1 ton axles on f250?and many more ??

[castlesburning]

first how do I upload a photo in my post??
I have 84 f250 na 6.9 4x4, the 8 lug nuts are 1 1/16", my bro says they are 1 ton axles?
how can I tell which dana or whatever I have?
why would I not want to "perma-lock" (weld) the front end and put electric locker on the front? it seems to me that i only use the 4x4 when its really bad so why WOULDNT you want the front locked in?if you thought the rear wasnt going to be enough?
why would a body rebuild injectors when you can get new ones for 50 bucks more?
which injectors for my truck?
how high can I raise the springs over the axles before my steering geometry is messed up? I could probably build my own shock mounts but how do I determine where the shock mount goes in relation to what size shocks do I use? i would like to have 3 more inches at least of wheel travel.
I plan to jack the truck up,
unbolt the ubolts, then lift the truck chassis above the axles, i will have some type of solid blocks and the longer ubolts to mount between the axle and spring.
can I re4ally just take apart a few different spring packs and add leafs to what i already have??

why the heck is there just 1 inch of clearance in the front springs??

these springs seem very wimpy for the size of this thing.

 

[sootman73]

whoa slow down killer! i can't even remember the first question after reading that post! all your questions will be answered in time.

there isn't a difference in axle types between 3/4 and 1 ton other than size of springs. find your axle code on the drivers door jam. and heres a link to what that means:

http://www.ford-trucks.com/article/idx/0/022/article/Ford_Axle_Code_Chart_.html

locking the front end really isn't needed unless you are in major mud with really big tires. i would not weld a front diff just because pieces can come loose and the grenade the gears and if you have the hubs locked could cause you to lock up a tire. if you want to lock it like i am thinking about just get a selectable locker.

for injectors some people have them rebuilt because then they know they got 8 injectors with good spray patterns and equal pop pressures. new ones can be a crap shoot from many but not all places.

the front end is tricky on these trucks when it comes to lifting. they are a twin traction beam independant suspension. i put some add-a-leaves on mine for about an inch and it didn't change much in the camber angle. made a difference in ride and height though. if you want more lift than that you will either have to buy or fabricate drop brackets for the center pivot points of the axle. i would not add leaves and not the drop brackets or your tires will point in quite severly at the bottom and wont last very long. back end blocks are fine and i wouldn't go more than 3-4 inch blocks with out a antiwrap bar.

you having one inch between springs and bumpstops is more than i used to have. it was a compromise between payload and comfort when ford built these trucks. there was more demand for a smoother riding truck than previous trucks they built. they also aren't arched springs they are flat unsprung so that is probably why they look funny.

well i think that was everything!

 

[Hyde]

So from what I got out of the jumble you wanna put blocks on the front. Quick answer... NO. Just dont do it. You most likely have a TTB dana 44 up front too

 

[Redneck]

yeah, i also see a reference to blocks.
blocks are bad.
when you torque on the axle, it can spit that block out, which gets really gay really quick.
Ain't nuttin wrong with welding your diffs up, if it's an off road only truck, but I wouldn't ever drive a welded diff on the street again.
If you wanna "jack your truck up" do a solid axle swap, don't waste your time with the TTB front end, just find an F350 and steal the front end out of it, make sure to match gears. I'll say that again. Make sure you match your gears, it'll also get really gay really quick if you don't.
TTB is a combination of the worst of a solid axle's characteristics, and the worst of a "normal" IFS front end. It rides like crap, sucks to do an alignment on, goes out of alignment really quick with offroad use and or a lift, is a ***** to work on, a ***** to lift, just general suckage. Solid axles are where it's at.

Determining shock length/shock mount location- Just so you know, this is how I set up 4x4s, I dunno if it'll work for your application, cause you're probably not wheelin like we do up here.

first, what length shocks do you want? Lets say 10" travel for ***** and giggles.

Mount your shocks at the axle end to the front axle, but not the other end.
Compress your shock completely.
lift your driver's front tire till it's on the bumpstops.
Where ever the top of your shock's at, you want your shock mount about 1/2"-1" above that, I don't like to fully compress shocks under load, it's ******* the internals.
Now you will also want to check how your droop is, so you want to lift the passenger's front tire till it's on the bumpstops.
Go back to the driver's side, and extend your shock fully.
Does it reach the same place or beyond where the top of the compressed shock was?

if so, you should be good to go, if you're re-using your shocks.

otherwise, repeat the same cycles, but measure from upper mount to lower mount both compressed and drooped, those two numbers will give you your ideal compressed and extended lengths for shocks, it's up to you to determine a happy medium, depending on how you set up your travel, personally, I run 12" travel shocks on my wheeling truck, with about a beer can of uptravel available.

 

[k_williams1982]

I can agree on the lifting a truck with the TTB setup. Even though mine is a F350, it's an early '85 and Ford didn't put the D60 in ALL F350's until mid '85. I just spent two days fixing a camber issue and "leveling" the front. Get rid of the drop brackets and IFS setup and roll a D60 under the front (that's waht I'm gonna do too). Stay away from any blocks in the front. I kinda "bent" the rule when I leveled mine, but I didn't really "lift" the truck like you're talking.

I wouldn't weld the front to make it a locked differential. The truck will "walk" quite abit already in four wheel with the wheels turned hard, and I can't even imagine what would happen trying to steer with the front locked.

As for the adding leafs... Yes you can, but too much with an IFS front axle will mess up the camber and eat tires fast. You will need to cut the old center bolt and install a new one to hold the pack together (bolts are about $6 @ NAPA each - one per spring pack), and you may need longer U-bolts as well.

Hope this helps.

 

[castlesburning]

a few moe questions...suspnesion, injectors..

ok thanks guys.
so if there are just a few places to get quality injectors where and who??.
when i do the new injectors do I need the timing set?? (im guessing yes.)
anybody used the fuel lines sold on ebay for 35$??
I am NOT trying to go crazy with my truck. I want to maintain the MAX stock parts and drivability, with max wheel travel. really only looking for a few more inches of ground clearance; so the suspewnsion will articulate just a little bit more. there are a few trails that I just cant stay on because I have a wheel hanging 2 inches off the rocks and I slide until that 4th wheel(tire) makes contact again. just like 2 more inches,
and in the middle of the truck where that wierd ass counterweight looking thing hangs down in the middle of the crossmember; ( what is that thing anyway??)
just need a few inches to not get hung up on rocks in the trail.
I have no idea if that makes sense. say from 1 inch to 4 inches. I kinda figured the ifs was not so good.
so, I need the solid axle. which is great since I just rebuilt the hubs, bearings lockouts and brakes on the IFS. perfect...
no blocks. dont weld the front. got it.
what is the difference between the bearing grease for disc brakes and the grease for drum brakes??
i am now thinking I need to keep the axles bolted to the springs and raise the frame off the springs with 2"-3" longer shackles?
this should keep the entire front end aligned except for the steering from the box to the drag link?
can I make the new longer shackles out of beefy steel angle or plate?
if i can make them out of plate or angle, then just need a different or modified pitman arm? or draglink?
I have searched the forum and found many partial answers.
thanks again

 

[Wanderer-rrorc]

ok...from a guy who KNOWS IT ALL TO INTIMATLY!!

if you have a twinbeam (twin tracton beam-TTB)..it is a D50..it uses some d60 outer parts..but is in its own on axles and aftermarket..at this point its an orphan..

if you lift it..you must put drop brackets on the center pivots otherwise your steering and tires will suffer..

solid axle swaps are easier..but they cost money...if your looking to follow people...I suggest a locker in the rear...if you weld the rear it will want to drive straight all the time..making your turning circle bigger (by quite abit in the mud...onroad wont be too bad..)..

locking the front isnt really needed most of the time...I did some serious stuff with a locked rearend and an open front diff...now with a welded front diff I tend to break alot of axles...and a d50 is already hard to find parts for..and there arnt any aftermarket upgrades I know of...


summary....
Keep it low (wont roll over as much..will feel safer too)
bigger tires for clearance...
lock the rearend..
a d50 will handle 37's fairly well on an abused rig...the rear is a d60 or d70...either will handle 40's and abuse..so dont even worry about it..

GO WHEELIN!!

and the thing hangin down is probably some sort of vibration damper..

 

[castlesburning]

thanks guys, i still dont know what a center pivot is?

 

[MUDKICKR]

i have a 6" lift kit im thinking about selling if you are interested. also depending on the trk it could be either a dana 44hd or dana 50 frt axle. if it has small lockin/out hubs (same size as f150) its the dana 44hd. the center pivot is the bracket that bolts the ttb to the crossmember. if you look at youe crossmember (under your engine) that is where it is at. also any add-a-leaf will require either a 2 1/2 degree camber shim or a lifted pivot brackets.

 

[k_williams1982]

I wouldn't recommend shackles on the front or rear of these trucks either... It starts to allow slide to slide play. There was a write up not too long ago about flipping the spring hangers though... Check the bolts that hold the drop brackets to the cross member too. Out of 4 trucks I've owned with the IFS setup, ALL of them either had loose or missing bolts.

 

[Redneck]

longer shackles in the back will LOWER your truck.
We have shackles that come off the hangers and hang UP to the leaf spring, longer ones put your frame lower in relation to your leafs.

best bet is to swap in a solid front end (pricey though, going rate's about a grand up here), get some new leafs with a bit of positive arch in 'em, some big tires, and cut the hell outta the body to make 'em fit. Lifting your truck doesn't get you any more clearance, because your axles are still in the same place. It raises the frame and drivetrain, but your axles are still only 8" off the ground, so that extra clearance between your front and rear axles won't do **** all when your front end is hung up on something.
Bigger tires are the only route to more clearance under the axles, and with less lift you have a lower center of gravity.

 

[Redneck]

center pivot is where the middle of your TTB front end is anchored to the frame.
the TTB front end is basically a solid front axle that's been cut apart and hinged on one side of the pumpkin, so that pivot has to be anchored, or when your wheels traveled up, the center would travel down and become a big ass trail grader.

 

[castlesburning]

ok, how much for the kit, and what does it come with??

 

[Redneck]

and if you go to a place like lordco napa partsource or whatever your local parts store is, they'll tell you there's no lift kit available for your truck, cause it's a diesel and no one makes heavy enough front springs to hold up our motor.
Build your own spring packs and you should be able to hold it up though.
Shackle flips are easy and work, you take the hanger and shackle from each side, flip it over, and re-mount it on the opposite side with the shackle hanging down.
You say you've had some wheelin trucks, so you probably have done your share of suspension based research.
Inboarded springs offer more flex, and you can still use stock components, just inboard your perches on the axles, and work out hangers front and rear.