could you replace....

jay4th

New Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2008
Location
Fort Bragg, NC
chevy 1/2 ton axels with 3/4 ton international axels front is a 3/4 ton 8 lug dana 44 with closed knuckles and manual locking hubs and the rear is 3/4 ton 8 lug dana 60. How much fab work, drive shaft work? Has any one done this before?
 
Probably, but being that it's closed knuckle, I would dare to say that it has drum brakes up front. That's no good!
 
also the international axles will more then likely be spring under, and if like their smaller counterpart will have 0 caster, therefore requiring the knuckles to be rotated...

depending on the year, the rear might be coarse spline too, which makes the pinion a little weaker, and harder to find yokes...
 
Thanks for the advise. Just because I can get a good deal on those axels doesn't mean in the long run I'd save any money. I'll just save and do it right the first time.
 
well you can upgrade to 3/4 ton rather cheap... get all the brake components off a 3/4ton front axle in your era truck... and find a d60, d70, 14b fullfloat rear with the same ratio... if you can get a rear out of the same era truck, it might all be bolt on...
 
IH full-size axles are spring over, same width as chevy, and have more normal caster (5-6*) than a scout.

Depending on which D44 Closed Knuckle front you are considering, it could be just a strong as an open knuckle. The 8-lug should be a "big-ball", which has the larger u-joint.

If they're from the mid-to-late 60s, they're likely 4.88 gears. Rear may have a power-loc, but don't expect any true lockers.

They'll have drum brakes, which aren't terrible for on-road use. In fact, the power 4-wheel drums on my 1/2 ton IH pickup stop great. A disk brake swap is possible, but I don't have the details handy.

Some more fun facts - IH went open knuckle with drums in '72/73 and went to discs in '74. 74/75 rotors are nearly impossible to find new and are spendy if found used in good shape.

I'd be more concerned about the turning radius. CK front axles have a much worse turning radius than open.

I'd go with the suggestion above for the front axle.

The rear could be used easily, but you may have to shorten the drive-shaft depending on where you set the pinion angle and your ride height. This would be true of any beefier rear, due to the longer pinion.
 
Back
Top