Building a mud bog truck

[Bishop158]

In near future goin to build a mud bog truck im going to start off with a 350 and was thinking 4:56 gears front and back  and a powertrax auto locker up front to run the rest of summer in the street class and build over the winter for next year i was thinking 35 12.5 boggers for right now to put more power to the ground would like all idea and anything from cams to heads to carbs to help make some more hp's all suggestion welcomed

[Irish_Alley]

what axles trans/transfer case do you have now what do you plan on keeping what do you plan on getting if you do swap parts. whats your ideal on hp/tq? what size tires do you plan on turning? will you drive it on the road at all?

[Bishop158]

For this year i will drive it to and from the truck im looking at has a 400 sbc with a holley 650 i think has 10 bolt 8.5 28 spline it is an auto matic im wanting to run 4:56's gears this summer gonna go with 35 14 boggers i thibk but need sugestions truck has a 3 inch suspension lift short wheel base it has 342 gears now the fella told me but i dont feel that will be suffient with and auto trans and 35 inch boggers and a auto locking front end i dont know much anout it would like to know good parts to swap front and rear axels out with and what locker im thinking powertrax auto lock would go nice with my manual hubs as of right now

[Irish_Alley]

now i mud and so does my buddy with 10 bolt and dana 44 but its not a bog its not about speed its just about seeing who gets stuck first who has to pull who out the most and who brakes something first. but i dont think a 10 bolt would be good for a bog. i want to say look for 1 or ¾ ton truck for parts. i was to build a bog truck i would look for a 14 bolt out back and dana 60 up front (found under 1 tons) and these trucks would prob have 4.10 or 4.56 ratio. with a stick you have to worry about what speed you in and changing gears in the mud is kind of tricky i would put a th350 in it for that reason. build a engine yourself that way you know what it has in it you could stick with the 350 you have just strip it down and rebuild it. with my setup 38s a sm465 and 4.10 ratio i hardly see above 3k i try to keep it that way so a engine build for lower rpms would suit me. my buddys blazer with the same ratio has a th350 i gave him and 44" tires i think hes about the same in rpms but he has the upper hand since his 350 all he has to do is floor it and it will change gears for him. while with my truck once im in the mud im stuck in that gear or i lose momentum and might get stuck

[winky]

Another thing to think about is weight. The 14b and d 60 aren't light... they also give you less ground clearance . I'm currently putting one tons with 4:56 gears under my truck with an sm465. And 205 twin stick. Definetly not light... Weight can hurt you more then it benefits so make sure you do some thinking before you decide. Hopefully someone else will chime in too

[Irish_Alley]

to shed some weight you can gut the bed. just have a shell

[Bishop158]

I appreciate the help so far another question i have is what spline count is in my front axel 28 or 30 im wondering because im having trouble finding 4.56 gears for a 28 spline everything that comes up is 30

[Irish_Alley]

if you go 3/4 ton or 1 ton axles you dont have to worry about changing gears just look for 4.56 gears to begin with

[winky]

Also keep in mind that one ton 14 bolts that perches are I think 2 1/2" closer? Anyways there a different width than regular 1/2 ton perches so they'll have to be moved. The 3/4 ton 14 bolts I believe are the same width as 1/2 ton. Also may not be entirely true, just my experiance all the one tone military vehicles I have messed with have been 456 gears with a Detroit in the rear

[Irish_Alley]

afaik the spring perches are different where they mount to the frame but the perches on the axle are the same

[Powerdriver1958]

Any progress on this machine?

[Irish_Alley]

its almost been a month since hes been on. might be busy building the truck or idk