i have a 99 dodge ram 1500 and i was wanting to change the runniong gear from the crap dana 44 to a dana 60 front end a dana 70 rear out of a 97 dodge ram 2500 just want to know is ther any mods i have to do or is it a direct swap......i looked around and couldnt really find anything on the topic well that answered my question

any help appriciated

 

rear spring width is different, 2.5 vs 3. so you might need to change the spring hangers.
drive shaft work will be required. the original 2500 drive shafts might work, or be a good starting point if the yokes are different.
wheels are different, 5 lug vs 8.

try a search here. a couple of people have done this including one or two threads last year. also check pavementsucks.com

 

Grab ALL driveline/suspension parts, starting at the transfer case. If you can, get the rear spring hangars as well. (both ends of the spring please.) Hardest part of the swap will be the hangars. Some cutting/welding required. You may also be able to find aftermarket spring hangars for the conversion.

 

actually some 2500's came with a 2.5 spread on the leaf. so it depends. ive found some 2.5 in leafs from http://car-part.com from a 2500

 

Probably from the light duty version of the 2500.

 

so basically if i find a axle out of a light duty 2500 its pretty much going to be a straight conversion except for the drive shaft so what would i have to do to them to get them to work?

 

Not a lot of detailed information available for the LD 3/4 tons..... Best bet would be to compare part numbers for things like u-joints, and such. If they use that same numbers, it might just be a direct swap, with no hoop jumping at all.

 

I seriously doubt you will find a LD 2500 as they are very rare. Also the axles are not much of an upgrade. Still the Dana 44 and HD Chrysler 9.25. Both do have 8-lugs though.

 

all i want is the 8 lug pattern

 

Sounds like a lot of work and money for almost no gain.