68 Chevy P/U rear end bolt up to a 65???

[REDNOSE65]

Trying to change out rear ends (5 lug) and get highway gears.
Will a 68 Chevy P/U bolt right up to a 65??? Need some input, fellas.
I was givin the 68 rear end...will it work? Or should I save some bread and buy a newer one.

Thanks in advance.

[fleetsidelarry]

Originally Posted by REDNOSE65

Trying to change out rear ends (5 lug) and get highway gears.
Will a 68 Chevy P/U bolt right up to a 65??? Need some input, fellas.
I was givin the 68 rear end...will it work? Or should I save some bread and buy a newer one.

Thanks in advance.

Yes, bolts in, assuming both are trailing arm setups, you'll also get the same # of wheel lugs, if 1/2 ton swapping to 1/2 ton (6 lug), or 3/4 ton to 3/4 ton (8 lug). I'm not sure when they got 1 1/2 inches wider ('71-'72 are for sure but not clear about '67-'70) but even if it is the wider model it will still bolt right up, the one in my '66 is from a '71 and it was a simple take one out put the other in.
'course the '71-'72 are 5 lugs)

Is the '65 a 3.73 and the '68 a 3.07 (or 3.08, whatever)?

[fleetsidelarry]

sorry, rednose, I just re-read your post, you already HAVE 5 lugs? The '68 will be 6 lug.

[REDNOSE65]

Well I haven't actually seen it, but the guy told me th 68 is 5 lug. The one he has anyway. The one on my 65 is 6 lug. I want 5 lug and better highway gears. Any suggestions???

[fleetsidelarry]

If it has the ratio you want and its free, by all means, grab it. If it truly is out of a '68 (that is you know his truck was a '68) it will bolt up. If it's 5 lug then its the '71-'72. If its a 5 lug in a '68 its not the original rear unless the axels have been swapped or hubs redrilled.

[REDNOSE65]

Originally Posted by fleetsidelarry

If it has the ratio you want and its free, by all means, grab it. If it truly is out of a '68 (that is you know his truck was a '68) it will bolt up. If it's 5 lug then its the '71-'72. If its a 5 lug in a '68 its not the original rear unless the axels have been swapped or hubs redrilled.

Cool man, thanks. I will do some more investigative work.

[glendale]

i just finished putting in a 71-72 rear end in my 66 it a total bolt in i did trim my fender lips a bit but it was no big.

[REDNOSE65]

Originally Posted by glendale

i just finished putting in a 71-72 rear end in my 66 it a total bolt in i did trim my fender lips a bit but it was no big.

orale, well right now I'm running 15x10 reverses in the rear, but when I go 5 lug it'll be 15x8s so i hope there is no rubbing.

[fleetsidelarry]

Originally Posted by REDNOSE65

Cool man, thanks. I will do some more investigative work.

another way to say it, Rednose, is that from '63 through '72 the rear ends are interchangeable. somewhere after '66 they got 1.5" wider but the trailing arm pads are still the same location. in '71 they went to 5 lugs.

my '66 first had a '71 rear with a 3.73 ratio, I later swapped it for a '71/'72 3.07.

No reason not to grab the freebie if its the ratio you want.

clearance will depend on the wheel backspacing

[REDNOSE65]

Originally Posted by fleetsidelarry

another way to say it, Rednose, is that from '63 through '72 the rear ends are interchangeable. somewhere after '66 they got 1.5" wider but the trailing arm pads are still the same location. in '71 they went to 5 lugs.

my '66 first had a '71 rear with a 3.73 ratio, I later swapped it for a '71/'72 3.07.

No reason not to grab the freebie if its the ratio you want.

clearance will depend on the wheel backspacing

Cool man thanks for breaking it down for me.
Yes it's a freebie and Ima jump on it. If i run into any problems and or have questions on I'll be right back on this thread. Thanks again!!!

[Captainfab]

Just for information purposes. The '63 & '64 rear ends are directly interchangeable. The main difference with these versus later years is the longer panhard bar. The '65-'72's had the same length panhard bar. The '63- early '70 rear ends were the same width. The late '70-87 rear ends were 1.5" wider. The '63-'70 rear ends were all 6 lug, and '71-'87' were 5 lug in the C10's

[mexgrhd68]

and...as for rear gears, if rear end is off of a 3 speed original truck or 4 speed, the gearing high....cars will be zooming by u on the highway and you will be revving high....same problem with my truck, rear end is off of 71, which had a 3speed i believe.

[REDNOSE65]

Well after talking to the guy yesterday he said it was a 6 lug so I opted not to take it afterall. Thanks for you guys input though.

So I guess the question now is what year rear end should I try to get?
I want to get disc brakes up front (5lug) also. What year Chevy trucks
(if any)will bolt on with no modification??? I'm not going to do it now as my truck is about to be painted (REAL SOON), but I plan on taking it to The Texas Lone Star Round Up in Austin next year and I sure would like to drive it down there!!!

Thanks again fellas for your input/advise!!!

[fleetsidelarry]

Originally Posted by REDNOSE65

Well after talking to the guy yesterday he said it was a 6 lug so I opted not to take it afterall. Thanks for you guys input though.

So I guess the question now is what year rear end should I try to get?
I want to get disc brakes up front (5lug) also. What year Chevy trucks
(if any)will bolt on with no modification??? I'm not going to do it now as my truck is about to be painted (REAL SOON), but I plan on taking it to The Texas Lone Star Round Up in Austin next year and I sure would like to drive it down there!!!

Thanks again fellas for your input/advise!!!

Rednose, the '71 and '72 are the bolt-in 5 lug. earlier are bolt-in but 6 lug., later ('73 and up) are leaf springs setup requiring modification. If you have coil springs and trailing arms get the '71-72.

[glendale]

here you go buddy.
http://dallas.craigslist.org/dal/pts/1903325939.html
http://dallas.craigslist.org/ftw/pts/1933930397.html