I had an independent front axle on my ’96 F-250 4x4 SRW. I have a solid front axle on my ’01 F-350 4x4 SRW. At least as far as these two trucks go, I much prefer the solid axle. Other’s results may vary.

BradW

'96 Lance 500, '01 F-350 Powerstroke SC 4X4 SRW, Rancho 9000's, Air Lift Air Springs, Titan Hitch w/24" extension, Happijac Tie-downs, Line-X Bed Liner, 18' Bumble Bee / 150 ProV Yamaha, 16' Aluminum / 35 Honda

Last time I looked I had solid axle in the Ford, I think some one needs to be a little more specific about Fords and IFS.

'03 F350 DRW 6.0 auto
2003 A990S Arctic Fox
Torklift tiedowns, superhitch to tow toys. Jeep on a trailer or 18' boat.

Don and Sarah,
Brad is right, his '96 F250 4x4 had independant front suspension, as did mine. The Ford IFS is totally different than the chevy setup and used leaf springs and a hokey front axle arrangement. Because of its single pivot point vs. the chevy control arm set-up, it was common for these trucks to have uneven tire wear. This system was used by Ford until the new HD,s came out in '99. F-350 4x4's had the straight axle, only the lighter trucks got the IFS. I think the new 3/4 tons have a different system, but I am not positive.
Dave

ps. I agree with Brad, I much prefer the solid axle.

Bigfoot 25C9.5, 2001.5 Dodge 2500 Cummins, Wells Cargo EW1622 partially camperized.

4x4 Fords used to use the famous (or infamous) Twin I Beam IFS setup - long swing axles that gave lots of camber change through their travel. These were notorious for tire wear on the edges of the front tires.

Rusty

----------------------
Tower - 2002 Dodge 3500 Cummins HO/6 speed/4.10LS SLT+ QC LB dually
Towee - 2000 Jayco Designer XL 3610RLTS 36' triple slide 5ver
Travel Companions - Our two Shelties, Brittany and the Bandit!
Come join us on a TEXAS BOOMERS rally AND at the 2004 iRV2.com National Rally in Boerne, TX

Rusty,

That statement is only valid for a pre-99 Super Duty. Everything built on the Super Duty chassis with 4WD has the solid front axle.

And you are right, the older ones were real bears with tire wear whenever you loaded the front end such as with a snow plow.

Rich

"Responsibility is the price of freedom" ~~ Michael Cloud

quote:

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Originally posted by Adk Rebel:
That statement is only valid for a pre-99 Super Duty. Everything built on the Super Duty chassis with 4WD has the solid front axle.

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Rich,

I was responding to the posts immediately preceding mine which stated the 96 Ford 4x4 had IFS. There was some debate on that, and that's when I stated that Ford USED TO USE the Twin I Beam setup. I suppose I should have amplified my statement to detail specifically that I was referring to pre-current Super Duty designs, but that's what I meant.

Rusty

ADK REBEL, Is The ELM TREE ( Monty's) in
Keene still closed????

30yrtc,

I haven't been to Keene in quite a while. I really don't know. If I can find out I'll let you know.

Rich

"Responsibility is the price of freedom" ~~ Michael Cloud

... i had a quick question ...
I heard that it was cheaper to put a solid axel on a Chevy Truck than the IFS ... but I was wondering what the difference was and what is so special about one or the other ... I do not want to do any hard-core off-roading, but if i had to i could... if that makes a difference in picking one over the other!...
I would be putting this axel on a band new chevy truck with the cat diesels in them, and i want to put a lift on it and all the toys that go along with that. But i did not know what kind of axel to put in the front for it to be easier to lift. I understand that the solid axel is going to be easier because there is less conponents to deal with but what does anybody suggest?
Let me know, if you could e-mail me ASAP with suggestions my e-mail is diesel00hickchic@yahoo.com

thanks