sas d30 Fabrication

[Fabricator]

hey all i got a jeep Dana 30 out of a 96 grand Cherokee i want to convert from coil spring to a leaf spring axle. i am trying to make my ranger work the same way as the front suspension does on my 97 f250 with the Dana 60 swap. I got a majority of it planned out in my head but and i know its a ton of work and fabrication but im hopefully ready for. I was just wondering if anyone could help me out with how to convert an axle from coil to leaf and if anyone had any kind of tips on the sas in general? and the ranger is a 1987 frame with a 1991 cab.

 

[brinker88]

Cut all the bracketry off and weld on new leaf spring perches. Being that your user name is "Fabricator", I would have assumed you knew that.

 

[Fabricator]

sas d30 fabrication

Yes I am a fabricator in tranning. And I figured I would have to cut off all the bracketry and weld in new 3inch wide leaf spring perches. And the only parts im a little lost on are where to mount the track bar on the axle and how to set the pinion angle , and will the perches mess with any alignment angles or anything like that?

 

[Explorin94]

You didn't do this.........

http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/search.php

 

[Fabricator]

I tried lookin under the search but it only showed me the coil spring to leaf spring conversion with an already leaf sprung axle. I'm looking for converting a d30 from coil to leaf. And I'm kinda wanting to do good bit of the work myself if not all the work myself. And if I did look under the wrong thing what should I look under?

 

[kryptonitecb]

For all the work required why don't you get a leaf d30?

Sent from the road while ignoring traffic

 

[brinker88]

And why are you installing 3" wide springs up front? That's asinine.

 

[Explorin94]

I have YJ springs under mine. They are flexy.

 

[Fabricator]

I have a set of 6" lift leaf springs that I didn't use on my f350. And I don't know what's stronger and more reliable setup the axle with leaf springs on top of the axle or the leaf springs that go under the axle. And I plan on putting a 351sc in the future. So I would want something that will hold the weight of one . Also I want to do something thats never been done before. And to answer the question about getting a d30 that's already leaf is the axles I have access to all the one with leads are vacume actuated. And I like the clean look of the 96 style axle.

 

[brinker88]

No one has EVER put F350 rear springs on the front coupled with a Dana30 and a 351 because it's the DUMBEST idea ever.

 

[88_Eddie]

as stated, above, cut off all the old shit and weld on some spring perches. 2.5" wide should be more than enough. all you need on the axle is a place for shocks, no need for a track bar on a leaf setup. you'll need to weld some sort of spring hangers to the frame as well.

 

[4x4junkie]

A trackbar helps keep the axle from being pushed sideways when you have a conventional crossover steering setup on it (as opposed to the old push-pull setup old Toyotas and Chevys had ).

I'd be much more worried about that little D30 axle holding up the weight of your Ranger with a big V8 in it than the leaf springs...

 

[Fabricator]

As I said before in the future I plan on putting a 351 in it. as of right now its got a 2.3l in it that I'm currently working on getting a turbo on. Sorry for the confusion of the engine but the other d30 swaps I saw all either had 4.0l's or 2.9l's. And they almost all had coil springs. And I'm going leaf spring cause I've had bad luck with coil sprung front suspension in the past but never had an issue with my leafs in my f250. But I agree with what was stated earlier I will go with the 2.5" wide leaf springs and I thing 1978 jeep wagoneer front leaf spring hangers might do the job for mounting the leafs to the frame.

 

[dangerranger83]

I would stick with coils, makes the putting the axle in much easier and your truck is "setup" for it already. My D30, once I got the old D28 out, took a couple of days to get fully under, taking my time that is.

Also I am running a 302 with a np435 and np208 and my front dropped maybe a half inch when I put the v8 in and I am running 6.5XJ lift coils that gave my truck 5 or so inches of lift up front. I am not running any sway bars either.

I do agree, find an axle with leaves on it already, it will make life easier if thats what you want to do.

My build thread has more deatils.

 

[NEVERDONE86]

Super duty springs will work but you will have no flex or give and the ride will be harsh. U should just stick with coils. Why the decision for the sas? Why would it be better for you than the ttb? Why are you doing a turbo when you said your going to v8 it. If your looking to spend money you'll never see again I could use plenty! I think u need read a few more build threads before u start cutting.