thebonds

I don't think anyone would give it a second look. I live in one of those listed illegal states, "Idaho," and would rock that mirror tint all day long. Sure it might be against the law but the majority of the time here you would never be stopped. Maybe once in a blood moon , haha, but I would expect them to just explain the state laws and not issue a ticket. But again, this is Idaho and not California. Btw, don't move here

Got header put on and 4.38 gears stuffed in. Makes driving this thing so much easier and enjoyable. The engine breaths so much better and noo more feeling of slipping the clutch when taking off. These are definatly not wheel fall off axles. 8" just like the 79-85 2x4 and 4x4 rear axles, other than only 5 lug. Axle pulled out to remove diff. Drive line unbolted and diff removed. Old exhaust off. Only broke one stud. Nothing some penetrating fluid and a pair of vise grips coudnt take care of. (Luckily) And finally some 20r boner material. Only a propane conversion/ turbo would make this thing any cooler now.

Shocks are on the drive axle. Do good enough job with only them. Drives nice and smooth and stable. Well other than that giant woooden box built on the back that rattles and shakes all the time.

So this is how it works. I'm sure those of you who have seen this axle set up already knew it. I didn't know the end of the axle shaft was offset from the center, allowing the wheel and tire to rotate up and down with the torsion spring system.

Received my header. Stripped the junk black paint off and removed the emission stuff since I have none on my engine and then re-coated with high temp aluminum colored header paint

When I tear into swapping differentials I'll get more pics of the setup.

That's been my thoughts as well on the thing. It doesn't look like it would have any travel at all. Just fixed solid to the frame. I don't get it. It doesn't feel like it rides exceptionally rough though like you might think

Well as its finally spring here in my parts I got the bug again to start back in on my travette project. Hopefully I won't spend too much time tinkering on it as compared to actually using it. Seems to have survived the pretty nasty winter we had with no new water leaks. So that's a relief (first winter I've had it.) As far as any updates, i ordered a new exhaust header for it which should be here Monday. Hopefully it may help give me a little more snuce going up those hills. Will post pics once receive it and install. Other than that I'm working on obtaing some 4.38 gears to replace the 4.11's in it out.

Well I honestly am not sure if 2wd axles are as strong as 4x4 or not. Up until now I have only dealt with 4x4 rears. 1979-1995 4x4 4 cyl. rears are all 6 lug 8". I just remember somewhere reading that some of the rear 2wd axles were 7.5" and not 8". The 8" 2wd will accept a 4x4 differential though and those are a lot more common with the gears I'm looking for. Another thing is the cab, engine, and chassis are all 1978 model, while the title says 1979. That was probably when the actual Rv portion was built. That 1st gen 4x4 in the background is a 1983. It has a 2nd gen(1984) dash swap, and a Chevy 305 engine. Its a rock crawler project I have been building for my wife.

Ya the fabrication on the rear tag isn't all that impressive, well other than the fact it hasn't fallen apart yet after 30 plus years. As far as bearings in rear axles, 4x4 rear housings and factory bearings are about as strong as you can get without up grading to full size. I would swap in a 4x4 rear but I would prefer to keep the factory 5 lug rims. I need to examine my rear drive axle a little closer to verify it is an 8". That would make it a piece of. Make to swap in a lower geared 3rd member.

I love the tag for the most part. It handles great in the turns for an rv with minimal body roll and havent noticed any sort of tire scrub. I definitely figured it was a rare bird when I seen it, kinda why I decided to purchase it. Here are some pics from underneath of the tag. It uses a sort of torsion suspension from what I can tell. Any idea if there would be concern for axle failure on this since it is the old 5 lug rear? Or is that not an issue since it is not a dually?

Hey all. First post on here. Last summer I picked up a 1979 tandem axle Travette. I didn't take the time to get any pics of the original interior but it was the worn out blue shag carpet and wood grain. Paneling throughout. Here is what the outside paint looked like. . Here are pics of after my new paint job. Both inside and out, as well as new floor and cushion covers. http://i1247.photo bucket.com/albums/gg621/jstnbnds/IMG_20130715_174713_850_zpsacb34d96.jpg My future plans include swapping the 4 speed transmission out for a 5 speed as well as installing lower gear ratio ring and pinion.