Ford D60

The easy ID for these is that they use a low pinion arrangement, while all Ford D60's '77.5 and newer are high pinion (van conversions are the rare exception).

Kingpin style knuckles

31-1/2" spring pad spacing

You want to tread really lightly with these axles.

Some have drum brakes, some have D44 sized axle shafts/u-joints, external (less desirable) hubs, closed knuckles, etc.

These are super rare anyway, but it's worth the mention in case you come across one. They're generally not desireable

'77.5-79 F250 (sometimes)

'79 F350

Ford D60

Kingpin style knuckles

31-1/2" spring pad spacing

High pinion

The short side tube is fairly long. This is a big pro if you're going to use links/coils as there is a lot more room to do so compared to the later Ford axles (compare this picture to the one in the '85-91 Ford axles).

The narrow spring pad spacing is good for solid axle conversions because it keeps the tires away from the leaf springs.

8 x 6.5" Lug nut pattern (same as older GM and Dodge).

Crossover steering bolts directly to kingpin knuckle.

Factory knuckles don't hold up well to heavy offroad use (aftermarket replacements are available)

The narrow year range and high desirability makes these hard to find (and often the most expensive)

'85-91 F350

Ford D60

Kingpin style knuckles

36-1/2" spring pad spacing

High pinion

**Note: Ford didn't make solid axles at all from '80-84, even in F350's. They used their IFS/TTB system**

Starting in '85, Ford made the short side tube shorter and the long side tube longer to the tune of ~2". This makes for a really short tube on the driver's side that leaves pretty limited space if you're looking to attach link/coil mounts there.

The wider year range makes these a lot easier to source than the '77.5-79 version.

8 x 6.5" Lug nut pattern (same as older GM and Dodge).

Crossover steering bolts directly to kingpin knuckle.

Factory knuckles don't hold up well to heavy offroad use (aftermarket replacements are available)

With bigger tires, the wider spring pad spacing can cause tire-to-spring clearance issues.

Ford D60

Ball Joint style knuckles

36-1/2" spring pad spacing

High pinion

The wider year range makes these a lot easier to source than the '77.5-79 version.

8 x 6.5" Lug nut pattern (same as older GM and Dodge).

Crossover steering is a challenge as the OE knuckles don't have any way to attach a draglink to them. ORD does not have a crossover system for these axles.

With bigger tires, the wider spring pad spacing can cause tire-to-spring clearance issues.

Ford D60

Ball Joint style knuckles

37-3/4" spring pad spacing

High pinion

For the ’99 model year, Ford changed a lot. Their D60 fronts went to a ball jointed unit bearing knuckle system and went to an even wider spring perch spacing. There is at least one aftermarket option for attaching steering to the SuperDuty knuckle but the width makes them pretty much impossible to use with our SAS systems. The driver's side spring perch is cast and machined into the differntial housing, so moving it inboard is basically impossible.

Crossover steering is a challenge as the OE knuckles don't have any way to attach a draglink to them. ORD does not have a crossover system for these axles.

Metric lug pattern

Unit bearing hubs

Extra wide spring perches

Ford D60

Ball Joint style knuckles

High pinion

Setup for radius arms and coil springs