1 ton guys, c'mere for a minute...

[GreaseDog]

what the heck is this Dana 70 out of? I know it was a Chevy, and I know it was 77 to 79 because it has drive slugs on the front axle. the front is definitely a Dana 60, and definitely dual rear wheel. the rear definitely has me confused though. plainly marked Dana 70. backing plate to backing plate is 50 3/4, WMS to WMS is 65 3/4. It has standard~41 1/2" 1 ton spring perches on it. all of the narrow dually rear ends I've seen have been narrow 14 bolts. Is there a way I can make this thing wider? It's definitely too narrow to use as is with even a SRW 60 front in a truck that I'm planning on running singles on.

 

[bucket]

What about running a set of SRW hubs from a 14 bolt?

 

[Scorpion]

There are only a few ways to make a diff wider:
1). Run a different offset wheel
2). Run wheel spacers
3). Run a different hub with bearings that adapt (may require some machine work)
4). Re-tube the center section

There are pros and cons to each of the above. #3 is the cheapest but most difficult. #4 isn't easy but requires some special equipment. #2 has a variety of downsides (there are many documented on the 'net). #1 can suck depending on your setup/ wheel situation.

No matter which you pick, the easiest and cheapest alternative will usually be to find a different diff that's wider to start with. That's where I've always ended up and I've played this game more than a few times.

 

[bucket]

14 bolt hubs go right onto a D70. Apparently D60 front hubs will fit too if you want to try running locking hubs on the rear, but it really serves no purpose. The drawback to switching hubs is adapting the brake backing plates to the current flange or the tube itself.

 

[GreaseDog]

I'm no rookie myself. changing tubes also means shafts. Looking to see a) what the hell this thing came out of as in the 30+ trucks that have passed through my hands, I have never seen one like this before. And b) to know if there are hubs available to do just what I need to do, make it wider. You can add or subtract several inches from the width of a 14 bolt just by swapping the hubs, nothing else changes. I've done that before, just Vertu little experience with a Dana 70, none of which were anything but full width dually axles.

 

[bucket]

I was just asking if a hub swap would get the width you want.

Could the axle be from a 67-'72? I don't know if they even had a D70 then, but IIRC they share the same perch spacing as our 1 tons.

 

[GreaseDog]

I was just asking if a hub swap would get the width you want.

Could the axle be from a 67-'72? I don't know if they even had a D70 then, but IIRC they share the same perch spacing as our 1 tons.

Your response actually came through As i was writing mine. As to of the hub swap would work, I'm not sure. I'll really have to tear into the able to find out. Great news is, I have a SRW 14 bolt,a wide DRW 14 bolt, and this Dana 70 to play with.

 

[GreaseDog]

The truck they were pulled from was definitely factory, but not complete enough to tell exactly what it was. There was a 400/203 combo sitting near by, so I'm guessing it was post of the stock drivetrain.

 

[Scorpion]

14 bolt hubs go right onto a D70. Apparently D60 front hubs will fit too if you want to try running locking hubs on the rear, but it really serves no purpose. The drawback to switching hubs is adapting the brake backing plates to the current flange or the tube itself.

Is that true(14 bolt hubs slide right on) for all Dana 70's? Not sure about the Dana 60 thing. Seems I tried it at one point and found that one of the bearings was loose around the spindle. It's been quite some time though and I only tried it once so I can't say for sure. If they do work you could run drive slugs but the shafts are gonna cost you (splined on both ends) to have made.

 

[crazy4offroad]

At first I was thinking "Dodge" since anything odd is directly related to them stepping away from GM/Ford but the perch width, then the last post "400/203" leads me to believe maybe an RV unless there's enough parts left you can definitely tell it's a pickup and not a bread truck or something.

 

[bucket]

Is that true(14 bolt hubs slide right on) for all Dana 70's? Not sure about the Dana 60 thing. Seems I tried it at one point and found that one of the bearings was loose around the spindle. It's been quite some time though and I only tried it once so I can't say for sure. If they do work you could run drive slugs but the shafts are gonna cost you (splined on both ends) to have made.

I don't know about all D70's, but I would assume so. I know guys have used GM dually axles, with SRW 14 bolt hubs on the D70 and then run a set of the H1 beadlocks. It makes the rear track width very close to the front track width.

 

[towjoe]

I have had a few odd width Dana 70's out of motor homes in my travels. I just took a couple Dana 80's out of a couple motor homes. Got to love the motorhomes nothing ever surprises taking them apart

 

[HotRodPC]

Not to mention, a good chance of getting a good Gear Vendor under/over drive unit out of a motorhome too.

 

[kleedus]

the dually one ton with a pickup bed on it used the dana 70 I have seen many of them but never ran one

 

[GreaseDog]

the dually one ton with a pickup bed on it used the dana 70 I have seen many of them but never ran one

I've seen a bunch of those. They're nearly as wide, or wider than a drw Dana 60 front. This thing is considerably narrower.