if i swap out the rearend and the trany for a later model what set up and doners would work best?
An open drive '55-'62 3rd member can be swapped into your existing differential housing, There will be some modifications needed to the spring mounts (welding the pivots) to allow it to work. common ratio is still 3.90, but it will allow you to use an open drive transmission, such as the T-5 or Factory style 3 speed with the Borg-Warner overdrive.
I have a B-W overdrive, 3.90 gears, ans 30 inch tires on my '55, it will run 70+ without any problems.
