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The truth about converting a dana 44 from 5 to 6 lug

23K views 3 replies 3 participants last post by  Mr.N 
#1 · (Edited)
Figured I would post this up since I couldn't find anything better than "my brothers buddys sister said it won't work" when I was looking for information.



The problem: my 79 ford F150 dana 44 was 5 lug, my nissan is 6 lug. I only swapped front axles, so something had to be done. After searching here and asking buddies who supposedly knew about dana 44s, I decided I needed to swap everything from the knuckle out. Paid $100 for chevy 6 lug spindles, hubs, rotors, calipers and caliper mounts. Even got a crappy set of plastic lock out hubs thrown in. He forgot to bring the knuckles, so I figured I would pick them up later.

In the meantime, I tore the axle down. Once the hubs are off, the ford/chevy difference is obvious. The ford spindle is big, with 5 bolts. Chevy spindle is small with 6 bolts. Other than the mounting flange the spindles are identical. The overall height is the same, the spacing of the bearings/threads/seal surfaces are the same.




Then I compared the hubs and rotors. The overall height is the same, but the ford rotor has a deeper hat, and the tube part of the hub is shorter. The spacing between races and seals is the same. The thickness and position of the braking surfaces are the same.



So I said screw it, threw it together, and it works! Ford axles, spindles, brake calipers and caliper brackets. Chevy hubs, rotors and studs. Bearings, seals and lock outs are interchangeable.



Going from 5 lug to 6 lug narrowed the wms-wms about 3 inches. This did cause an interference issue between the tie rod end and wheel. You have to run either an 18"+ wheel, or any other size with very little backspace. I got some 17s with 4" of bs, and it barely clears. More diameter or less bs would be ideal.




So there's a definitive answer, with pictures. All you need to swap 5 to 6 (or 6 to 5) lugs is the hub and rotor with your desired pattern. Ford parts are all for a hp dana 44 out of a 1979 F150. Chevy parts are for a mid 70s K10 with a dana 44 front axle.

Sorry for the crappy pics, I never remember to carry a camera out to the shop.
 
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