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The Great Dodge Switcheroo Work Truck Project

23K views 178 replies 34 participants last post by  kkodet 
#1 · (Edited)
It's time for me to step up to a dually for my transport business. I don't really "need" to, but with my new gooseneck trailer I think it will look better and be more stable. After much thought and contemplation I decided it would make more sense to just convert my current truck. It is a 1997 12 valve Cummins 5 speed extended cab 2wd, with only 515,000 miles on it. I know this truck inside and out, it treats me right, and I like it. Here she is at work:



Purusing Craigslist snagged me this 1995 Dodge 3500 Dually V-10 automatic 4x4 with only 117,000 miles that runs and drives great. Gears were same (3.55) but the dually has a powerlock :)



The plan is to swap everything I want from the gasser to my truck and visa-versa. Then (hopefully) sell the 4x4 V-10 truck.
 
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#3 ·
in the eyes of the law you didnt up the gvw at all?
that trailer loaded heavy puts you over gvw, possibly even over gvcw.
why not swap the diesel into the dually and be legal?
on a commercial truck it matters. non-commercial it matters only to the insurance company.
 
#4 · (Edited)
in the eyes of the law you didnt up the gvw at all?
i know that trailer with 2 cars/trucks on it puts you over gvw, possibly even gvcw.
why not swap the diesel into the dually and be legal?
GVWR stays the same on the truck which is 8,800. Gross vechicle combined weight is not rated by the truck, it is rated by the truck rating added to the trailer rating, which is seperate. I am currently licenced under 26,001 combined rating, which means I can legally tow a trailer with a 17,200 rating with my truck. The dually is rated at 10,500, so I would be stuck with only being able to tow a trailer with a 15,500 rating, which would be a loss.

Having a high gvwr on the truck only makes sense if you are hauling heavy loads in the truck. Higher GVWR limits trailer selection.

Being that the weight I haul is mostly in the trailer, it actually benefits me to have a lesser rated truck with a higher rated trailer. The truck never weighs more than 8,800 loaded, so I'm good.

Plus, I don't want a 4x4 and my family of four doesn't fit in a regular cab.
 
#5 ·
i get the commercial gvcw 26k rating.

how do you stay under 8.8k gvw? im always over my 8.8k gvw.
whats that trailer weigh? steel i assume?
i thought diesel club cab long beds were heavier than that i guess.
2wd is lighter and less complicated for sure.

how well does it tow with that stake truck on the back of the trailer?
tail wag the dog much?

i have a super cab ford and yes the back seat is just for storage mostly.
people dont fit, and hate it mostly.
 
#6 ·
That dual trailer was actually a freinds. I don't recall the specs of it, but we were legal. With that load it towed perfectly. 55-60 mph no problem. I was actually very surprised. The back seat room on the Dodge is pretty good. My kids tell me they like it better than my wifes Durango or my Cherokee. I'm sure once they are bigger I'll have to look at a crew cab again. I wouldn't mind swapping a Cummins into a superduty.
 
#8 ·
Boys and Girls, say no to bed liners! This is what they do:



I basically have till tomorrow to decide whether to patch the holes in this bed, or swap the flares onto mine. My bed is rust free inside and out, but has lots of dents. And swapping flares risks damaging them or not getting them lined up right and secure as the factory did.
 
#9 ·
lgottler came over and helped me remove the dually bed. Thanks again Lucas!

Us two did the job of 4 guys, and I now have less skin on my shin :(

Bed is in my shop on jackstands waiting to be patched. I decided it would be better than swapping flares.

Fun note! Bedless V-10 SRW dodges break the rear tires loose easy!
 
#11 ·
For the front I almost used the factory adapters from the 4x4. They would have worked, but would have made servicing the bearings a real pain. So, I bought the correct 2wd 3500 assemblys and bolted them on. Kinda sucks, because I just bought new front rotors a few months ago! Anyone want to buy a set of barely used 2500 rotors :D

One observation I made was that the 3500 rotors are near 1/4 thicker than 2500 rotors. They fit fine with no binding , but with new pads the sliders are almost maxed out.

 
#21 ·
Rear in with help of new U-bolts and shackle from Marysville truck (good people - fast and quality parts)



Leaves didn't seat right first time in perches. Figured out perches were filled with a stone like corrosion. Evedentially the leaf pins go further into perches on 2wd than 4. Took a bit with a chisel to clean them out.

Side note - locked dually axles are a pain to manuever into place by yourself! But I guess that means I now have a 4x6 instead of a 1x4 :D
 
#22 ·
While the bed is off I installed the new B&W hide a goose hitch setup. Directions (with bed on) say its a 2-3 hour job. With bed off it took me 30 minutes or less.



I did the hitch install before finishing up plumbing and such in case of any clearance issues. There were none.
 
#23 ·
The dually truck did not have a sway bar, my truck did. I planned to use it but discovered the mounts are completely different. The dually mounts are tucked in closer to the axle and do not span the tube. It would be simple enough to weld on different mounts, but since I'm on a bit of a time constraint I just removed the sway bar for now. Maybe I'll swap it on in the future.

You can see in this pic the new Gabriel Maxcontrol shocks.

 
#24 ·
Heres a perfectly assinine discovery. Extended cab vs. Reg cab parking brake cables are different AT THE AXLE. Obviously the mid frame cable needs to be longer due to the extended cab, but whats the point of making them all different? The axle end cables are about 4 inches TOO LONG from the reg cab.

I would just replace both cables, but the pass side one is special order and wouldn't be in for 4-5 days. Fortunately they can get me the drivers side one by tomorrow (the one from my srw axle was busted)

I think I can reuse my Pass side one. It's crusty but still works.
 
#26 ·
Cables came in. Found out passenger side brake shoes were installed backwards and toast. So between business paperwork and calls today I've been piecing together rear brakes. Lines and driver side wheel cylinder were very crusty and suspect, so they got replaced as well. I was able to repair/reuse e-brake cable brackets.
 
#30 · (Edited)
Brakes are bled.

Funny story:

Last time I bled the brakes in this truck I was having trouble getting one wheel working, so I got the wife at the controls and asked her to slowly depress brake pedal. She kept doing it and doing it, but I was getting no pressure at the cylinder. After about 20 minutes of this, I figured out she'd been pumping the clutch pedal :p
 
#31 ·
Brakes are bled.

Funny story:

Last time I bled the brakes in this truck I was having trouble getting one wheel working, so I got the wife at the contols and asked her to slowly depress brake pedal. She kept doing it and doing it, but I was getting no pressure at the cylinder. After about 20 minutes of this, I figured out she'd been pumping the clutch pedal :p
That's why the oven doesn't have a clutch... :sonicjay:
 
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