1977 rear dig swap

[3X3CrewCab]

Hi all,

First time post, been working on cars since I was old enough to hold a screwdriver. I have a friend who has a 1977 1/2 ton and the rear end went out. It seized the pinion bearing. I starting looking for a new rear end if can't rebuild the one they have. The local yards say 73 to 83 fit. What I'm needing to know and can't seem to find answer is could I use newer than 83 rear end ? I know they went went from a 12 bolt to 10 bolt around 83 but is there any difference other than that? One thought was buying a newer 3/4 ton and switching it over.

Thanks for the help.

Also, I'm in the middle of a 6.0 ls swap of my 1984 crew cab. We I'm done I will post some pics along with I've learned along the way.