Well, things did not go quite to plan today. I did get the Axle swap completed and the oil changed. The majority of the day went to rebuilding the calipers and waiting for the new brake tubes to come from Phoenix.
I suppose the
mod will be next week as will the rear axle swap.
Now I will need to acquire a front drive shaft from an M1008 (direct bolt in replacement). The rear will need to be custom.
The front Dana 60 swap is fairly strait forward.
A few notes;
The upper brake-line mounts were not the same.
DOT 3 fluid is soluble in denatured alcohol (thanks Jack!).
For a factory height truck the front drive-shaft will need to be shortened (M1008 or similar should work).
The boarder patrol does not change oil.
The boarded patrol does not run wiring properly (more later)
The front brake lines on the 10 bolt and D60 are VERY different.
The turning radius has improved substantially.
1 ton springs add a bit of height to the front suspension. Notice the reverse rake in the pictures.
The ride with the factory shocks and 1 ton springs is great. It is very stable when running over boulders the size of my head.
A pair of yellow top Optima's arrived today. No pic but custom battery treys and dual side mounts to follow, eventually. Amazon had an offer of $155 each shipped. They seem to do it twice a year on the 34/78 yellow tops. Who could pass that up?
Pics