Lets talk steering!

[landshark]

I have the 76 Y type steering and I have the D44 out and most of the TRE's are pretty much toast after 100K+ miles and 30+ years. I have been looking at replacing them however I just had a bit of sticker shock...

A direct replacement for the Y type of steering linkage from one of the vendors is running $339.99 +

pretty much the same if i convert over to the T style..

This seems a bit excessive as far as price goes.. I dont think my 1 ton crossover steering on the fullsize was anywhere near this price.. matter of fact I think with chevy 1tons TRE's and the DOM it came out to $240 - granted we did the welding and what not.. but still..

Anyway, my question is.. this truck will be getting a 2.5" suspension lift and 1" body lift and see almost no trails.. does it REALLY matter which steering setup is on the front end? I hear people about how well the inverted Y is on the street and makes sense.. but what if I convert to a t-style does it really matter? I guess the price difference is a mute point as they are about the same.

As long as the trackbar and drag link are parallel and close to being the same length my steering should be good correct? I'm looking for a GREAT daily driver not a flex machine.

I guess I should stick to the Y-steering setup, but again the price seems crazy.. especially for the little TRE's that are stock! Any advice?

[sbolt19]

I use my EB for a daily driver, but it is also built to hit the trails. When I completely rebuilt the front end, I went with the Stone Crusher setup. It's heim joints on all three positions (L & R knuckles & the pitman arm). It completely resolved any bump steer I had, was simple to put on and also eliminated the need for a steering stabilizer. If it were me, I'd go with it again in a heart beat. The only problem you are going to have with it is that the knuckles have to be drilled out for the bolt that is used rather than the tapered studs used by TREs. You can also go with either TRO or stock like with a TRU. The road manners are excellent and I haven't had any binding issues. Some folks don't like the idea of heims on the steering, the argument is that they fail, but Andrew at SC has had them on his EB for a long time, several guys on CB.com do too, & I have had mine for around 30k miles with nothing of issue.

http://www.stonecrushersteering.com/

[Jesus_man]

I think it's wise to upgrade for you. I am very happy with my chevy 1 ton TRE setup. I would get away from anything stock bronco, even if it's just a street machine. It's one thing if you're restoring to all original, but there are much better setups out there for someone who doesn't have to have it all OEM. Stone crusher and my setup are nearly the same except the ends...





J.D.

[landshark]

Well iam going to keep the truck pretty close to stock and restore it a bit, very mild upgrades here and there for reliabilty and safety but over all if need be it could be returned to factory stock with little trouble.

Also I dont think chevy TRE's will fit on the knuckles without new knuckles, wheel spacers or other things..

Right now I think iam going to convert over to the T style with the common TRE ends as they tend to be more well common and cheaper. If needed I could find them locally if I had an emergency or hit a curb etc...

I don't think the differences are that much to really justify sticking with the Y type... If i go and sell it i doubt someone is going to freak out over not having the original Y steering.. they could easily swap it..

[Gunnibronco]

The Chevy 1-tons are stout and probably overkill for an average rig. I think they fit the stock knuckles, you just have to ream them out to a larger taper, with a special tool. I did mine on F150 knuckles, so I can't say for sure. Many guys ream from the top of the knuckle & swap the tie-rod over the knuckle for added clearance, again overkill if you aren't going to really wheel it. The t style is a better set up than the y, for sure.

[Woodscaper]

"Also I dont think chevy TRE's will fit on the knuckles without new knuckles, wheel spacers or other things.."


You may need only 1/4" spacers to clear the TRE's, depending on your wheel back spacing but upgrade now and never look back. Also the Chevy TRE's are available at just about any part store across the nation (in stock). They will give you great strength and rang of movement over Hiem joints. You will need to ream the knuckles however, and building the links is easy once you have all the inserts and hardware. Its all in how you use it.

[landshark]

Ya i have the chevy TRE's on my fullsize, however I want to keep the 76 pretty close to stock so I will probably switch it up to the T style.. a quick search around here and I see the TRE's for the 75 and earlier broncos are plentiful locally...

;)

[Entourage]

Landshark - those little LED Offroad lights look awesome!

I would LOVE to get the Stone Crusher Steering this Winter - maybe a Mass Group Buy? Sounds like the perfect setup, easy install, sweet looking black powdercoated finish, heim ends, can install over knuckle, etc.

[sbolt19]

I would LOVE to get the Stone Crusher Steering this Winter - maybe a Mass Group Buy? Sounds like the perfect setup, easy install, sweet looking black powdercoated finish, heim ends, can install over knuckle, etc.

It really was a simple installation. The hardest part was drilling the knuckles. I was lucky when I did it because I rebuilt the entire front end (springs, shocks, bushings, ball joints, steering box rebuild & upgrade, etc.) and had the knuckles off anyway for ball joints. The problem that I did run into was trying to get them into a drill press and have them clamped so they wouldn't spin and have a sloppy bolt hole. But I did it. You can drill them without taking the knuckles off, but I'd imagine that it is a royal pain in the rear. Here is a link to a write up I did at the time on the Stone Crusher installation.

[landshark]

Landshark - those little LED Offroad lights look awesome!

I would LOVE to get the Stone Crusher Steering this Winter - maybe a Mass Group Buy? Sounds like the perfect setup, easy install, sweet looking black powdercoated finish, heim ends, can install over knuckle, etc.

ya those little LED's put out so much light its insane.. they have a wide pattern but extend very far out front as well.. cool thing is they draw about 15w I think...

i had a set of 4" PIAAs in the same location and they were HORRIBLE.. didn't even know they were on, what a waste.. i moved the PIAAs under the truck for rock lights ;)

[Jesus_man]

Yeah, the Dually LED's are awesome! I bought a set wide beams for my truck and I am probably going to sell my truck, so I need to figure out what to do with the pair I have. I could put them on the bronco, but I want a true flood beam for that, not a low & flat beam.

J.D.

[landshark]

the funny thing is I have used those lights on the front in the last year a total of maybe 4 times.. glad I had them, but i dont do much night wheeling.. they get used in the summer for camping however.. and man they can light up some stuff in moab on a dark night...