chance you'd consider leaving this one alone, and get something closer to, or easier to make into a trail dog? Plenty of straight axle Chevs out there. Might be easier to put a newer body on an older frame, if its a look thing you're going for rather than ripping into a drive train that's currently in one piece. Just a thought.

[TJ Moose]

Dan Diesel - I see you're in the Philipines? Yow! So - don't know if this suggestion interests you - but I know Randy's Ring & Pinion in Everett, WA has pretty much everything for everything. Website is http://www.ringpinion.com/.

Good Luck - I'm sure they'll ship if you see what you're looking for.

[dandiesel]

TJ Moose thanks for the info. smile.gif Already called them and about half a dozen suppliers. I'm told that GM discontinued this part coz its not so popular. :mad: Guess everyone who owns a K2500 uses it to tow except me. :( Best I can do is go for 255/85/16 tires that brings me close to a 3.73. Thanks! smile.gif

[dandiesel]

G. Gearloose. Thanks for the tip smile.gif You were right, got buried in the threads info ad nauseum. Didn't get what I wanted but will find time to find my ring ang pinions.(ala needle in a hay stack)

[opto]

I agree in the point of not swapping unless serious offroading is the goal. Have a -91 K2500 and in two years I have broke two IFS-systems offroading, even though I have tried to be careful. Luckily shafts broke on different sides so I was able to get a working one out of two wrecked.
Offroad unlimited is a very good tip. Converting from IFS to straight axle means raising front by defaut...

[Quack_Addict]

If you have running 38's in mind, a Dana 60 front axle is the ONLY way to go.

I wonder how well a Phord D60 would work out with the driver side drop transfer case? I think someone had a write-up on such a swap a couple years ago on ColoradoK5.com

[29-turbo-freak]

Might be a little late, but heres my story. All ways had 35/38 on old trucks. got a little older and the rattles / wind/ noise started to bother me. So I started to think a new cab ( 90 style) would be cool. Came across a 75 srw 4x4,90 2wd perfect grampa truck. looked each one over, made game plan. I realy dont like the way the frame drops way down under the cab. I was comited to taking off the cab and box anyway so I set it on the old gear just for fun. I like the final product. would not suggest it. whey,whey,whey too much work. Buy the kit mentioned USE FORD AXLE, be done! P.S. prepare to loose smooth ride. Would not like to drive it out off town.