rickf

Has anyone done a 2WD to 4WD conversion on one of these? I used to own a 4WD shop in the 70's and did a lot of Ford and Chevy conversions but back then the frames were mostly the same for both so there was not a lot of fabrication to be done.

Rick

totalloser

I'd say go back to the type of stuff you were doing back then. The Dodge frontend is a pile of garbage compared to old skool front ends.

Get a Driver's drop Dana 60 out of a Ford for the high pinion and swing that under with leaf springs and you'll be WAY better off than the junk garbage joke that Dodge put under these trucks.

Problems eliminated with this setup compared to stock 4x4:
Frame flex from bad knuckle geometry, sloppy track rod (panhard rod) bushings, Funky CAD axle disconnect and LAME LAME LAME unit bearings, WEAK front brakes due to limited friction space to clear giant (yet weak!) unit bearing.

Probably a lot of other things like manual hubs and 35 spine inners, plus being able to put a ratchet locker or posi in the front (can't do that with the CAD enabled).

Hodge

I have no problem with the front axle of my truck. Perfect? No. Is anything perfect? No.
There have been posts on here where people have done conversions- did you do a search?

rickf

I did do a search but came up with only companies that want to do the work.
Totalloser, I like the idea of the Ford 60, I just put a king pin 60 under my 96 F250. Thing there is that it is a bolt in. I was wondering mainly what you guys have done as far as springs and tranny mounts. I am not all that worried about the high pinion because this is a street only vehicle and will not be used for heavy wheeling. I haul a truck camper with it. This is only for info at this point. If it is too much fabrication or money involved I will just look for a 4X4 truck.

Rick

totalloser

No problems with the front CAD axled unit bearing puny brake axle? Well to each their own, and there ARE perfect axles out there that would be MUCH PREFERABLE to the pile of garbage that Chrysler contracted Dana to make.

Personally I'd rather have a standard rotation due to having it push the drive side of the gear in 2wd on highway (RR drives the coast side and costs you efficiency and power) but I'm unaware of a driver's drop 60 that isn't RR. Besides, I'm in the minority liking standard rotation in the front. All the Fords I've seen (except old skool closed knuckle drum brake dinosaurs that is) were high pinion, and straight axle chevy's were pass drop along with old Dodges.

If you are looking to build a stock frontend, don't waste your time. It's a highly inferior system, and NOT WORTH DOING. Sounds like you really should just find a 4x4. A conversion IMO should not put the factory setup on. Its a bad system using HIGHLY inferior components.

Torch time for frame, leaf and shackle perches, 4x4 xm/xc xm holds xcase-no mount, front and rear driveshafts, hole for shifter, brake line issues and hook up steering link.

If you have rwal, no abs issues, but if you have 4wheel abs, you'll need to address the reluctor sensor on the front axle. The reluctor ring and sensor. Dynatrac has one they use on their aftermarket axle, and I've heard of people getting them by claiming it's a replacement part for a Dynatrac axle.

SIXSLUG

If you are looking for something better than stock, I'd go with totalloser's suggestions.

If you want a stock 4x4 I'd just get one rather than hassle with trying to convert a 4X2 to what they already make and is plentiful.

rickf

I have to agree, when it comes to torching the frame for modifications it is going beyond what I call economically feasible. I have the skills to do it but as was mentioned I am only looking for a stock truck. If I were building a heavy duty off roader I would build my own and use the best parts of each brand.

Thanks for the advice guy,s

Rick

Purplezr2

Never had a problem with my cad or bearings, I did have to replace both u joints last year and did the balljoints at the same time truck has just over 200k

totalloser

Well hey great. I don't think they are great though. I think the CAD engagement makes the 4x4 slow and clunky, the unit bearing is weak and unserviceable, and limits the friction surface for the brakes due to the large diameter.

The steering is sloppy due to the steering geometry, and goofy track rod and the brakes are so weak in the front that with the abs disabled I would lock up 35x12.5 DUALS in the rear before I could get rubber in panic braking. WEAK BRAKES. They'd also get smoking hot in a single stop from freeway speeds. Granted 35" rubber, but still...

All these problems go away with a leaf sprung Ford D60. Glad to hear that it works for some folks, but for the reasons listed, I don't think it's a decent axle if you are shopping for one. Doesn't bother me enough to make me swap mine, but it's certainly inferior to the other driver's drop option.

In short if you're gonna go through the hassle why not have something that is WAY better?

Incidentally my unit bearings lasted 240k then one went, and a couple months later another went. But some folks who put deep offset wheels on their rigs have them go pretty quickly. Very little deflection leverage on the bearings since they are so close together. Big tires obviously make all these weaknesses much worse.