DRW to SRW Pros cons discussion

[Plowboy7964]

Hi everybody this is my first post as a new member hopefully I’m not covering a topic that has already been discussed.
I’ve got a 84 f350 drw 4x4 6.9idi
It currently has a Dana 70u drw axle in the back. I’ve done some research and it looks as though it has an axle rating of 7500# but the 4 ten ply tires are rated for 11200#. I’m not really seeing a point in the duals if my axle rating is so much lower. I mostly use the truck for pulling a horse trailer up the mountain during hunting season and moving some miscellaneous farm equipment around. The duals kind of suck sometimes as I don’t fit in the ruts, rocks get stuck in them from time to time, and if it weren’t for chains and a set of lockers it would be completely helpless in the deep snow/mud. I’m not seeing a good justification for the extra 400+ in tires when it lowers my fuel economy and doesn’t increase my load rating. I’m thinking about putting a srw behind it and maybe running 12 ply’s, or putting an axle that actually makes use of the extra rating from the tires. What are your guys thoughts on this and what axle recommendations would you have that wouldn’t sacrifice too much WR or locker availability.

By the way a previous owner converted it into a dually hence the 4x4 and I think it would make swapping back to a SRW simpler.

Thanks in advance

 

[Austin86250]

You covered the points I was going to make, didn’t even think about the ruts
But yea tire cost, rocks in the duals, lower fuel econ, and width
If you do not need duals don’t have them
But personally I would make the dually a flat bed and get another truck with single wheels but not always an option

 

[WrenchWhore]

It's fantastic for the bigger slide in campers that are wide and weight a ton. In the event of a blowout you have something else to catch the vehicle from a very bad scenario. That being said I'd rather have an E rated single wheel tire setup if I was going to offroad it or snow winter driving. I definitely think it looks super unique though. I love the look of duals but I don't like the price tag for tires that much.

 

[Cubey]

It's fantastic for the bigger slide in campers that are wide and weight a ton. In the event of a blowout you have something else to catch the vehicle from a very bad scenario.

Yep. I had an inner dually tire blow on the RV at 55-60mph, shortly before I sold it. It just made a loud pop, it didn't jerk or sway, no loss of control. It also allowed me to slowly drive a bit further to a very wide shoulder section of the interstate. I was heading for a nearby exit, but found that first and stopped.

Dually can potentially give you more traction too, since it distributes the weight across 4 tires instead of two, giving more grip with the ground.

 

[franklin2]

Before you start down the conversion road you first need to determine what you have. Do you have a pickup? Or do you have a chassis/cab truck? You can determine this my measuring the width of the frame at the rear, a chassis cab will be 34 inches wide. The pickup frame will be wider. If you have a pickup, you need to start looking for a pickup srw rearend. If you have a chassis/cab you need to start looking for a chassis/cab srw. Different widths and different rear spring perch spacing.

 

[Jesus Freak]

Duals look really cool.......
And you COMMAND the parking lots.

My truck started life as a single wheel one ton and at some point in it's life (I'm sure under the influence of gangster rap music videos)it had its butt augmented to what it is today. So my wife and I like to point out my trucks "augmented butt". But hey, if you can justify a "butt reduction" have at it.

But just check out my avatar! I took that picture to show off how great it's butt looks!

 

[Plowboy7964]

Yep. I had an inner dually tire blow on the RV at 55-60mph, shortly before I sold it. It just made a loud pop, it didn't jerk or sway, no loss of control. It also allowed me to slowly drive a bit further to a very wide shoulder section of the interstate. I was heading for a nearby exit, but found that first and stopped.

Dually can potentially give you more traction too, since it distributes the weight across 4 tires instead of two, giving more grip with the ground.

I’ll admit that it is definitely the king of traction when it’s dry I’ll crawl up hills most people have to spin their way up. But when it’s wet or snowy that goes down the drain. It is definitely safer but I don’t know if I’m willing to pay that extra cost when I don’t do many long distance trips with something big like that. Most I ever pulled I grossed 28k but it was only for about 10 miles. With the horse trailer and I’ll my stuff I’m only grossing around 16k.

 

[Plowboy7964]

Before you start down the conversion road you first need to determine what you have. Do you have a pickup? Or do you have a chassis/cab truck? You can determine this my measuring the width of the frame at the rear, a chassis cab will be 34 inches wide. The pickup frame will be wider. If you have a pickup, you need to start looking for a pickup srw rearend. If you have a chassis/cab you need to start looking for a chassis/cab srw. Different widths and different rear spring perch spacing.

It is definitely a pickup. It even has a SRW flatbed on it I measured my buddy’s second gen dually flatbed and it had 4-6 inches more on both sides. My duals stick out past the bed about 2-3 inches each side. That’s why I think swapping back would be easier. But what would be a good rear end option to try and stay near that 7500# mark

 

[Cubey]

But what would be a good rear end option to try and stay near that 7500# mark

Here's the differences in weight ratings.

1985 E350 dually chassis with Dana 70:

You must be registered for see images attach

89 E350 extended body SRW van, I think Dana 60:

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[WrenchWhore]

Duals look really cool.......
And you COMMAND the parking lots.

My truck started life as a single wheel one ton and at some point in it's life (I'm sure under the influence of gangster rap music videos)it had its butt augmented to what it is today. So my wife and I like to point out my trucks "augmented butt". But hey, if you can justify a "butt reduction" have at it.

But just check out my avatar! I took that picture to show off how great it's butt looks!

I had to read this to my GF. We were both laughing pretty hard hahaha.

 

[u2slow]

Since it is a flat deck, keep the dually diff and run SRW wheels. My E350 cutaway van was like that, factory.

 

[chillman88]

I have both and much prefer towing with my dually. My SRW has a noticable amount of sway compared to the DRW. It's not a difference I couldn't live with but the DRW stability is very nice. It's also (as previously mentioned) great when you have the inevitable blowout. I've lost a few tires and no issues getting over to the shoulder or off the road safely with a loaded trailer

I'm not in an area where I pick up rocks large enough to get stuck between the tires, but I can definitely understand the concern. My 2wd DRW will go anywhere. I haven't had it in DEEP snow but it's walked out of 8" of fresh powder that my wife's 4wd suv couldn't get out of. The tires you run make a huge difference in traction. Some people run cheap tires and I can really understand that but I find spending a little more on good tires can make enough of a difference to offset the price difference long term.

I'm not going to talk you out of the swap, if you just put SRW wheels on your existing axle you can always go back if you don't like it, but I'd rather explain my choice so you can be informed.

I will try to remember to look at the GAWR on my trucks since they both have the same sterling 10.25 axle.

 

[u2slow]

Fwiw, the width of the axle and tire sturdiness/capacity plays a part on stability. I went to #3860 tires first, then to a 5" wider axle; considerably more stable than stock, while staying SRW.

Stock dually axles tend to have stronger axle tubes, and possibly bigger hub bearings.

 

[catbird7]

If it was originally a single rear (typical pick-up), the "dually conversion" must be simply a set of wheel spacers allowing the duals to not hit your frame. Converting back to single should be as simple as removing the spacers and installing normal wheels on the rear.
My experience regarding traction with duals is they're terrible in slick conditions and will never match singles (unless there's a lot of weight involved). Towing & hauling, duals will always get the nod. Singles are also a little cheaper at the toll both!

 

[IDIBRONCO]

Some people run cheap tires and I can really understand that but I find spending a little more on good tires can make enough of a difference to offset the price difference long term.

I completely agree with this!