ford twin i beam wins, only 4 pivot points, 4 bushings and seviceable wheel bearings that only cost 10 bucks.:tu:

How about the $120 dollar spindle tool you need to service those $10 wheel bearings? Or the inner axle joint on the diff that 99 times out of 100 you need to burn out with a torch so it can be replaced? Or those hubs that work for about 6 months and need to be replaced? Fords twin I beam/TTB junk is what give IFS trucks a bad stigma. My intent was not to start a SFA IFS debate, i just wanted to point out that the Chevy IFS isnt really the lesser unit some folks make it out to be.

well four wheel drive is a completely different debate, the 2wd twin ibeam is the most simplistic truck ifs, if you want a stock truck that's dependable. the 87-96 has adjustable camber/caster that requires only simple hand tools to adjust. Of course the TTB 4wd set up sucks, its dumb to have ifs on a 4x4 truck anyway. all im saying is the 2wd twin ibeam from the 87-96 trucks is my favorite ifs on a 2wd truck. my plan with my truck is to eventually do leaf springs with a dana 44, take the dana 44 steering knuckles off the axle tube, replace it with a strait tube keep it 2wd and just have a real truck suspension. kinda like the f-450/ dodge hd 2wd setup.

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but yeah the chevy ifs will be fine, and i agree with you ifs sucks on a truck overall, but i think in stock 2wd form the ford i beam set up is fine, people usually start hating them when they try to lift/lower them. if you cant align them its usually because something is broke. (assuming its one with ball joints, not KP's) but i do like the fact that the chevy sla maintains camber even of you put more weight on it.

Why is it dumb to have a IFS on a 4x4 truck? And it sounds like you want to put a trailer axle with 44 knuckles on it in your 2wd truck?

because i think it is, and its as much of a trailer axle as a flag pole or a well casing.

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but i guess i want to do it because thats what design i have seen that i like the most, like what ford and dodge use on heavy duty 2wd trucks. havent seen many steer axles on trailers....:tu:

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but thanks for the input, i was wondering where to get some axle tubing the right OD, ill check out a used trailer axle:)

But all the heavy trucks, and chevys heavy trucks have also had them, use an I beam axle with king pins and spindles with bearings, i think the newest set of 44 knuckles you will find with with inner and outer bearings and not a unit bearing is in the late 70s......... and thats probably about enough hi jacking for now.

there are plenty of obs 1/2 ton chevy trucks running around with 5.9 cummins in them. My son swapped in a 5.9 into his 93 S10 and it's been fine for almost a year now. It does have aftermarket arms and coil overs, etc, and I think the frame might be heavier/stiffer than my 97 burb that I'm swapping a 12v p pump into now. (it's almost finished). So, I wouldn't worry about your 1/2 ton frame. The trouble with the IFS is that the tall cummins (pan to intake tube) is a very tight fit. I did a SAS to give me some more room under the hood. Some use a body lift to gain the needed space, but a lot depends on how you mount your AC compressor. The Dodge setup puts the AC into your frame rail, and the aftermarket setups that keep it in the stock location so that you can use your existing ac hoses, etc, mount it too high to fit under the hood without a cowl hood or body lift. (there are alternative mounting setups that alleviate the hood problem).