Certainly understand the concept. Your car and your money.
For others with similar thoughts I'll offer the following bits to ponder:
•As stated, The Jeep and Exploder axles are simple to install. New spring perches for the 1¾" rear leafs are available at any trailer supply store.
•Disc brake kits for the front are available from
www.rustyhope.com and they
use common late model parts.
•Dropped spindles are on the shelf at Fatman Fab.
•If you keep the flat 6 then steering is not an issue, if you install a v-8 then you need the correct exhaust manifold to clear the steering shaft (photo/link above). Some v-8 swaps may benefit from a rack & pinion setup.
•The stock front suspension is a well designed system. The top shock mounts defies logic but is easily moved.
•Since it is a typical A-arm design, the front is easily bagged.
••There are several ways to get a 5-speed behind the flatty; If you have the 'normal' 3speed trans then you can use the t-5 with an adapter or even do it yourself if you have a decent shop.
The Ford Ranger/Mazda trans can be fitted to the same 3-speed bell and it looks to be even easier (
www.p15-d24.com and search for 'ranger'...swap is in progress).
I have an adapter for the Mopar transmissions like the AX5 or AX15 which replaces the stock bellhousing.
Regards