# 85 Dually 4x4 opinions??? any1?



## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

ok so i bought an 85 dually 4x4good solid body except for front fenders. anyways it is always in 4x4 unless i unlike the hubs it has a 203 np transfer case. any1 ever heard of a 85 with AWD it has a 400 small block with a th400 behind it. any1 know any good or bad things about this truck for plowing it also has a meyer classic setup on it 8 ft. blade. 8ft. bed. thanks in advance Gary.


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## 2COR517 (Oct 23, 2008)

203 in an 85 K30?


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

If your engine and T-case specs are accurate neither the 400 small block nor NP 203 were still in production by the '85 model year. Good chance a prior owner swapped the entire drive line out of a pre-'80 3/4 or 1 ton truck.


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## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

*np 203 case in 85*

if im correct the np 203 is always is 4wheel and the hubs are used to unlock it? correct me if im wrong? the hubs are spicer they just have 2 BIg solid gears that lock it in very tough looking and info on the spicer hub? likes or disllikes. seen that it has 14 bolt rear in axle and a 10 bolt up front?????


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

Sure it's a 10 bolt? Never used a 10 bolt under a DRW truck. Dana's 60's have 10 bolts holding the cover on too you know but that doesn't constitute it as a 10 bolt...

Yes the 203's are full time. Throw a part time kit in it and run it if it's in good shape. 

The Spicer hubs are about as robust as it gets.


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## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

it has a 10 bolt cover up front but i just changed the u-joints in the front axle and they had monster u-joints in them. SPicer hub was easy to take apart to. Just put a 6inch spring lift on the front today gottta wait till next month for the rear lol. the 4x4 shifter on the floor has no pattern on it. so i dont know if its in 4lo or what when im plowing
thanks in advance b&b


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

mountaindew5011;1096662 said:


> it has a 10 bolt cover up front but i just changed the u-joints in the front axle and they had monster u-joints in them.


 Definitely a 60 then...so you have the best there ever was. 



mountaindew5011;1096662 said:


> the 4x4 shifter on the floor has no pattern on it. so i dont know if its in 4lo or what when im plowing
> thanks in advance b&b


Snap an overall pic of the shifter and post it so we're positive it's a 203 and we'll get you informed on that one also..


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## the_experience (Feb 28, 2007)

How many positions does the shifter have? Is the shift lever shaft round or square? That truck should have had either an NP208 or an NP205. Snap a picture of the back of the t-case.


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## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

*np203 case*

payupits an all cast iron case it is to late now to take a pic here. i am gona try to find out what the shift pattern is before i plow with it. hearing a lot of bad things form fellow subs around here about the old skool chevys frame cracking habit!!!! behind the steering box and by the rear shocks>? ring a bell?


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## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

and the god awful lifter tick hopefully not a expensive replacement gona hope thats all it is?


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

mountaindew5011;1096741 said:


> hearing a lot of bad things form fellow subs around here about the old skool chevys frame cracking habit!!!! behind the steering box and by the rear shocks>? ring a bell?


Throw a steering box brace kit on to avoid tearing the box loose. I like the ORD kits. Good preventative measure and requires a whole 20 minutes to install so they're fast and effective. http://www.offroaddesign.com/catalog/steeringkit.htm

Never saw too many 1 tons broken at the narrow portion of the rear rails back then as most had a backup plate there so it was rare. But far more common they would tear a shock mount loose once in a while if really run hard and heavy.


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## 2COR517 (Oct 23, 2008)

mountaindew5011;1096746 said:


> and the awful lifter tick hopefully not a expensive replacement gona hope thats all it is?


Tell us more about the tick......


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## Stik208 (Oct 19, 2004)

2COR517;1097091 said:


> Tell us more about the tick......


2COR517 PhD in Psychology?


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## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

it ticks a lil from the top end after it warms up but has bout 35-40 oil psi. after operating temperature not a rocker "clatter" im thinking lifter. and figure why im in there get a cam and a double roller timing chain.
ANY1 know if a loped idle would reduce engine life dramatically?

The duallt has a th400 in it any suggestions to make it any better i.e- ext. cooler, shift kit?


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## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

B&B if im just plowing with the dually even though its lifted should i still consider the box brace?


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

mountaindew5011;1097843 said:


> B&B if im just plowing with the dually even though its lifted should i still consider the box brace?


 Definitely...even more so if it's lifted. Adding the weight of a snowplow and then twisting the rig around in driveways and/or accounts puts more stress on it than just about anything else you'd ever use it for. Money well spent.


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## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

i looked at the kit and it looks pretty straight forward for the install. kinda pricey but no one really sells it for cheaper that i can find!!


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## B&B (Nov 4, 2006)

Don't look at it as being expensive, look at it as being preventative. As once the box is torn loose and hanging by a thread the truck then becomes a 7500 lb paperweight dead in the water.


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## mountaindew5011 (Sep 15, 2010)

any word on the frames cracking around the rear shock theres a k5 blazer at my work on thejunk stack cause of frame cracks at all four corners????????????/


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## Zigblazer (Aug 1, 2010)

I've seen many 400 small blocks swapped into later 80s trucks. The TH400 is stock for the truck, but it would have came with a Part Time NP205 t-case. I've never seen a NP203 case swapped in. I also have never seen a 10 bolt swapped in place of a Dana 60, but from the sounds of it you do have the Dana. If it has locking hubs the the 203 is definitely not factory. If it is a cast iron t-case you can tell the difference easily. Just lock the hubs and go to a gravel road to see if you can spin the tires in any of the t-case positions. If you can then it isn't the 203. Or you can unlock the hubs and try to move. It will only move in 4lo Locked and 4hi Locked, un-locked will just spin the front drive shaft if it is a 203 and not move. Un-locked makes it basically a differential between the front and rear driveshafts and power will go to the path of least resistance (which would be the front if the hubs are unlocked.

NP203 positions are;
4lo Lock
4lo un-locked
N
4hi un-locked
4hi locked

NP205 positions are (4wd is always locked for the 205);
4lo (locked)
N
2hi
4hi (locked)

Anyway the 70s and 80s Solid Axle 1-tons are about as good as you can get. The chevy's had the strongest Dana 60's built, that didn't have the mass problems the newer ford and dodge dana 60's have now. The 1-tons didn't have the problem of cracking the frame at the steering gear or ripping off the shock mounts that the 1/2 tons or 3/4 tons did. Unless you had much larger tires or a large lift They actually used a heavier frame than the 3/4 tons unlike today's trucks. 

I just got my '87 1-ton a couple months ago, and got it all fixed up mechanically. I have $3,500 into it and it is running great now. It should be a great plow truck, especially since I only plow my driveway and my neighbors occasionally. 

If you have any questions about it let me know, the 70-80s chevy trucks are the ones I grew up loving. Which is why I built my '73 3/4 ton in high school, and searched to find an 87 1-ton to plow with, I like how the fuel injected trucks start in the winter and they only used the Dana 60s in a couple years with fuel injection.


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## Zigblazer (Aug 1, 2010)

Here are pics of both NP203 and NP205 cases. The NP203 have a separate gearcase for low range sticking out the front while the NP205 is the same size but without the large gearcase sticking out the front.


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