Solid Axle Swap BS Thread

Problem with the SD Super 60's is the width. THe factory Toyota rear is 65" and the 14 bolt is 67, so that would work well if you're trying to keep it narrow. THe SD 60s are around 72" I believe, so thats a no go IMO.

I've been playing with the idea of a ruff stuff housing with a FJ60 9.5" 3rd and D60 outers. I believe a member on Pirate and RST has done this and moddified the ARB to accept D60 35spine inners. That would keep the pumpkin reasonably small and give the strength and parts availabilty of the 60. Plus with a fabricated housing you can tell them to make it any width you want.

I already know I can clear 37s right now, I've been doing it for 2 years, but another couple inches would be nice.

I'm thinking with 37s hydro assist won't really be needed so that will save a couple grand. I know my truck loves the 4.88s and 37s.

Is it insane to build two SAS trucks?

 

You will want HA if you run in the rocks, even on 37's. Ask @slander how he knows

Depends on your definition of insanity

 

Im adding a cooler and fluid capacity and we will see if its any better sans assist with the f150 box. Thats what i get for listening to the internet. If that doesnt work its getting ripped out for the weird semi full hydro ultra 4 steering setup that i will for sure screw up from pirate.

You will need HA, especially if useing a toyota box.

 

That blows, but not a huge deal

 

Dis is what I says...

 

but wouldn't that push the engine too far up in the engine bay? I guess I'm confused. Met a guy that pushed the engine up with custom mounts, and the the hood wouldn't close LOL. [he had a supercharger and other crap too]

1 tons and 37s is totally fine. If you hang low, just pick a different line or drag your axles. Who cares? It would take a lot of abuse to destroy those big axles lol

But I am not sure you fully understand what you are getting into. It is easy to get excited and carried away when you hang out with guys that have SAS. It is a massive project and extremely expensive. Tell you friends to tell you the truth before you start doing it

Yea, Front 14bolt is way overkill and not needed.

Ahhh...ok that clears my confussion. it makes sense

the 05+ SD axles are wider than the older D60s. But I think they can work well under 2nd gen tacomas cause those trucks are wider as well.

Very common for people to want to cut corners with hydro assist - cause it costs a lot of money to do it right. But it is the ONE area that people should not take short cuts. It is, perhaps, the best money spent on a rig.

 

They do work well. Thats what Eddy is running in his. BUT, they are wide as hell. Perfect for running 40-42s but if the goal is to maintain a somewhat stock track width they are the wrong answer. Turning radius can suffer a lot with those wide bastards

I shy away from HA more because I don't want the twitchiness I've seen and read reports of. I'm sure their are work arounds for it, possibly with a different pump or restricter. It'll all get worked out

 

Was talking with ECGS some today and they've got me thinking on D60's. I do know I'm not going to skip out on hydro assist. I feel that's an important factor with all this. I was wanting to run 37's but I may just go 40's. Still trying to decide. I know after (if I do) get 37's I would wish I went bigger it always happens.

 

Hell there is no doubt I'll run hydro.. I've driven a full hydro setup down the street, probably won't be eating burgers or making calls while behind the wheel, or anything sketchy, but they are totally streetable if you are a half competent driver...

 

Those 05' + Ford D60s are insanely massive. The axle tubes are bigger than the old ones; the breaks are like twice as big too [seriously], the knuckles make the old D60 knuckles look like D44s LOL. So no need to upgrade the knuckles [the only option is REID racing that makes a replacement knuckle for one side only]. They also come with 35spline axle shafts all around in factory form. It's really an impressive gigantic beast of an axle.

I almost got one of those axles - with the matching Sterling rear axle - before I started my SAS. They can be found as pairs for good prices. But decided not to because it was going to be waaaaaaaaaaay to big for my little 1gen reg cab. Maybe OK on a trail only rig. Heck, my old school kingpin D60 is still too big

About hydro assist, the times I've seen guys having issues with it are the guys that wanted to pull it off the cheap/hack/ghetto way. My PSC kit fit like a globe. I was impressed. When I first drove the truck with it I couldn't believe it. The steering was more responsible and smoother than when I had IFS and 33"s lol. Worth EVERY penny.

Trust me on this one and mark my words: with 1 ton axles you want 40"s. That's one of the reasons to go with big axles. The other reason, and the most important one, is that with 1 tons you spend money on axles once. Done. It will be the last axles you will ever build. Spend money once and do it right from the start.

With 1 tons, build the truck and the suspension for 40"s. You can always go down to 37"s if you don't like the big meats [unlikely]. But if you build the truck around 37"s, you might not be able to fit the 40"s later on down the road. It's not just about cutting sheet metal to make them fit around the fenders. There's a shit ton of stuff with the suspension, especially the front axle, you have to clear when you go with 40"s in order to get the best out of your suspension travel.

Also, regardless of axle choice, with 37" and up tires you need hydro assist. There's just no way around it. Even a 37" is a heavy tire. You can start wheeling without it, but sooner than later you will start hating the life of it. Also, the toyota IFS box will not take the abuse for too long either without hydro assist.

If you want the best of both worlds (strenght of 1 tons but in a lighter package with a removable 3rd member) then custom 9"s is the way to go. Some people call them 609; but it's basically an axle that has D60 outers with a 9" center all wrapped in a custom housing. Really overkill and extremely expensive for a recreational wheeler but they are awesome That's the stuff the Ultra 4 guys use for racing.

And if they are set up correctly

 

Did someone say 609?!


Don't be like me, go high pinion front though.

Or for the ultimate in bling


But seriously @SGTCap it shouldn't even be a debate, you need HA. Like previously stated it steers and handles better than it's on 33s does. One thing I did that helped with the tightness and road response was to one weld the slip joint in the steering wheel and two pound in and weld the caps on the steering u joints. It eliminated almost all the slop. I recently just replaced my box with the rebuilt ones trail gear sells and it made a big difference as well. Coupled with PSC ram and resi, trail gear pump (PSC was sold out at the time) and a cooler off summit and it couldn't steer better. Spend the money, do it right yadayada. Oh and I am a big proponent of Ruff Stuff housings, do it you won't regret it.

 

Love me some 609s!!

Man, those axles are insanely awesome. I wanted them so bad but I needed to complete the project with the budget I had. Don't get me wrong, I have a bad ass kingpin D60 built to the hilt and a shaved 14bolt that I love.

But 609's are just the best of both worlds as I've said numerous times. yea, if you are doing a lot of hard rock crawling all the time the high pinion version is the way to go for the front. The non high pinion version hangs low. But those 3rd members are virtually indestructible.

Like you, I ended up with the rebuilt IFS box from trail gear. PSC didn't have them, AllPro didn't have them; and nobody else seem to have one in stock when I needed it. The TG one seemed pretty good, so far so good.

YOu have a killer rig.

 

I am happy so far with the TG box, weirdly enough it was 1/4 turn tighter lock to lock, which I'm okay with. Also after shaving the steering stops down a bit on the Cs I am finally able to turn into my driveway in one shit haha! All these little fine tune things take so much time when every single part is new. Since that picture I added the Ruff Stuff pinion guards, they are so freakin beefy! They eat up a tiny amount more of clearance but I like having the peace of mind.

Thanks, you have a killer rig too, love me some Reg cab.

 

Son

Don't mind me ill just be fapping to your axle pics

 

I was wondering where that puddle came from...

 

Thanks man. My project turned out nice for a reg cab It's fun to have those big axles and tires in a little truck, but it does get a bit uncomfortable on long road trips. Not a lot of room inside those reg cabs.

Still not complete. As you said, it takes a while to fine tune everything. The "fun" never ends!

Ruff stuff makes nice pinion guards for those diffs. I researched all of that when I was thinking about going with 609s. Dude, your axles will outlast you, your truck and probably a couple of generations in your family. Haha.

BTW, 95% of my suspension is from Ruff Stuff. They really make good parts for awesome prices. I always waited for the 20% off sales to buy stuff lol

 

Open up the back of your cab like a Trekker! Room for days.

Definitely, I don't think this will be the last rig I ever build but these will be the last axles for sure. They will just get transferred to whatever's next. That's one reason I like them too is they had those sales a few times a year on all the stuff they make themselves, great way to come up! That coupled with my buddy being a wholesale dealer for them equals good deals

 

I actually thought about doing something like that with my reg cab. I have a bench seat, which I actually like a lot because it is more comfortable than regular bucket seats. But I have been thinking about getting serious racing seats with harness to feel safer during scary off-camber situations and going up/down hill. Was thinking about fabricating a special seat mount on the bed to put the bench seat there, and a cage on top of it of course to protect the passengers. Instead of cutting the back of the cab...not sure about that lol

I also plan on keeping my axles for a long time. They will follow me on my next build. That's why always tell people to spend the $$ and build the axles right the first time around. Also, if you decide to sell, you can get a lot of your money back.

With toyota axles you always lose a lot of money if you decide to part.

 

Are you caged or fabbing one? Always want that prior to having harness restraints.

 

with a cage comes wearing a helmet. and with harnesses you are more likely to have a neck injury without a hans device. id get some decent seats and continue using stock seatbelts.