Well I have some pics of some new updates. I have been pretty busy the past two weeks; I quit my job at the tractor trailer shop and got a new job as a tech at VW....
Here's some updates on my Bronc.....
I wanted to strethen my gigantic trac bar mount, so I gusset'd the front and back of it with some 3/8' steel...
the new tranny/radius Arm mount was bowing becuase of the weight of the tranny on it. So I laid some 1.5" angle iron on it and welded it straight across in the back, and laid another piece in the front to keep it straight, and it worked......
I finally replaced the inner carrier seals in the D44, so it doesnt leak any more, I got the new ujoints and mounted my front shaft in place. BUT I think the shaft is too short now? Here are some shots from the rear yoke on the T-case. The splines are coming out about 1" (theres about 4.5" of spline total). Will this be ok, or should I have the shaft lengthened? Also, I have some shots of how I routed my brake lines, so if anyone is doing the same swap, heres some ideas....
I realised that my trac bar was actually hitting the frame, where the TTb used to mount, and I thought It would be ok,.....I was wrong. Its hitting it pretty bad, So Im going to have to cut the frame, just havent done it yet,
I finally got the Bilstein 5150's mounted up, and the truck rides friggen awesome now. I got the heavy vavling (255/70), because I chose to run 2 shocks up front and not four. I will probably get the 5100's in the back when I can get some money...Also, anyone with the Cage Arms have tire rubbing issues? Its probly becuase of my 4 3/4" backspacing, but my tires rub the shocks mounts on my Cage Arms....Anyone else have this problem?
I knew my rear shackles werent doing too well, and I now have some "cancer" on the pass. rear shackle. Its rotting right thru, so I will be doing new shackles very soon.....
And Finally, I got my Big Mike Bumper. I painted it Rustoleom "Hammered" Balck, about 3 coats, and then cleared it once or twice. Mike makes an awesome bumper, and I would suggest buying one from him for your bronco. This thing is Sweet, well thoughtout, and excellent craftsmanship! He made mine with a triangle style swingout tire carrier, with 8 on 6.5 lugs to fit my 37" (when I can afford to get a spare, lol) The gas shock, the reciever and the D mounts look awesome! This thing is one stout bumper, and it fit excellent!...
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I remounted the stock spair carrier mount back on the truck for a few reasons. One, I hate the look of the bolts just bolted to the body, and two; Im going to use the top mount for my new CB ant. I repainted them to match the bumper, and they look pretty good next to each other. The rear one I had to cut down to fit it between the body and the new bumper. It worked out good, becuase my tailgate drops down so much, so I need to remove the gas shock every time I lower the tailgate or it hits (the tailgate straps must be worn out or maybe the gas shock is mounted to high) So the bottom mount acts as a "stop" so the bumper doesnt slam the body.
..And so the saga continues......
