1/2 ton to 3/4 ton conversion?

[chevelle]

67 longbed 1/2 ton im wanting to change to a 3/4 ton. What all would I need and what is my best/cheapest option? I want the benefits of bigger brakes and heavier duty suspension parts for towing an open car hauler trailer.

[chevelle]

Oh and I forgot to mention I have a 83 1/ton dually donor truck I can use. What parts (if any) can I use off of it?

[viking427]

Just plop the 67 body directly onto the 87 chassis and switch the rear over to a narrower single rear wheel axle (14 bolt or corp 10 bolt) - unless you fancy adding flares your 67 quarters.

[Tx Firefighter]

A 67-72 body swap onto a 73 and newer chassis is a poor fit. The 73-up frames have quite a kick up in them under the cab. You have to either channel the cab floor or install a body lift to get the cab high enough off of the rails.

[Old Truck Man]

A 3/4 ton truck has a thicker frame than a 1/2 ton.

[northerngmc]

What shape is your 1/2 ton chassis like?

I wonder if you advertised you wanted to swap someone frames and suspension if they would jump at it? I have seen 15 - 20 info requests to go from a 1/2 - 3/4 ton but this is the first I have seen someone wanting to go to 3/4 ton.

If the 67 in your signature? 1967 lwb, bigwindow, factory air (converted to Vintage Air), custom option,4.5- 6 drop, TBI injected 355, 700r4, 5 lug, daily driver If you were closer I would consider swapping you for my 68 frame!



Short of that I would consider finding a rusty 3/4 ton, remove the body, rebuild the chassis and then move your body and drivetrain onto it.

[northerngmc]

http://oklahomacity.craigslist.org/cto/4390739027.html



truck is original and has original paint original 283 with a granny 4 speed in it. rocker panels are rusty wood in the bed is rotten truck needs to be restored but is all therehasn't been on the road since 1993 was started last year.please contact Rick at 405887- 29nine nine no title

[chevelle]

I dont really have the money to do a full frame swap or buy another truck. Maybe I should just focus on "beefing up" my brakes, drivetrain and suspension
to help pull a trailer better

[GASoline71]

These old half tons are great pullers! Just make sure the brakes are up to snuff. Maybe look at swapping over to front discs. Unless you're pullin' some serious weight, I'd just focus on making sure the half ton has all the mechanicals working correctly.

If you're wanting to convert your lowered '67 I'd say you're spinning your wheels on converting to a 3/4 ton.

Gary

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by GASoline71

These old half tons are great pullers! Just make sure the brakes are up to snuff. Maybe look at swapping over to front discs. Unless you're pullin' some serious weight, I'd just focus on making sure the half ton has all the mechanicals working correctly.

If you're wanting to convert your lowered '67 I'd say you're spinning your wheels on converting to a 3/4 ton.

Gary

x2.

As long as you are not going crazy with your open trailer a 1/2ton will do fine.

K

[chevelle]

Ok thanks guys, ill just keep the old 1/2 ton tuned up good and not worry about it

[special-K]

You won't have an exact 3/4t because of the frame,as mentioned,but your 1/2t frame will handle the same load just fine. It's a simple swap at the ball joints out,rear axle,springs,and mc/brake booster

[special-K]

I took a '70 C/10 307/TH350,put new 3/4t coils with Airlifts in the rear and heavier rated larger Michelins on and gave it to my foreman to drive. It had a Reading steel cap w/tool bins (full),a ladder rack (usually full of scaffold & ladders and/or lumber,and the bed loaded with carpentry tools. It did great for many many miles!

[Coley]

Interesting thread..and some responses and input here.
A 3/4 ton is quite a bit different than a 1/2 ton...it goes way beyond a few extra leaf springs.
The tires are bigger, the brakes are bigger, more lugs to mount the rims, bigger axles and differential, bigger springs, bigger truck frame (higher/thicker), bigger driveshaft, HD hanger bearings, bigger trans...and some more.
On a budget...I'd go with 6 bolt /16" tires in place of the stock 15" tires to up the payload rating (D vs. C) w.r.t tires. I'd add a set of helper/aux. leaf springs in the back. I'd upgrade the brakes completely. I'd look to swap out the stock 3:08 diff for a 3:73. I'd also look for a rear sway bar and I would definitely mount a front sway bar if I didn't already have one.
That would be my first start I think.
Do you have power brakes? do you have leaf spring or coil spring rear? do you have a front sway bar?
Coley

[chevelle]

The truck is a 67 1/2 ton converted to 5 lug. 4.5 drop in front. 6 in drop coil springs out back with air lift 2600 bags used as helper springs. Disc brakes up front. Drum in rear. Front sway bar. No rear sway bar. 355 throttle body fuel injected engine. 700r4 trans. 3:73 rear gear. Homemade hidden reciever hitch with a homemade extended 6 inch rise ball mount. Im in the process of deciding to either add a dovetail to my trailer OR lower it 2 inches to help make loading the car easier and maybe use a 4 inch rise ball mount. Havent decided which to do

[Keith Seymore]

How heavy is your trailer? Depending on the trailer weight all this upgrading could be overkill.

We've been doing light duty trailering with 1/2 ton pickups around here for about 50 years.

Homebuilt skid trailer that we built in 1967 (still in use). Max trailer weight would be about 4600 lbs. 4 wheel drum surge brakes.

K














Not recommended

[1971 cheburban]

You could find a whole crossmember from a 3/4 ton with lower a-arms and all. It would have to be from a 67-68 to be right. Then find a 3/4 ton rear axle, rather it be a 14 bolt, Dana 60 or Eaton ho72 which would have heavier brakes and a greater weight rating. And maybe swap out a drive shaft and a couple brake lines you should be good to go. You'll have 3/4 axle and lower and upper a-arms, heavier brakes. You would also need the heavy 3/4 rear coils. You could also do coil overs with a helper spring to really beef it up. And 4.10 are nice since you have a700r4 you should be okay at highway speed with good power.

[Tx Firefighter]

Why do an early front suspension swap ? If he's gonna go to the trouble of doing a crossmember swap he might as well use a 71-up to get the nice 8 lug disc brakes.