Rearend help

[Blake1999]

Hi a little info on my truck first. I am building a 1950 Chevy truck it is a 3/4 ton but being cut down to 1/2 ton. I'm putting a ls376 500HP with a auto tranny. And it will have a rear 4 link with shockwaves in the back. What kind rear end should I put under this truck??? Any help is appreciated if you need any more info please ask.

[Advanced Design]

Sounds like a good plan. I would put in a Ford 9 inch.

[Jemezcrusher]

8.8 is cheap, easy, and readily available. Handles up to 600 HP from what I understand

[mr48chev]

Another vote for the 9 inch. Unless you just happen on the right rear axle housing that fits in your truck you will have to have one built but to me the advantages or running one are the ease of gear changes and the pressed on bearings on the axles.

Being able to just drop out the third member and swap in another one with a different ratio allows you to easily set things up for what you want to do at the time. Run at the drags put in some gears that will give you quicker acceleration. Make a 5000 mile loop around the US hitting different events and interesting sites for a month and in go the road gears that let you cruise at freeway speeds and pull gas mileage. One might not want to do that but the possibility is there just by having another third member on the shelf in the garage with the other gear ratio in it.

Bang for the buck probably the 8.8 that Jemezcruiser suggested as the right gear ratios with posi aren't hard to find, they often come with disk brakes and they are relatively inexpensive. If you don't like the gear ratio you are usually stuck with changing the whole rear or paying a shop to change the gears and set them up though.

[Blake1999]

Thanks a lot guys what gear would you suggest for this setup in the 9 inch any suggestions on where to get the rear end?
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[Advanced Design]

A friend just ordered an assembly from here...http://www.quickperformance.com/Ford...Ford_c_37.html
Very reasonable prices.

Regarding gear ratio, what transmission will you be using? How will you use the truck? What tire size?

I have 3:70 gearing with 4L60E and have been pleased with the performance.

[Blake1999]

I will be using a SuperMatic 4L70-E Four Speed Transmission brand new tranny. Also can I make the axles on the ford axles the same bolt pattern as early chevys?? 5x4.25?
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[mongocanfly]

I agree with Doug...9"all the way..since more than likely you will need to narrow the rear you can order new axles with the bp you want..like doug says tire size and final trans gear dictate what gears you'll need or want..and how you drive it as well...I've got 4.10s behind a stock 6.0 and nv4500 and love it

[Advanced Design]

Originally Posted by Blake1999

I will be using a SuperMatic 4L70-E Four Speed Transmission brand new tranny. Also can I make the axles on the ford axles the same bolt pattern as early chevys?? 5x4.25?
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Yes, mine are. 5 X 4.75.

[hogfarm]

I put 9" in both my 54 and 58 trucks with 3.90 posi gears.Dutchman axle is the place to go

[yossarian19]

A ford Explorer 8.8 is going to be ~58-60" WMS to WMS, usually comes with 3.73 or 4.10 gears, has positraction out of the wrecking yard, will handle 500 HP easily and is a lot cheaper than going with a 9". That isn't to say that if a guy goes 9" he's doing it wrong, just saying, you can get a lot for your money with a ford 8.8"

[dsraven]

if you decide to go 8.8 you can get one from a mustang that has the pumpkin centred. the explorer has the pumpkin offset.
do a little reading on the 8.8, like they say, cheap and tough. there are different axles sizes and splines but still cheap to buy at a wrecker. if you worry about losing an axle due to the c clip holding it in then there are kits for bearings that go on axle like a 9". a friend of mine put huge power in an ls swap into a mustang and all he did was a new cover that reinforces the bearing caps. blew a few engines up but never did anything to the diff. I bought an explorer diff for my 57 and it came with 3.73 gears and posi, big axles and disc brakes. under $100 at the wrecker. easy to rig park brakes to as well, if so inclined. a sway bar from a ford ranger also fits and is shaped to fit in front of the axle. google the ranger station for some more info.

[svr]

Went with a 9" from a '72 ford pickup for my '57, was about 1/2" narrower than the original that needed a complete overhaul. Paid $250 for it with 3.56 gears. Needed seals all around and axle bearings I found after close inspection. Now thinking of disk brakes so not going to end up cheap by any means but will be solid for anything i do in the future

[FAKKY]

What determines ensuring a good fit.

*) In terms of lets say you target a 9" or 8.8 mentioned above. What needs to be done to ensure you dont have to shorten axle housing and axles. How much short/long is ok ? Based on hub to hub or ?

*) To resuse existing leafs. Axle tube thickness ?? Or should you grab the leafs and hardware for attaching from donor - or ??

*) Parking/Ebrake - what do you do here.

I was thinking about a custom 9" from quickperformance who I cahtted to a few weeks back .... but $2500 ... *ouch*. Thats as much as my engine/trans Might be worth it in the long run ..... but 1st build

[FAKKY]

What did you go with OP ?

Any input guys?

[Advanced Design]

FAKKY, you can measure for rear end needs and look for a rear that fits. For example, when I built the black truck shown in my icon pic, I used a 10 bolt that came from a Nova. It fit fine with no modifications.

If you buy a rear, then have the width narrowed, you can buy custom width axles from several companies.

I wouldn't worry about getting the springs as they typically won't be right for your truck.

Parking brake, you can run drum brakes (like I did with the black truck) or use disc brakes and run parking brake cables. On black truck I used a Lokar trans mounted BP handle and cable. I've seen really good builds here use a foot operated parking brake from a newer vehicle. Hand operated ones too.

Of course keep in mind the overall budget when making purchases. No fun to have some cool high dollar parts and not enough money to get the truck done.

Pic is why my buddy is ordering a 9 inch from QT.

Originally Posted by FAKKY

What determines ensuring a good fit.

*) In terms of lets say you target a 9" or 8.8 mentioned above. What needs to be done to ensure you dont have to shorten axle housing and axles. How much short/long is ok ? Based on hub to hub or ?

*) To resuse existing leafs. Axle tube thickness ?? Or should you grab the leafs and hardware for attaching from donor - or ??

*) Parking/Ebrake - what do you do here.

I was thinking about a custom 9" from quickperformance who I cahtted to a few weeks back .... but $2500 ... *ouch*. Thats as much as my engine/trans Might be worth it in the long run ..... but 1st build

[FAKKY]

Thanks doug.

What determines a direct fit with no modification though.

And should I just reuse the rear Springs..... or get something made.

Curious to hear which way OP is going to.

[yossarian19]

Fakky -
I looked at rear setups a bit and here's what I came up with:
C10 coil springs and truck arms will take some fabrication but it actually doesn't look so bad
Stock springs could be rebuilt with bushings & shackles, pins, etc. Add some leaf liner to improve ride quality.
C20 (early or late, I'm not sure) frames, at the rear, are 34" wide. They use a 56" spring with rubber bushings for a nicer ride quality and are 2.5" wide, which means a lot more products are more easily available for those springs. The hangers are riveted onto the frame... so remove them, attach to 55-59 frame, and your C20 axle bolts up under it. May apply to half-ton stuff too but I was looking at a 14 bolt on a frame stub left on a rural property...

OH - if you are going street rod and don't plan to load the truck down, all bets are off. Do what you want. IRS, 4-link, hell get weird and use a quarter elliptical leaf spring. I am just thinking "work truck" because that's what I've got.