I bought a 66 barracuda that is a project car for me and my son. We are trying to get wheels for it. The front has a 5 x 4 1/2 bolt pattern up front. I have 2 15 in tires up front. With a 1/2-20 nuts on them. I have a 5 x 4 bolt pattern in the rear. With 13 in tires on them. With a 7/16-20 reverse thread on them. Is there a way to change out the rear drums to match the fronts? Help please. I have the 273 v8 in it
Wheel size different front to back on 66 barracuda
- Thread starter tigerpaw
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Sounds like someone did a front disk swap on it and left the rear alone?
Not sure what axle you have in it, but the proper way to do it would be a new set of axles and the later model 5x4.5" drum brakes. Of course if you have a 7.25" rear in there you may want to pursue a different rear axle rather than spending to upgrade the current one.
Not sure what axle you have in it, but the proper way to do it would be a new set of axles and the later model 5x4.5" drum brakes. Of course if you have a 7.25" rear in there you may want to pursue a different rear axle rather than spending to upgrade the current one.
Dave999
Well-Known Member
I found moser axles to be reasonable. I get the impression they don't particularly like making axles that are not "performance" in their view. As the alloys they use are better suited to great big strong shafts with near zero flex. but they were happy to make me some SAE28 spline axles for a borg warner 7 3/4 axle (BW M78 / BTR 9 Bolt axle) that normally has thin 25 spline shafts, provided that i acknowledged that this was, granted, a stronger shaft than what came out but was not due to its diminutive size a MOSER race axle shaft and should not be treated like their ford 9 inch and dana axle shafts. my housing ends and bearing section were just too small a diameter to be considered performance (obviously they cover their *** in case their customer is an eeejit)
my aim, swap to a cheaper and still available centre that only comes in 28 spline... so i needed a custom job done
i pointed out i was only rocking 260-300 bhp and 280- 300 ft/lb and the 25 spline pieces of string in there, had held up fine for 50 years, and they were happy.
so i think they would do a standard ish shaft modified with the PCD stud pattern you want, provided you do the measuring and fill in the order form...
strange were not interested they did not carry axle blanks that they felt suitable for my application at that time. the harder and tougher an axle shaft is they less they like to make it thinner, will be something to do with their own proprietary treatments of the shaft i would think, you'd potentially be machining all the "goodness" off.
as with most custom axles they will probably be just too long and may need some attention at the point of fitment.. you will know because the retainer will stand proud due to the end of the axle hitting the stop or the end of its initially installed neighbour in the centre.
Really depends on how keen you are on keeping your current axle which may be dictated by how expensive it is to find an A body replacement from an A body with 4.5 inch PCD shafts
i was keen because my Aussie A body has mid 60s B body width chassis and axle as standard at the back and a 67 B body 8 3/4 was an expensive proposition. that and the fact that the small Aussie axle punches well above its weight (they used em behind 360s).... and robs way less BHP and torque than its bigger mopar-esque brothers
Dave
my aim, swap to a cheaper and still available centre that only comes in 28 spline... so i needed a custom job done
i pointed out i was only rocking 260-300 bhp and 280- 300 ft/lb and the 25 spline pieces of string in there, had held up fine for 50 years, and they were happy.
so i think they would do a standard ish shaft modified with the PCD stud pattern you want, provided you do the measuring and fill in the order form...
strange were not interested they did not carry axle blanks that they felt suitable for my application at that time. the harder and tougher an axle shaft is they less they like to make it thinner, will be something to do with their own proprietary treatments of the shaft i would think, you'd potentially be machining all the "goodness" off.
as with most custom axles they will probably be just too long and may need some attention at the point of fitment.. you will know because the retainer will stand proud due to the end of the axle hitting the stop or the end of its initially installed neighbour in the centre.
Really depends on how keen you are on keeping your current axle which may be dictated by how expensive it is to find an A body replacement from an A body with 4.5 inch PCD shafts
i was keen because my Aussie A body has mid 60s B body width chassis and axle as standard at the back and a 67 B body 8 3/4 was an expensive proposition. that and the fact that the small Aussie axle punches well above its weight (they used em behind 360s).... and robs way less BHP and torque than its bigger mopar-esque brothers
Dave
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First find out what rear axle you have in the Barracuda. Sounds like the original 7 1/4 rear. It will have a rear cover plate bolted to the back of the differential. If it has a Sure Grip rear (both back wheel turn the same direction with the wheels off the ground), leave it alone and get a pair of 15" small bolt Ralleye wheels for the back. If standard 7 1/4 the easiest and most cost effective is to find an A-Body 8 1/4 rear and drive shaft from a 73 up Duster or Valiant. This will get you the larger bolt pattern on the rear and give you a much stronger rear.
Look up Dr Diff. Cass has a kit with new 4 1/2'' axles for the 7 1/4'' rear.
You can get 2 sizes of axle stud lengths and new drums or re-drill the ones you have.
Cost is around $400-$450 with new drums.
I want to do this for a 72 Dart. He sent me a e-mail saying all is in stock just last week.
You can get 2 sizes of axle stud lengths and new drums or re-drill the ones you have.
Cost is around $400-$450 with new drums.
I want to do this for a 72 Dart. He sent me a e-mail saying all is in stock just last week.
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Also check if any local Mopar guys are doing any axle upgrades. Open diff 7.25" axles don't sell for very much if anything. I recently gave away a large bolt pattern 7.25" axle to whoever hauled it away first.
cudamark
Well-Known Member
The axle shafts are where the studs are. Being a 273 car, it should have 10" drum brakes in the rear assuming it's the original rear end. You can't just change drums to change the bolt pattern. You need to do that complete with axle shafts, drums, backing plates, and all the brake parts. As mentioned, your car has likely been converted to disc brakes up front. To get the rear bolt pattern to match, there are many options depending on what sort of horsepower you have. For just a cruiser, the easiest way is to get a 1973-6 A-body 8 1/4 rear end assembly including the shock plates. That will be a bolt-in and work fine up to about 350HP. The best way is to have an 8 3/4 built with the correct axles and brakes if you plan on horsepower up to about 450. Over that, build a Dana 60 the same way. Another way is to convert your 7 1/4 to the 4 1/2" bolt pattern, but, that isn't a cheap option, and you still have the weak 7 1/4 rear.
Yes, but you’d need new rear brakes too. Unless you keep the SBP axle flange offset, but then you have to re-drill your drums for the new pattern. And you’d have to do that every time you replace the drums.
What axle is in the car?
DoctorDiff would be your best option for axles.
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