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73 K20....crossmember time

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Driveshafts somewhat depend on shackle angle. I use every bit of 9" of slip. Which means I want at least 11" of total slip. Bouncing the front end on steep climbs causes the pinion to point down. I haven't ever pulled my slip apart
 
skunked said:
like 5" short?


nice progress wetoolowdingbangow
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Hey thanks! Its getting there little by little. i feel like im getting the upper hand on it since ive sort exposed all of the show stopper issues so far. Does anyone know the stock length of slip in the front driveshaft?
 
y5mgisi said:
Good work!
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Hey thanks man! Im burning the midnight oil trying to get this thing back up on the wheels. Ive just got to make some shock clearance adjustments, put the calipers back on, finish the brake lines, throw a pinion seal in it, fill the oil then test drive. Im trying to make minimal changes so i can narrow down any issues that may arrise during the test drive. Hopefully all should go well since my castor is in the correct range and my steering is nice and tight.
 
Well ive finally finished the front end! Took way longer than I thought but thats how everything goes. Yesterday I bled the brakes, got the shocks fitting better and got the steering set up lock to lock. Im just waiting on a pressure line for power steering, which I should have today. Ill get the wheels back on tomorrow, change the pinion seal out, fill with gear oil and take a test drive. I also need some springs for my brake lines to keep them out of the tires. I bought a spartan locker for the front as well, so that should be around sometime early next week.





any suggestions as to how i can keep the brake lines out of the tires? I saw a spring setup and i think thats what ill go with. I would be pissed if i broke one of my new ORD brake lines!
 
I just zip tied the brake lines to the shock body. I used a little rubber hose around the brake line so it wouldn't be metal to metal.


looking good btw.
 
Hey thanks! Yeah i saw someone get some long springs from OSH so the line is pulled out of the way and when it flexes it will come down with ease. I hope to weld my sliders on within the next 2 weeks. I have access to a lift which should make it easier but i need to see if my truck will fit. Then ill do the rear end swap which im already running a 1350 u joint and ive got most of the parts to complete it so hopefully it will go easier then the front.
 
Did you pick up some new U-bolts? Might as well get some beef spring plates while you're in there. http://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com/catalog/UB-PLATES.html

also be prepared to deal with pinion angle changes (measure the pinion angle before you tear it apart). WFO sells the steel shims.

shocks mounting at the axle, this could cause some issues as some trucks had different shock configurations. Some new tabs will fix that.
 
Yeah i have the u bolts but ill need to get the spring plates. I also need to get some calipers for the disc swap. Ive got the brackets already and an extended brake line for the rear. My pinion angles is jacked at the moment even with shim so i bought new perches which ill weld on with the truck on its own weight. Im thinking ill be in-boarding the shocks so im making a center bar like the one you got from DIY. I still need some weld on mounts for the shock to axle housing. Ive got a lot of work to do. one thing at a time!

I intended on getting the caddy calipers so i can have a rear park brake, I doubt ill have time to set up a park brake but maybe i can work around that.
 
Thanks! I just got some new valve cover gaskets and ordered some 17" rims for the new tires ill get once my tax refund is back. Hopefully going to drive this thing around some tonight.
 
Well i finally got to do a test drive! After struggling with the oil fill bolt on the front diff cover (red locktite:doah:), I filled up the diff and got rolling. Everything went very smooth. It felt really good to just drive the truck again. The brakes worked quite well and so did the new shocks. I did experience death wobble on two occasions though so that needs to be fixed. It only happens when i go over some rough road above 15 mph and wont stop until you come to a complete stop. Im thinking i should checkout the spring and bushings again and add a washer to increase the spring rate.





I have a few more pics i need to upload of it!

I also found a craigslist add for a ORD shackle flip so i messaged him and it turns out he needed a chrome rear bumper so i traded my bumper for a shackle flip!! :haha:



Upon taking the rear bumper off i found some good lotion. haha who knows how old it was!



My locker came in and my rims too!



Ill also have to post some pics of my spring set up to keep the brake lines away from the tires. Ill be fixing my death wobble issue and adding zero rates this week so hopefully ill be done with that before the weekend.
 
first thing you need to check is your castor angle. It would be easy to slide in some shims when you install the zero rates *IF that's the issue.

Also, is that steering dampener any good (it looks original)? Sometimes those are enough to mask the problem.
 
skunked said:
first thing you need to check is your castor angle. It would be easy to slide in some shims when you install the zero rates *IF that's the issue.

Also, is that steering dampener any good (it looks original)? Sometimes those are enough to mask the problem.
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Yeah ill be checking my castor and possible loose parts tonight. I actually have shims in the front that are working against the castor so ill be removing those likely with the zero rates.

Steering damper is probably original. Im sure a new one would help but my plan is hydro assist, which would be better but i also dont want to mask the problem. Hopefully some spacers for the kingpin springs and maybe a castor adjustment will take care of it.
 
wetoolowdingbangow said:
Yeah ill be checking my castor and possible loose parts tonight. I actually have shims in the front that are working against the castor so ill be removing those likely with the zero rates.
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It has shims now? That may be your problem......and you know to use two shims on the passenger side right? One on top of the spring pack and one below.

and if it's not the castor I would remove, inspect the kingpin bushings and replace them if needed. WFO sells them for $7 each. The springs can be weak too.
 
skunked said:
It has shims now? That may be your problem......and you know to use two shims on the passenger side right? One on top of the spring pack and one below.

and if it's not the castor I would remove, inspect the kingpin bushings and replace them if needed. WFO sells them for $7 each. The springs can be weak too.
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Yeah it had them on the old axle so i put them on the new one lol. Probably should have done that but ill take them out. Two shims?

Hopefully i wont need them at all.
 
wetoolowdingbangow said:
Yeah it had them on the old axle so i put them on the new one lol. Probably should have done that but ill take them out. Two shims?

Hopefully i wont need them at all.
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yes 2 shims like this otherwise your spring plate isn't perpendicular to the studs.

594331d1304389976-dana-60-pinion-caster-angle-question-img_9488.jpg
 
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