Rockwells or Dana60's???

[BowTech99]

Now that my ranger has finally become my trail truck its time to start some suspension

I'm kinda torn right now, between 2.5ton rockwells or Dana 60's. I know the RW's are super heavy, but nearly indestructable. Thus never having to worry about them again. And the D60's are strong, and Lighter then the RW's but I'm afraid future modifacations, and tire size will limit them.

Right now My 99 Ford ranger, is 2wd with a super modified 2.5L turbocharged 4cyl(dont be jealous) I'm a lil worried about not being able to turn the tires, so i want the lowest, and i mean super low gears. I like the fact of getting 27mpg out on the trail and being different.

I will run my M5od with a independent transfer case, kinda depends on what axles i chose to run. And Tire size will be somewhere between 42-44 boggers. Hence the low gears needed. As far as steering goes, more than likely i will go hydro for ease.

As far as suspension goes, 4-link with coilovers. Leaf springs are out, since I will be driving across clear timber lands, and pretty much anywhere else i chose to go. I dont want to have to wear a mouthguard And Coil's are out just because it would look silly with 3ft of coil springs

So, with this said, which axles do you think will suit my needs. And Before anyone asks, The truck will now be a trailer queen for now on. Thanks guys

 

[Bent Bolt]

60's. Build them right the first time and you wont have to worry about failures. The RW's are huge for sure but you're limited to one gear ratio and need at least 44" tires to get decent amount of clearance beneath the diff.

 

[BowTech99]

Huge dont cut it. Need a forklift just to move them around the shop.

Another concern was parts for the rockwells compared to the Dana 60's aftermarket.

Also I forgot to mention, The truck will be used for trails/mud. I mean its south ga ppl, how many rocks are actually around here? Since its gonna be in mud, The low gears will keep the tires turnig fast enough to clean out. Once The turbo spools, its game over. I dont mind one bit to bounce it off the rev limiter all day. Thats what its built for.

 

[NMB2]

a built D60 is in many ways stronger than the 2.5RW, although there are aftermarket parts to upgrade the RW of course. IMO go with the D60's, I did. a 42-44" tire isnt going to phase that axle under your ranger.

 

[TimV]

Dana 60 up front and a full floating 14 bolt chevy rear seems to be the hot ticket around here. The 14 bolt's are cheaper than a 60 rear from what I hear. Stronger than a 60 stock due to an extra pinion bearing for more support.

 

[wellcom2knoxvile]

dont forget about the EATON HO52/72 rear axles... you might want to look into running dual cases so you can get the gearing low enough

 

[Toreadorranger]

Ill vote for the rockwells. A shaved rockwell has better clearance then a stock D60 and with your motor your going to want as much gearing as possible. A HP front 60 has a max ratio of 5.38 so unless you plan on going LP not worth it.

 

[Toreadorranger]

Huge dont cut it. Need a forklift just to move them around the shop.

Another concern was parts for the rockwells compared to the Dana 60's aftermarket.

Also I forgot to mention, The truck will be used for trails/mud. I mean its south ga ppl, how many rocks are actually around here? Since its gonna be in mud, The low gears will keep the tires turnig fast enough to clean out. Once The turbo spools, its game over. I dont mind one bit to bounce it off the rev limiter all day. Thats what its built for.

The aftermarket for RW's is just as large as the D60's.

 

[BowTech99]

Sweet. Thats what i like a mixture of bothsides.

TimV- Not worried about cheaper or what not, I want high quality. I dont mind paying a bit more for it. Hell I got 7k in my motor haha.

I have thought about dual cases, But have you looked under a single cab short bed? Not much room. Figured one case would do it. I have thought about swapping in a older tranny with the 1354BW manual case attached(Idk what tranny it is unless it is a M5od)

I was thinking LP, just cause i dont have a need for the HP. Even thought about a D70 rear with a D60 front. But then again, RW's come with 6.72 gearing, and im pretty sure you can get lower gears if im not mistaken. Can someone recommend a good RW site for aftermarket parts?

Keep it coming guys. Throw out them idea's.

 

[wahlstrom1]

If you have the money for either, why not go with Mog axles? More gearing, 416s have the strength, and you'll have clearance galore.....

But between the 2, I vote shaved rockwells and mod'd for weight etc... they can be built stronger and almost as light as a D60.

 

[Sasquatch_Ryda]

I have thought about dual cases, But have you looked under a single cab short bed? Not much room. Figured one case would do it. I have thought about swapping in a older tranny with the 1354BW manual case attached(Idk what tranny it is unless it is a M5od)

Check out BrayD's daily doubler thread...he put a doubler set up in his regcab short bed.

And you don't need the older tranny to bolt in a manual transfercase...all RBV trannys and tcases will bolt together.

 

[jovibuilt]

Rw 2.5=6.72 gear you can get a higher gear but not lower.If you go 5 ton rocks you can go down to a 10 something gear.Alot or rockwell info on
http://chuckstrucks.iforumer.com/index.php?mforum=chuckstrucks
dana60= if you go low pinion you can get 7.17 gears thats what i am going to run.High pinion only down to a 5.38 gear.

 

[BowTech99]

Mog axles are I guess rare around here. I never seen one, let alone hear someone talk about them lol. Rockwells and Dana's are extremly commmon down here.

I really do like the sound of 7.17gears in a lp dana 60. Also I got to thinking, I dont HAVE to run 44inch boggers. IF my motor just plain cant handle it, i can go down to a smaller size tire, until the motor gives out. I got all this money in it, and I want to get my moneys worth outta her.

So far I think dana60 is winning me over.

The way i see it, If a toyota with a stock 22r can wheel 40"+ tires, my 300+hp 4cyl dang sure can

 

[ufospy]

Rw 2.5=6.72 gear you can get a higher gear but not lower.If you go 5 ton rocks you can go down to a 10 something gear.Alot or rockwell info on
http://chuckstrucks.iforumer.com/index.php?mforum=chuckstrucks
dana60= if you go low pinion you can get 7.17 gears thats what i am going to run.High pinion only down to a 5.38 gear.

You can get lower gears Randy overson makes them, and your right RW are pretty much the toughest axles out there. but if you throw a lot of horsepower at them they will break unless you upgrade to randy overson 2" molly axles. i have a bunch of guy's up here that run 1000hp motors and before the axle upgrades they broke all the time. i skipped the dana 60's because by the time you spend 800 to 1200 for the front axle and then you have to upgrade those to handle big tires and big hp you have just as much money in them as you would with RW so i just went strait to RW and have not regretted it!!!

 

[BowTech99]

But my problem is still a high-rpm four-cylinder that i refuse to get rid of.

What would be the ideal gear-ratio for D60's with a 38"-40" Tire? <--for my 4cyl.