8.25 setup, any ideas?

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Hey small block I'd be willing to trade can you send photos of the cars?
Willing to sell outright? I really prefer the Dusters/Demons/Dart Sports.
Have any rust free B-bodies?

[email protected]

Although the last couple rust free darts/dusters I bought were between $177.50 (plus $800.00 shipping) - $1,300.00 (plus $1,000.00 shipping) and they were on eBay.

The only reason why I decided to pay much ($1,300.00) the for rust free Gold Duster was because it was a running driving car with power disc brakes, A/C, fold down rear seat, snake skin top, and a lot of other options. Plus I bought it in January 2008 when the market was still good. I did have to pay a lot for shipping because of the high cost of fuel, but $1,000.00 for 2,300 mile trip isn't so bad. The seller also let the car sit for 8 months while I saved up and found a good shipper.
She isn't going to win any beauty contests but it is a great cruiser. My only regret is that I didn't fly out to San Bernardino, CA and drive it back to the U.P. of Michigan!

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The cheapest rust free car I ever bought was my Dart Sport and I won the bid on eBay for only $177.50! This was when prices were peaking too (January 2006) It was a V8 A/C, power disc brake, 8-1/4" rear with 3.23:1 ring & pinion, fold down rear seat, stripes, dual sport mirror car (both mirrors were already gone though), and a lot of other options too. The seller was extremely cool about it and stored the car for an entire year for me until I could save up the money to have it shipped up here ($800.00). He said if I ever fopund any cars out west and couldn't afford to ship them right away he would be glad to let them sit for as long as they needed to on his property. At the same time he sold a rust free Plymouth Scamp (looks like a Dodge Dart with Plymouth front clip) for only $125.00 and a couple other trucks and such for between $50-150.00! I wanted to buy all of them, but didn't know if I would ever find shipping reasonable (they were 2,000 miles from me).
It isn't perfect, however I've yet to see another car as dry as this thing.
Check out those quarters, not even surfce rust. In fact the only rust on the car is on the top of the roof/deck lid where the sun beat the paint off it and there is light AZ desert surface rust. I can't believe nobody wanted it. Poor car.
No, the car will not run the Vector wheels, just checking to make sure I could get the 15" x 10" Centerline w/ 4-7/8" backspace under the car with the 295/50R-15 rubber on the stock length rear with only the offset shackle package.

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i have an original 73 340 duster with the floor pans and rear quarters falling out of it (among other things). most bodies i have found are either junk or already redone. i could scrounge up a few difs to bring down, 20 would be a stretch in short notice.
 
except for the rusted cars, the up of michigan is the best place to live!
 
Well, I've only owned one set of drilled and slotted rotors - with ceramic pads - all 4 wheels, and you could DEFINITELY feel the difference in braking power. I had an 03 Trailblazer with the 4.2 I6 - which is a stout engine, for what it is.. anyway, after the D&S rotors and ceramic pads, you could stomp the pedal and bring blood to your face. After that, I decided that from now on when any vehicle I had needed new brakes, and I could afford D&S rotors and ceramic pads, that's what they were getting. My Dart already has them on the front, and you can tell it, I'm just gonna make the rear match.

Also.. I have no desire to make the Dart my daily driver. If it was all I had to drive, I'd trade it off or sell it and buy a truck. I've done without a truck before and it sucks - decided never to do it again, money permitting. So in all reality, any money I spend on it is money I don't HAVE to spend. I spend because I want to. That said, you won't catch me buying a trans setup from Keisler, etc, simply because of the cost. I have an A500 that I'm going to rebuild myself with a few tricks to make it hold more power. I think for about $500 I can make that trans hold everything I'll ever throw at it, unless I somehow strike it rich - and then it won't matter, cause I'll just throw money at it.

I think my stepdad was into this car for probably about $1000. That includes the parts car he bought for the disc brake setup and rear axle, buying another engine block and getting it machined, and a brand new valve body in the trans, new fuel sending unit, plus misc. other stuff.

I probably already have about $1200 including this rearend. New Battery & cables, new ballast resistor, electronic ignition box, plug wires, elec fuel pump & relay, new headers and new Pypes dual exhaust, drilled and slotted rotors up front with all new bearings, plus piddly other stuff. Thing is, after I'm done, I normally don't have to spend money again on something I've fixed - its done. This rearend will be done, unless I don't like the gear ratio, and no way to know that until I try it. Only thing I'll add to it will be rear disc brakes. Then, I probably won't have to worry about it ever again.

For what it is, $2200 isn't too bad. My grandpa swears up and down I'll have $30k in it before I'm done. I don't THINK SO, lol. Course... all the info and help he could offer me on this rearend was to tell me that "on the old Ford rearends, the axles would brake, and we'd just either swap em out, or go to the junkyard and buy another axle."..... How does THAT help ME get the gears setup properly?? lol.. Anyway.. Next week we'll just see what I can get done.
 
about 20 miles north of menominee, and i do live here all year. to be fair, you guys get more snow than us
 
Glad to see another yooper around here!
I went to a parade today and saw this sitting in sombodys back yard. I'll have to see what the deal is on it in the next few days.
Looks like it's pretty nice and has old MI plates so it has probably been hidden (maybe in the three car garage next to the truck?) for quite some time.

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While were on the topic, how many splines are is a 8 1/4 axle?

An how much HP would be safely put behind an 8 1/4 diff?

Dont know much about them an since i bought a car with one
it with good power im kinda worried lol
 
27 splines until 1997(?) then they went to 29 splines.

Not sure how much torque they can withstand, however a lot of it has to do with what type of tires you are running (think traction).
Most agree that a hopped up small block will survive ok on street tires.

ho much power do you think tyou have (or what is your engine & drivetrain specs)?
 
27 splines until 1997(?) then they went to 29 splines.

Not sure how much torque they can withstand, however a lot of it has to do with what type of tires you are running (think traction).
Most agree that a hopped up small block will survive ok on street tires.

ho much power do you think tyou have (or what is your engine & drivetrain specs)?

Can you interchange 27 to 29 spline without a problem?

Its a 999 behind a 360 that i think is very close to 400hp...

I want to put slicks on it an race it but i rekon shel go bang...
Wel see lol

Il get back to you in 2 weeks about it!
 
SO.. here's the skinny... My Suregrip is wrong. Pana.Mopar is having the same problem. I'd like to figure out WHY it won't work, to be able to explain it to someone else. If the Sg units we both bought were actually for a Dodge Dakota 8.25, then why won't they work in our rearends? My Axles will fit the Splines in the SG unit, so we know they're 27 splines... and NO! Its not because 2.45 carriers are different. That fact has nothing to do with what Pana and I are doing. As far as I can tell, a Dak was only available with a Minimum of 3.21s. Thing is.. neither of our SG units have a place for the ABS tone ring... I am pretty sure that all Daks with the 8.25 had ABS. I don't see how we could figure out exactly what we have. The 8.25 ring gear fits on it just fine..., the bearings press on, but the ring gear seat is 1/4 inch from where it should be.
 
Swinger does it have a part # on it anywhere? If so maybe one of us can find out the application it was used for. I know a few places to look.
 
SO.. here's the skinny... My Suregrip is wrong. Pana.Mopar is having the same problem. I'd like to figure out WHY it won't work, to be able to explain it to someone else. If the Sg units we both bought were actually for a Dodge Dakota 8.25, then why won't they work in our rearends? My Axles will fit the Splines in the SG unit, so we know they're 27 splines... and NO! Its not because 2.45 carriers are different. That fact has nothing to do with what Pana and I are doing. As far as I can tell, a Dak was only available with a Minimum of 3.21s. Thing is.. neither of our SG units have a place for the ABS tone ring... I am pretty sure that all Daks with the 8.25 had ABS. I don't see how we could figure out exactly what we have. The 8.25 ring gear fits on it just fine..., the bearings press on, but the ring gear seat is 1/4 inch from where it should be.

Hey Swinger, Exactly... The carrier is all correct, bearings fit and everything fits fine. I have heard that a section of the inner housing is to be grinded out to fit the aftermarket SG centres in 8.25.. The basic issue is the spacing between the pinion and gear for backlash. With the carrier pushed all the way for backlash the pinion and gear are not meshing enough and lots movement still. Hence why i've justed a 15mm (sorry for the Metric measurements) plates to go between the gear and carrier plate then that way it will push the gear over and will give room for backlash adjustment.

I'm with you.. I'm going to get this SG centre in no matter what. LOL!
 
I think the numbers Pana listed for his were serial numbers. The part number should be on housing of the carrier, running from just under the ring gear to the first tapered shoulder. Mine says 0915 195. If there's another number under there, I can't see it. I might check again.. Thing is Pana, like I said.. its NOT a Dakota unit, so somebody lied, unless Daks came out WITHOUT ABS.. Your Sg unit doesn't have provision for a tone ring, either. I may wind up putting the open carrier out of the Dak in my housing until I can come up with the proper SG unit. I can't find anyone online who sells ring gear spacers for 8.25s. In the meantime.. I have located an 8.75 rear axle out of a 66 Belvedere for a steal. I'm gonna buy it, even if I don't use it, because I can't pass a deal like that up. I have located 3 other 8.25s, all out of Dodge Rams, so they're an even bigger bolt pattern, I think, BUT I don't know if any of those are SGs or not. I'm gonna try to take my ratchet set and check two of em out next week, if I can.

I also found a 68 Barracuda rusting away in a junkyard, but still fixable. The interior was actually pretty nice except for the headliner. Highback buckets with console, but column shift, no engine or tranny. Also found a Slant 6 in a truck, and several 9.25 axles. I also located a Ford Explorer 8.8 with disc brakes pretty reasonable - needs new rotors and maybe calipers. Somehow, I doubt any of this is going to help me, but we'll see.
 
I think the numbers Pana listed for his were serial numbers. The part number should be on housing of the carrier, running from just under the ring gear to the first tapered shoulder. Mine says 0915 195. If there's another number under there, I can't see it. I might check again.. Thing is Pana, like I said.. its NOT a Dakota unit, so somebody lied, unless Daks came out WITHOUT ABS.. Your Sg unit doesn't have provision for a tone ring, either. I may wind up putting the open carrier out of the Dak in my housing until I can come up with the proper SG unit. I can't find anyone online who sells ring gear spacers for 8.25s. In the meantime.. I have located an 8.75 rear axle out of a 66 Belvedere for a steal. I'm gonna buy it, even if I don't use it, because I can't pass a deal like that up. I have located 3 other 8.25s, all out of Dodge Rams, so they're an even bigger bolt pattern, I think, BUT I don't know if any of those are SGs or not. I'm gonna try to take my ratchet set and check two of em out next week, if I can.

I also found a 68 Barracuda rusting away in a junkyard, but still fixable. The interior was actually pretty nice except for the headliner. Highback buckets with console, but column shift, no engine or tranny. Also found a Slant 6 in a truck, and several 9.25 axles. I also located a Ford Explorer 8.8 with disc brakes pretty reasonable - needs new rotors and maybe calipers. Somehow, I doubt any of this is going to help me, but we'll see.

Yeah, I don't have any idea what it's out of but I do know we had it sitting in the housing all well and good other than the backlash issues. I'm going to get my Father (who is a Fitter & Machinist) to mill me up a spacer to go between the ring gear and carrier and that should fix that issue and we'll see how we go. 8 3/4 diffs and Dana's for an A-Body arent that easy to find here Down Under and especially an LSD unit... I'd prefer to keep the 8 1/4 and keep the car as original as possible. Don't get me wrong, the Duster aint no strip burner. It's a cruiser but would like to fry the tyres and hang it sideways with an LSD rear end...

Yeah, I noticed there is another number on the carrier. The number is: 0921-248 or 0921-218... Don't know that this is.. Can anyone help here?? Thanks!

Thanks Blue Swinger for all your help as well.. Much appreciated!
 
Well my car is already not original, so I'm not too worried about that. I didn't even think there was an 8.75 to be had around here. I've been looking for over a year, I've even asked the junkyard where I found it.. I guess I just didn't ask the right question. I don't know if I'm going to have a spacer made or not, I may just try to find a different SG.
 
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