WIW....1970's PW

[W_A_Watson_II]

Hey Pieter, what do you know about Dana 44F Front Axles?

[pieter]

Pieter do you mean to tell me that I have been bragging about my truck " oh yeah dana 70's front and rear" without good cause. educate me. why are the rockcrawler guys always looking for dana 70's.

I'm not sure what Rockcrawler guys are looking for a dana 70 front. The basic strength issue with an axle is spline count... The greater the number of splines, the stronger the axle (within reason). This is keeping everything about an axleshaft constant besides the spline count.

A dana 70 has a 16 spline. A dana 60 will have 30 and 35 splined shafts...
I prefer the closed knuckle of the dana 70 to keep mud and such out of the axle's....

Pieter

[712edf]

70's do have bigger ring gear, but the 60 matches it in pretty much every other area. The developement on the 70 (front) stopped sometime ago (Dodge dropped it in 75) while the 60 front soldiered on for a couple more decades. I sure that given enough $$$ some axle company (moser,dedenbear) could do to a 70 all the fantastic stuff they are doing with the 60 for rockcrawlers. But once you get past a certain point it becomes more feasible to go to a monster like Rockwell.

Bucky

[74w300uteline]

say what??

Pieter do you mean to tell me that I have been bragging about my truck " oh yeah dana 70's front and rear" without good cause. educate me. why are the rockcrawler guys always looking for dana 70's.

[pieter]

Any chance there could be Dana 70 in there? If so what is one of those worth?

I'll open the can of worms and say if you are talking about a Dana 70 front... you want a Dana 60 over a Dana 70... The 60 is stronger in just about all aspects...

pieter

[YANKEEPWslant]

Any chance there could be Dana 70 in there? If so what is one of those worth?

[712edf]

Guys, how much are the diffs worth in this thing. Seller feels the front diff alone is worth $1600. Could it be a Dana 70 in this thing? Seller feels the truck is worth what the diffs would sell for if he pulled them out of it.

Dana 60 front and rear, just because its crewcab. the Dana 60 rear was used by Dodge (others too) for decades in W100 (61-68),D200,D300,W200,W300 trucks. The front is valuable (maybe 6-800 bucks) though, but $1600 to me would mean all new bearings, seals, u-joints & brake components, in other words a rebuilt complete axle.

Bucky

[YANKEEPWslant]

1978 model year.

[Gordon Maney]

What year is the truck?

[74w300uteline]

what is it worth

run the vin through a decoder. I would pay more for a 74 or earlier with lockout hubs, but then youre into drums. on the other hand you're pre smog. lots of variables will be cleared up vith a vin decode. how much will it cost you to pass inspection and get truck road legal.
are you capable of doing mechanicals yourself. I wish I could give you a better answer.

[YANKEEPWslant]

Guys, how much are the diffs worth in this thing. Seller feels the front diff alone is worth $1600. Could it be a Dana 70 in this thing? Seller feels the truck is worth what the diffs would sell for if he pulled them out of it.

[YANKEEPWslant]

AH, just as well. After numerous phone calls with me constantly asking questions and asking for additional pictures and for him to get it running, which he said it ran real well, he never got back to me. Tired now of chasing. Either ya want to sell or not. Whatever. Like you guys say another one will be on the horizon. Think I want a 4 spd swepty crew. Hopefully there is one out there with my name on it that isn't on the other side of the planet! Thanks for all the responses guys.

[KRB64]

Military called it 1.25 ton but its just a W250 3/4.

All good advice from pp. Check the drip line for rot too. Double on the front bearings and silicone fluid.

[74w300uteline]

70's

if its fulltime 4x4, front bearings need grease. Don't mix brakefluids, military used silicone. keep ballast resistor spare in glove box. Often military wiring gets butchered by previous owners seeking quick fixes. get a factory service manual you wont regret it. the 70's are still available but I searched for quite a while to find a rust"through" free crewcab specimen. found one in NM 900$ and paid another grand to get it hauled to nj.it was banged up but it was all there, starts ,steers & stops (most of the time) Do not panic buy, thinking that this is your only chance, another one will pop up. usually right after you take delivery. haha

Jeff brings up a good point, the 70's haven't really caught on yet which is good. Buy low /sell high..... in 20 years. however crew cabs are always cool.

[Jeff in N.Tx.]

Rot in floor pans and rockers, rot over rear wheels in fenders. Dash wiring, these were prone to electrical fires in the dash. Most likely will not have power steering, if it does, it was added and that is a plus. It probably will have those darn 16.5" wheels. If they have been replaced with 16" wheels, that is a plus.
I have never seen a good source for replacement body panels. So, if it is in need of any, you will have to make your own patches, or shop the junkyards for body parts. All major engine, driveline, and interior parts are the same as a civilian W200.
They were pretty simple trucks. not a lot of fancy stuff to go wrong.
Jeff