Converting 92 DRW to SRW...

[BigMac]

I am looking at a 92 Diesel Dually for my possible drivetrain donor for my crew cab project. I don't really want to have to buy any the extra tires for the rear, so I am looking to convert to SRW.

My question is what is the differences between the SRW and the DRW rearends.

Is the DRW shorter?

If it is where is a good place to get spacers or do they need to be fabricated?

Are the front hubs different?

Thanks,
Mac

[mattsoldmopars]

as far as I know, there was three different width rear ends in the 1989-1993 years for trucks,

1st one is the DRW pickup rear end, it is the widest of all three, and only came in dually pickups.

2nd is the DRW cab chassis rear end, it is about 4-6 inches narrower then the DRW pickup rear end.

3rd is the SRW rear end that they used in 3/4-tons and 1-tons with single rear tire trucks.

Don't take this to the "bank" but a few years ago I put a new/rebuilt rear end in my 1993 W350 pickup, and I owned one of each style of the above trucks at the time, and I measured them all, DRW pickup, DRW cab chassis, SRW pickup, and I know that the DRW pickup was the widest of all three, I think that the (this is the part, don't take to the bank, I may not remember right??) the DRW cab chassis rear was a little wider then the SRW rear end, if I remember right?? Or it may be the other way around, the SRW pickup rear end is a little wider then the DRW cab chassis rear end??

On the front axle the DRW and SRW hubs and spindles are different. So if you had a DRW front axle and you wanted to make it a SRW axle you would have to find the hubs and spindles from a SRW truck then it will all bolt on. A few years ago when I smoked a front spindle they were still available new from Dana.



So, if I am understanding your post right, you would have to find a narrower rear end since the dually rears are wider then the SRW rear ends, and putting spacers on a DRW rear end would only make it wider.

[BigMac]

OK, that is what I was afraid of. I did a search for converting dually to single and the only post I could find was in refernce to a 68 W300. In that post it said the dually rear axle was narrower, so that is where I came up with the spacer idea.

It seems like every 92-93 Club Cab 4x4 SRW Diesel is on the other side of the country right now, at least on craigslist.

Well the hunt continues....

Mac

[mattsoldmopars]

Mac,

Yes, the older dually trucks (pre-1968) the rear axle was narrower, I am not sure when they stopped doing that?? But I know that the newer ones are not that way.


I am not sure if your willing to travel to Harvard, Illinois? (Mapquest has two Monroe, IN listed and one is 211 miles from Harvard, the other is 274 miles from Harvard) But this guy has two CTD trucks both sound like they are SRW's 4x4's on craigslist in Rockford,,

http://rockford.craigslist.org/cto/1616180047.html

I am not sure why you need a club-cab truck if your going to put the drive train in Crew-cab truck??

but here is a Club-cab in Indiana,,

http://bloomington.craigslist.org/cto/1608927742.html

I don't know either of those two people just passing along the info, and I have no idea if the 2nd truck the guy would sell out right or is only looking to trade??

[BigMac]

Well here is my plan, I think. ;-)

From everything I have gleaned from this website, the 92-93 Club Cab frame is the same wheelbase as the Crew Cab Shortbed. Am I on the right track, they are both 149".?

The only major difference is the length of the drop center for the cab.

I talked to a friend of mine's Dad who builds custom trucks and hot rods. I described my dilema to him. He believes by modifying the floor of the crew cab and relocating cab mounts if necessary, it could be made to fit the club cab frame. Basically tubbing the floor in the rear to allow for the rise in the frame, and relocating cab and bed mounts to appropriate locations. This would allow the cab to set in the "stock" location without the use of a body lift.

This would allow me to drive my club cab truck up until I am finished reworking the crew cab and ready to mount it. I could by a 2wd crew cab to use the cab and bed off of, instead of searching for a 4wd.

Now remember I know enough about this stuff just to be dangerous, lol! So, to you guys with more knowledge, does this sound like a good plan. Anything I am overlooking? What do ya think?

Thanks,
Mac

[mattsoldmopars]

Yes,, your right the 1992-1993 Club Cab frame is the same wheelbase as the Crew Cab Short bed, they are both 149".

And Yes,,, the only major difference is the length of the drop center for the cab.

I now understand what you want to do, put a Crew Cab, cab on a Club Cab frame.

I guess anything can be done. Most people that do the swap just put the drive train in the Crew Cab, instead of the way you want to do it. I know when I had a CTD donor truck and a 1985 Crew Cab I was going to do it that way, thought it would be the easiest way?? And then to help even more off set the costs I was going to sell the Dana 60 axles (front and back) since I was going to use the CTD trucks axles, I am not sure about where you live, but out here you can get anywhere from $1000-1500 for the Dana 60's. I sold two sets in the last few years, and got I got $1150 for one set and $1400 for the other. Plus you will have a extra NP-205 t-case to sell and a transmission, etc,,

I have seen two people trucks that did the swap the way you want to do it, the 1st truck I saw the guy added a body lift to the front cab mounts and front core support area to compensate for the different frame drop. IMO it looked kind of chezzy.

The 2nd truck I saw that the guy did a Crew Cab, cab on a Club Cab frame, did it the way you want to, he reworked the rear cab body mounts and floor, to compensate for the frame drop difference, then he didn't need a body lift, it looked a lot cleaner that's for sure. Only thing though he told me that when he redid the back floor, to make it all work, the rear seat in the Crew Cab ended up being a few 3-4 inches higher since the floor was totally reconstructed. I am not sure if that would matter to you?? But he told me he road back there on a trip while his wife drove and it was kind of uncomfortable, because his head was basically touching the ceiling.

I saw his truck again a few years later and he showed me he redid the rear seat mounts. He cut almost 4" out of them to make the rear seat sit lower on the floor,, he said it was better then, but still kind of uncomfortable. With the rear seat almost on the floor now, he told me it is like riding in a Toyota pickup, and your legs just go straight out in front of you, and your knees are almost as high as your chest sometimes, because the seats don't have a drop to them like most full size truck do. If you look at most USA made (sold) full size pickups the seat's sit a lot higher off of the floor, this drop IMO is what makes them comfortable.

I never road in his truck but sat in the back seat so I could understand what he was talking about. I totally understood what he meant after I sat back there. I've ridden in a few Toyota's the darn seats sit almost right on the floor, and it makes it uncomfortable after a while IMO.

Matt

[tinner12002]

Have you checked with the guy in Walkerton IN? he indicates he has a lot of dodge truck parts. He usually has ads in IN truck and RV magazine.

[tinner12002]

Another avenue to check is to use a ford sterling rear axle from a diesel. I used one under my 91 club cab from an 89, there was only 1/4 inch difference in width and I had the advantage of the 3 inch wide springs. I cut the dodge hangers off and bolted the ford hangers on.