dana 60 ?'s

PUFFDADDY

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Nov 17, 2009
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traphill
school me on 60 rears. are they all the same spline count? any models to avoid? how much can you shave off? how expensive is it to convert to 5-lug? can shafts be cut and resplined?
 
Their are three different spline counts 16,30,and 35.Thirty is the most common and 35 is the hardest to find.They can be narrowed and shafts resplined like any other axle.The aftermarket support is very good and several companies make custom shafts for them.Some of the mid 80's Fords had a Dana 61 which you probably want to avoid.The 61's will look just like a 60 but have 3:07 gears and are a pain to get any lower gears set's to work in. I have never shaved or changed one to five lug so I cant add anything to that.
 
Yeah, the 61's are limited to 3.07-4.10 gears & usually come w/ 3.07, 3.31, etc....but they do have large dana 70-like tubes & 35-spline axles can fit w/o boring.

Good luck!!
 
They are fullfloaters where 44's are semifloaters,r&p are bigger as well.
 
doc said:
Yeah, the 61's are limited to 3.07-4.10 gears & usually come w/ 3.07, 3.31, etc....but they do have large dana 70-like tubes & 35-spline axles can fit w/o boring.

Good luck!!
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not entirely true, scroll to down to the d61 section

http://eastcoastgearsupply.com/faq.html#q175

making a 5 lug 60 rear is a PITA, but it can be done if you have access to a lathe and a mill. yukon makes 35spl cut to length shafts or you can run double splined rear shafts, one of the two is needed to run chromos. making one 35spl requires boring of the spindles if they are too small, which can be done with a spindle boring tool that we rent out. beware though, i have seen a number of 60s that have small spindles that cannot be bored out.

edit-obviously you need a 35spl locker/carrier to make it work

Jon @ ECGS
 
Finding the spacer is sometimes a pain.....there is a detroit locker for the 61 as well - my '78 F-250 is rocking one of the 3.31 61's & I looked all over for info on these pigs. I have a 70 to swap in soon, I hope.
 
Metto said:
making a 5 lug 60 rear is a PITA, but it can be done if you have access to a lathe and a mill......... making one 35spl requires boring of the spindles if they are too small,
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just machine the hub down so the five lug wheel will slide over, and redrill the bolt pattern? do the same for the flanged axle?

how can i tell if the spindles are large enough to be bored out for the 35 spline upgrade?

How can i make sure i am getting a 60, not a 61? or should i not really be concerned about the difference in the two?
 
60's usually have a "60" on the lower web casting between the center chunk and tube. if your looking at the diff cover it will be to the lower right or left of it. 61's dont have this. they also have larger diameter 3.5" tubes as someone else has stated and they have extra reinforcing ribs on the center pumpkin.
 
doc said:
Finding the spacer is sometimes a pain.....there is a detroit locker for the 61 as well - my '78 F-250 is rocking one of the 3.31 61's & I looked all over for info on these pigs. I have a 70 to swap in soon, I hope.
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the spacer is the very common spacer you use when running 4.56 and up gears on a 4.10 carrier. you just need to use the correct dana carrier with it, the part number i posted before.

PUFFDADDY said:
just machine the hub down so the five lug wheel will slide over, and redrill the bolt pattern? do the same for the flanged axle?
how can i tell if the spindles are large enough to be bored out for the 35 spline upgrade?
How can i make sure i am getting a 60, not a 61? or should i not really be concerned about the difference in the two?
Click to expand...

you need to cut a round ring of 1/2 plate that is the same size as the WMS, turn down the back of the hub, weld on the plate, then redrill to 5x5.5. finally, you have to turn down the front of the hub to 4.210" or something so that the wheel center will fit over it.

you can measure the spindle to see if its large enough to bore it. the size that you bore it to is 1.560", so just measure the spindle and see if there is enough meat to do it. the small spindles are very small and boring it to 1.560" would almost be into the threads.

if you can get a big bore spindle 60 that is the right width, then just do that. the 61 is really a last resort if you cant find a good 60 or if you score it for cheap. as stated by another poster, the 60 will have "60" stamped on the webbing and the 61 wont; also the 61 tubes will be huge (like 3.5")
 
Metto said:
finally, you have to turn down the front of the hub to 4.210" or something so that the wheel center will fit over it.
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after looking a friends dodge 60 today i was wondering if it is possible to take this much off a rear hub. Looks like it will be getting into the bolt holes that hold the axle-shaft in place. would a set of front hubs and double splined shafts be necessary? Also, are semi-float 60's worth anything?
 
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