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Dodge Ram 2500 4x4 Dana 60 Hub removal and converison to Ford Knuckles

533K views 715 replies 159 participants last post by  NorCalJalopy 
#1 · (Edited)
So all in the efforts to avoid replacing a wheel bearing and stop the death wobble, I converted my 97 Dodge cummins knuckles to 92/93 Ford knuckles.




Place two pickle forks behind the rotor and hit it really really really hard and it'll come off!




Me setting up the ball joint installation/removal tool

My techinique for pressing the ball joints in and out. =] Gotta put my whole body into it!

Dodge Knuckle off, time for ford knuckle!!!
 
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#42 · (Edited)
I heard that the ball joint angle is different on the TTB 50's... I haven't ever looked though. There's a free TTB50 truck down the road I should check...
I do know for a fact that the spindles are different (from the king pin spindles) but I am not sure about the stub shafts. The king pin spindles will work on the ball joint knuckles or TTB50's, but the ball joint and TTB50 spindles "shouldn't" be used on king pin 60's. The lip the protrudes into the knuckle/brake bracket isn't as deep on the TTB50 and ball joint 60 spindles as the king pin 60 spindle is.


You do need all ford stuff from the BJs out, but not because of the stud size. I screwed up and put the older hubs on which for that year, Ford ran smaller studs. At some point in time Ford swapped to bigger studs, which are the same as the Dodge size stud. I just didn't realize that Ford ever ran different sizes until I was looking for lug nuts.
 
#43 ·
I have a set of the dodge 60's that were given to me and the sme guy had a dana 50 ttb so I measured in hopes of a cheap conversion like this one,,,

the dana 50 does have a different caster angle than the dodge, however ford has adjustment bushings in the upper part of the C that the upper balljoint goes into.

I roughly measured with a tape that the difference in the angle was just under 1/4" and that the ford adjuster would fit with about 1/16" of reaming.

I have yet to try this so cannot verify either way, but can say that it would appear to workout fine if they are the only affordable knuckels around.

on a nother note, if finding junk yard knuckles is out of the question Solid Axle sells a converdion knuckle that i believe takes over the counter components like spindles and brakes and stubs for a reasonable price..

http://www.solidaxle.com/ProductCart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=43&idcategory=9#details

good write up 79fordgirl, especially for those who can find the parts at a good price.

Sam
 
#44 ·
Solid's knuckles last time I checked, and according to the pics I see, are a 6 stud spindle set up (GM/Dodge king pin style spindles/outers). I don't know if you could just drill and run the Ford 5 stud set up or if that makes a huge mess hub/rotor/caliper/pad/stub shaft wise...
 
#45 ·
If your going to do that you can just drill the ford spindles to match the dodge knuckles. I was told you can just run the spindles and ford outer that way. I havnt tried it yet but I will when I can get over to the yard and grab some parts. :D
 
#46 · (Edited)
This works, I did it 6 years ago and it's still all together in my Bronco. The D50 knuckles have too much camber and adjustable balljoint bushings isn't enough. The D50 spindles and hubs work okay, but D60 work better.

*Edit: This is an OFF ROAD modification I did to my OFF ROAD rig, and posted on an OFF ROAD website. If you do this to your Mall Cruiser DODge and things go shithouse, it ain't on me. You shoulda bought a FORD!*





 
#47 ·
Solid's knuckles last time I checked, and according to the pics I see, are a 6 stud spindle set up (GM/Dodge king pin style spindles/outers). I don't know if you could just drill and run the Ford 5 stud set up or if that makes a huge mess hub/rotor/caliper/pad/stub shaft wise...
I hadn't noticed that, good point though.

why wouldn't you use dodge or GM outters on them rather than Ford?

Sam
 
#48 ·
Almost certain this is the case but figured I would check... 92-96 Ford hubs off a DRW can't simply be broken down to work with a SRW dodge, you specifically need 92-96 SRW ford hubs to fit a SRW Dodge dana 60. Right?
 
#49 ·
Yes the dually hubs are cast as one piece. You should be able to run any SRW Ford hubs from 77.5-97 ish.

If you want to check out that Dodge sometimes it's in CT when 79fordgirl visits me!

I bet she has some spare Ford SRW hubs kicking around from the sounds of it too...
 
#51 ·
Along with 78Bronco460, Cumminsboy did a spindle and hub swap also. Not sure if he used 50 or 60 stubs and spindles.

I think by looking at Mr N's post you can clearly see the difference in the spindle and stub. The 50 stub is shorter and it has smaller u-joints. So my post about the rumor of the TTB dana 50 having the same outer is wrong.

Having said that, the TTB Dana 50 Knuckle replacement if you can get the camber right, still has to be better than the Dodge unit bearings...and cheaper than a set of new unit bearings too. The added servicability factor for the Ford wheel bearings makes it worth the look.

My reason for posting this as an option is to present an alternative to tearing apart a perfectly good Dana 60 for the knuckles and hubs.

Great noteworthy tech 79Fordgirl!:D
 
#52 · (Edited)
I think by looking at Mr N's post you can clearly see the difference in the spindle and stub. The 50 stub is shorter and it has smaller u-joints. So my post about the rumor of the TTB dana 50 having the same outer is wrong.
There's two TTB 3/4 ton set ups. One uses the smaller 8 lug D44 style hubs and one uses the bigger D60 style hubs. The spindles on the "HD" TTB 50 work fine for the BJ Ford D50 and D60 knuckles.
 
#53 · (Edited)
I saw 2 TTB F-250's at the wrecking yard yesterday. The hubs looked big, like a 60, but the length actually looked shorter. I have to go back today to pick up some parts, I will take some pictures and measurements.

I knew there were two setups but thought the Dana 44 version had much smaller diameter hubs like and F-150.

When I get the pictures maybe I can send them to someone who can post em up.
 
#54 · (Edited)
What I saw at the wrecking yard today were the Dana 44 style 8 lug. You can tell they are the lighter duty because the locking hubs are the same size as an F-150. The knuckle is approximately 9 inches tall, not sure if the HD ones are taller or not. Maybe the knuckles are the same and just the hub, spindle, rotor and stub axle are different. I had to really look at them for a minute though because the hub is kinda tapered like a 60 hub but the locking hub is the giveaway. Any body know the diameter of the 60 freewheeling hub?
 
#56 ·
I find it ironic and actually quite hilarious that people have been saying ON THIS SITE for YEARS (and on lots of Dodge websites) that this swap "can't be done." And now that it has been done, it was done by a CHICK and she wrote a pretty good write-up on it! :grinpimp:

:smokin:
 
#61 ·
I was looking parts from ebay, and there were 78-97 Ford D60 spindles. Ford used same spindle for two decades? If so, that makes it so much easier to find parts. I'm going to gather parts little by little, when ever I find a good deal. At the moment both bearings are fine, LH was replaced couple of years ago, I'm just waiting RH to let go.
 
#65 ·
Thanks for the writeup. I've been planning this once my bearings go but didn't have 100% confirmation that it would work until now. Great writeup!
 
#72 ·
Does anyone know the difference between the 92-96 and 96.5-98 Ford Dana 60's. I've searched around with limited results. I have found a few axles in the 96.5-98 range and figured if they work it would increase options for the swap. :confused:
 
#75 ·
No, she didn't, it was just reflection.:homer:
 
#77 ·
NICE!

Questions for the OP... you said your "tires" stick out 3/4 to 1" more... is this per side of total?? I could do with 1" total... but per side would make me 4" wider than the rear axle :eek: Stupid narrow 14 bolt.

The other question... will dodge calipers work on these knuckles? I understand that you are using them but it wasn't clear if its an option to keep the original calipers.

Mike.
 
#78 ·
Due to the caliper mounts being cast as part of the knuckles on both the Dodge and the Ford knuckles in the year ranges mentioned you have to run the corresponding Dodge knuckle with Dodge caliper and Ford Knuckle with Ford Caliper.

Been about 15K miles on this set up now. Still going great! Did 20.1 MPG the last time we checked (that's with a Cummins, 47RE, 4.10 gears and 245/75R16's...).
 
#82 ·
Hey i picked up a dana 60 that is supposedly off of a 97 f350 to do this conversion on my dodge and after i got it noticed one of the spindles are hootched, i measured it to make sure the dimensions are right but what im confused on is the flange is 6.5" and all the ones that i can find for that year range are 7" and the ones for the older ones are 6.5" will it matter which one i get or not?
 
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