superduty 2wd spindle/knuckle on obs

Daniel McCurdy

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Anybody ever tried this. the lower ball joint is the same the upper joint the part that goes into the axle is the same. the bearings are the same. it looks like it should just bolt in. I want to do this so ill have the 8x170 bolt pattern thats on the newer rear plus the brakes are a decent bit bigger. i dont know if the tie rod is the same or if the distance between the ball joints are the same.
 

chillman88

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Do it up and let us know! I'm sure there's a few guys who could benefit from it. Especially with OBS spindles getting harder to find. What year range are you looking at? I wouldn't be too surprised if the early 250+350 super duty models will fit since the front was still I beam.

Tie rod location isn't as critical, it would just change steering ratio a little bit. I'd be a little concerned if the taper angle for the tie rod is the same or not but I have no idea.
 

chillman88

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If that doesn't work, take a look at the whole I beam and see how different it is. Maybe the ball joint location is slightly off but the I beams mount the same? Just tossing ideas at you.
 

Daniel McCurdy

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Interesting, most places show the 97 and older ball upper ball joint as a different part number and says it wont fit. But a main ford parts dealer shows that same ball joint works on the 2wd models from 1987 to 2021 so i guess the upper ball joint is the same. Those same websites that says it wont fit, list alternate part numbers and some of them are the same as the newer joint.
 

chillman88

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Might be worth a trip to a local parts store that has both in stock and take some measurements with a caliper.
 

Double-S-Diesel

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I have in my shed a complete I beam from a 2003 F250 , minus the rotors, if anyone is interested if i recall , all brackets etc are even there, haven't looked at it for a few years , and its been 11 or so since i pulled it
 

chillman88

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I have in my shed a complete I beam from a 2003 F250 , minus the rotors, if anyone is interested if i recall , all brackets etc are even there, haven't looked at it for a few years , and its been 11 or so since i pulled it

If he doesn't want it I might. I don't NEED it, but I have an idea for a project that would be perfect for.
 

chillman88

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I had some spare time and wasted it on rockauto. Looks like the lower ball joint is the same. Upper looks very similar but is a different part number. I'm almost wondering if the part that presses into the knuckle is bigger on the newer ones? Really hard to tell from pictures.
 

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Daniel McCurdy

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From all the websites i looked at only one said the size of the 2 different upper ball joints and according to it the newer ball joint is .020 bigger than the older.
 
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