I am looking into making the switcharoo on my dad's truck since he has mentioned several times that he wishes that the truck he owns was 4x4. iT IS A 1990 F150. It has the E4OD trans. I was wondering what transfer came on this trans and what would be involved in making the switch. Also, what vehicles should i be looking for donor axles in? 250's and 350's? Is this even worth doing? All opinions are appreciated and thanks in advance.

go find an F150 4x4 of the same model years for a donor. the TTB will practically bolt right up. t-cases varied, some were 208s, some were BW models 1354, 1356 IIRC.

when you say "practically bolt right up", it can have so many meanings. would you care to elaborate? do the beams and the current susp, arms share a mount on the frame? are the 2wd and 4x4 frames that similar? I would prefer a solid axle but if the ttb setup is easier i will go that route. as far as reliability goes, wich t/c is the best for a daily driver? are all of them part time 4x4? thanks

Four Wheeler mag did a writeup a couple of years back about installing a TTB frontend into a Nite Edition pickup. IIRC, everything bolted up. Can't remember if they had to drill any new holes or not. the tcases are comparable. I once removed a 1356 from an F250 and bolted a 208 back in it's place. It was a direct fit and yes they are both part time cases.

The TTB is a perfect fit as long as you get it from the same model years. Like my bronco ranges from a 80-86. Yours will be 87-9X...The TTB bolts to the crossmember under the engine, however, a Solid Axle is not only better but would be easier most likely. All you have to do is replace the radius arms, axle or course, steering, and trac-bar.

That bein' said, you could go Dana 44 from a '78-'79 for cheap as they aren't good for cuttin' down because of cast C's. However you'll be fine as that's what you need. :)

As far as T-cases, a 208 is a standard issue 1/2 ton case. As is the 1354 IIRC. The 1356 is a bit stronger. But if this is mainly a DD and just sometimes a woods truck, or towin' a boat, or hunting thing the 208 is a good choice.

If your dad is gonna be serious, look into the 205. You can twin stick it and all that good stuff, plus it's gear to gear, whereas the others mentioned are all chain cases.

Don't get me wrong, I just had my 208 rebuilt not a year ago and it was fine, however I thought I'd be goin' bigger once I get my Solid Axle in, so I switched to the NP435 and a 205. (208 is still sittin' and for sale...shameless plug:emb: )

A Dana 44 will hold up rather well for a DD or up to 35's. After that a 60 would do better. Or if he has a really heavy foot or built 351W or the like.

If I think of more I'll post up.

Phil

The 205 won't play nice with the E40D, the 205's front output is closer to the truck's centerline than the newer chain drive cases, and the E4OD is much larger than any auto that was around in the 205's day. You'll have to run a driveshaft the size of a pogo stick for proper clearance.
Anyhow, noone else has thought to mention that in order to put a transfer case on that transmission, the tailshaft and tailhousing will have to be changed unless you were to go divorced. To change the tailshaft, all the guts have to come out of the case... And a divorced t-case behind the LOOOONG E4OD wouldn't be the greatest idea anyhow.

as far as changing the tailshaft and tailshaft housing, i was prepared for that. I just want to make sure that all i would nee would be the tailshaft out of a 4x4 E4OD and the transfer case. Also, has anyone else heard of the TTB setup being "bolt in". Better yet, does anyone know anyone that has actually done this swap?

I did the swap on my '85. The front axle setup IS a bolt up. Old axle comes out, new one goes right in. No drilling, no cutting, no nothing. Swapping the axle alone will lift your truck about 3".

It would be cheaper and easier to get an E4OD for a 4x4 out of the junkyard and rebuild it than it would be to swap output shaft, tailhousing, and rebuild your current E4OD.

Either that or use whatever tranny the case is hooked to for your swap.

If you try buying the pieces one piece at a time the swap will get prohibitively expensive VERY quickly. Look around and try to find a 4x4 parts truck. The one i used for my swap was a rust bucket that had been stolen, wrecked, and impounded. I got it out of impound for $100. Rebuilding everything I did the swap for about $1500. It'll help to do it cheaply and it'll get you all of those "detail parts". Whatever you do, avoid 87 model year 4x4's with manual lockouts. They use a one year only setup from teh spindle out that is stupid expensive to buy parts for.

If you have any questions feel free to either post or PM me.

Justin

after the swap be sure to match or closely match the ring and pinion gears also

Hey bud, Just my $.02...........
I f you are serious about this, its just as easy to through in a straight axle... I think it will happen any ways down the road. The TTB is a BOLT IN swap, but they do have some issues that get pretty old rather quickly. I would just look for a radius arm D-44 or a better choice D-60 and pute it in there. It isnt a bolt in swap but time and skill wise, it isnt any harder then a TTB swap, and you will be much happier.... Also, I have to agree Hoxviii on his parts truck ideas... Trying to piece things together gets pretty chitty realy fast. I would be looking for junk yard or parts truck items that you can swap in together.. You will be a lot happier in the end.... Jeremy

i would prefer to do it with a solid axle but the old man is worried that the ride will go to hell morso than with the TTB. Good to know it will bolt right up. the ttb at the bone yard is only 25 and the transfer is 25 and the tranny is 50. add in 400 for misc. bs and i am still at 500 plus cuss words. ought to be interesting. thanks for the input.

What are your plans with teh truck once it's 4x4? Use it around the farm and stuff like that or some fairly heavy wheeling? If all you want to do is some mild wheeling and use it as a driver, TTB is a great setup up to a 35" tire. If you wanna do some fairly heavy stuff and run tires bigger than 33's, talk to your old man about going solid axle with some well matched springs. The ride won't be any worse if you do it right.

Issue I had with TTB was that i wanted to do some pretty heavy stuff and I bent my engine crossmember where the pivots mount. Now i can't keep the truck in alignment so I'm going solid axle. Rust was a contributing factor here, the crossmember bent when i blew a body mount. It the mount had stayed together everything would still be great today.

Thing about a solid axle is at that point there is basically no turning back. you have to trim the engine crossmember for trac bar clearance and alot of times it involves cutting off one of the pivot mounts. I'm going to try to move my axle forward far enough to keep from having to do this, but only time will tell.

Justin

Thing about a solid axle is at that point there is basically no turning back. you have to trim the engine crossmember for trac bar clearance and alot of times it involves cutting off one of the pivot mounts. I'm going to try to move my axle forward far enough to keep from having to do this, but only time will tell.

This seems to only be an issue when you lift it very little. Depending on the springs, a stiff 4" will be ok with very minor if any trimming, or a soft six, which I plan on, seems to be ok if you use the '79 buckets and such from a donor truck. The donor truck is the best option by far if you go solid.

I was able to buy the whole truck for $150. Engine was sold for $350, tranny went in my truck as did the axles and t-case. Then I sold my 9" for $100 and the tranny for computer work. So it takes a little planning, but can actually fully pay for itself in no-time.

Good luck no matter what though. :grinpimp:

Edit for spelling. :shaking:

the truck rarely sees dirt. the swap will be done mainly to improve bad snow driving as well as making the truck in general more useful. I also found a donor truck for 750 that has the same trans. it is an 89 anyone see a problem using it? it is an extended cab 4x4 withan 8ft bed.

Then TTB is the ticket for you. Shouldn't be any issues swapping between an 89 and 90, but if there is it'd be stuff like caliper mounts _BUT_ you'll have all the stuff to make it possible if an issue arises. If you've decided this is for you, then have fun (but think, what condition is the '89 in and would it be worth it to hold onto and sell off the 4x2?)

OR, pull a double switcharoo, make the 4x2 a 4x4 and vice versa and sell off the now 4x2 extended cab. That is of course if it's in decent shape.

Justin

seems i had to use the pivot bracket mounts off the 4x4 too. you did not have to use the pivot mounts hox?

Nope, everything hooked to the frame of the 4x2 will work for the 4x4. I know on rangers and BII's you have to swap pivots, but not on a fullsize.

Justin

The 89 has a bad body so i am going to strip it for parts and junk it. if anyone has a set 0f 355 gears for a TTB, i might need them if the TTB has something other than that in it. The tranmission should be the same between the 89 and the 90 if i am correct, right? It has a new trans so i will probably swap that as an assembly if it is the same.

If you need 3.5's for a D44 I have a set and a matching limited slip carrier. PM me if you're interested.

Justin