I talked to my dad about gears and a Limited slip, and he went for it. I met the owner of a 4x4 shop that everyone recommends, and the guy is super nice so I was convinced, so I talked ot my dad and since he is going for it, I am going to do this right now. He said to order the gears and LS and bring it to him, because he said I cna get better prices on the internet. He said the ford racing gear are good, and that I should just get the Ford Trac Lok LS, because it would suit my needs, and if it goes out, it is easy to replace the clutches. So where is the cheapest place I can get gears of any kind that are good, and the Ford LS. Summit has good prices, but does anyone know of another place? Also I have a 3.31 right now, I dont know if I should go with a 3.73 or a 4.10, I will drive on the interstate on occasion, coming from baton rouge to new orleans when I am at college next year, but that is only 60 miles and other than that I just do alot of city driving. I have shorter tires than stock, 275/60R15s ~ 28" tall, so I believe my 3.31 is acting like a 3.42 or something, so which gears would yall choose? Also dont I need a 31 tooth Spline LS?

I found this place http://www.speedconcepts.net/ford_ra..._and_gears.htm

 

I would go for the 3.73, it isn't too low for the interstate driving and will still give you a better take off. As for spline, I assume you have a 9" you could have a 28 or 31 spline, you need to physically count them. You might be able to get it from you tag but I doubt it. Remember that you will need to recalibrate your speedo.

 

The legendary 9" was fully phased out of production in 1982.......your truck has the 8.8 and will have 31 spline axles. The 28 splines were only put in the shorter width mustangs and rangers/explorers. Also, I personally wouldn't bother with one of those wimpy trac locs from Ford. they are notorious for wearing out fast, but I would say a gear shop knows more about it than me. I was thinking more in the lines of a clutchless Eton. More expensive, but no clutches to wear out and works alot better.

 

3.73 the 4.10's will be a little to high.

 

I've had 3.73's in my 95 F150 ext. cab for about 6 months and they feel like the perfect gear ratio to me. Excellent around town acceleration and the highway revs. are bearable, of course I stepped up from 3.31's so it feels like a night and day difference.

I vote for the 3.73's


Keep on truckin ...Mike

 

Beastie what happened to the blower we discussed?!! People like the Ford Racing Gears because they are pretty much bolt in without alot of adjusting and shimming. Or so I read. They are hard to **** up.

 

Fordtrucks, going from the 3.31 to the 3.73s made that big of a differnece? Please Please tell me what you think about them.

Summit has Ford Racing selling the Auburn and Trac-Lok and there isnt much of a difference in price, which is better if anyone knows, I want smooth operation like the trac-lok gives.


http://store.summitracing.com/partde...FMS%2DM4204A31

or

http://store.summitracing.com/partde...MS%2DM4204F318

 

Since you have such short tires and your rig is a 2wd, I see no reason to go with 4.10 gears. I say stick with the 3.73's. Those should be perfect for your needs. And like someone else said, make sure you get your gears for the 8.8" rear end, as the 9" rear end was completely phased out in 1986.

However, I would look into an aftermarket LS. Why get the clutch kind knowing they will go out sooner than a clutchless LS? I think my factory Traklok is pretty much shot so eventually when I get some money I'm going to go with a locker of some sort, not sure which kind yet, but mine will serve dual purposes-- better street as well as off-road traction. Although with 35" tires, it's not as though I'm having too many street traction issues...LOL mainly when the streets are wet. Any ways, just my .02, but ask the 4x4 guy about some alternatives to the Ford LS.

 

Well I ordered the Ford Racing 3.73 gears and the Ford Racing Auburn HD Limited Slip, with the Cone Type Clutches. It supposably lasts longer than the Trac-Lok. I got all this stuff from Summit and should get it at the end of the week and have it installed this weekend.

 

Beastie , upgrading from 3.31's to 3.73's made a very noticable difference. If I had to choose 3.73 or 4.10 again I would still choose 3.73. The gears that I were from Ford Racing and the guy that installed them said they were very easy to put in.

Unless you are going for the ultimate street warrior that will see little highway use I would go 3.73's. Just my opinion.


Keep on truckin' ...Mike

 

Has anyone ever heard of the auburn? Isnt it also true that in our older trucks, the speedo does not need ot be calibrated for a gear change, because it reads the speed by some other means, and the only time it needs ot be changed is if it has different diameter tires?

 

That's a good question about the speedo calibration. I can't remember exactly where they put the speedo gear, but I know it's expensive as hell to change in my truck! However, I was under the impression that if I did a gear swap that put my gear ratio/tire diameter back to the factory ratio (or close to it), my speedo would be back to normal. Maybe I was misinformed or possible assumed something that was incorrect. However, if your speedo is affected by the gear swap, all I know is that your speedo will indicate that you're traveling faster than you really are by roughly 12.7% in your case. Maybe someone else knows more about the location of the speedo gear and whether the speedo is affected by gear swaps in your (our) year of trucks.

BTW, I've heard of Auburn LS, I see plenty of their ads in off-road magazines. I haven't heard anything negative about their products.

 

Speedo readings come from the transmission. So as TF was saying if the origional factory ratio is maintained through tire/gear combinations the speedo will remain basiclly accurate. Anything that changes this ratio (bigger tires or changing gears) will affect speedo readings.

TF, My factory LS gave out on me several years ago and replacing it with an aftermarket unit was too expensive. So I came across an alternate clutch stack method that was posted on The Corral and also came recommended by Randy's Ring & Pinion. Don't bother going to the Corral website I was just there and unfortunately it is no longer up. I found it to be extremely stronger at lock up then the factory setup was and I'm very pleased. Plus if the clutches wear out again, $80 and it's better than factory again. I've been running this setup for about 3 years now. Just my opinion.

 

Sorry I stand corrected, my Chilton's manual miss lead me again. As per the Randy's Ring & Pinion website; "Ford trucks with an LED odometer use the differential ABS ring to signal the speedo. Changing the gear ratio in these trucks does not require re-calibration. However, changing the tire size does require re-calibration by a professional. " I guess somebody would have got me on it sooner or later.

 

92-96 trucks do not require a recalibration when changing gears, the vehicle speed sensor is in the diff and senses carrier RPM. Be sure the new Auburn carrier you have is compatible with this feature. It MUST have the recess for the exciter ring or it won't work.