Issues With Big Blue!?!?!

[Nothing Special]

ArdWrknTrk wrote

Gary,
I think you are looking for an '86 to '91 Truck for kingpins or a '92-'96 truck for ball joints with bolt on calipers....

Actually up to '97 for the ball joint / bolt on calipers.  There was no '98 model year and as he said, '99 gets into a LOT more work.

And I think you're clear on this, but you're looking for an F-350 for the axle (either an F250 or F-350 with a 460 would work for the cross member)

[ArdWrknTrk]

Thank you for the correction.

I sometimes forget that only the 150's changed in '96 but the larger capacity 250 & 350 trucks continued the OBS through '97 models, and then the tooling change brought us the Superduty generation as a 1999 model

[Gary Lewis]

That makes sense to me.  Thanks for boiling it down for me.  Even I can understand that.  

[Gary Lewis]

Ok, I want to type this myself as I think that will help me retain it.  I'm looking for an F350 4wd truck with either a 460 or a diesel in the:

'86 to '91 range, which will have kingpins

Or the '92-'97 range, which will have ball joints and bolt on calipers

But, why not '83 - '85 F350's?  The 460 and diesel came out in '83 and would have the right cross member, but did it not have the D60 axle as well?  And the better-riding springs?

[Nothing Special]

Gary Lewis wrote

....  But, why not '83 - '85 F350's?  The 460 and diesel came out in '83 and would have the right cross member, but did it not have the D60 axle as well?  And the better-riding springs?

'80 - '85 F-350s had the same Dana 50 TTB as many F-250HDs (some F-250HDs had the Dana 44HD TTB).  So you probably could get the crossmember, but not the axle or suspension you want.

[Gary Lewis]

Ahh!  Got it!  (Got it, got it, ain’t got it.  😩)

[ArdWrknTrk]

I think you do get it....

But don't get a Bullnose era F-350 if you're looking for a D60 solid axle, because they came with the large hub  D50 TTB.

[salans7]

ArdWrknTrk wrote

Gary,
I think you are looking for an '86 to '91 Truck for kingpins or a '92-'96 truck for ball joints with bolt on calipers.

Thank you for that correction, I forgot the kingpins ended in 1991. I was grouping them in with the brakes. The brakes did not change to bolt on calipers until 1995 for the F250 and F350. 91-94 still used slide calipers with pins.

So Gary's options are:

85.5-91 F350 D60 with Kingpins and Slide Calipers
92-94 F350 D60 with Ball Joints and Slide Calipers
95-97 F350 D60 with Ball Joints and Bolt On Calipers

[Gary Lewis]

salans7 wrote

So Gary's options are:

85-91 F350 D60 with Kingpins and Slide Calipers
92-94 F350 D60 with Ball Joints and Slide Calipers
95-97 F350 D60 with Ball Joints and Bolt On Calipers

Shaun - I like the list as it helps me get my head around it.

However, I was trying to understand what Jim was saying about not getting a Bullnose.  So I turned to the Application listing, shown below.  And then I looked at the cross-reference guide and found that all of those outlined in red are D60's.  But, those shown as 30.4S and 30.4T are D50's.

So, does that say that some 1985's and all 1986's have a solid axle D60?  And, what is the "monobeam"?

[ArdWrknTrk]

Gary,
10/85 is definitely '86 model year production...
This was a 'running change'

Mono (single) Beam, aka D60

 as opposed to.

Twin Torsion Beam..  aka the D50

that was used on the rest of the Bullnose F-350's
............................................................
What I was saying is that all the 1980-1985 Bullnose F-350's would not work for you.

A late production 1986 F-350 should.
All the Bricknose F-350's, are kingpin.
Aeronose are kingpin.
OBS up until the lug pattern change are ball joint, but your wheels will fit.

I'm sorry if I am being confusing.

[Nothing Special]

Gary Lewis wrote

....  So, does that say that some 1985's and all 1986's have a solid axle D60?  And, what is the "monobeam"?....

I was thinking that the solid Dana 60 first came in '86, but it wouldn't shock me if it actually started part way through '85.  So yes, the last of the bullnose F-350s would have it.

And "monobeam" is Ford-speak for a solid axle.  Which in this range of years could only be a Dana 60.  So it's what you are looking for.

edit: I guess we were writing at the same time.

And for what it's worth, "TTB" stands for "Twin Traction Beam", not "Twin Torsion Beam".  The "Traction" describes it as the 4WD version of the older "Twin I Beam" 2WD front suspension.

[Gary Lewis]

Ok, I got it!  I think.  Mono beam = single axle = D60.  And 10/85 would be a 1986 truck, and it looks like that is the only Bullnose that will work for me.

I talked with the folks at the local salvage today and when I finally figure out for sure what years have the right cross member they'll see what they can find in other salvages.

Also, I talked with a friend at the local parts store, who is also a member on here - DeWayne/93F3507.3.  He told me about another place close that used to be a salvage but closed up shop.  He's pretty sure they'd have something like I'm looking for and gave me a suggestion on how to contact them.  I've tried and we'll see if they get back with me.

So thanks a bunch for helping me figure out what to look for.  

[ArdWrknTrk]

Gary, I just arrived at my brother's house in North Carolina this morning.

On one of the roads on the way here I passed by a salvage yard that is just acres of pickup trucks.
Most look fairly solid, due to the lack of salt I imagine.
I'm thinking that it can't be the only one in the country.

Even another Huck would serve your purpose.
Though a complete wreck or inop from a private seller or salvage auction would be cheaper and offer you more parts to flip.

[85lebaront2]

Damn, I'll bet you came right through Exmore too.

[Gary Lewis]

Jim - I'm sure there are trucks sitting around here as well.  But it is just finding them that is the issue.  I'm hoping that posting on social media will do the trick - when I know exactly which trucks have the right cross member.

However, the young man I sent the message to yesterday at lunch time hasn't read it yet, so maybe social media won't do the trick.  We shall see.

[Gary Lewis]

Doing a bit of research on the D60 swap and will use this post to catalog some things I find:

Rowdyredneck's swap onto his '84 F250 460/ZF5.  Good, but not a lot of info.

Mjonesjr's "how to" on the Dieselstop.  Lots of detail as well as a list of donors and needed parts.

God Of Leaf SAS Swap: This is a thread in FSB with lot's of links to other threads.  (Kind of reminds me of the old-time barber shops with mirrors on both walls so you could see off into infinity.)

[grumpin]

You could skip the D60 swap and invest in these for a lot less!

[Gary Lewis]

Yes, that would be a whole less expensive.

But, Big Blue would continue to be less than fun to drive for any distance.  There's an initial surge of "Wow, this is fun!"  However, that soon wears off after you've hit a few bumps.  

So, I'll continue to hope I can find just the right truck, and locally, for both the front suspension/axle combo and the cross member.  Hopefully on Wednesday or Thursday I'll have the 1990-99 MPC and can determine which trucks used the cross member I'm looking for and I can put the word out via social media and the salvages.

[grumpin]

I'm following with interest. These HD's ride rough!

My 1994 F250 had the extra spring installed up front, wow!

[85lebaront2]

Strange, my F350 rides pretty nicely unless you start hunting potholes with it. Must be the coil springs.