Dana 60 under a m37?

[southdave]

sorry, about d60 thing.. my axle are out of 77 C 30. I will post pic next week when I get home.. I am used to dealing with fords therefor any one ton axle is d 60 ect..

 

[jollyroger]

It was possible to get a front D60 in a GM 3/4 ton truck. It was even possible to get a GM 1 ton with a D44 front axle. Dodge is the same way.

UGGGHHHHH!

Let's not get into a debate over the FACTORY OPTIONS available for GM trucks from 1973-1992. For the purposes of this coversation the FACTORY OPTIONS for GM trucks is an acedemic discussion that will lead this thread completely off topic.

I used the word only in my post. That was a mistake on my part. Only denotes an absolute to the AVAILABILITY of an axle from the factory. There were many options available from the factory but axle options were pretty specific and the factory options for front axles in GM 4X4 trucks was very specific. Not absolute but very specific.

I was trying to demonstrate what would TYPICALLY be found for axles under a civvy GM 4X4 truck from 1973-1992.

What I was trying to say in my previous post is that one needs to crawl under whatever truck they are getting an axle out of to make absolutely certain they are getting the axle they want.

 

[Elwenil]

Sorry but if you post an absolute that is incorrect, someone is bound to come along and correct it or at least call you out on it. This is not to put you down in any way but as a service to people on the forum who may take the statement as truth.

 

[jollyroger]

Sorry but if you post an absolute that is incorrect, someone is bound to come along and correct it or at least call you out on it. This is not to put you down in any way but as a service to people on the forum who may take the statement as truth.

Oh! I see.

So to post an absolute that is incorrect may be a disservice to people on the forum who may take the statement as truth.

I disagree with your statement that GM used Dana 44 front axles under 1 ton trucks. I also disagree that GM used Dana 60 front axles in 3/4 ton trucks.

Please read these two links:

Pirate4x4.Com - Extreme Four Wheel Drive

Pirate4x4.Com - Extreme Four Wheel Drive

Also Google Dana 60 front axles and click on the Wikipedia link. If you look in the GM application section of that link it shows 1 ton only for Dana 60 front. No mention of Dana 60's being used in 3/4 ton GM trucks like in the Ford and Dodge application sections.

ALL information as presented on a forum should be 100% accurate. I agree. However I think sometimes we all take ourselves a bit TOO seriously on SS. And sometimes we should take a post in a forum for demonstrating a guideline more than a rule........

To reiterate the point I was trying to make in my original post. If you want a Dana 60 front axle you should crawl under the truck and identify the axle as being a Dana 60 front appropriate for the application you want to use it in.

 

[southdave]

Well my major concern is wheather it going to look goofy, or should I say how goofy. oh well I find out next weekend when I get fully moblized for it.. ( truck and parts all in the same place).

 

[jollyroger]

I saw a truck that had Dana 60 front, 14 bolt rear and Big Block Chevrolet engine in Reno. I bought a PTO from the guy......If I remember right he had the chevy power steering too....... This was about 11-12 years ago. He had it painted Navy grey. The truck looked really good. It was factory Dodge frame with the Chebby parts installed. It looked factory until you looked really close. He wheeled it almost every weekend on the Rubicon. I think it was probably one of the coolest, most capable M-37's I have seen.

I have aspired to build one like that since I got MY M-37 and stopped tearing dads M-37 up. In fact I was buying the PTO for an SM 420 transmission to go behind the Small Block Chevy so I could run the factory LU4. I have all the pieces. I just need to put one together.

 

[still standing still cyco]

definately keep us posted on your progress, ive got a lead on an old 6.2 Chevy 1ton i was going to get for parts for my M1010, and keep the axles for the M37, or just to have around just in case. and if you havent, be sure to check out the 4Wheel n Offroads Dumpster project. good stuff!!

 

[wdbtchr]

Resurrecting an old thread, I've been searching the M-37 forum for awhile looking for pictures of an M-37 setting on Chevy 3/4 ton axles. Had a bad night recently and as I do when the arthritis is acting up I was "daydreaming" about putting the drive train out of a rusted out '89 Suburban with low miles under my M-37. Not even a project but I was wondering how it would look on wider axles. I've followed sever links to other sites but haven't found the pictures I wanted so I decided to ask here, does anyone have actual pictures of an M-37 on Chevy 3/4 ton axles.

 

[JimC2]

What's the advantage of the Dana axles over stock?

 

[Tuko]

What's the advantage of the Dana axles over stock?

Better gear ratio, better brakes and strength come to mind, as long as he has the motor to drive the lower gear ratio that is....

 

[Lebowski]

Here some reading and pics:
http://www.g741.org/PHPBB/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=3896
http://www.g741.org/PHPBB/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=3450&start=15

Whole series of build vids:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pEBWg_L6Gos&list=UUz7hZe255fJvMVZMtmAXaoQ

http://www.maxbilt.com/project-mtrv
http://www.fourwheeler.com/features/1210or-everything-but-kitchen-sink-1957-m37/

 

[still standing still cyco]

I believe it was Hobart Welding that ran an M37 with D60f/14b combo in the Ultimate Adventure last year or the year before. It's a really sweet rig!

 

[JimC2]

What's better about the gear ratio?
The 5.83's will already go faster than I am comfortable with.

 

[tbone1004]

top speed has little to do with it, it's optimizing engine RPM at certain speeds. with most engines you want somewhere between 1800 and 2200rpm at speed with gears. Modern roads indicate you should have 35mph, 45mph, 55mph, 65mph, and 75mph as your target speeds. With a truck like this you really want to optimize for 30, 50, 70mph, and balance your tire size, gear ratios, and tranny ratios to accommodate.

 

[jimmystikx]

5.83s will have that poor pinion spinning just as fast as a drag car for way longer that a quarter mile pull. Not a good recipe for endurance, same goes for the rest of the drive line, even with O/D. 4.56s or even dropping in the 3.xxs will yield better highway manners and maintain offroad capability without trying to hunt down the oddball ring and pinion for the mopar diffs and the rebuilding of the oddball carrier unit in it.

 

[JimC2]

True, if you are building highway trucks. I've had a big block Chevy powering my stock 5.83's since the late 1960's, and have never regretted it, nor ever seen the need for higher gearing. My 37 has been up over 110 mph, but I find it quite uncomfortable at over 70, for reasons that have nothing to do with the gearing.

 

[gravely8199]

yes the pics are on here,but it is a narrowed GM d44 8lug,not a d60 front. m37 owned by coop. he had recently told me he was gonna take his albumn off the site. if you need to see the pic pm me with your email.

 

[viking1]

True, if you are building highway trucks. I've had a big block Chevy powering my stock 5.83's since the late 1960's, and have never regretted it, nor ever seen the need for higher gearing. My 37 has been up over 110 mph, but I find it quite uncomfortable at over 70, for reasons that have nothing to do with the gearing.

Jim, please post a video of your M37 going over 110 MPH w/5:89's; that is something I'd like to see before I die. If its possible in my M56R2 w/a big block, I just MIGHT die....

 

[JimC2]

They are 5.83's, if I remember correctly. Not 5.89.

Did it back in the early 1970's before the days of video and didn't take any 8mm film either. No way in h*ll would I ever do it again. That big block Chevy was really screaming, and I was scared spitless that the windshield was going to blow in on us. Not to mention that the steering is really squirreley at that speed. This is something you do only when you are young, and then only once.

My point is that the 5.83's will take you far faster than you want to go. There is no need for higher gear ratios.

If your Mopar will turn as fast as the Chevy, you should have more than enough power to get there. I was only developing about 375 to 400 hp; you should have more than that available from your 440.

 

[gravely8199]

screaming is right! assuming 35" tires thats over 6200 rpm out of a big block!