7.25 rear woes....

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73dartswingerlover

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I have a 73 Dart Swinger that was a old family car I am fixing up.

Had a slant six and a 7.25 rear in it.

Im going to put a 360 in it and fear my 7.25 is bound to fail but I cant find a close 8.25 or 8.75 for an A body and dont want to have one shipped.

Ive looked all over within reasonable distances in NC where I am and called every junk yard i can find and have found nothing.

Im almost desparate enough to do the ford 8.8 or similar swap but really Id lime to know if anyone knows if it is possible to build the 7.25 strong enough to handle the new engine?

When done ill probably only be around 300hp but my wife already hates my car and if I break the rear and have to get a tow im a dead man.

Anyone have any ideas?

Im clearly on a budget or i would just buy a moser rear lol.

Thanks in advance!
 
I ran a 7 1/4 with my 360/727 for years without failure. it's all in how you treat it, you want to blow it up , you can , you want it to last , treat it good and it will
 
73AbodEE said:
I ran a 7 1/4 with my 360/727 for years without failure. it's all in how you treat it, you want to blow it up , you can , you want it to last , treat it good and it will
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I know when I finally get it I will at least do 1 burnout which will be probably one to many.

Wont be a drag car but for fun I wanted to go to an 8th mile track. Never been.

Just dont think it will last for me. Im skerd. There I said it.

Also this will be my daily driver so i want it reliable without much worry.
 
Try the swap meet in the Charlotte raceway. I believe its next weekend the 14th 15th. It may not be mopar specific, but may find one or a lead on getting one.
 
tonysrt said:
Try the swap meet in the Charlotte raceway. I believe its next weekend the 14th 15th. It may not be mopar specific, but may find one or a lead on getting one.
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Good call. I got a friend that goes to a lot of those meets.

Im basically car noob and know almost nothing except what I have read.

Ill see if he is going since he knows his stuff.

Honestly as much as ive grown to love my dart i would never have gotten it had it not been my grandmas .
 
Welcome!!! Get ready for a lot of attention. You'll have a blast.
 
73dartswingerlover said:
I know when I finally get it I will at least do 1 burnout which will be probably one to many.

Wont be a drag car but for fun I wanted to go to an 8th mile track. Never been.

Just dont think it will last for me. Im skerd. There I said it.

Also this will be my daily driver so i want it reliable without much worry.
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Dude, I’ve burned 2 sets of tires on mine with a eq headed 360 magnum and I’ve had zero issues. I think you’ll be fine. Go with it but keep your eyes peeled for other options.

Jake
 
diymirage said:
You'll be fine if you don't get decent tires
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Ive got stock rims and tires currently but wanted to put slightly wider on rear with suregrip?

I guess i can hold off if i have to but the wife worries me since she has no idea im getting a 360/727 in it.

She is expecting the old slant six slowness....

69conv said:
Welcome!!! Get ready for a lot of attention. You'll have a blast.
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Lol thanks!

xLURKxDOGx said:
Dude, I’ve burned 2 sets of tires on mine with a eq headed 360 magnum and I’ve had zero issues. I think you’ll be fine. Go with it but keep your eyes peeled for other options.

Jake
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So you say it may be fine with 300-350ish hp? Was yours suregrip?

Im really worried as you can tell.
 
You're in Hendersonville, so go to Capps Marine and talk to Barry. He owns a bunch of Dusters, and may know where something is, or can give you a lead. O.G. Orr would be another local source for finding a Mopar rearend. OG owns a car lot, but I can't remember the name of it. Good luck
 
and I will just add . . .
it had a 291 sure grip , 275 60 15 's on the back , the 727 had a shift kit and it would bark the 1-2 shift. the 360 was no sloutch and I wasn't scared. I did a number of burnouts and that thing was still holding together when I sold it.
oh yeah , AND if that wasn't enough it also had billet aluminum 5x4 to 5 x 4 1/2 wheel adapters
 
IIRC, they typically break when giving it the beans while turning but you should be ok so long as you’re not driving hard, burning rubber, etc.


In any case, I suggest a bit of discipline until you can find the right axle for the right price.
That money would be better spent on couples therapy anyway. ;)
 
It's all in how you drive it. Only you know the answer to that question. Had a friend with a motor home 440 in his 4dr Dart with a 7.25. One hard burnout and it grenaded. Put another carrier and gears in it for him. It lasted about a month. Look for a 8.25 of Ford 8",9" or a 8.8.
 
73AbodEE had the SG version of the 7 1/4, 50% stronger than a one legger! I had a SG in my 340/727 65 and when I broke mine, I was going backwards out of a driveway with the wheels turned and did a neutral drop, BAM! What an idiot! The 10" wide tires I had bit and so did the pinion - right into the ring gear and just spun 4-5 teeth right off. They jammed in the rest of the gearing and created a slight problem. I got off light with a new pumpkin but gone were my 3.55 gears and I was cursed with a 2.76 open rear now. If you cant find a Mopar rear, look for an 8 out of a Ford Maverick: within an inch of spring perch and they still fit.
 
JDMopar said:
Don't waste any money on a 7.25! You will bust it pretty easy when you get more HP. Where's 28792? I live near Asheville.
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Hendersonville near you.

This is what i think but could it work for 3-350ish hp? My budget means no more than that for years to come.

JDMopar said:
You're in Hendersonville, so go to Capps Marine and talk to Barry. He owns a bunch of Dusters, and may know where something is, or can give you a lead. O.G. Orr would be another local source for finding a Mopar rearend. OG owns a car lot, but I can't remember the name of it. Good luck
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Checked Capps already not sure about Orr though. Ill try and look that up though since ive asked about everyone.

Thanks for the leed!

pishta said:
73AbodEE had the SG version of the 7 1/4, 50% stronger than a one legger! I had a SG in my 340/727 65 and when I broke mine, I was going backwards out of a driveway with the wheels turned and did a neutral drop, BAM! What an idiot! The 10" wide tires I had bit and so did the pinion - right into the ring gear and just spun 4-5 teeth right off. They jammed in the rest of the gearing and created a slight problem. I got off light with a new pumpkin but gone were my 3.55 gears and I was cursed with a 2.76 open rear now. If you cant find a Mopar rear, look for an 8 out of a Ford Maverick: within an inch of spring perch and they still fit.
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Hrmm can these be found or is it like a trutrac or whatever aftermarket replacement?
 
Im going to have problems keeping up woth the replies... im new to this stuff bit if i miss you thank you anyway for the info you have all given!

I really know nothing about old cars and the stories i could tell about turning the dash lights off simce left turn brightens them and replacing fuses or the time i thought i had a hole in the floor because leaves were hitting me in the eyeballs and i had a huge draft from my “extra gloveboxes” aka vents would make you all laugh im sure. It was 10 degrees that night and i wore sunglasses so the leaves didnt blind me....
 
they are out there but not that common, There was one on here for $400, but I thought that was steep. the Newer Dakota 7.25 is different.
 
73dartswingerlover said:
... i thought i had a hole in the floor because leaves were hitting me in the eyeballs and i had a huge draft from my “extra gloveboxes” aka vents would make you all laugh im sure. It was 10 degrees that night and i wore sunglasses so the leaves didnt blind me....
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That's funny! My brother in law had a VW bug 'vert and had a hole in the passenger floorboard right between my feet and I didnt notice it. He hit a deep puddle at speed and the water hit me in the face from that hole like a firehose. We laughed so hard we had to pull over.
 
pishta said:
That's funny! My brother in law had a VW bug 'vert and had a hole in the passenger floorboard right between my feet and I didnt notice it. He hit a deep puddle at speed and the water hit me in the face from that hole like a firehose. We laughed so hard we had to pull over.
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I had a Datsun pick up years ago that the floors were gone. I put a piece of expanded metal down and a rubber floor mat. When I would hit a water puddle, you would get hammered with water!
 
SGBARRACUDA said:
I had a Datsun pick up years ago that the floors were gone. I put a piece of expanded metal down and a rubber floor mat. When I would hit a water puddle, you would get hammered with water!
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And I bet you saw plenty in Florida! We get rain once every 3 years out here, or we get 3 years of rain in a week, take your pick.
 
pishta said:
they are out there but not that common, There was one on here for $400, but I thought that was steep. the Newer Dakota 7.25 is different.
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In the post i read it said a 91-96 dakota 8.25 rear was a direct bolt in if you didnt have too crazy a tire.

I can try and find the article if it would help.

pishta said:
That's funny! My brother in law had a VW bug 'vert and had a hole in the passenger floorboard right between my feet and I didnt notice it. He hit a deep puddle at speed and the water hit me in the face from that hole like a firehose. We laughed so hard we had to pull over.
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Yea nothing wuite like driving with all windows up and BAM something hits you in the face lol.
 
I'd say a SG model would handle everyday driving no problem in an automatic. Manual has more shock to it, so they put 8.75's In 4bbl manuals starting in mid 65. Don't know what happened when Mopar put them.back in the 67 4sp 3.91 geared Bartacuda. Possibly the taller gear puts less leverage on the weak spider gears.
 
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