Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Got the foot pads welded in. Just needs a cleaning and paint!

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Got it painted. I used rattle can lacquer because it says it has an ultra hard finish. We'll see.
Can't wait to mount it along with the new hitch.

The last part of the drivetrain that needs attention is the rear axle. During coast down it whines. Bad. Been told it's the pinion bearing. I'm happy with the 4.10 gear ratio. Rather than just fixing what I got I started looking for a newer axle with disc brakes. There's a bunch of 2500HD axles out there with the same gears, full float 14 bolts with limited slip. Stopped by Sidco in Glencoe today and he has them in stock for $350. So I'm bringing the truck there next week to get it swapped in. The spring perches need to be moved. I need to order an adjustable proportioning valve.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

i really like the bumper idea & how it turned out... very nice & cool idea!! i would be willing to bet that it might get copied a few times now... nice job!

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Thanks. I'm really surprised I haven't seen others doing this before. I got the idea to try it years ago when I first saw it on a new truck. It was pretty easy to do except for welding the chrome so there's pinholes in some of the welds. I got the bumper for $30. Plus the cost of some rattle cans.

Here's a picture of it on the truck.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Today I went to do an axle swap but ended up upgrading my own instead. I also began the process thinking I would keep the 4.10 gears but on the way to the shop, cruising at 60-70 I thought 3.73s would be better. So I get to the shop and they give me the option of the axle swap or swapping parts onto mine. He thought it would be easier to swap the parts. I asked the mechanic towards the end of the job if he thought it was easier and he shrugged.

In the end the goal was to repair the rear axle and get disc brakes. That happened. My old differential bearings were shot, the gears very worn. They swapped in 3.73 gears with new bearings and installed front rotors and calipers with adapter brackets. So not exactly what I was thinking but driving it home 70 miles it was great. I didn't do anything with the proportioning valve yet, a disc/disc one is on the way, but the brakes worked great without it. With the drums they would lock up all the time. Now I couldn't make them lock up.

Using the front brakes on the rear gives a larger rotor and more swept area than the typical rear discs.

On another note, I've got a leak on the transmission around the dipstick or cooler line that I need to fix.

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

If my bumper wasn't chromed and in good condition I would be all over that idea
Great job
You could make some extra $$$ if you advertised that .

Re: HG's Bigass Farm Truck
 

Too many other projects now to try and make a buck doing this.

My transmission leak was just a loose cooler line adapter. Fixed! Took a test drive with my scanner hooked up. Everything is working great! No codes, no issues. Until the next one lol.