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here is my problem, i am wanting to replace my current axles with newer style one ton axles for reliability reasons as well as being able to get repair parts more readily. i have been searching for a dana 60 axle with passenger side pinion for a few months now and everyone i contact for one thinks they are made of gold, priced anywhere from 1500-2500 bucks for a junkyard takeout. i ahve a ford sterling for the rear, and am now considering using the front axle that i have. can the hubs from the rear axle be converted to fit the sterling rearend? i would then get a disc brake conversion for the front and go with that. main reasons for swap are that i want to center rearend pinion and also if i break something in the axles, i can get parts at local auto parts stores. i will be taking my truck to a fishing spot on the texas coast and it is 65 miles of nothing and the 4 wheelin can be pretty tough at times and if i break something i want to be able to get parts locally. from the beach to the closest auto parts store is about a 80 mile roundtrip. i am also dead set on keeping my budd rims also........throw me some ideas guys, i am going nuts trying to fiqure this one out. i have been told of a company that i can send my budd wheels to and they will cut the centers out and weld in new centers that will go onto the 8 lug hubs of the one ton axles at 150 bucks a wheel...........they only cut out the bolt pattern on the wheel and weld in new. any thoughts?.........one more thing- my father-in-law is a retired machinest and owes me lots of favors and it's time to put him to work again!!!
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one other question, can my original transfer case be indexed to the other side? what i mean is can i flip my transfer case to where the driveshaft is on the driver side? i can find tons of ford and dodge front axles for 250-500 bucks. it was just an idea....... -
Consult Stockton Wheel Company out of california. Running a t-case upside down may cause lubrication issues and/or leaks, not sure.
BuckyComment
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With all the time I've spent with my NP-200 in the last few weeks I don't think it would be a good idea to run it upside down. There are lots of passages and provisions in the castings for lubrication flow which wouldn't work properly with the case upside down. You'd also have to add a new ports since the original one would now be in the wrong locations.
I'd look at an aftermarket divorsed case, or possibly a different OE version if you want to try that route.Comment
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i have contacted stockton wheel, they said they could do the budd wheels to fit an 8 lug hub. i was reading the post of dana60 axle shafts on the m37 axles. it was a bit confusing with 2-3 topics going on in one post, however they were talking in one section of someone who put dana60 axle shafts into the dodge front axle and then about a guy who was able to mount the dodge hubs onto a corporate 14 gm axle. i know there are easier ways to do an axle swap, however they will not allow use of the budd rims, and as far as i am concerned- the budd wheels are the only wheels i want on my m37. the good thing is that i am not in a hurry for this and can look around to find what i need. i also found that old 1 1/4 ton trucks used the same hubs on somewhat newer axles. paul the syrup guy has been a lot of help on this, but i believe more input would be of some help also. thanks for your thoughts guys, and please keep them coming.Comment
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Axle upgrade
Your Sterling rear may have the metric lug bolt pattern which is different than many Dana 60 fronts out there. A cheap and widely available alternative would be to use a 14 bolt in the rear. Staying with 8 x 6.5" lug wheels front and back would be economical and easy to source.
A used D60 front should run $1k+/-. See: http://pirate4x4.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=32
Chevy and some Dodges are passenger side drops, and Fords are driver's side. Since Ford used divorced transfer cases in the '60s and '70s, you could get a Ford D60 front and then use a Ford divorced t-case (NP205 on '73-'79 F250, or Dana 24 on '59-'72) mounted in place of your NP200, which would be more desireable than flipping the NP200.Comment
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i have been looking at the corp.14 idea, i have read that the hubs from my m37 will work on the c14 axles with a little machine work. my father-in-law is a retired machinist and very capable of doing this. will the corporate 14 be strong enough to hold up to a cummins 4bt? there in lies one dilemma.....i am repowering with a 4bt and nv4500 trans. anyone have any experience with a 4bt and corp. 14 axles on their trucks? motor will be fairly stock in the beginning, i will be adding an intercooler to it also.Comment
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Didn't they run the 14-bolt rears in the bread trucks with the 4bt? From what I heard the weak link in that setup was always the Chevy automatic transmission. If it can haul one of those trucks around it should be fine for your job. Besides, they're common enough that there has to be some decent aftermarket support.Comment
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The primary issue with the 14bolt and the Stirling rear diffs will be gear selection. The deepest gearing available is 5.38 (I belive thats for either axle), which is along way from the 5.83's that you currently have. Plan on re-gearing the front and rear to 4.88's, as that is the only ratio that is common to whichever axle you choose, and the stock front axle.
I would look for a complete one ton truck rather than individual pieces, a whole truck can often be purchased cheaper than just a Dana 60 front. The Dana 44 front has been used under 3/4 ton trucks for over 40 years, I'm sure under reasonable usage it would stand up just fine. Unless your planning hardcore offroad playtime.
If you want to keep the mil-spec look, consider a set of Hummer wheels, they share the same bolt pattern as regular 3/4 ton trucks (8 on 6.5" ) and have the backspacing to work with the newer wider axles to retain the budd look. These wheels are 8.5" wide, with 7.5" of offset, and are 16.5" in diameter. A complete set of 4 can often be found as military surplus for less than $50 each.
The NP200 can be converted to a centered rear driveshaft with an adapter/spacer ring. Access to a machinist will make this much easier. The ring needs to incorporate both the bolt pattern on the rear park brake drum, and the M37 driveshaft flange pattern. The center hole must be reamed on both sides to different diameters to center the whole works properly.
Good luck and keep asking questions. Anything can be accomplished if enough money and ingenuity is thrown at it...Comment
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