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97' 3500 towing upgrades

2K views 14 replies 4 participants last post by  tiny2085 
#1 · (Edited)
97' 3500 towing thread

Finally found a truck I plan on keeping for more than 6 months, and thought i would share.
The story goes, I was supposed to go boating and camping with the inlaws, but they only have a 3/4 ton 01' burb. (Factory 502/4l80E). So the trip was on hold till we could find another truck, I havent had a truck for about 6 months, and the monday before the weekend we were going to leave, this truck found me.

Bought the truck from a friend's brother for 7K with 108K. It had all of the Banks products already installed when i purchased it along with a flip over gooseneck and rhino lined bed. So far i added the tow mirrors, HD door pins and did a bumper delete :hehe:.

Not knowing the history and it being an automatic i asked to pull the 3000# boat instead of the 10K camper trailer. I pulled it last year with a 260K mile 6.4 ford and the mother inlaw loved teasing me about passing my" BIG diesel" with her "little" suburban. Made the 360 mile trip with out a hiccup, except for the marker light that broke out due to the bumper rubbing.
I had DAP over night a 3pc manifold to me because thess tock one was shrunk and leaking bad.
i also had some manual tow mirrors and anzo crystal head lights over nighted so i could install them nefore leaving.
i got the manifold installed and head lights before i left, i took the tow mirrors to the lake and istalled them once i got there, and love it!
 
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#2 ·


I promptly sold the bumper after putting new headlights in and it busted the marker light off... grrr
 
#3 · (Edited)
The only bad thing i noticed was a leaking wheel seal. I figured it would need new shoes and bought some napa premium shoes and did the 37333 upgraded wheel cylinder.

The hub had some play in it, enough that it wiped out the seal, after hub removal the spindle had a small score in it. I made a trip to six states to get a speedi sleeve,seal,and hub nut only to get home and find out it was the wrong sleeve... luckily the groove was inside of the seal area. cleaned the backing plate, installed new wheel cylinder,brakes, hardware and put it back together. I torqued the new nylock hub nut to 105 lbs, then backed it off 45* or an 1/8th of a turn. No after pictures as my hands were dirty
 
#4 ·

The other side looked great for 108K
And this is a Dana 80, 3.5 gears and LSD.
Also the hub nut uses a 2 1/2" rounded socket. And 95.5 to 97 are the same and 94,95 dana 80 are the same, according to 6 states massive DANA book.
 
#5 ·
Next item up was door pins. Not bad, but on their way there. After searching dozens of threads on the best pin, i found these.Dodge Ram Door Hinge Pin & Bushing Kit
It does require you to drill the door and body hinge to a larger diamter which i thought would reduce stress on the pin and bushing.
Door side goes to 1/2" and body side is 3/8".
Straight forward install, i left the door on the truck and used a floor jack to do top then bottom.n a 90* drill is ideal, but i used a regular 1/2" chucked drill.
this is the top hinge with a slight oblong to it. Drilled it out and couldnt see it.
 
#6 ·

using a floor jack and block, let the door sag to get enough room to drill out the body hinge. And Viola', noce solid door latch.
 
#9 ·
I love my banks exhaust brake and monster exhaust. Hope you at enjoying them as well. Sounds like you got a good deal on it.
 
#10 ·
I love it ! The Banks trans brake locks the TC when switched on and really helps slow it down. But it stopped locking up... need to diagnose that. The PO could have just pushed the OD button, but im glad he got the auto lock for it
 
#11 ·
Congratulations on the truck. Time for some injectors and some 3/4k gov springs.
 
#12 ·
My first order from DAP showed up, with the ex manifold, 4k springs, 60 # i/e springs and kdp kit. Greaat place to deal with :thumbsup:
 
#13 ·

Got the 4th gen bumper installed with overkill fab brackets ($120). I used the factory mopar bolts and they contact the inner cooler. Ill need to grind the ends down.
 
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