1/2 ton SWB to dually

Ok , i have a 1988 chevy swb stepside with a 502... i decided to switch to dually setup...

I am asking here if what i was planning will work?

Ok i was gonna put on a fleet side bed with the dually fenders...

for rear was planning on going with a real dually rear end and springs with shackles and flip kit.
but it seems i can only find 8 lug sw and dw cab n chassis rear ends..

But cab and chassis rearends are narrower arent they??? Dont i need a regular dually rear end or what??

Wont the regular 8 lug sw still need an adapter??

now on the front i think the lower control arms are the same from 1/2 ton to 1 ton.. I think i just need the upper control arms ,drop springs and spindles with hubs.. i was gonna probably use sw 8 lug 3/4 ton hub and a short adapter so i can try to tuck some wheel and be able to turn maybe use flares on the fenders..

How big of a notch do i need??

Will any of this work??

Also the donor trucks are all 1993 to 1998..

trying to go from this


to this

Are you going to be putting the semis on right away? You may want the narrower axle.

To run semis yes the srw 8 lug axle will need adapters.

Looks like the lower ball joint is the same from the 1/2 to 1 ton, according to autozone. I think your right on on the front.

You wont need much of a notch, I don't think. Probably could just go with a bolt in.

Contact lockone on here for your adapters. Do not get aluminum ones, well unless you don't mind if they break. vvvv

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I think he can also hook you up with your lowering components.

cool man thanks.. so i will go with regular sw 8 lug in front...

When you say narrower rear axle..Do you mean the cab and chassis rearend or the regular sw 8 lug rear??

I need to check the cab and chassis rearend see if it will bolt in but people keep saying it narrower and even the spring perches are in a few inches.. i will measure it.. i just dont have a welder to be moving spring perches...

also i wasnt going to put the semi's on right away... guy i know gonna get me 4 of the 22.5 alcoa for $300.. i was gonna run stock 16" steelies till i got around to doin the body drop and getting the wheels milled... Still dont know if i should run an aluminum inside rear or steel?

I don't think either axle will bolt in. The swr is a little narrower than a standard dually rear axle and the c&c axle is narrower yet. The c&c axle also has an offset center section. I would think it wouldn't be too expensive to have someone move your spring perches for you.

Careful with used rims.

yea husk is right. Sw is shorter than stock rearend and c&c is shorter than sw..


this website has alot of stuff you may be looking for too.

Well duh!

a blind squirl finds a nut every now and then husk dont be to big headed

If you are going to do the dually rearend under the Stepside fenders you are definatley going to have to narrow a rearend no matter if you put stock 16" steels on it or 24" aluminums on it.

What I would do is get a C&C rearend (they are normally 44" plate to plate). I dont know how much you will have to narrow it but you may want to do it enough for the 22 or 24s the first time so you are not having to redo all of the suspension and mounting brackets. With all 4 22s or 24s on the back it adds 27.5" to the overall length of your rearend (13.75" per side) and this doesnt include having a tire on the wheels so you may want to inflate the measurement a bit. You are going to have to fab a complete backhalf anyways so you can have your mounting point as you wish and could possibly even have them adjustable for various wheel applications.

In the front all of the mounting points on the frame from a 1/2 ton to a 1 ton are the same. You can take the whole suspension from a 1 ton and place it on the 1/2 ton frame if you wish or you can just swap components that will interchange.

Also on the Arrowcraft products they no longer sell/manufacture the adapters that convert normal 5 and 6 lug vehicles to 8 lug. All they make in that aspect now is the 8 lug spacers to convert SRW 1ton trucks to DRW.

If you need any help or measurements just let me know and I can try to help out.

Yeah I am pretty sure he's going with a regular fleetside bed and adding the dually flares, ditching the stepside bed, so at least that's not a concern.

Richard

Ok.so i cant use a c&c rearend cause the fab work will be insane..Thanks

So i either use a regular dually rear or sw 8 lug rear and run adapters for dually wheels on sw axle..

i figured it would all bolt right in .. thanks for all ya'lls help.

so on the front, the idea is to use 3/4ton 8 lug sw hub and get 2.0" adapters to run the dually wheel, so it will set further inside the fender for more turning capabilities with a tucked wheel.

I have seen this done an 87 3/4 ton and he can turn the 22 semis with it tucked up in there.. but will this work on my body style??

I think its going to be easiest to just run the all dually setup all the way around.. and only use adapters for the semi's. Figured i would just fab up control arms later to bring the wheel in a few inches.. Dunno, but my brain is going 90mph trying to decide.. I have a few days to decide still..