DENTSIDE

PART-4 Gears, lockers, disc brakes, and many custom mods

In the August 2022 issue of Four Wheeler, we reported on buying a classic '75 Ford F-100 Dentside in Reno, Nevada, and the adventure of driving it home to Southern California. In Part 2 (Sep. '22) we outlined the upgrades to the vintage Ford, including flooring, gauges, tires, wheels, and more. The outcome was a significantly improved truck that was coming together nicely. In Part 3 (Oct. '22) we told the story of how the truck was stolen, vandalized, recovered, and a new build plan was hatched. In this installment we dig into that new plan.

From Day 1, this F-100 was always going to live out its days as an adventure vehicle. A well-equipped overland vehicle would be expected to have low gearing, big brakes, and locking differentials at both ends. This would be the bare minimum we would accept. The Dentside's current upgrades include 35-inch tires and 4 inches of lift. Let's talk about how and why we picked the parts and gearing for Dentside.

Understanding the Forces at Work

So often we see builds with improper gear ratios. Stock gearing is designed to get good fuel mileage (among other things) with the stock tires. As the tire size increases, the fuel mileage may decline and the leverage on the drivetrain becomes strained. So, do we try to match the original final drive with the new tire size or do we go to a lower gear than that?