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Give us a report once you get them installed. 2300 RPM is not terribly high for highway revs, just about any direct drive situation would give that RPM. Even my truck, in fifth gear, turns around that @ 110. I think you'll be giggling like crazy every time you leave a stop with the new gears.
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That sounds like a good one, Dan. That should make a big difference. I am also going to go with the 3.89, but no OD for me 
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That is great info on the 9 inch diffs. I am going to check around junk yards for late 60's thru 70's trucks to maybe snag a 31 spline with 3.89's , most likely found in a 6 cylinder, as you mentioned.
However, not sure if the truck diff would fit my 64 Galaxie, and if not, whether or not the axles could be shortened if needed.
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70XL...will post results when available...soon I hope...driving conditions improving! No snow forcasts
462HO...31 spline axles can be shortened. Some 28 spline axles cannot be shortened as they are a tapered shaft(from the reading I have done) Someone else may know more on this, I have never done it. The center carrier would fit for sure, the axle length might be different. There seems to be a fair amount of stuff still available.
Last edited by dan_6776 (April 28, 2017 7:32 am)
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dan_6776 wrote:
70XL...will post results when available...soon I hope...driving conditions improving! No snow forcasts
Yeah, the long range forecast is looking better. I charged the battery in my car and washed the air filter last weekend, now have to oil the air filter and the car should be ready to fire. Not many miles on the engine oil, but I've got oil to change it if I'm so motivated.
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Found out about the number vs. the letter denoting open vs trac lock in my fsm for the '65. Was also able to verify trans, as well as rear end were original to the car.
Also verified where the car was built and what town it was shipped to which helped to verify the seller's claims. I like finding those little factoids about our cars. Now if I could navigate the murkiness about why halfway through '68 Ford and Merc started putting 289s in place of 302s I would be happy. On the latter, I've heard everthing from core shift, cost, to there being a strike.
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My old rear was a 3.56 and I have the 3.89 trac lok installed, a clutch type rear from Quick Performance. It made a big difference around town, I can prowl at 1500 RPMs and not have it lug and chug. At 70 I'm turning 3200 RPM. Very nice to cruise at that speed.
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Dan_6776, I doubt you will need any reprogramming, the computer doesn't care about actual speed. It will read the sensors and adjust and shift based on load. I just went from 3.55 to 4.11 in my 1998 F150 to get a little more grunt towing a toy hauler. This would mean nothing to a Galaxie thread except for it's similar to your current drive train.
I love the extra giddyup around town to go with better towing. I went from running 2000 rpm at 70mph to around 2300 rpm with the 4.11. speedometer is off about 10mph at 70. I still have a speedo gear so I need to swap it out.
Mike
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Mike,
Thanks for the comments, I hope the vehicle drives without issue with new gears as you are suggesting. Just to clarify, I am running a Ron Francis wiring harness. I had the original computer flashed and reprogrammed for my application. They programmed for 3.0:1 when they set up the computer. I have spoken to Ron Francis about what I am doing, and they did say a re-program may not be necessary as I may be happy with how the car drives with new gears. Keeping my fingers crossed.
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Since there has been some discussion about 28 spline axle shafts in this thread, I thought I would post a picture comparing two axles. The axle on the left is the twisted axle I removed out of my 61 Galaxie. It measures 1.106" about a third way down from the spline end. The axle on the right is the replacement axle I just got back from the machine shop as a new bearing was put on. That axle was removed from a 60 Galaxie. It measures 1.29" in the same location. You can see how there is a taper near the splines that the 61 axle does not have. If I were into drag racing, I would want the axles from a 60 in my 61 as they are much more beefy. Also, the 60 axle is 1/16" shorter in length.
Makes me wonder why the older axle shaft is made so much heavier?
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Ford had a bunch of one-year things going on around 1960. Even later axles were hard to find replacements (1972 Torino is one). The 1957-1959 axles were the same and 28-spline. The 31-spline rear came about after 1970.
With my car, since I am using a GM transmission, my speedometer was off, reading lower than it should. With the 3.56 to 3.89 change, it is now very close to being accurate.
Last edited by BOBSS396 (May 5, 2017 5:32 am)
