1961 - 1963 F100 Unibody 1961, 1962 and 1963 Ford F100 Unibody trucks

dropped axle problems

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Old 06-02-2008, 10:25 AM
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dropped axle problems

im looking for a dropped axle for my 63 f100 3inch perferably i wann lower it with an axle because i have heard to many horor stories about ifs front suspention
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 01:05 PM
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Horror stories?

That's a little excessive don't you think?

My company offers a drop service for your truck axle. Three inches for $459.00 and you will have to modify the drag link steering arm, heat and bend it down to re-align the drag link so you minimize bump steer.
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 03:59 PM
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You know, one time I was under my truck measuring out various dimensions to see how a 3" dropped axle would fit, and I noticed that the axle dropped anything over 2" MADE IT SIT BELOW THE SCRUB LINE.

I've been told that this is very unsafe, because if you were to blow out a tire (or both), the axle then hits and shovels into the ground, instead of the wheel rim. MAJOR DAMAGE...

I have stock 16" wheels. Anything over a 2" drop and the axle is lower than the bottom of the wheel. Obviously with bigger wheels and thinner tires this wouldn't be a problem.

Unless I'm mistaken about all this?
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 04:55 PM
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if you wanna see my truck its in the gallery under 63 look for hot rod pick up it just sits to high for me i like my trucks either low or in the sky
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 04:58 PM
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CPP also sells a tubular dropped axle for the same price as having your stock one reworked. I am not a huge fan of the CPP one since it is hollow. I want to know I can hit a deep pot hole and not buckle the thing.
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 05:04 PM
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if you wanna see my truck its in the gallery under hot rod pick up. when i say horror stories i mean i have just heard a lot of things going wrong with ifs systems like bad ride problems shock mounts braking things like that and all the parts came from Vintage Ford in Sacramento California
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 05:09 PM
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Hey pro1963, it says that you haven't created a gallery yet...

And airharley, I didn't know that CPP sold aftermarket dropped axles for our trucks ('61-64). I believe that I've seen them for '53-56 and '57-60, but not for our slicks...
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 05:24 PM
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You have to call them to find out about it if they aren't listed on the website. They were there a year ago when I last looked at suspension parts.
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 05:37 PM
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to matt2491

go to the gallery scroll down to year click on 1963 go to page 6 look under my hot rod pick up truck
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 06:07 PM
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Unless CCP found another dealer for them, they don't have the aftermarket axles. They were being produced by CenPen/Worm Inc. Which I hear is out of business.

Scrub line issue, scrub line is measured from the ground on one wheel to the wheel lip as if there were no tire, side to side and front to back. For the most part a 3" drop will clear but there may be instances where the axle hangs down below. It is up to YOU to determine the safety of your own vehicle. We can drop 3" or less as you desire.

I will say this about IFS set ups. You only hear about the bad ones. And like the dropped axle, it is only going to be as good as the installer. Unfortunately there are people out there that "know better" than the designers of the kit they purchased and take liberties with the design or application. This is generally what causes failures unless it is a poor design like the currently available strut-less tubular control arms for Mustang II suspensions that are only mounted in single shear situations. I have a growing list of crappy installs I can show you to prove it.

Systems like my Dodge Dakota based kit have enjoyed thousands of miles. My personal truck, 63 Unibody with a twin turbo BBC has seen over fifty thousand miles without a hitch. I have customers with many time over that kind of mileage on the clock without so much as changing shocks. I know subframed cars and trucks that get driven like taxicabs and a friend of mine has a 48 Plymouth with over 120K on a STOCK crossmembered Mustang II installation I did almost 20 years ago and has only had to replace the ball joints and shocks.

And if you think for a minute we baby our stuff, you would be mistaken.

YouTube - Steve's twin turbo F100 - 1000 HP Douhnut
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 09:42 PM
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I wanna do that! ^^^

What are the odds yer gonna blow both fronts? I figure if I hit those odds, it was fate. 3" should be good unless you run really small fronts. Or as was said, run big the rims.

Elpolacko: Glad to have you posting here - I've caught some of your stuff on the HAMB, but it takes too much time to sift through the hokeyness over there.
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 10:18 PM
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ELpolacko

thanks for the advice. I am running 3inch wide front tires but they are tall its a prostreet pick up slash show truck in the making
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 10:32 PM
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Originally Posted by pro1963
thanks for the advice. I am running 3inch wide front tires but they are tall its a prostreet pick up slash show truck in the making
I may be able to help you out but your user settings do not allow me to PM or send you an email.
 
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Old 06-02-2008, 11:21 PM
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my computer has a block on my email because in my area there are to many hackers so the only way i can talk is on here
 
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Old 06-03-2008, 09:20 AM
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Hmmm They now carry 65-74 3" dropped beams. I wonder when they started carrying those. Anyhow, the 57-60 beams are still available. I just talked to the service rep and he said those fit the 61-64 trucks as well. But like I posted earlier I am not too confident in their abilites since the tub is hollow. I know that there are tubular chassis out there that are withstanding some serious torsional forces, 1000 hp + engines. I have more faith in them then these is all.
 


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