axle swap

[hitcher]

ive met a guy who is willing to swap axles with me . i have a 88 1 ton crew cab 4x4 with 4:10 gears . i would like 3:73 gears which he has in his 3/4 ton chevy . we plan to swap both front and rear axles out in our trucks and was wondering if you guys knew of any problems there might be ?
it seems fairly straight forward and hes done this kind of work before .

thanks

[DirtyLarry]

Originally Posted by hitcher

ive met a guy who is willing to swap axles with me . i have a 88 1 ton crew cab 4x4 with 4:10 gears . i would like 3:73 gears which he has in his 3/4 ton chevy . we plan to swap both front and rear axles out in our trucks and was wondering if you guys knew of any problems there might be ?
it seems fairly straight forward and hes done this kind of work before .

thanks

Ah….I think I want to trade you stuff too!

I am afraid your friend is getting the much better end of this deal. You realize you would be giving up a front Dana 60 for a Corp 10 bolt (or Dana 44) axle right?

Not sure what you are trying to gain by going from 4:10’s to 3:73 but your not going to gain hardly anything in fuel economy anyway.

….but I”ll trade you a 3:73 10 bolt for a 4:10 Dana 60 anyday! I would even drive to OK and perform the labor to do so right after I picked up a $75 3:73 10 bolt axle from any junk yard on the way to your house.

[hitcher]

i know how sort after the dana 60's are . im looking to get better gearing for highway use . right now at 60mph the revs are at 3,000rpm . am i better just getting a pair of 3:73 gears and keeping my axles ? then selling my 4:10's ?

[DirtyLarry]

Originally Posted by hitcher

i know how sort after the dana 60's are . im looking to get better gearing for highway use . right now at 60mph the revs are at 3,000rpm . am i better just getting a pair of 3:73 gears and keeping my axles ? then selling my 4:10's ?

You are better off ponying up for an overdrive transmission or a cheap highway commuter vehicle. The money you will spend on a gear swap will take forever to come back to you for the little fuel you will save between 3:73 and 4:10.

[hitcher]

i'll need to get an overdrive trans , the wiring harness and the computer right ? its not so much about the mpg but the high revs , cant go above 55 - 60 mph with out it screaming revs .

[raycow]

It's really going to co$t if you buy new gears and then pay someone to set them up. It would be cheaper to buy complete axles with the gearing you want and then sell your old axles intact.

An OD transmission could be a better deal than swapping axles or gears. What engine and transmission do you have now?

Ray

[SeventyOne]

Even if you found and bought 3/4 ton axles for sale in the 3.73 ratio you need then sold the 1 ton axles you have you would be ahead several hundred dollars. If it were me I would keep the 4.10 1 ton axles so you have good acceleration, then go to a 700r4 OD tranny (NOT computer controlled) to get your highways RPMs down.

What transmission do you currently have?

[hitcher]

raycow and seventy one .

i have a 6.2 diesel with a 3 speed auto .
i can do a straight swap with this guy who has a running truck with a pair of 3:73 axles . it would cost me nothing and we would swap them out or selves . i plan to get an over drive tranny later on maybe , just thought id grab this chance with this guy .

[WHITE-NOISE]

if you are set on this swap with ur buddy, then i hope you plan on getting some cash on top of the trade....hes getting alot better deal out it and he probably knows it.
your best bet is to just go ahead and buy a set of 3.73 3/4ton axles and put your 1tons up for sale after you finish the swap if thats the route you choose!

your giving up an $1500 set of axles for a $300 set of axles!

an over drive tranny would be the route most everyone would go in your situation man.

[hitcher]

Originally Posted by WHITE-NOISE

if you are set on this swap with ur buddy, then i hope you plan on getting some cash on top of the trade....hes getting alot better deal out it and he probably knows it.
your best bet is to just go ahead and buy a set of 3.73 3/4ton axles and put your 1tons up for sale after you finish the swap if thats the route you choose!

your giving up an $1500 set of axles for a $300 set of axles!

an over drive tranny would be the route most everyone would go in your situation man.

i fully understand the value of my axles and he defiantly knows it to . its not really about me making any money out of the deal . i went better hwy gears and he wants better off road gears . ok one of us (him) will save a bunch of money getting what they want . ive had great deals that way before out of other people with parts and and deals etc , this time its his turn .
im still thinking about and over drive tranny later on also

[raycow]

Ok then, if the relative value of the parts is not an issue for you, than I say go for it. You are obviously a good friend to your buddy, so I hope this good deed comes back around for you on some future trade.

Ray

[hitcher]

Originally Posted by raycow

Ok then, if the relative value of the parts is not an issue for you, than I say go for it. You are obviously a good friend to your buddy, so I hope this good deed comes back around for you on some future trade.

Ray

thanks .

as long as everything fits into place and i can get my revs down on the hwy then ill be happy . its my main vehicle so i want to be able to use it for anything , work , hauling , road trips etc . im not an extreme off roader so as long as i dont get stuck in the soft sand out where i live thats fine .

[Mr. 250r]

couldn't you just get them re geared instead? just thinking because i would love to get a d60 for my 10bolt that would be a steal and the overdrive is worth it i love my 4l80e

[LANDC]

DO NOT trade your axles! Put a tranny in, re gear it whatever. But do not trade away your axles. And know this, a 1 ton crew cab is not going to be a commuter vehicle..... ever.... Leave your truck as it is, take the piles of cash you would have burnt tryying to turn your truck into a commuter vehicle and buy a comuter vehicle.

[MTCK]

If you put in a 700R4 you will be running a trans with a 70% overdrive, which would be the equivalent of 2.87 axle gears in your direct drive tranny. You will not notice the difference with 3.73 gears. Period. Plus you are giving up the heavy duty axles, as has been mentioned by everybody else. Get the overdrive tranny, or the commuter car. 3.73's are not going to turn this truck into what you want.

www.bowtieoverdrives.com

[Mr. 250r]

I don't think you'll see anything from 3.73s either might be hurting you if you ever tow with such a heavy truck on hills with a load
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[hitcher]

ok so it looks like an overdrive is the way to go . can you guys recommend one that hopefully doesnt need a wiring harness or a computer ?

thanks im appreciating the help

[MTCK]

700r4 from bowtie overdrives. Only thing electric is the torque converter lockup, which they sell. Call them with your application and they will set you up. You may need crossmember and driveshaft work, just so you know... I'm not sure either way.
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[hitcher]

Originally Posted by MTCK

700r4 from bowtie overdrives. Only thing electric is the torque converter lockup, which they sell. Call them with your application and they will set you up. You may need crossmember and driveshaft work, just so you know... I'm not sure either way.
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hey thanks ill look into that . i was told i needed all the new wiring and computer crap and didnt really wanna bother with all that . are these guys online or close to me (oklahoma) ?

[MTCK]

I think they are in California. Check the web link on my first post.
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[hitcher]

oh yea didnt see it there .

cheers

[hitcher]

at least then i can sell my existing tranny to help pay for the OD one

[Mr. 250r]

i was talking to my dad about it and it does have some electric like mtck said but i think the cheaper way out would be finding a burban with a 700r4 that has a blown motor or try car-part.com, im also asking him about the wiring as well but it has nothing to do with motor so a little less work there

[hitcher]

Originally Posted by Mr. 250r

i was talking to my dad about it and it does have some electric like mtck said but i think the cheaper way out would be finding a burban with a 700r4 that has a blown motor or try car-part.com, im also asking him about the wiring as well but it has nothing to do with motor so a little less work there

thanks . ive never been a fan of computers and electronic stuff and would rather do with out it if i can . just like to keep things as simple as i can .

[Mr. 250r]

well i didn't think of it until now you have a diesel therein lies your problem 4.10s is way too much and i was talking to my dad who basically drew it out on how to swap in a 700r4 but he says your going to lose all dependability because as we all know the th400 is an animal. He said you should be running 3.08's or somewhere down there but i can still explain how it can be swapped in but its alot of work or get it regeared which is your simplest bet but a rather costly one