1985 Eddie Bauer build

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · Nov 7, 2017 (Edited)

So, as some of you know, my '81 was rear ended a few months ago.

http://www.fullsizebronco.com/forum...ronco-wheeling-related/474274-built-last.html

http://www.fullsizebronco.com/forum...ng-related/476545-sad-day-but-undeterred.html

I found myself a nice '85 while I was visiting friends in Seattle. It was in nice shape, but just a little rough. I could just tell it was very solid (doors clicked closed nicely, no rips or tears in the interior), just some cosmetic stuff that needed work, like a broken wing window, cracked windshield, some body rust, etc. Bought it for $1800 and drove it 500 miles home. It has 50,000 on the odometer and I'm imagining considering it's condition, that it's probably 150k. It also hasn't been registered since 2011.

Over the next few months, all of the goodies from my '81 will be going into the new '85. My family tells me I should call it the Phoenix since it'll be bringing the other back to life.

Time for a build thread!

It's a 1985 Eddie Bauer edition with all the bells and whistles. I had looked at several other Broncos, and found a few I liked, but despite the issues it had, this one stood out. I also like that it has a tan interior, which is about the only other color aside from the awesome black interior of my '81 that I could stand. (I even passed up some nicer Broncos because I knew I couldn't stomach the pimp red interior for the next who knows how many years. :toothless)

Another set of pictures I took half way home from Seattle. Had to stop and commemorate the new Bronco. I'm hoping the original Ford Bronco tire cover will fit over 32" tires, but I have my doubts.

Here it is sitting next to my '81

I just finished building my 300 in April, so it'll definitely be going in in the near future. It currently has an EFI 302 and an AOD. I'm debating between the NP435 I have in the '81 or getting a ZF5. The 3.00 worked great with the NP435 but the 3.55s in the '85 might be a bit much on the highway. An overdrive is much needed.

http://www.fullsizebronco.com/forum...builds-only/408513-performance-300-build.html

I'll also be keeping the EFI pump and installing a fuel injection kit of some kind. I think I'm checked out on carbs.

Immediate things I knew it needed

Tachometer is all screwed up. Just sort of flops around and points wherever.
AOD shifts hard
Cracked windshield
Rust in the body panels and rotted tailgate
Fuel gauge doesn't work
Headliner sagging

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #341 · Jun 1, 2020 (Edited)

I really didn't have a basis to start with for the shims, so I started with a random set that "seemed good" just to see what it'd get me:

The bearing is pressed on, so it will be pressed by torquing down the yoke:

Oil slinger:

Yoke, washer, and nut:

This is an idea I got off of a video on YouTube. Went and got a 3 foot piece of steel and drilled two holes to put a u-bolt through. Still took a lot of effort, since it's being torqued to 200 ft/lbs, but it worked extremely well:

Once torqued, I checked the preload. With new bearings it needs to sit around 14 - 19 in/lbs. This is done by rotating the pinion with an inch / lb torque wrench and seeing what resistance it takes:

Close!

Fortunately, the preload doesn't need to be perfect until you get the gear pattern set, so this can be revisited later. No point in fussing getting it perfect when you might have to completely change the amount of shims you have.

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #342 · Jun 1, 2020 (Edited)

Meanwhile, my LubeLocker gasket showed up. Reviews online said it wouldn't work for the Ford TTB, but it looked like it did, so I figured I'd try it anyway. For anyone who questions, it's a perfect fit:

New ring and pinion in!

Before anything, I decided to check the runout. Basically, how much the gear "wobbles" when spun. It came out to about 0.001", which is really good. I'm happy:

Time to take my first pattern!

There needs to be a good amount of resistance on the gears when taking a pattern, so I found that holding onto the yoke and keeping it from turning while pulling on the gears did a good job. Just let the yoke slip a little bit at a time. Work it back and forth a few times.

Those are really close, so I just about nailed both the pinion and carrier shims on my first try! Beginners luck?

Once the yoke nut is backed off, a couple good smacks with the deadblow was enough to get the pinion back out:

After a few adjustments, I settled on this pattern, which I was happy with:

Next, checked the backlash, which came out to about 0.008" (right in spec).

From here, since the pinion depth was good, it was a matter of just playing around with the pinion preload shims until it hit the 14 to 19 in/lb sweet spot. This was more of a pain because the shims provided in the kit did not have any fine tuning shims. 0.001" can make a difference of 15 - 20 in/lbs, and can easily jump right over too tight to too loose, which happened numerous times. The smallest shim that came with the shim kit was about 0.008"

Fortunately, the old shims that were already in the carrier had a lot of smaller thicknesses, so I was able to mix the two and get the preload right. Otherwise, I would have had to order a shim kit online for more variety.

But, once the pinion was right, I pressed the proper bearing race in, pressed in the oil seal, and torqued it all down.

Then, I added shims to the carrier until it took a good amount of effort to get it back into the case. Once I did, I pressed on the good bearings, and installed it. Then installed the rest of the bearings and seals. Overall not too bad!

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #343 · Jun 1, 2020

Now to reinstall:

The Detroit Eaton TrueTrac does NOT allow for the c-clip to be reused. So it requires a c-clip eliminator kit.
I read numerous writeups online about different ways of doing it, but fortunately Yukon Axle makes a Dana 44 TTB c-clip eliminator.

Nothing fancy. Simply the right spring pressure with the right diameter. It goes into the slip yoke on the axle to keep it pressed into the housing:

One thing I have read is that, since there's spring pressure on the other side now, it can press out the cap on the yoke. So, advice is to weld it on. A shop a few blocks down the street from me did it for free:

New u-joint:

Fully assembled, the D44 is heavy! Especially when you're trying to hold it still to get it back into place. My arms were a little tired. But, it's in, and time to test fit the D50 shaft.

Most writeups say you'll need to grind some for clearance. Mine "nicked" at a very extreme upward angle that I don't even think it physically possible. But, just to be safe, I ground a little material out of the way. I'd hate to find out the hard way:

Next, the c-clip eliminator spring:

While I had it all apart, I decided to replace the spindle bearings as well:

This tool made quick work of them with the slide hammer:

So, I found out the hard way. DO NOT press the new spindle bearing in all the way!! I don't know what Ford was thinking. There's no stopper groove, or any sort of lining mark. It's also not noted in the repair manual. But the bearing will go in way further than it should and once it does, you cannot get it back out since there isn't enough room on the other side to grab it with the puller. I destroyed one of my new bearings removing it and had to go buy another one. Just tap it in slowly until you can get the seal in place.

Back together, fully installed, and filled with fluid!

Now to do the 9"

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #344 · Jun 5, 2020

The Bronco originally came with a 3.55 Ford 8.8", which was pretty standard.

I went back and forth on whether or not to regear the 8.8" or build a 9".
Since I had a Ford 9" that'd been sitting in my garage for quite a few years (can't even fully remember how I got it, or why), I decided to go with the 9".

This was also spurred by the fact that I discovered that Dutchman Axles is only 15 minutes from my house, and they have "garage sale" items. One such was a 4.11 gear set for the 9" for $100. This is Motive Gear's high end set which is usually about $200 - $250.

First things first was to pull the 9" apart and see what made it tick. It was the first time I'd ever disassembled one.
The designer of my puller must've had it out for Fords because the largest stud spacing it would fit was a 5 x 5.475"
Fortunately, this was fixed with a grinder:

Couple slams of the hammer and the axles popped right out.

Once the axles were out, I could take the center out. Relatively clean inside aside from some rust, due to not having been used in a while. Easy enough to clean up with a wire wheel.

The more I took the 3rd member apart, and researched parts, the more I realized I wouldn't be reusing ANY of it. With Dutchman Axles nearby, I decided to buy a nodular iron 3rd member, pinion support, and yoke. I'd also be replacing all of the bearings, new gear set, and a new TrueTrac carrier. I was glad I disassembled the 9" to see how it worked, but in hindsight I should have left it fully assembled and usable.

On a side note, I compared the 9" ring with the Dana 44 (8.5") ring. Quite a difference.

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #345 · Jun 5, 2020 (Edited)

Parts started showing up!

Here's the nodular pinion support next to the old one:

The nodular support also has a larger bearing (which meant it didn't come in the rebuild kit and had to be ordered separately). The original was a 2.65" bearing whereas the "Daytona" style is a 2.95"

Original vs Daytona

The Nodular 3rd member housing also had a lot more support webbing, as well as larger bearing caps, and a pinion bearing support.

The 9" was rather fun to rebuild and put together. Pulled the ring and carrier together with some bolts, pressed it together in my press, and then tightened it down:

Assembled with bearings:

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #346 · Jun 5, 2020

While I was at it, I decided to get new axles as well. These are Motive Gear 1541H steel axles, which should be a bit stronger than the originals.

For my build, I decided to go with a crush sleeve eliminator kit. I liked this idea because it allowed me to set the preload on the pinion with shims. A little more time consuming to get "just right" but once I do, all I have to do is torque the nut down to 200 ft/lbs and I know the preload is good. If I ever have to replace a seal in the future, or do any work on the 9", I don't have to go source another crush sleeve (since they're a one and done deal).

Because of the way the 9" works, you can simply set the preload on the pinion and be done. You don't have to do it concurrently with setting the depth shims like you do on the Dana 44. So, I pressed on the bearing and went to work getting it set up:

Some shims for starters:

I used the housing to hold it still while I torqued it all down, which worked really well:

Lastly, put the yoke on and torqued down to 200 ft/lbs. Used my long bar to hold it still:

Close! Just needs a little less shims.

After a few adjustments, I got the preload to hit about 17 in/lbs (right in spec) so I put in the oil seal and torqued it down for good:

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #347 · Jun 5, 2020

Next, I found that the 4.11s are pretty big gears, so I had to do a tiny bit of grinding for clearance. It wasn't too bad.

I marked the edge with a marker and ground it off:

Once they spun freely, it was time to take a gear pattern:

My first pattern was WAY off (you can see the mark up on the tips of the teeth)

Fortunately, the 9" is really easy to set up, as depth adjustments are done with shims that space the pinion support further away or closer to the housing, and carrier adjustments are done by turning the large bearing retainers. Sure beats torquing it down to 200 ft/lbs and then pounding it back apart with a deadblow hammer every time (like the Dana 44).

However, I really struggled getting a pattern I liked on the 9". I probably went through 20 different patterns, and honestly was getting close to running out of the yellow gear pattern paint. I finally sent some to Motive Gear, and they said I was being too picky trying to get it "picturesque" and that this was ultimately a good pattern since the heart of it is centered:

Once I had my pattern, it was simply a matter of assembling and torquing it all down.

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #348 · Jun 5, 2020

Now time to get the housing cleaned up and installed, so I can put the rear together!

With the Dana 44 installed and the front tires down, I could now take off the rears and remove the 8.8"

I'm not even going to attempt busting these loose. Straight for the cutting wheel:

After disconnecting the brake lines and sway bar from the axle, it really was only a matter of unbolting the driveshaft and cutting the u-joints before the axle was on the ground. Now to try to sell the 8.8"

I figured if I'm this far in, I might as well replace the 30+ year old leaf springs. These bolts were not fun to remove:

Some busted free with effort.

But one of the sleeves inside the bushing had separated and rusted to the bolt. No amount of hammering or impact was going to get that (since it just spun freely), so it was time to cut.

Leafs are out though:

My new springs showed up!

The issue was that they use metric bolts for install.

NO ONE that I could find sells hardened metric bolts (just standard), so I ordered the leaf spring kit from JBG

I also ordered new drop brackets, plates, and u-bolts

Spring INSTALL is way easier than removal. I think it was about 5 minutes a side:

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #349 · Jun 5, 2020

Time to install the 9".

While hollow, the housing is actually pretty light. I could carry it one handed. I kinda hoped the neighbors saw me walking around the truck with an entire rear axle danging in one hand.

Slid it underneath.

This must be from an older year, as these holes were 0.625" for the spring wedges, but on the 8.8", they're 0.65".

I was able to bore them out slightly with this:

Now that my writeup is up to date, I've run into a little snag. The springs are 3.00" wide, as is the original retainer plate. I'm assuming it's a "misprint" but the set of spring plates JBG sent me are only 2.92" wide. It may not seem like much, but that's over 1/16". When you're working with tight tolerances and hardened steel, there's no room for any error, and 1/16" is a lot.

You can see the new plate peeking through the sides of the old holes on the original plate:

When a u-bolt is through, there simply isn't enough room on the other side for one to fit:

I've contacted JGB about it, but have yet to hear back. Hopefully I get a response soon.
I may try to grind them out a bit, as I'd like to get it installed this weekend. Fortunately, I can get the rear end put back together with only 1 u-bolt per side, and then swap them out later. That'll at least let me get the brakes all put back together this weekend.

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Murph56789

· #350 · Jun 5, 2020

I love the attention to detail. Solid work all around. Saving your stuff on front diff setup in tech for future reference also.

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #351 · Jul 2, 2020

Finally finishing all of this up.

This has been a long, slow process and I'm really looking forward to driving the Bronco again!

Since the last update, I contacted BroncoGraveyard about the leaf spring retainer plates. They measured the rest of the sets they had in the warehouse and said they all had the same issue, so they refunded my money. I found another set online and installed them. They were much more accurate:

I also got the 9" installed and all buttoned up. I used the Lube Locker gasket like in the front, and it's as dry as a bone underneath. Those gaskets are great! No RTV, no muss no fuss.

Once the differential was in, it was time for the axles.
Since I had new axles, I didn't have to worry about removing the old bearings. I was just able to press the new ones on and go:

These things BARELY fit into my shop press. I had to maneuver a few things and use a few tricks to get them pressed. If they were literally a half inch longer, it wouldn't have worked. When fully pressed, they hit the support beam at the bottom.

Once the bearing was pressed on, I had to switch to this bearing puller just to drop it down a half inch an give it some more room. But it worked!

Two fresh axles:

Installing them was straightforward. Since I got aftermarket retainer plates, they just slide on and don't need to be installed when it's pressed:

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #352 · Jul 2, 2020

It's finally back on all 4 wheels!

Now, for a dumb oversight on my part. The topmost bolt on the shackle MUST go from inside out. Otherwise, the bolt hits the frame. I pretty much had to undo the entire suspension on both sides and remove the leaf springs to turn this back around. Very annoying for such a simple little mistake!

Next, the 8.8" had a bolt hole on top to mount the parking brake cable. The 9" had no such provision, so I had to think up something. I am going to try bolting it to one of the case bolts and see how it holds up. Seems solid enough. Fortunately, if it doesn't work, it's not like I'm going to be left stranded:

The next issue I have to get around is the swaybar. The 8.8" tube is 3.25" all the way to the diff, but the 9" flares. This looks to be about 3.5" diameter right here. I have some u-bolts on order, so we'll see if it works.

Next, I figured that since the rear was getting new leaf springs, the front should get new coils. MOOG makes a progressive spring replacement for about $80 a set. If they suck, it doesn't set me back too far, so they're worth a try.

The only thing I don't like about them is it looks like they have a lot more coils in them, which means they'll coil bind easier. But, we'll see:

A little frame stretching and a rented spring compressor and they were a relatively easy swap:

I know the front end likes to do this when you lift it up off the ground, but I may need an alignment with the new springs. The front also sits a little higher than the rear, which I hope settles after I drive it.

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SRWillis

· #353 · Jul 4, 2020

AbandonedBronco said:
It's finally back on all 4 wheels!

Next, the 8.8" had a bolt hole on top to mount the parking brake cable. The 9" had no such provision, so I had to think up something. I am going to try bolting it to one of the case bolts and see how it holds up. Seems solid enough. Fortunately, if it doesn't work, it's not like I'm going to be left stranded:

Good to see it back on all fours again!

You did good on the parking cable, that's where mine is mounted.

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d_rock

· #354 · Jul 4, 2020

Looking good!
Can't wait to hear how you like the ratio you picked for the axles

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #355 · Jul 4, 2020

Took it for its first spin today!

Honestly, the axle ratio is perfect. I was a little worried it might feel a little whined out, but I can barely tell. It just feels peppier and more lively, it's great!
The break-in says to not get it above 60 for the first 500 miles, so I'll have to wait and see how the interstate feels, but so far it's great.

They're nice and quiet too, and the TrueTracs don't feel any different than the stock open diffs (at least for now).
So far so good!

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #356 · Aug 7, 2020

A little update. I was getting ready for a big off-road camping trip and didn't want to deal with my shifters hitting. For whoever recalls, since the old style transfer case shifter and the ZF5 shifter weren't designed to go together, they'd smack into each other when I had the transfer case in 4-low and the transmission in 2nd. Shifting between 1st and 2nd was rough. They'd also clatter and smack into each other when going over rough terrain.

So, didn't want to deal with it again.

I pulled the transfer case shifter out and heated it up with a blow torch:

Then put it in my press and crimped down on it just a hair. It wasn't much, but just enough. And now it moved the TC shifter over an inch or two. Enough that it no longer gets in the way at all, and not enough to where it gets in my way.

Perfect!

It was so nice this last weekend not having to deal with that. Easy fix!

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Jason2215

· #357 · Aug 13, 2020

AbandonedBronco said:
It's finally back on all 4 wheels!

Now, for a dumb oversight on my part. The topmost bolt on the shackle MUST go from inside out. Otherwise, the bolt hits the frame. I pretty much had to undo the entire suspension on both sides and remove the leaf springs to turn this back around. Very annoying for such a simple little mistake!

Next, the 8.8" had a bolt hole on top to mount the parking brake cable. The 9" had no such provision, so I had to think up something. I am going to try bolting it to one of the case bolts and see how it holds up. Seems solid enough. Fortunately, if it doesn't work, it's not like I'm going to be left stranded:

The next issue I have to get around is the swaybar. The 8.8" tube is 3.25" all the way to the diff, but the 9" flares. This looks to be about 3.5" diameter right here. I have some u-bolts on order, so we'll see if it works.

Next, I figured that since the rear was getting new leaf springs, the front should get new coils. MOOG makes a progressive spring replacement for about $80 a set. If they suck, it doesn't set me back too far, so they're worth a try.

The only thing I don't like about them is it looks like they have a lot more coils in them, which means they'll coil bind easier. But, we'll see:

A little frame stretching and a rented spring compressor and they were a relatively easy swap:

I know the front end likes to do this when you lift it up off the ground, but I may need an alignment with the new springs. The front also sits a little higher than the rear, which I hope settles after I drive it.

How's the front doing on the settling? Mine looks similar right now.

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AbandonedBronco

Discussion Starter · #358 · Aug 13, 2020

Hey Jason,
The extreme tilt of the tires was simply due to jacking it up off the ground. It's the nature of the TTB.
But once I drove it, it settled right out. The camber was off a tiny bit due to the fresh springs, so I had to put in new camber bushings to get it properly aligned, but it looks great now!

This is just last week:

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SRWillis

· #359 · Aug 13, 2020

AbandonedBronco said:
My new springs showed up!

How's the ride of your new leaf springs? Did they raise the rear any?

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Jason2215

· #360 · Aug 14, 2020

AbandonedBronco said:
Hey Jason,
The extreme tilt of the tires was simply due to jacking it up off the ground. It's the nature of the TTB.
But once I drove it, it settled right out. The camber was off a tiny bit due to the fresh springs, so I had to put in new camber bushings to get it properly aligned, but it looks great now!

This is just last week:

View attachment 165453

View attachment 165454

Looks great!!!

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