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It has started... SAS Dakota 1997
- Thread starter SASDakota
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Man I gotta give you mad props!!!! I ****ing love this thing!! It turned out amazing and its totaly unique! I love it
You do nice work, keep it up id love 2 see that thing in person.
How did she do at reiter?? Any problems? suspension work good??? I really like they way you set your front suspension up:awesomework:
You do nice work, keep it up id love 2 see that thing in person. How did she do at reiter?? Any problems? suspension work good??? I really like they way you set your front suspension up:awesomework:
Made a snow run by fas river. It was 4-5 feet deep snow, real nasty stuff that you couldnt stay on top of no matter what u were pushing snow if u were breaking trail.
All in all im happy with how she did, this pic was a photo op I didnt get stuck
Man I gotta give you mad props!!!! I ****ing love this thing!! It turned out amazing and its totaly unique! I love it
How did she do at reiter?? Any problems? suspension work good??? I really like they way you set your front suspension up:awesomework:
Thanks. Im happy with the front end, I got a few things I will be redoing like the track bar mount will be dropped to match a drop pitman arm. Reason being at full droop I can almost max out my steering joint so I want to eliminate that possibility.
Also the rear end will be the next redo, I have a fullsize D60 rear waiting I would like to do a double triangulated setup but if I go coilovers ill loose my purpose of it being a weekend truck as well because the bed would be "light duty". Either way im working on the house for a while now so the truck will stay as it is :looser:
starkinthedark
Well-Known Member
hey was wondering what you did with your steering, if the stock steering box worked with the 44 you used. i have an 02' and im planning on a hp 44 and a 14 bolt leaf sprung. just wondering if i can get away with my stock box or not.
64FJ40
Well-Known Member
starkinthedark
Well-Known Member
yes sir
64FJ40
Well-Known Member
Hes right, you acutally have no steering box at all. I would recommend doing an 80s F250 steering box with a custom mount. It will get you tons of clearance and be plenty strong.. What suspension type do you want to build? leafs? coils? if you do coil what link setup? triangulated 4 link, 3 link, 4 link, radius? Im usually around if you have questions. Also what axle you use will make a big difference.
starkinthedark
Well-Known Member
ahhhh.... im just going to build a leaf sprung dakota with a 77-78-79 f250 hp 44 something simple and reliable...as i will probably be driving on the highway every once in a while.....dont know exactly what springs to use though... any suggestions?
With the high pinion and if you dont stretch it forward too far you may be able to use the stock front driveshaft. and I remember the fron in my 00' is longer than my 97' so thay might be to your advantage as well. But im sure youll need a 1310 end welded on.
as far as leafs.. I didnt look into it too far for what I would use but a softer 3-4 leaf pack would work well as long as its a 2.5" spring you have lots of options.
starkinthedark
Well-Known Member
cool... thanks man, im trying to gather all my parts before i start in on this thing.... im just curious... how much better of a ride do you get with coils vs. leafs? curious because i will be on the highway every now and then...
starkinthedark
Well-Known Member
also i was wondering what the front axle was out of on your truck and how wide it was.... reason being is dakotas have a very narrow wheel well and dont want to be too wide, i already know i am going to have to have my axles narrowed. are you happy with the width of yours?
If you go back and read my thread I used J10 Jeep axles. I got 6x5.5 bolt pattern and a 65" WMS-WMS front and rear and with these pitbulls I rub my control arms so I'm running wheel spacers for now but the real answer will be to make a custom cross-member and inboard my links. That's coming soon..
And for ride quality just going to a solid axle or quite literally just getting rid of the stock torsion bar suspension will be your biggest improvement. Coils may ride better and have more potential for articulation with the right link setup. But then you need an anti-sway bar and stuff so if your not making a wheeler and will be driving it often, go with the leafs! They're more of a set and forget deal.
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OK, so I have done a few "tweaks" after having wheeled it a few times and 2 work days at Reiter. I need to address an axle wrap issue due to the rubber bushings deteriorating. Ill be going over to an all superflex setup no more rubber bushings. I also am going to have my steering box rebuilt, tapped, and drop my pitman arm about an inch. And a couple of bigger surprises that will be started in a few weeks. Think tube, lots of it.
Well its been a while since I have posted any updates. I dented my rear diff cover, replaced my upper link bushings with superflex joints for a more positive feel. Pics below.
Dent ext.
Dent int.
Remedy
No more dent
Remade the upper links to use superflex joints in place of the rubber ones. much more stout.
I got tube for fenders, and some diamond plate for my new flatbed trailer. I'll be posting some pics of those in a couple weeks.
Dent ext.
Dent int.
Remedy
No more dent
Remade the upper links to use superflex joints in place of the rubber ones. much more stout.
I got tube for fenders, and some diamond plate for my new flatbed trailer. I'll be posting some pics of those in a couple weeks.
traildemon
Well-Known Member
Looks good. good luck denting that cover now :awesomework:
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