4:30 ratio's "Where I got mine"


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Posted by Winget on March 25, 1999 at 09:13:00:

I've been asked a lot of questions lately about my 4:30 ratio's, so with Joe's understanding and permission, here's the poop.
I bought my 3/4 Ton Command Car in '89 from a Horton Ks. farmer. He offered me a set of third members set up for 4:30 for a total of $200 more than the $2000 I was giving him. (Squeezed this Turnip) I paid (not stupid!) and installed them in the CC as I went. The carriers were set up, (sic. assembled), looked like they were original takeouts, not a NEW ring gear assemblies. Carriers had the larger stud holes, (does this mean late production?) so I used copper water pipe split lengthwise inserted in the holes to align the carriers without finding and changing to "Stepped Studs".
The original Command Car shafts fit in both front and rear. As he explained it to me the carriers came from a Bread Truck. 2x2, I assume, so this means 2 axles were pulled. He had never? installed them. I saw the interchange book that Zentmeyer (spelling) published and he listed a year series in the back that had them installed.
That's it. I can say they pull even in second with no problem. At max speed (62mph estimated) the tires start to shake and I will not risk higher speeds (I do have 4 wheel disc's to stop her). Never installed a Speedo gear adaptor, the one I bought had a Large fitting in and out, I'll have to adapt the cables too. I haven't really 4 wheeled much due to the rising cost of Command Cars, but she will tow a 57mm US AT gun without problem. Still slows to 45mph on long grades. Engine has not been rebuilt, so I may gain some torque when I do clean the specs. up.
I did get stuck by having two wheels up at once in sand, meaning they were definitely not locker types. Can someone look into Service trucks that Dodge made and check out the rears? These 2x2's may have been overlooked by PW collectors, as worthless until we needed the rear axle members.
I have a bunch of third members from 3/4t, If someone at a rearend shop sized the components, I would think by now, other trucks had the same bolt pattern for the ring gear that could maybe interchange onto the third members (100 years of automobile/trucks) Maybe a Russian vehicle copied our Dodges and produced a ring set with a higher ratio. (The BTR-60 8 wheel Armored Recon vehicle I drove in Savannah Ga.(U.S.Army OPFOR), had two Dodge 230's installed to replace the original Soviet engines, as the Soviet's had copied and used the Dodge 230 engine even to the bolt pattern since WW II.) maybe they have junked trucks there (or NEW)
Regards WAW


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