Anybody running rockwell 2.5T's??

[tallhoedude]

just wondering,did a search and didnt find much.Almost looks like a set of rockwell 2 1/2 ton axles could be put together cheaper than a d60/14b combo?
any comments????????????

[earl87gta]

that would be cool there is a rear rockwell on pirate for 300.

[bouncytruck]

There was a board member years ago who had a 72 running 44's with Rockwells and rear steer. He sold it and I haven't seen him around in years. Pirate or CK5 is more likely to have someone running serious running gear like that as many of those guys are more into hard core 4x4ing.

[tallhoedude]

ive seen some info on ck5 but the pirate site seems like its full of rude,smart assed people.not all are im sure but there just isnt the sense of community or wanting to just lend a helping hand to someone like ive always found here!
anyhow if anybody has some info on them.....im kicking around the idea.thanks for the input.

[earl87gta]

There is a guy on pitate down in Fla has a burb with a set . he likes to to give the smart assed people over there a hard time he has 22 in of lift he has posted some great pics of his drive train and lift set up. Ill try and see if I have them book marked. but he is the guy I would talk to for rockwell info.

[tallhoedude]

great,thanks for any help you can dig up!

[onetonk5]

Any thing in particular you want to know about them? I have had my hands on a few.....there very heavy...pinion brakes arent a great alternative to wheel brakes. Wheel brakes are pretty expensive....the good (there are 3 styles) axle shafts arent much stronger than a 60 shaft for the front. If you have much power and want rear steer(the only plus I see with rockwells) you will need to consider Overson(OEM) shafts. What else do you need to know.
Pirate used to be a decent site(been there since 2000) but there are so many know it alls(that dont actually know just recite what they have heard and now take for granted) but you can still get good info.

http://www.ouversonengineering.com/home

[BUDDY]

The biggest problem I can foresee with running the rockwells is that you have to run HUGE tires because of the gearing. 40" minimum. Just because of that, you obviously have to have a big lift or a lot of cutting.

Also, the steering will have to be addressed, not to mention the brakes. I agree with onetonk5 about the brakes. All of a sudden you have at least as much into you're rockwell "budget" swap as you would if you had built up the D60 & 14-Bolt.

If it's a trail only truck, it's probably not a problem, but if you still want to drive it on the street you have to take this stuff into consideration.

I guess the biggest reason rockwells are typically appealing is the initial cash outlay is usually much less than a set of 1-tons.

All that being said, I'd TOTALLY dig having a set to slam under my K5!! There's something about murderous overkill that just gets my blood flowin'!!

Just my .02,
Buddy

[tallhoedude]

yeah brakes are still in the air a little bit.

i was gonna run hydro assist.would prob have about the same $$ in that stuff as a 60 it looks like.

yes im a huge fan of overkill

im planning on running most likley the michelin 46's or irok 49's so gears arent the issue.

thanks for all the help so far.....keep it coming.......thanks

[Zoomad75]

As far as the brakes go, is it still going to see street duty or not? If it's going to be driven on the street, I'd say no to the pinion brakes and get the wheel brake setup. Reason being is stopping a 40" or larger tire is hard enough with one brake at the wheel. When you only use 1 brake to stop two 40"+ tires your going to be running stuff over.

Same could be said for the off road side too, but a lot of guys seem to get away with only the pinion brakes. Me, I'd get the wheel brakes even if it was going to be dedicated trail rig. I like overkill too, but I also like to stop on steep trails.

[onetonk5]

If it were me(I have had both) and were to build another rig I would run a 60 front again. Unless you want to do rear steer. I just dont see any benefits with rockwells otherwise....I know you said you want to run big tires(dont see the benefit of tires bigger than 44) so maybe rockwells would be better for you. With 46-49's your going to need to upgrade shafts in either axle...a d60 front will steer a good bit sharper than a rockwell(main reason for rear steer) With the pinion up so high on a rockwell unless you link it your going to have to address axle wrap somehow. Your also going to have to deal with a lot of other issues like knuckle boots and protecting them...figuring out brakes(rockwell wheel brakes are big money) and running enough lift to clear the toploader when your suspension is fully compressed. I just dont see any benefits of rockwells unless you want to spend big time money to beef them up....you can make them handle more tire/power than you can a 60f for the money....but its gonna take money to get there. With a non steer rear axle your going to have a BIG turning radius which is not going to be fun.

[Jtrux]

I don't think the brakes would be an issue at all, actually I think the pinion brake would be better. It i'm not mistaken the gear ratio ( only one available also ) is 6.72. If the brake is on the pinion it seems to me that it would have a mechanical advantage over brakes on the wheel axle. Just a thought.

[onetonk5]

Ever watched Monster trucks? Pinion brakes get HOT....lots of driveshaft speed compared to wheel speed

[Zoomad75]

call me a worrier, but there is something about the rotating mass of 2 46" tires and wheels that bothers me when trying to stop on one brake. yes, you have a 6:1 ratio but that means the pinon is turning 6 times faster than the wheels. remind me how it's going to stop two 46" (or any 40-50") tires/wheels from 40 MPH? I'm not saying it can't do it, but it does seem mighty stressfull to try and stop a two ton off road rig with 40" + tires on only two brakes.

I'd say onetonk5 hit the nail on the head with the other disadvantages to running rockies in a leaf spring equipped truck. Large wheels needed for hub clearnce, lots of lift to clear the toploader and you can't have much uptravel or you are going to be hitting the toploader into the oil pan.

If you have to go big, rockies are the way, but they also have thier own pitfalls.

[onetonk5]

I would think d60/14 bolt with 42's on recentered H1 wheels would be the choice I would do. You wouldnt have to be sky high and the stock axle shafts would last for a while. You do realize there are 3 different types of rockwell front axle shafts dont you? The only hardened ones are u joint style. If its a cost thing you can usually get into rockwells cheap....but by the time you get them ready to run you will nearly always have more into them than you would with onetons. You can run 15's on rockwells btw.

[tallhoedude]

wow,thanks for everyones input!theres a lot of pros and cons to each i guess i need to figure out exactly how much street use i need.I can get a set of the rockwell axles from a running and driving truck(and they are the ujoint style axles)for $300.00 for the pair.
Most of the mud trails and pits in my area swallow up my 42's on my tahoe.Thats why i want something bigger.uptravel isnt a huge concern.
Ive got some really goot ideas for traction bars frt and rear to control axle wrap on accel and braking.
i would really like wheel brakes instead of pinion brakes.i dont like the idea of pinion brakes on the street at all.thats just a lot of $$ for wheel brakes so far.like $1k per axle.
well imstill doing my 5.3 swap and body work so still have some time to decide.thanks again for everyones input.anymore,keep it coming.!

[BUDDY]

Originally Posted by tallhoedude

wow,thanks for everyones input!theres a lot of pros and cons to each i guess i need to figure out exactly how much street use i need.I can get a set of the rockwell axles from a running and driving truck(and they are the ujoint style axles)for $300.00 for the pair.
Most of the mud trails and pits in my area swallow up my 42's on my tahoe.Thats why i want something bigger.uptravel isnt a huge concern.
Ive got some really goot ideas for traction bars frt and rear to control axle wrap on accel and braking.
i would really like wheel brakes instead of pinion brakes.i dont like the idea of pinion brakes on the street at all.thats just a lot of $$ for wheel brakes so far.like $1k per axle.
well imstill doing my 5.3 swap and body work so still have some time to decide.thanks again for everyones input.anymore,keep it coming.!

If you can get them that cheap & have a pretty good plan for making them work, even with the wheel brakes you'll be around 2300-3000 for some pretty rediculous axles. Obviously, there will be some extra cost for the traction bars, but if you're smart about building them up I think you would still be able to use a 8x6.5 bolt patten wheel with the wheel brake upgrade.

Maybe I'm thinking of portals... if you come across a set of those for 300 bucks I'll take them!!

Later,
Buddy

[tallhoedude]

i will prob just run pinion brakes to startthings off and get the truck rolling.then look to upgrading later on.i wonder about a combo of frt wheel brakes and rear pinion brakes??using a adjustable prop valve?dont think ive seen any mix match combos.
looks like a couple places with wheel brakes and 8lug wheel pattern.set up for 3 1/2 to 4 1/2" backspacing.so that eliminates custom rims.brakes are around $1k per axle.thus thinking of the wheel/pinion brake combo.
well, like i said,thanks for everyones input.no final decisions made yet.ill keep everyone posted.............

[Zoomad75]

Well if mud's your thing your right you need lift, tires and not much uptravel on the suspension. Rockies, do plow a buch of earth since the center of the housing sits so low, but many have shaved the housings to a flat bottom for more under axle clearance.

[kylejamers]

another rockwell benefit is the improved driveshaft angle
almost 9 inches above axle centerline

plus to whoever said the shafts are "weak"
breakage is scarce even with the mentioned tire sizes-tallhoe isnt going to be running immense power either

the only true disadvantage i see (if built and maintained properly)
is wheel availability and/or selection

rockwells

[earl87gta]

here i a set of axles http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=580316