So I got a few questions for everyone. My truck just rolled over 180k and it got me wondering about things. Trucks currently a
93 4.9 with a 2wd E4OD and stock 3.23's, a 3" body lift and 31's. I've been kicking the idea of going with an OEM 4wd swap but I'm gonna try a spool with a 3.55 swap and some 35" mud terrains. I'm building this truck as kind of an "all arounder". Main duty is a DD that will continue to pull my racecar. Secondly, it's gotta be able to make it around in the snow and I'de like to have the option of pulling people out in the winter. Now I know how durable the big sixes are. Does anyone know anywhere I could find some kind of performance parts for my potential rebuild? I've looked around and found that the carbed 4.9s have a healthy follwing for them but the efi ones seem to be the performance standard. I'm looking for something on the lines of maybe a stroker crank, some .30 over pistons, a cam, or maybe someone who could do some head work. I'm not looking to go crazy with this thing but would like to give it a kick. Next question, and I know this is gonna throw some people in a tailspin but if I can't get a decent amount of pulling grunt out of it, I have an efi 88 460 sourced out. What exactly would I need to do to drop this motor in as far as mounts or fitament issues into my half ton? See, I know the big block isn't small by any means and a hundred people are gonna say, just build a small block. But I would like to biuld a reliable motor meaning no crazy compression and no forced induction. Just a good healthy NA pulling motor. Also I will be staying with fuel injection. Thanks everyone!

 

IMO the spool is not a good idea for a daily driver,especially in snow and only 2wd. It will be hard to make corners. A selectable locker would be much better (but more money) !

 

I disagree... spooling is not bad if you have the tuning done correctly and conservatively. So far 2wd has pulled out cars and 4x4 trucks, and never got me stuck with weight and a great set of tires.

Plus I saw a great one yesterday when we had ice and snow... a nice new F350 4x4 couldn't make it up an icy hill. I went right up no problem... I just waved.

Besides, a buddy of mine has a 2wd Dakota that he uses every winter for hauling fire logs. He goes to these remote places with a box full of rocks, and dumps the rocks for fresh wood that he saws up. Plus he's got a good set of tires too.

It's all about the weight and tires.

 

DO NOT spool a daily driver!!!


Tires will wear like crap and you WILL break!


A selectable locker or even a cheap, fulltime "lunchbox" locker would be 1000x better than a spooled rearend.

 

no spools. not worth it for what you are doing. go with a "lunchbox" locker like MT said.

I know the 4.9's have torque on their side but id recommend something alittle lower in the gearing department 4.10's would be great with that motor and 35's.

doing a OEM TTB style 4x4 setup wouldnt be worth the hassle. A SAS with a DANA 44 or FORD 9" front would be easier and offer better results

 

What about a frpp trac-lok? What kind of rpms would I be at running about 60 using 4.10's? That's one thing I don't mind about the 3.23's is the fact that at highway speeds it runs around 1800 rpms. As far as the 4x4 swap, I would much rather have the straight axle. I just figured since the ttb is almost identical to the 2wd front end it's be pretty simple. And what about the engine? I have an 88 5.0 ho block currently residing in the back of my girlfriend's car for weight. I've done about a million fantasy/budget 347" builds, I'd rather save that for later. So to rebuild the big six or should I look into that 460?

 

If you run the 4.10's you will be be higher than 1800 but theres no 100% way of telling unless you know all your trans shift points and ratios. And still ive never got accurate results when using them.

You got to give alittle to get alittle. Going from 3.23 to 3.55 is a waste of money, imo.

The 5.0 would be BLAH IMHO. The 460 would be great. I thought about swappin one into my truck but decided DIESEL wold be a much better choice for me.

The SAS would be as easy or close to as easy as a 2wd to 4wd swap using the TTB. And it would offer everything that you would need to handle more power from the 460.

Overall i think a built 300 will be more reliable then the 460. but im not sure thats just a geuss

 

http://www.4lo.com/calc/gearratio.htm

With 31's and 3.23's you should be doing 1500 rpm at 60 if it's in OD and 2100 in 3rd with a locked converter. 35's make that 1320 and 1860. In that calculator, use 1 for tranny ratio in 3rd and 0.71 in OD, and 1 for transfer case ratio.

 

Would it be worth getting a trac-loc? Somethin like for a fox body? I just got in from movin the truck around the back of my house and got stuck lol. I know right now my biggest problem is the tires...sold it to a kid and he just wrecked it up so I got it back from him and he said he rotated the tires. Turns out he burned all the tread off with the one tire fires so he "rotated" the back tires and managed to shave it too. Also, I know the 2wd and the 4wd rear suspension is different. Is there any advantage to either?

 

not sure how the rear suspension would be different. Still leaf sprung just like all FORD trucks.

the 4x4's overall are slightly taller than 4x2's

trac-locs will work.

 

Ok, so I moved the bastard the other day and guess what...sunk again Nothin like seein your lifted truck layin frame in the backyard for motivation lol! So would a dana 44 out of a dodge fullsize be the ticket? Seems like ford solid axles are a little hard to come accross in my area but these junkers seem to use rams as lawn ornamants haha. If not, what kind of truck should I keep my eyes open for? I figured since the rams use coil springs like the ttb's, they're 1/2 chassis, and they're a solid axle it should be a close bet. Also, what transfer case would you guys recommend? I'm not up to par on my 4x4 truck lingo or parts so any help is greatly appreciated!

 

Dont run a Dodge front end. they are low pinion and have a poor hub design.

get your hands on a D44 from an OLD F150 thats already setup with coil springs and radius arms. This will be by far you best bet.

Also if you dont want to change your transmission, look for a NP205 Divorced T-case to mount behind it, you will have to make a diaper and crossmember for it but its better than droppin the trans.

 

Yeah, right after I posted that I started looking around and realized that a dodge axle was different. So from what I collected I'm needing to find a 76-79 F150 for the axle as my best bet. As for the divorced 205, that acutally goes behind the transmission, then the driveshaft goes into the back correct? Then I'd just need some kind of front driveshaft to run from the t-case to the dana? Would I need a shorter rear driveshaft? I see that the 205 is ~14" long so I assume I'd have to take that out of the shaft. Next question is about the radius arms...I noticed even the same year 2wd and 4wd arms are a little different so would I use the arms off the dana or the arms I have? Mine are already rubbing my 31's so I know it's gonna be a problem when I go to the 35's seeing as they're two inches wider. Appreciate the help guys

 

Update! I found an awesome deal on a stock 92 ttb and t-case and am going to pick them up this weekend. I just sold my racecar so ol Samson is top priorety now. I know sas is best but budget wise I definetly think this is best for now. I'm debating pickin up a 351w efi and givin it a refresh with maybe a cam and some head work for somethin to play with since the car's gone. The BB sounds fun but I've been reading alot and I keep hearing somehow the 1/2 ton and 3/4 ton front frames are a little different and a 460 won't fit in? No one can say how they are different so I'm not to sure about dropping the bad boy in there. Maybe next year when I can save up a little I can get my hands on a stright axle but I'm sure the ttb will work for this winter at least