Like most of us, I'm not 20 years old anymore, and the idea of climbing in and out of a truck 7 feet tall with 35-inch tires isn't nearly as appealing as it used to be. Plus, I'd like this thing to be HALFWAY practical again. So, off come the 8-lug 3.73 or 4.10 or 4.56 or whatever geared Dana 60 full-floater rear and Dana 44 disc brake front, probably from an early or mid 1970s Chevy 3/4 ton. Hint, hint - anyone interested in these axles? Anyway, the spring pad width matched my Blazer. I think the rear is also wider than original 12 bolt rears, so they position the rear wheel nicely to match the front. I never noticed on my old Blazer 20 plus years ago, but the front axle is 4 inches wider than the rear, meaning the rear wheels sit 2 inches inside the quarter panel relative to the fronts.
I sourced some original 6-lug axles - a GM 12 bolt rear and a Dana 44 front - from a fellow forum member - thanks Dwayne! I haven't verified yet, but they're probably the 3.07 3.08 geared axles, which is okay because I'm currently running the granny-low 4-speed. The plan is to eventually swap in a 5.3 (or 4.3 EcoTec) with 6-speed automatic which will keep my 1st gear ratio at 12.4:1, which I think is good for stock height, 31-inch tires, 250-300 horsepower, slightly more torque than HP, in a vehicle weighing nearly 4,000 pounds.
I know what some of you will say, but I'm interested in hearing OPINIONS on this.
Great website for gearing calculations:
http://www.grimmjeeper.com/gears.html