bullet proof TTB

[GOOSE]

I have had both. With a TTB set up it is a must to have a good spring shop build you a new pair of leaves. Once the leaf springs are up to *****, it will handle tires up to 35" and moderate off roading, snowplow duties, and hold up rather well. My brother's '95 psd F250 actually wore the rear tires out before the fronts when towing regularly and seeing work duty 5 days a week. 2 TTB trucks, 5 years of plowing and work duty, no breakdowns and good tire wear as long as the fronts were tight, new leaves were installed and the shocks were in good condition.

I am a huge D60 fan and am grateful my F350 came with one. A D60 will ALWAYS be an upgrade from TTB but if the TTB is what you have and you are ok with it, there is nothing wrong with that. ATTB D50 front is still way better than GM IFS front end. Good luck with your rig.

 

[Kevin 007]

I have had great luck with the TTB 50. Had a realy high mileage one also that was holding up great. the Spicer U-joints are great, so are the 1350. I have 1350's in mine now, new ball joints, stock hubs and an extra leaf and its doing great and I use 4x4 a lot. Of course not as good as a 60 or a closed knuckle axle, but I wouldn't say they are bad either. They handle well.

 

[riotwarrior]

Ok not sure why you want to waste MONEY on MORE moving wearing parts and bushings than a solid axle but eh...it's your choice...

Are you looking for STOCK ride height

Are you tryig to lift it?

AIR LOCKER!

ALLOY axles

ALLOY or super good ujoints

HI PERFORMANCE BALL JOINTS....if there is such a thing ....*****...Dats what KING PINS are for ....

NEW bushings everywhere....Maybe POLYEURATHANE! Or ...solid bushings and then grease!

IF liftig...

LIFT KIT and springs...

Some type of STEERING improvement....be it dropped pitman arm...or other means

DOM tubing for TIE rods and HI performance TRE's

Or IIRC super lift made a nice PRE RUNNER type of steering setup similar to this

You must be registered for see images attach

I just cannot comprehend the need to fix a dead horse, THE leaf TTB has SHORT beams that are pathetic and don't provide good articulation or steering geometry.

The longer coil sprung TTB offers a better (SLIGHTLY) steering geometry due to longer TTB's

SOLID axle ends all those extra parts breaks the steering down to a much simpler design....

JM2CW

Al

 

[gdhillon]

^ im no expert but that pic doesnt look right....if im wrong please elaborate

edit: just had a look at the steering tech article about ttb steering and alignment and saw their writeup on this setup ;p

 

[hce]

I got a question. What do you think is driven harder and takes more abuse on the components. A truck that bounces you out of the seat when you hit a pebble on highway or one that make the roughest trail feel like a highway. I am not saying that there is that much difference between a 60 and a 50 but I would bet without knowing it a person will drive the rough roads a little faster with a 50.

 

[Black dawg]

I am not a fan of d44 ttb (not a d44 fan though) in a 3/4 ton truck. The d50 is a good 3/4 ton truck front end, that like anything else, needs maintained.

the ttb setup is WAY easier on parts than gm ifs. The only thing that gm ifs has going for it (other than ride quality), is that even with everything worn out, they still drive pretty nice.

 

[bab029]

Relative robustness of the 50/60 aside, when you buy chassis parts, give these guys ( http://www.xrfchassis.com/ ) a call. They will either direct you to a dealer or ship you some direct. Competitive prices and a top notch product, warranty (1,000,000 miles...), and company. I've had a full setup on my 2wd for 2 years now, beating it up and down the oilfield roads around here. Still tight as an old whiskey barrel.

 

[hce]

I really should have posted this first. This is a thread about building D50 not about how bad you think a D60 is or how terrible you think a D50 is.

 

[riotwarrior]

I really should have posted this first. This is a thread about building D50 not about how bad you think a D60 is or how terrible you think a D50 is.

I'll see if I can locate the D44/50 hybrid a guy made...a LONG arm D50 by cutting and joining the D44 arms...and a bunch of other stuff he had in a Bronco...

D44 TTB are used and USED HARD in pre-runner 4x class trucks all the time, cut turned knuckles and so forth...over jumps and whoopdeedoos etc....If they can handle that level of intense abuse, then a decently built D50 can be made to work for our trucks....

How about letting us know why your choice is to reinvent the wheel....and give explanation as to why you want to do this instead of an off the shelf 60 swap....which is quite simple and robust BTW

The price of doing all the custom fab and such on a bullet proof 50 would more than pay for a 60 and some! just saying...

 

[Can30Diesel]

I've run into a few TTB fans over the years, generally people feel that this system offers a softer ride and others just want to stay with the stock system. At the end of the day a bullet proof TTB is a meticulously maintained one. Use high end consumable components where traditional failure points are, rotate the tires regularly and springs that function as they did from the factory are all going to play a roll in the bullet proof TTB.

 

[GOOSE]

Rear TTB

http://www.supermotors.net/getfile/213299/fullsize/rear ttb.jpg

Here's a nice write up on long travel TTB

http://www.off-roadweb.com/tech/0904or_do_it_yourself_long_travel_ttb/

nice go pro video of TTB in a ranger or Bronco 2, I like the steering set up

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQQwfpFWm-0

TTB in a Chevy avalanche. Awesome setup, post #63 on the third page has a real nice picture of his end result.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/gene...3-daily-driven-long-travel-4x4-avalanche.html

Look at the steering on the Avalanceh. You want the joint in the steering to match the pivot point of the ttb member. This keeps the tires from changing geometry as the suspension articulates.

I would say that if you are in search of the ultimate TTB set up you need to start with the D50, ditch the leaf springs for some coils, make custom long a$$ radius arms and do your homework on the steering setup. That's your bulletproof TTB.

 

[lotzagoodstuff]

Some of you may think im crazy and might say I would be better off with a solid front axle but I dont want a solid axle. I am in the process of rebuilding a 1988 f250 4WD and I want to build the front end strong. I mean bullet proof! Im talkin total steering system upgrade (and yes I will be hydro boosting), tie rod assembly, front u-joints, pitman/idler arms, gearbox, ex... What are some of your guys ideas and companies to go with? Thanks

I had mine rebuilt with all Moog parts, spend the money on the adjustable upper ball joints and get it aligned right and it will wear tires just fine. Lots of high mileage D50s out there that work ok. Definitely not as strong as a D60, and as far as the ride quality: I've never ridden in D50 or D60 truck that was "plush". If you're looking for a "boulevard ride", get an old Buick Deuce and a Quarter

 

[Kalashnikov]

Well if you INSIST on staying with a D50, I would replace everything and convert it to coils. Maybe see if you could upgrade the steering joints to a bigger size and do the Superlift style set-up. Manual hubs for obvious reasons. That's about it for options.

 

[lbzbuick]

Ok well I would think that alot of people on this site would understand about building a ttb stronger. Many of you are saying "You are wasting your time", "you are beating a dead horse", "d60 is the way to go and alot better".... Hey guess what, all powerstrokes, duramaxs, and cummins are more powerful and have more torque and get more done faster than any of our stock engines do? So why dont the people that think a d60 or solid axle is the only way to go because it is more robust just go buy a different truck with a "stronger" engine?????? Maybe because you like what you have but you just want to improve on it? Maybe you want to take what most people consider "junk" or "a waste of time" and show them its not bad and educate them? Well I indeed like IFS and I want to improve on it. Im not putting big tires on or lifting the truck. I am going to plow snow with it and I am building an engine and have some ideas that might make more power than stock and I just want it strong... Whats wrong with that? I want ideas on how to make the TTB stronger and I do not want to hear about swapping solid axles in! Thanks for the people that are helping me.

 

[NO_SPRK]

Maybe you should go to a baja ford forum. Those guys won't bash on you and should know plenty about the TTB.

Ok well I would think that alot of people on this site would understand about building a ttb stronger. Many of you are saying "You are wasting your time", "you are beating a dead horse", "d60 is the way to go and alot better".... Hey guess what, all powerstrokes, duramaxs, and cummins are more powerful and have more torque and get more done faster than any of our stock engines do? So why dont the people that think a d60 or solid axle is the only way to go because it is more robust just go buy a different truck with a "stronger" engine?????? Maybe because you like what you have but you just want to improve on it? Maybe you want to take what most people consider "junk" or "a waste of time" and show them its not bad and educate them? Well I indeed like IFS and I want to improve on it. Im not putting big tires on or lifting the truck. I am going to plow snow with it and I am building an engine and have some ideas that might make more power than stock and I just want it strong... Whats wrong with that? I want ideas on how to make the TTB stronger and I do not want to hear about swapping solid axles in! Thanks for the people that are helping me.