truck talk

[machinist@large]

yeah i think maybe i should have got a truck with less rust. but im dealing with it.

thinking about getting a Dana 44 front axle. because i added up all the costs for lifting my TTB and it would be at least $700 plus the headache i hear you get with TTB..

i HAVE to lift it at least a little with these 33's. i wont even go offroading because i know ill bottom out. i have to be gentile over bumps and take wide turns

the axle im looking at is from a 1979 bronco... but it has 3.15's and he has 4.88's to put in it. i dont think my truck has those ratios.

Quick question, Blue; does the truck still have the original springs? Never been changed or tinkered with? If they're factory, they've most likely sagged with age. Find a spring shop in your area; they can check them for you, and if they've settled, they can re-arch/ re-size them for you for a lot less than a lift kit/ axle swap. Just an idea.

 

[Bluethunder3320]

the rear has leafs from a '96 and brand new shocks so that sits pretty high. the front has original coils and shocks.... they are so rusted and worn that im sure they are sagged a little. but i dont think very much.

just confirmed my truck as 3.55 gearing so the dana 40 wont just swap on. i have to change gears.

 

[devino246]

No, I couldn't decipher your post. Little hint for you- "Toystory_4wd". Been there, done that. I am all too aware of the implications, characteristics, and mechanics of a live axle* equipped rig. FWIW- The reason you hear people whine about the handling is the very same reason that 4x4's and SUV's are what they are today. Far too many lululemon wearing, pinot-sipping, Leaside Lucy soccer mom's kept buying them for no purpose other than keeping up with the next idiot doing the same. These same upper-class twits never carry anything heavier than a shih-tzu in the truck, and heaven forbid it get a speck of dirt on it. When they are presented with the new car purchaser survey, they are presented with the same question. What would you like improved for next year's model? Well, poor Lucy just can't help but think about the potholes on Main Street, and those horribly annoying speed humps in their lovely, "gated community". So they say, "I want a more car-like ride". And so it becomes. Why? Because all these Leaside Lucy's and thier 3-peice-executroid wax-statuette husbands have the buying power. Car-like ride? YOU BOUGHT A TRUCK, DUMB@SS!!! This is why we now have all these pickups and SUV's equipped with IFS, IRS, torsion bars, coils, sway bars... Oh, and let's not forget that Lucy is waaaay too lazy to actually shift the dang thing into 4wd (so she can make it through some drizzle alive), and manual-locking hubs? GAWD NO!!! Poor woman may break a nail!!!

Dang! That felt pretty good!

Blue, the D44 is a pretty good bet. I have some experience with TTB lifts, and you DON'T wanna go there. Waaay more of a PITA than it's worth. The D44 is comparatively light, affordable, and up to the task of what you need to accomplish.

*"live axle" in the automotive world is synonymous with "straight axle", and does NOT mean "no differential".

Nice one!

im not really sure, if it is worth it anyways. the truck has some really bad things about it, such as certain parts of the frame and cab... but other things on it are mint, like the interior, rear suspension parts, hood, brake lines, its got a LOT of good parts in it.

or, i could save up for 6 months to a year and buy a really nice truck. something worth around 5,000.

but on the other hand i really see nothing to complain about with my truck. its been 100% reliable.. other than a minor problem i had when i first got it (bad ground cable)
never been stuck

what to do.....

Parts truck?

 

[devino246]

the rear has leafs from a '96 and brand new shocks so that sits pretty high. the front has original coils and shocks.... they are so rusted and worn that im sure they are sagged a little. but i dont think very much.

just confirmed my truck as 3.55 gearing so the dana 40 wont just swap on. i have to change gears.

So they're still 16/17 years old, and who know's how much they've been abused. Shocks are only dampers, so they won't affect height or offset sag.

 

[crazzywolfie]

So they're still 16/17 years old, and who know's how much they've been abused. Shocks are only dampers, so they won't affect height or offset sag.

i don't think that is not 100% true. my ram charger sat differently with the new shocks apposed to the old ones.

 

[devino246]

i don't think that is not 100% true. my ram charger sat differently with the new shocks apposed to the old ones.

Were these coilovers/overloads?

 

[91blaze]

I second the D44 idea. While you could save up $5000 and buy another car, why don't you put that money towards the truck. It may not be great now, but if you take the time to fix things right the first time, you will end up with something great in the end. After watching my brother go through car after car, spending more than he would on fixing up just one of them, I decided not to do the same. "91blaze" stands for my blazer I have had for nearly 3 years now. When I got the blazer, I swore I would never sell it, and instead fix it up and turn it into something really cool.

Think about this: each time you buy another car/truck, you lose all the progress you have made on the previous vehicle and end up with something that may have problems you didn't know about before you bought it. You will end up spending more money and being less satisfied with what you drive if you constantly buy and sell another car.

Also remember, the longer you own a vehicle, the better you get at working on it and figuring out problems.

 

[91blaze]

And yes, the old coils and shocks will sag. As far as I'm concerned, the Ford TTB is worthless offroad, so get rid of it.

 

[cumminsbayou4x4]

id say find a reacked truck that doesnt have a bent frame take the wreked cab off and put your front clip,bed,and cab on that frame use that frames motor and transmsion cause yours has the griding sound in over drive and you'd have a good truck you can get one from 500-1500 dollars

 

[fowler]

His cab is rusted out

The gear box isn't that hard to fix in patucular a manual
But the risk of cracking the boxes of these older cars is what u find

Just put a whole new clutch tranny and transfer case in mine
Started as a leaking transfer case gasket, but when I cracked it I found wear i couldn't let slip
Investigated the box and found the same
was cheaper to replace then rebuild

Id recommend what anderkart said just ignore it till it goes BANG

EDIT
On the gear lockout thing
Is that an actual safety feature or is it your conclusion
It sounds more like the syncros are stuffed

 

[crazzywolfie]

Were these coilovers/overloads?

no. they were just the cheapest shocks i could find. when i first got the ramcharger it sat funny. seem to sit level afterwards.

I second the D44 idea. While you could save up $5000 and buy another car, why don't you put that money towards the truck. It may not be great now, but if you take the time to fix things right the first time, you will end up with something great in the end. After watching my brother go through car after car, spending more than he would on fixing up just one of them, I decided not to do the same. "91blaze" stands for my blazer I have had for nearly 3 years now. When I got the blazer, I swore I would never sell it, and instead fix it up and turn it into something really cool.

Think about this: each time you buy another car/truck, you lose all the progress you have made on the previous vehicle and end up with something that may have problems you didn't know about before you bought it. You will end up spending more money and being less satisfied with what you drive if you constantly buy and sell another car.

Also remember, the longer you own a vehicle, the better you get at working on it and figuring out problems.

in most cases it is usually a good idea to invest in 1 vehicle but in blues case i think it would be better for him to save up his money and find a better truck to start with.

 

[devino246]

id say find a reacked truck that doesnt have a bent frame take the wreked cab off and put your front clip,bed,and cab on that frame use that frames motor and transmsion cause yours has the griding sound in over drive and you'd have a good truck you can get one from 500-1500 dollars

Main problem is that [in most states], the frame is legally the vehicle, so if he swaps frames, he's basically buying a new truck. That being the case, he's gonna run into major title problems.

no. they were just the cheapest shocks i could find. when i first got the ramcharger it sat funny. seem to sit level afterwards.

in most cases it is usually a good idea to invest in 1 vehicle but in blues case i think it would be better for him to save up his money and find a better truck to start with.

Could have been something funky with the shocks. Who knows.

 

[Kaptain Krunch]

Main problem is that [in most states], the frame is legally the vehicle, so if he swaps frames, he's basically buying a new truck. That being the case, he's gonna run into major title problems.

Really? i've never heard of that. normally the vin is on/in the cab or front clip, so theoretically if you changed the frame and kept the same cab no one would ever know. I have never seen a vehicle with a vin on the frame, but maybe im just not looking hard enough.

How do you think they did all those toyota pickup re-calls? no way they had to change the vins on all those trucks and re-issue titles and everything.

 

[Bluethunder3320]

hmm... or i can cut the fenders and save up for a better truck,

or do the SAS then when i get a new truck, move the axle to it and part out my old truck..

the parts i put into it are still parts, obviously theyve lost value being used but theyll still be good if i want to swap them onto another truck.

the tranny does NOT grind. just a constant "sssss" sound in od. not very loud.

 

[cumminsbayou4x4]

there should be a way to get by with he's old title cause the people who have deasils get by inspctions some how and they have all tybes of modifactions to them

 

[91blaze]

Main problem is that [in most states], the frame is legally the vehicle, so if he swaps frames, he's basically buying a new truck. That being the case, he's gonna run into major title problems.

Actually, the cab of the truck is the only thing that affects the title. People swap frames out of under trucks all the time.

 

[fowler]

the vins is on the cab or on the radiator mount
but usually there is a chassis number and an engine number that goes with the vin

know a few people who have taken modified cars though the pits and have got a please explain when they check the numbers

but thats just from not filling out the right paper work

if u are replacing a chassis with a factory one that is same or simmilar i dont see an issue
and i dont se a cop climbing under the car to check the chassis number

 

[Bluethunder3320]

im lucky i didnt have to get an inspection.... probably wouldnt have passed!

i ended up using a 81 1/8" belt with the smog pump delete. it was a PITA to get that off.

when i get the gaskets next weekend, im going to take off the intake manifold and remove the rail. plug the holes with bolts. and clean all the crap out of there thats been collecting for 20 years

 

[Bluethunder3320]

MY SHOCK TOWER BUSTED OFF. AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

my fingers point to the two pieces.. its actually in 3 pieces though

 

[crazzywolfie]

that sucks. this is why i have been telling you not to spend too much money upgrading things. there is so many rusty parts that are going to fail.