To Rock and all that responded....Thankyou, the info helps alot. Thanks for taking the time to share your experience. I need to look at the 'D100 again and make a decision about what to salvage. It also has a 3.54 rear 8 1/4 rear that I may get also. nico

Volaredon,
No way am I p*.*d! except at myself. I wish I hadn't been so focused on the sweptline series...as years went by I have realized just how narrow the range of years is I feel ok to comment on and wish I had slaved over some of the "new" trucks. I recognize I am becoming one of the old fogies who just thinks they don't make good ones anymore...and of course every time I drive a rental car I realize something has happened in steering, fuel injection, and comfort that wasn't in the 60's wallowing behemoths. Sadly I don't think I ever even SAT in one of the 80's up trucks...I will make a commitment to scout around and find one look over! A guy like you who obviously knows the ones later than the sweptys is someone I would like to be able to consult with maybe because I have also realized it is just harder and harder to get good body parts for a restoration and I may have to sitck with my '64 or maybe look for a later model truck to work on. I would like to know more about the later ones because even though they have the feel of plastic and tin to me, ther are available. I am gonna buy a FSM for one to read after your correspondence here. An old guy doesn't have to stay ignorant! Especially I got interested not long ago when a 88 was up for storage auction for $400, but I was scared of it because I don't do modern vehicle computer stuff.

And valleyant, man if Ihad the chance to strip down a truck I would take the tranny, dashboard and wiring, seats, and rear end anytime and put em in the barn. you can always trade em!

rock
'64d100

Hey, Rock, everything's cool, great. Opposite your idea, I would love to find a newer sweptline (say, 66-71 maybe) have a buddy with one; 383, alum heads, etc, beautiful '71, and while I hope he gets it he's had it for sale for atleast a few years but he wants something like $12,500. Yow! He takes it to all the cruises and shows he possibly can and parks it in the winter, and honestly I don't believe he cares if he ever actually sells it or not! As far as the 72-ups, chassis and frame wise they were pretty much the same from 72-93. They had 8-3/4s til 74; heck I put a '69 8-3/4 in my '79 and it bolted right in!That was a shortbed with a short tail 833 OD and a driveshaft from a 5th Avenue fit perfect. They did put a slightly different body on in '81 but still same frame. And there is more interchange between the 72-80s and 81-93s than most realize, body and drivetrain-wise. I know what you mean about "old fogey" that thinks that everything past a certain year is junk. Ive driven several 94-ups back to back with 72-93s and even though the older ones were often more worn out than the 94-ups, the older ones have better "road feel" and feel way more solid than the 94-ups. That was a "side benefit" of turning wrenches for a living for 18 years. I got to drive many different vehicles. Right now I am seriously debating selling my 97 in favor of a pre check engine lite('mid 80s-older) D 150. For one thing the computers and injection did NOTHING for fuel economy. My 97 4 WD Ram 1500 gets me between 10 and 11-1/2 MPG regardless how its driven. My 81 W-150 4WD, with a 318, 727, and Thermoquad carb would get 22 MPG on the highway. 3.23s, NO O/D, 33" tires and part time 4WD with manual lockouts up front. Even my '78 D 300 Dually with a 360 was not as thirsty as the 97 is. And comments from the truck websites I go to confirm the same; the newer ones are very thirsty; even a Durango is good for about the same in that department. The other EFI truck I had was an 88 D 100 shortbed 2WD, 318, TBI; it was good for about 8 MPG And I spent money up the wazoo trying to improve that one, to no avail. The 90 Dakota I had (Now chassis wise thay are different of course but weigh within a couple hundred pounds of the full size trucks); 3.9 V6 it got me 14 in town/20 on the road. Livable, but Ive had those numbers while still having older full sized trucks. My full time 4WD Ramcharger ('79) was good for 14! Every single carb'd truck (I have had) was better than either computer/EFI truck Ive had on fuel, while still having plenty of power to get the job done.. Never owned anything but a Dodge either.

Hey rock, I have an 81 longbed D100 and a 2wd 85 Ramcharger. that I am letting go fairly cheep. Both do need drive trains. I am located on the western edge of Stanley county. If you are interested pm me.


TopHat

Ahhh... WHY SO FAR AWAY?

Yeha Don I know how you feel, everything I want is half way across the country too.

I'm asking just a tiny bit more then scrap price for the 81. If I can't find a home for it, I'm going to cut it in half for a trailer project I have in mind. The Ramcharger had a really solid body so if I can't sell it I may throw a 318 togeather for it and put it back on the road.

TopHat

Hey Rock, I PM'ed you on those driveshaft measurements.

_________________
'81 D150 2WD shortbed 4spd OD.

HEY, ROCK; Im currently looking at a few trucks; one more "my" vintage, and 3, "your" vintage. I like the '70 "DUDE" (though I thought that they were a 71 only?) on Ebay right now, "NOS BILL" has that one, a bit more than I'd like to spend (or should, w/o selling my 97 first) a 71 in Cali and a 66 (don't kill me this one's a 383) in Oregon; I wonder what the 67 from TN wound up selling for there last week. Then I rode down "shotgun" with my neighbor to his fishing cabin over the weekend (no fun, we were working on a couple garden tractors and a Massey Ferguson 65 and its bush hog, to get em ready to mow with) and picked up a "trader" type mag from down there and there's an '82 D 250 with a supposed 48K original miles on it listed there; I have a call into him. I do have enuf that, at current prices on the 3 pre 72s, (but we know how the prices on Ebay can escalate, and depending how well he'd like my "OBO" ) on the '82, I could buy either, as long as I could sell my '97 fairly soon after, and replace the money I borrowed. I'm going nuts with this time off work and am considering a trip via Greyhound s few states away just for a change in scenery and drivesomething back. So I might be having to ring your bell on "sweptline" issues. But Dr. "issues" will keep me from looking at the 66/383 that hard right now. as it is a 4 speed and he says "no driving stick", but maybe I should play the "what he don't know, just don't tell him" game? Cuz in the overall picture I'd MUCH rather shift my own gears! then again, "what the Dr says", is the only reason why my Wrangler has not left the garage since last Sept. Been started like 3X and warmed up in taht time. I did put STA BIL in it last fall like I do my mowers!