SAS The start!

As the title says i want to start my sas thread!! Its my first one so dont make fun of me.I have a $5000 loan for this swap.(thanks to grandma) but im still trying to save as much as i can incase parts go boom. AND I NEED A WELDER AS WELL. I have just about everything i need to do this and get it in my 1995 eddie bauer 4x4 4.0 idk the engine type but its 4x4 :..I have just about everything except a rear end haha heres the story..i got my hands on a dana 44 from an f150. i want to keep it full width but i dont not know if its to wide for my sec gen. but i like the stability cause this is a DD!!i live in cali and i need this to get places and get around. i make snow trips and camping trips during the season but no trails..dont plan to. Anyways i have a full width 44 from an f150 and i do not have a rear..the rear is a stock 8.8 i supose?? i want to gear them from stock to 5.13s front and back..I need to help on the size of the wheel spacers i need to make the rear match the front width if possible..I want to run 35x12.50 16 or 15 not sure.The rear will be SOA to fit them nice and snug. Im looking for a little prerunner look because my ex now sits front down a** up haha The front will be the usual dana 44 on springs, possibly 5.5 wildhorse. but only 12 inch shocks due to no room in the wheel well for longer(open to suggestions on shocks)
Heres the list of my parts i have to do the swap
Dana 44 stock i believe
5.5 wildhorse springs(ordering this weekend)
bilenstein 12 inch shocks (4)
Stock steering arms and drag links.
94 ex steering box
broncograveyard flat steer arm
stock RA(will be extended to mount near transcase)
5 spd man transcase dont know where from i think a fellow ex.
going to get drive shaft extended when fully lifted to get measurments
superlift RA mount. Going to weld across the frame
I NEED SWAP BAR IDEAS FOR FRONT..i dont want to sway everywhere on the road and the rear has a stock one. i need something for up front.
35x12.5r16
16 inch procomp alloys. need to get lug converstion kit but dont know which one yet.
OPEN to suggestions to guys before i order the parts
Pics will come along with the build as soon as i start this sucker.
hopes it an easy job my dad will help me as well since im 19 years old ha
Thanks guys hope to get some help from you fellow SAS guys on here hehe

 

[mrbird09]

The more and more we actually think about the practicality of this build we see that the cost goes up more and more.

if you take that route and buy them seperate:thumbdwn:

 

[Elessar65]

I have to respectfully disagree. I thought the same thing that they would be cheaper. I dont think it is. With the leaf setup you need high steer and that adds some $$$$ and leaf springs are not really that cheap either.

Easier swap?? With my limited experience I would say leafs are easier.

Ehhh, yes and no. Like I said it depends on the axle you get, and what you get with it. If you get a waggy axle, AND all the steering and stuff with it, then leafs are cheaper. Or if you do like I did and get a 79 Bronco axle (s) with the radius arms and steering and everything, then coils are cheaper. I say go with whatever the axle is setup for. That will minimize the fab work. You are gonna have to do some to the vehicle regardless, so if you don't have to do any, or as much, to the axle then you are that far ahead.

 

[mrbird09]

sweet thanks..how wide is your axle full width or cut? i want full width but will my tire stick out to far? i heard dana 30 with 4.56s are good cause they are almost stock width?

 

[lounge lizard]

this is what I started with when I decided to do an axle swap to my front end.

this came with all steering linkage including the manual steering box out of the 1966-67 bronco it came out of.

and at this point I knew exactly what I was going to do. how I was going to set it up and where I would have to find the parts to do it.

since then I have made a few changes to the plan. not many and more geared towards money then the build. but I have altered the plan some.

in my case would coils be cheaper? not really.
even with the "C" block on this axle I could easily weld perches on and put leaf spring in without having to remove the "C" blocks and go leafs.
but why? it is just common sense to go with what the axle is set up for.

you still haven't picked out axles?

every build thread on this site the first thing these guys knew was what axles they were using. and most of them already had them in their hands before posting about the swap.

 

[mrbird09]

i have an axle but its in ok condition but its not technically mine yet. i bid on is and offered a guy who said i can take it..he lives down my street haha. but he told me to look into dana 30 since they arn not as wide but if i get the front i also want a rear to match too. This came off of a eb 66-67? i didnt know those axles would work i always hear about the late 70s f150 and bronco axles..never seen one from the 60s. but that being said should i go dana 44 and rear 9 from a f150? or bronco. i heard broncos switched up their front ends those years or maybe that was the 80s??

 

[mrbird09]

also if i dont want to pay to get my axle extended front and rear can i take them off any other trucks that would fit perfectly without extending?

 

[Randall]

The trade-off between the late 70's F-150 bronco vs. EB axles is that one is the correct width (EB) but the other is high-pinion. You'll also want to look out for the fact that on the first few years of EB axles, they were equipped with drum brakes in the front, instead of the more desirable disc brake setup.

Typically extending an axle is not a desirable,or necessary option. The axles pretty much come in the width of the Explorer, or wider, where they are sometimes cut down the the Explorer width, depending on preference. I cut mine down the first time. Next time I am going full-width.

 

[Baddecision93]

i appreciate the help guys and your inputs. from looking through the threads and doing research this is possible. remember guys im not wheeling so i dont think i would need all the parts you guys put on it cause they break but yet again i can be wrong. i dont want to buy a new truck ive always wanted to wrench on my baby.

I'm a little late on this, so excuse my ignorance if I'm wrong but how does paying a fab shop equal wrenching on your baby? If you're going to farm out a bunch of the work what exactly is the difference between paying a shop to do it or paying for someone else's truck to which this work has already been done?

I think most people that mod their rigs view them as a hobby rather than an investment. As such they expect a fair amount of depriciation on parts as well as a complete dearth of payment for the labor they invested. Given that, why not let someone else go through the heartache & spend all their money & pick up a rig that works for you after they've determined it no longer fits their situation?

If you did indeed want to do the fabwork yourself I would completely understand but otherwise I think there is a disconnect in your logic. Paying a shop to do it = paying for someone else's truck that it has been finished on.

Either way you are not the one cutting, welding, and fitting custom pieces.

My $.02.

 

[lounge lizard]

we've beat that horse baddecssion93

my EB axle was drum and it was the later dana44 which I am told is the more wanted axle. heavier tubes then per 1966.
some per 1966 axles turn down in size as it gets out to the knuckle, this is what I have been told. I guess they didn't have the heavier knuckles designed yet at that point and time.

I have a G.M. disc brake conversion on it now.

 

[CodePoet]

sweet thanks..how wide is your axle full width or cut? i want full width but will my tire stick out to far? i heard dana 30 with 4.56s are good cause they are almost stock width?

You have a 2nd gen but they're not much different width wise. Here's what full width axles look like on my 1st. Lot has to do with my wheel backspacing too but full widths are wide on explorers.

 

[lounge lizard]

that fits in the garage?? !!

 

[CodePoet]

barely...the roof rack just kisses the weather striping at the top of the door lol. It's only lifted around 5 or so inches though

 

[mrbird09]

thats pretty wide..what is the stock length 60"?? and the d44 is 63" full width? and i did hear about wheels helping as well..like what backspaceing..3.75 to 4?

 

[CodePoet]

I think it's more like 65" can't remember off the top of my head. Stock front axle width on the 1st gen was something like 58". Mine was built for trails and rocks , small lift, wide track to keep it stable. You probably couldn't get away with running this wide on the street. You'd have problems with the cops haha.

 

[Randall]

From my SAS registry thread:

Cutting down the Axle: For my application, I decided to cut the axle down 5.85 inches on the passenger side. Cutting by this amount allows me to install an Early Bronco axle shaft in the event that mine were to break. It is much cheaper to use a shaft from a stock vehicle than to have one custom made. A stock Explorer's axle width is 58.3" and the big Bronco axle width is 65.25." Cutting 5.85" out of the passenger side leaves me with a 59.4" axle width, which is 1.1" wider than the Explorer axle. I could cut the axle down to the Explorer dimensions, but the added inch will help with the driveshaft angle, since the differential on the big Bronco's are slightly more toward the passenger side than the differential on the Dana 35 Explorer axle. The passenger side inner axle shaft on a full-size Bronco measures out to be 33.91," and the inner shaft from an Early Bronco is 28.06." The difference between the two is 5.85 inches, which is how much I had cut from the full-size shaft to accept those from the Early Bronco. When cutting the axle shaft, it is better to send the shaft somewhere to get it cut and re-splined. Do not cut the axle shaft in the middle and re-weld it, as this leaves a weak point in your driveline. There are various companies that can do this for you, such as Moser Engineering and Dutchman Axles. I used Dutchman Axles, and the cost was $55 dollars.

 

[mrbird09]

yea and it looks funky on narrow from end explorers like my sec gen it woould stick out way to much..are there any other narrow axles off of earlier model fords or any trucks? im lookin for almost close to stock width maybe a little wider but i heard the jeep danas are less wide and fit pretty nice..i just need to know if the jeep d44 or d30 and how wide they are?? any helpers

 

[section525]

Here's a Jeep Wagoneer axle:

 

[Randall]

5 seconds on Google:

http://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/bible/index.html

 

[mrbird09]

i like the width of the dana 30..think im going with 4.10s on a d30 with 35s as my set up. maybe 5.5 springs or maybe 6-6.5 coil spring for more height but i dont want to tip on turning corners..but will a rear expedition driveshaft fit the rear when done with all the lift??..or i have a sec gen will the stock dshaft work??..i need help on thoughts with that for rear and front.

im looking into a manual tcase a 4406 depends if i have room(id like to use the smallest one possible) unless i can keep it automatic tcase but i heard they dont work as good.

 

[turboexplorer]

4406 will only work if you have a 5.0L. Not sure what you have. Also it is by NO means small it BARELY fits even with bending brackets and hammering your floor pan some. Its huge, just fyi