I have seen a few threads about swapping rear ends for a Chevy 3600, but I did not see any about the 1 ton (38xx) swaps. I could really use some ideas here. I need to swap the rear end out of my 1954 Chevy 1 Ton Panel Truck (3805) as the old Eaton rear end is in serious disrepair... not to mention that I do not have many gearing options available if I stick with the Eaton. This truck is being retrofitted with later components (such as upgrading the engine to a 454, upgrading the tranny to possibly a 4T80, and quite few other serious modifications). The 454 will be carbureted with a higher compression ratio than stock, a high torque cam, and a few other goodies. The bottom line is that this engine and tranny combo will produce some power. I need a rear end that can handle that power.
One thought might be to get an 80's C30 or equivalent 1 ton rear end. I would be fine with that; I just am not sure about whether or not I should modify (shorten) the rear end to the width of the original Eaton rear end. As I understand it, the later rear ends are something like six inches total (three inches each side) wider. I need to confirm.
Some important notes: I want to keep the 8 x 6.5 Lug pattern. This is a single (not a dually) rear end. The truck is also a two wheel (rear - as if I needed to say this) drive. I am considering tire sizes between P275/65R18 and LT235/85R16 - I am fairly open. Once I get this info, I will determine the gear ratio I want and purchase the gears that fit my needs. Oh, and I like Dana 70s --> anybody have ideas on Dana 70s? Also, disc brakes... I am wanting a rear end with disc brakes. You get bonus point for helping me find a rear end with disc brakes :-).
If modification (narrowing) is highly recommended, then who can I find to perform such a modification? Anybody know of someone who does this in the Houston, Texas or Conroe, Texas?
I am going to create a new thread regarding swapping out the front end as well. I wanted to try to keep this separate.
Thank you. I am looking forward to your thoughts. Many many thanks!
