someone far more knowledgeable than i mentioned a high ratio gear set (low numerically) for dana 60. the lowest i'm finding is 3.54. i'd settle for low 3's, but a ratio in the 2's would be ideal. anyone ever seen such a thing?

In my research on this topic Ford made a 3.31 ring and pinion and this is the lowest I've ever heard of.

I have a 3.33 in my Challenger. I think the 3.31 out of a ford won't work with a dana 60. DrDiff would know for sure.

There is a 3.07 but it was in a dana 61, there are offset issues with using high speed gears in a standard 60 housing. Tim

Is a model 61 Dana as strong and as durable as a Dana 60?

Just a guess here, but it could act like it was a little stronger. The reasoning is the true rule of thumb that the larger the gear ratio the less torque it can handle.
So even if a D60 and a D61 are almost exactly the same, the 3.23 gearset will handle more torque than a 4.10.

I think the D61 is an interesting piece that should be looked into farther.

R.

So, do they both have the characteristic "60" cast into the lower web? Is there any way to tell them apart from the outside?

R.

The gear ratio is one indication. Do a search on the 61 and 71 in google. There are some guys out there in the offroad forums that have researched it. Tim

From Bill Vista
What's the deal with the Dana 61?
With mileage and emissions concerns rising, at some point Dodge and / or Ford decided they wanted to be able to offer gears higher than the current highest ratio of 3.54 available in the D60. However, because of the design of the D60 the pinion head could not be made big enough to achieve a higher ratio. Hence, the birth of the Dana 61, which has a different casting that moves the pinion over 0.25"-0.437" (conflicting reports) - this allowed for a 3.07 axle ratio. The Dana 61 also uses 3.5" axle tubes. Other than that, it is very similar to the Dana 60. The Dana 61 was common in Dodge front ends and Ford van rears.

The difficulty with the Dana 61 is very limited gear and locker choices. However, you can use a combination of ring gear spacer and thick gear set to allow the use of differentials and gear sets intended for the Dana 60.

Slagburn reports: to run a 4.88 I had to go with series 3 carrier, series 1 being 4.10 and down, series 2 being 4.56 and up, then the series 3. PLUS a .160" spacer. That's the problem, nobody makes a full case locker for a 61, but it could be doable with a thick ring gearset AND a spacer.


Reider racing< Randy's R&P, and other sources make ring gear spacers for the Dana 61 .

http://www.reiderracing.com/ringspacer.htm

Do they even make a 61 rear? Thought it was a 71 rear? Also a ford ring gear should work if from a D60 along as its not a reverse rotation. Otherwise I've seen no reason it won't sense gears not being sold specifically for ford D60 or Dodge D60. Just specifies standard or reverse rotation.

i emailed the redoubtable dr. diff, and he said nfg on the low ratios. time to start saving for a gearvendors o/d, i suppose. anything but run a 9".