6 to 5 lug conversion ?s

[-dylan-(OO==|==OO)]

i want to convert my 69 cst/10 to 5 lug..... wat are some ways that i can do this??

[BIG ORANGE]

Bought a 69 swb fleetside truck about a month back and acouple days after that a guy called me about buying a 72 lwb.
My son swapped out the entire front carrier on the 2 trucks and the rearend.
If I were you I would try to find a 71 or newer truck and maybe do the samething! just saying.............
Good luck

[SCOTI]

Up front, swap the 6-lug drums for 5-lug discs. Any 1/2 ton GM truck from 71-87 can be used as a donor.

For the rear you have varying options (listed in order of quality):
1) swap in new, stronger aftermarket axles/drums
2) swap in a 71-87 rear
3) have the original 6-lug axles/drums re-drilled

[raycow]

I would rank the choices somewhat differently from SCOTI, and for the reasons given.

1. Swap in a complete 71-72 rear. This is a total bolt-in and relatively inexpensive if you can find one. Its downsides are that it is about 1-1/2" wider than your stock rear and you will be looking for a two-year-only part.

2. Aftermarket 5 lug shafts. This will be more money, but less work, than (1). It is your best choice if you absolutely must keep the stock width.

3. Swap a complete 73-87 rear. About the same price as (1) but more work. You will need to weld on brackets for the trailing arms and panhard bar, which are available as an aftermarket kit. You still have the same width issue as (1), but you will have a lot more rears to choose from.

4. Weld up and redrill your stock shafts. This could cost less than any of the other choices, but is recommended only if you have a machine shop you know and can trust.

Ray

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by raycow

I would rank the choices somewhat differently from SCOTI, and for the reasons given.

1. Swap in a complete 71-72 rear. This is a total bolt-in and relatively inexpensive if you can find one. Its downsides are that it is about 1-1/2" wider than your stock rear and you will be looking for a two-year-only part.

2. Aftermarket 5 lug shafts. This will be more money, but less work, than (1). It is your best choice if you absolutely must keep the stock width.

3. Swap a complete 73-87 rear. About the same price as (1) but more work. You will need to weld on brackets for the trailing arms and panhard bar, which are available as an aftermarket kit. You still have the same width issue as (1), but you will have a lot more rears to choose from.

4. Weld up and redrill your stock shafts. This could cost less than any of the other choices, but is recommended only if you have a machine shop you know and can trust.

Ray

Swapping in a 71-72 rear housing can be relatively inexpensive if you can find one (one good one). I've yet to see one sell for less than $100 & that's 1/3 of the cost of the aftermarket axles. What if you swap it in & there are problems (hard to tell sometimes unless the unit came out of a driving vehicle)? What's your time worth if you have to do multiple swaps? Another thing to consider.... When swapping a 71-72 rear housing, the axles are still 38yrs old. 38yrs of use & wear. New axles are just that, new.

Sometimes saving money up front isn't the best way to get the most out of your dollar spent.

[69pickupnyc]

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[frankdatank01]

I used ECE drop spindles to go to five lug. I shipped my rear axles to Moser Engineering for redrilling but knew they would recommend new axles (I had alot of pitting on the outside bearing surfaces on both). I bought two new axles and received them back in just two days.

FV

[gunnersm82]

new axles. super easy, CPP had a kit that was fairly inexpensive.

[brans72]

Ok since this is brought up on axles figured I must ask for myself. I was wondering why people use 71-72 besides 5 lug,and bolt right in? Are they a touch wider and look better in a 67 c10 truck? I am just curious before I dig in soon then later. Brandon

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by brans72

Ok since this is brought up on axles figured I must ask for myself. I was wondering why people use 71-72 besides 5 lug,and bolt right in? Are they a touch wider and look better in a 67 c10 truck? I am just curious before I dig in soon then later. Brandon

Only reasons I can think of: 1) it's a direct swap for the coil suspension; 2) it's an easier swap vs. a post-72 rear housing w/leaf spring brackets.

The 71-72 & 73-87 rears are 1.5" wider than pre-71's. Whether that's a deal-breaker or not is individual preference. I have a 71-72 rear 12-bolt w/new posi, Moser axles, & 3.73 Richmond gears that's going into a 67. I won't install it as is though because the additional width takes away from the dish I want the rear wheels to have.

[brans72]

I like te very last part! I didn't think about that. Thanks for the info Brandon