Looking for advice getting my truck trail ready.

[cwin74]

Apologies for all the pictues...total nob thread.

I would like to get moving on changing my Bronco to something more trail ready. This is all I know about the Bronco so far: http://tinyurl.com/6ps3y9z Not much as you can see. I would appreciate some ideas about enhancing the following areas: (starting with areas I want to change first)

Let me know if it would be easier to have a couple pros around at it.

Front and Rear bumper: As you will see both the front and rear bumpers are in great shape, but they are not my style. The rear bumper was fabbed and I have no idea what they were thinking. I'm looking for something more tubular or similar. I will be selling the bumpers once I have them replaced. (and yes, those are studabaker fog lights)







Suspension: I would like to lift this Bronco up some. I believe the current suspension is 2.5 inches and I would like to see 4-6 inches. Any thoughts on the current setup or a good upgrade?




Axles: I believe the following pics indicate a dana 44 front end with a 9 inch rear? If not, what are they?

[Rox Crusher]

Was one of the previouis owners a politician ?

I am thinking he used the Bronco to do campaign speeches from the front and / or rear stages integrated into the bumpers.

Innovative !

[sbolt19]

Yeah, you've gotta do somethin' with those bumpers.

You pegged the axles, and unless you want to do anything major/heavy duty with tire size (37+) I wouldn't change your axles.

Lift, there isn't a 6" lift unless you use a combination of suspension & body, and I wouldn't recommend going too tall anyway. I've got a 5.5" suspension and I pick up some body roll that I don't particularly like. I think a good height is either a straight 4" suspension or a 3" susp. + a 1" body. But again, I'm not keen on body lifts. As for what lift to go with, WH, BC & Duff all have great lifts and you can't go wrong with any of them. But I might hit up Clint at Battlement over in Grand Junction to see what he has rolling around in his head. Me thinks he might be able to help you out with something pretty cool that he is working on.

[Gunnibronco]

Very nice ride, I like it a lot.

You have the same lift as mine, with the James Duff "Super Hoop" front shock mount, and very stiff 6 leaf rear spring pack . My lift started as a 3.5" 15 years ago, but both ends have settled to closer to a 1.5" lift. The front shock mount gives you a nice tall shock mount, and longer shocks.

1st things first, ditch a shock off each corner. You don't need 2 shocks per wheel. I never installed my 2nd rear shocks, but I ran 2 front shocks on each wheel for like 13 years. I pulled one off each front wheel, and it made a huge difference. It is now much softer, and less tooth rattling/bone jarring, much nicer around town and on the trail.

You can go with any of the lifts Sbolt listed above. New rear spring packs are 9, 10, or 11 leafs and have better ride & more flexibility than the old 5-6 leaf packs. As you lift the truck more, brake hoses, e-brake cables, driveshaft length, and steering/track bar geometry may need addressed. If you lift it more you may want/need to change your steering, it is the "Y" shaped linkage from the later years, and it is notorious for bending easily. Custom DOM linkage with Cheby 1-ton tie rod ends are a popular upgrade, there are other options (shortened F150 or stock EB linkage). If you upgrade your steering linkage, think about a tie-rod over flip, it positions your steering linkage higher, and out of the way. Lots of guys from this club have done these upgrades and can lend advice. You have a "drop trackbar" bracket, that came with the JD lift. If you go much bigger, I'd cut the bottom off the bracket & put the track bar back into its stock position. A better way of aligning the track bar is to use a riser, built/welded to the axle. The drop bracket ends up with more torque applied to the frame and can crack the frame with enough abuse.

Your lift was a good lift 10 years ago, but things have come a long way since that lift was designed.

Chad

[cwin74]

Great advice so far, keep it coming!

Was one of the previouis owners a politician ?

The way the old timer talked up the Bronco over the phone, he should have been a politician. Maybe there will be a fledgling politician that will want to buy them from me once I replace them. Or maybe a traveling band that needs a portable stage?

You pegged the axles, and unless you want to do anything major/heavy duty with tire size (37+) I wouldn't change your axles.

The 35's seem like a good match for my 4.56 gears. I will go with 35's.

Lift, there isn't a 6" lift unless you use a combination of suspension & body, and I wouldn't recommend going too tall anyway. I've got a 5.5" suspension and I pick up some body roll that I don't particularly like. I think a good height is either a straight 4" suspension or a 3" susp. + a 1" body. But again, I'm not keen on body lifts. As for what lift to go with, WH, BC & Duff all have great lifts and you can't go wrong with any of them. But I might hit up Clint at Battlement over in Grand Junction to see what he has rolling around in his head. Me thinks he might be able to help you out with something pretty cool that he is working on.

I didn't even consider the body roll, I will shoot for a 3.5-4.5" lift. I'm a big fan of WH systems, spendy though so I will shop around. I will most likely go with the 4.5" the more I think about it. Other than the price, do you think this is overkill? http://tinyurl.com/7j7hs57 =)

Very nice ride, I like it a lot.

Thanks man, I like it too!

You have the same lift as mine, with the James Duff "Super Hoop" front shock mount, and very stiff 6 leaf rear spring pack . My lift started as a 3.5" 15 years ago, but both ends have settled to closer to a 1.5" lift. The front shock mount gives you a nice tall shock mount, and longer shocks.

Good information, thank you.

1st things first, ditch a shock off each corner. You don't need 2 shocks per wheel. I never installed my 2nd rear shocks, but I ran 2 front shocks on each wheel for like 13 years. I pulled one off each front wheel, and it made a huge difference. It is now much softer, and less tooth rattling/bone jarring, much nicer around town and on the trail.

Yeah, she rides like a tank. I'm thinking a full suspension system with new shocks and leaf springs will help.

You can go with any of the lifts Sbolt listed above. New rear spring packs are 9, 10, or 11 leafs and have better ride & more flexibility than the old 5-6 leaf packs. As you lift the truck more, brake hoses, e-brake cables, driveshaft length, and steering/track bar geometry may need addressed. If you lift it more you may want/need to change your steering, it is the "Y" shaped linkage from the later years, and it is notorious for bending easily. Custom DOM linkage with Cheby 1-ton tie rod ends are a popular upgrade, there are other options (shortened F150 or stock EB linkage). If you upgrade your steering linkage, think about a tie-rod over flip, it positions your steering linkage higher, and out of the way. Lots of guys from this club have done these upgrades and can lend advice. You have a "drop trackbar" bracket, that came with the JD lift. If you go much bigger, I'd cut the bottom off the bracket & put the track bar back into its stock position. A better way of aligning the track bar is to use a riser, built/welded to the axle. The drop bracket ends up with more torque applied to the frame and can crack the frame with enough abuse.

Al great information, thanks man.

[Justin]

4.5" is a great lift for 35's. You can do it with 3.5", but the extra inch adds a little more room for flex. Anything over 3.5" will likely need a trac bar riser or drop bracket, but these aren't a huge deal. WH makes some great stuff, it's worth the money. If you can hold out, they put suspension parts on sale from time to time. Last Christmas they had some really good spring deals. It also doesn't hurt to mention the club and ask for a discount. We don't have an official discount with them, but they've always knocked a little off the price for me.

[sbolt19]

If you are looking to spend that kind of money, SERIOUSLY consider talking to Clint. He is looking for someone to install his suspension. I talked to him at length about it last week and if it weren't for a few factors, I think I would be all over it, but it is something that I think has a ton of potential. Hit him up. Become a full member of the board and look in the member section.

[Kermit484]

Depending on what's already under the hood, I would highly recommend an EFI conversion. If you're currently carbureted, it can become an issue at higher elevation. There are a few options out there; again, depending on what's currently under the hood. After that, it depends on how elaborate you want to get; the sky is the limit.
Lockers, bumpers and body armor.

[Rox Crusher]

Changing those bumpers would be a priority for me too.

I would also recommend converting to EFI as the carbed motors want to vapor lock at altitude. If you don't want to convert to EFI I would absolutely recommend converting to an electric fuel pump system as other have done.

Unless your wanting to dive head first into wheelin it..............I would drive the ol girl around this summer as is to learn it's particulars and determine what might need to be done vs what you want to do.

This would allow you to enjoy it this summer and develop a project list to do next fall / winter.

[Gunnibronco]

If you choose to go EFI, I've got a 351 EFI manifold set up I'm going to sell, just haven't gotten around to listing it yet (5.8L truck lower, BCB adapter plate, and Mustang upper manifold). You'll need to add a couple things - fuel rails and probably injectors, but those can be found easily. PM me if you are interested.

[landshark]

i second ditching the bumpers and probably one set of rear shocks.. i bet without all that weight on the front and back it will raise up a bit as well and give you a bit more clearance.. those things are huge and I bet weigh a ton!

you can probably lose the mudflaps.. or let the next trail take them off ;)

I also recommend you wheel it a few times to get a feel for it and see what improvements you want to make. The nice thing is it seems like a great truck that can be wheeled now while you take stock of what you have and make little improvements along the way.

[Jesus_man]

This all depends on how serious of trails you want to conquer. I'll bet it's fairly capable as of now. Probably could handle 3-4 rated trails with some experience behind the wheel.

Bumpers - You want your bumpers to improve approach and departure angles. Those stick out a mile and you will hit them on everything! Plus if you get them both dug in, you could be in trouble. I see you have a winch, so you want that integrated into your front bumper, but you want that winch mounted as close to the body as you can. For the rear, consider integrating a tire carrier. The stock tire carrier will not hold up with 35's and on the trails. You will tear your body. Again, you want it tucked in as much as possible. Don't be afraid of cutting frame horns off to get them tight to the body. I'll post pics of how mine have turned out if you're interested.

Roll cage - if you don't have one, it's a good idea. A roll bar is ok for mild trails, but you'll need something more sturdy for moderate to difficult trails.

Suspension: - I have 3.5" suspension and 2" body. It's a great combo for me. But I have done extensive modification to my drivetrain to get a flat belly, so nothing is hanging below the frame rails (which necessitated the body lift). I have an 11-leaf spring pack from Tom's Bronco Parts and they flex great and ride pretty nice. My front coils are crazy stiff, but I don't think you can go wrong with most of the vendors out there now. I have some of Clint's stuff on my rig and I'd also recommend talking to him. You may also get by cheaper by piecing the lift together. One thing to consider in Suspension vs Body lift, is a body lift doesn't raise your center of gravity as much as a suspension lift. But I wouldn't go more than 2" of BL. You want a suspension that flexes well, which equates to rig stability. You can control body roll with a sway bar if it bothers you.

Axles: It's been a long time since I have looked at a stock axle, but what is the bracket hanging below the tube on the passenger side? You'll want to remove everything that can get hung up on a rock. Your pumpkins are hard enough to maneuver around.

As others have mentioned, you should address your steering. That is a horrible thing to break way back in the woods.

And since your bronco looks really nice, consider protection. Namely the rockers. Those seem to get crunched first, but before you get too serious, protect the body because it only takes once to ruin body panels. You might look into tying rocker guards into front a rear bumpers with hoops over the fender wells. It gets hard to support the hoops, but those seem to be the ones that get damaged first.

In the end, we're all of the frame of mind to do it once and do it right. That's why my opening question is, what are your ultimate goals for trails.

J.D.

[landshark]

Axles: It's been a long time since I have looked at a stock axle, but what is the bracket hanging below the tube on the passenger side? You'll want to remove everything that can get hung up on a rock. Your pumpkins are hard enough to maneuver around.
J.D.

thats the mounting bracket for the stock sway bar

[cwin74]

Yes, we all agree 100% the front and rear bumpers need to go. Not only are they not my style they must add a lot of weight too. The seller claimed he had the Bronco weighed 3 times and it showed 5700lbs with no one sitting in it. I'm not sure if the guy is nuts or if the Bronco is just portly with those bumpers. Zilla, I would love to come take a look at your bumpers and maybe discuss the current state of the Bronco. I will send you a PM.

For the suspension, I will call Clint to see what he has to say. I hate cold calling people but I will do it just the same. Otherwise I will be purchasing a WH 4.5" lift and then some 35" tires and rims once the lift is installed. It's a heavy beast with that 351W in it so that 4.5" suspension may only give me 3.5-4" when it is all said in done. I'm going to need either a good shop to install the lift for me or some volunteers to help out. I don't have a garage and my tools are limited at this time so I don't have a lot of options. Not to mention never doing more than a shock replacement on previous rides when it comes to suspension.

An EFI swap or upgrade will be in the future, that may have to wait until Winter or sometime next year depending how things go with $$. I will need help figuring out exactly what 351w I have and what condition it is in before I decide on swap or upgrade. Also, I want to be able to drive it as much as possible this Spring-Summer-Fall so staying out of the engine until Winter is my goal. Unless I need to fix something or make an easy change for big gains. Then again, I'm not totally against a carb setup as long as I can get it dialed in. I will start hunting around for quality parts with HP and Torque gains when I decide.

Mudflaps! I've been meaning to remove those. I bet the cars behind me are thankful for them. =)

[landshark]

mudflaps are sweet..



first thing i removed when i got mine, just 4 bolts on the back...

[cwin74]

mudflaps are sweet..



first thing i removed when i got mine, just 4 bolts on the back...

You shamed me into walking outside and removing my mudlfaps. 6 bolts! Now my gigantic rear bumper looks that much wider. I aslo notice that monstosity was welded on...nothing a cutting torch can't handle.

[sbolt19]

For the suspension, I will call Clint to see what he has to say. I hate cold calling people but I will do it just the same.

Don't worry about the cold call. I'd never talked to him before last week. Look in the member's vendor section for the early bronco needed thread. I called him after he posted that up and honestly, if I were in the market for a complete new suspension, I'd do it. Talk to him, you'd be the guinea pig on it, but Clint has a good name. I'd heard of him from Classic Broncos before this site was ever a glint in anyone's eye. Honestly, I wouldn't hesitate with turning my truck over to him for a prototype suspension with what he talked about.

[Booger]

I agree with zilla about carbs. I've massaged the Edelbrock on mine and it works great. I've had carbed vehicles work fine at 14000' so it's all in the setup. Fuel pressure and a few other easy tweaks and that Edelbrock will purr right along. Sure EFI is great because it decreases fuel as the elevation increases but it's not cheap and it can take time to sort out various issues. There are some guys on here that can give you some great advice on what you need for your efi setup when you want to go that way.

[Entourage]

I think you have a very capable looking rig as-is. I would take it slow and see what you can find on CL, cb.com classifieds, and the classifieds here too. Wild Horses Monthly specials are a great way to save some cash. I think there is an aluminum family cage and Trei had a killa ProtoFab rear bumper for sale a while back, and usually can find gears and other misc. items.

A lift is a big change and a 3.5" or 4.5" SL is a good option. It will be exciting to see what Clint at Battlement is working on. I would also recommend the 1" integrated body lift from Wild Horses - $100 well spent to get new bushings, bolts, etc. plus being easier to work on items under the truck.

I wouldn't get too crazy on adding EFI, lockers, axles, etc. until you know that is what you want/need. I love my carb - starts everytime and runs great. It is on my to-do list but it is WAY WAY down the list.

I wouldn't hack off the bumpers till you have what you want to replace them. If ya want full custom, check out CrawlerCreation's for bumpers, cage, etc. - IMO his front tube bumper is the baddest on the market and his cages are too.

This is a fun thread to read and a lot of great advice. Cool thing is that you can change it up and make it your own. When your tastes change, you can change it up again.

[Gunnibronco]

I think you have a very capable looking rig as-is. I would take it slow and see what you can find on CL, cb.com classifieds, and the classifieds here too. Wild Horses Monthly specials are a great way to save some cash. I think there is an aluminum family cage and Trei had a killa ProtoFab rear bumper for sale a while back, and usually can find gears and other misc. items.

I agree, your truck will do fine off road. It might ride rough right now, but if you loose the extra shocks on each wheel, you'll be surprised how much softer it will ride. A new suspension will still do better, but what you have now, served me very well for 15 years. I'd take your time, read a lot, think a lot about where you want your truck to end up, and buy things when they are on sale, or you find a good deal on used stuff. I've found lots of good deals floating around here, craigslist, and CB.com's classifieds. I've also changed my mind/direction of my build several times, as I've seen different ways of building a truck, or new parts become available.

[cwin74]

I greatly appreciate ALL of the comments and opinions so far. They are helping narrow down my options for each component I was to upgrade.

Someone mentioned that my current suspension was good about 10 years ago, they hit the nail on the head since the frame off restore was done about 10 years ago. I have front and rear lockers, roll-bar. a 435 granny gear and some decent tires so I could do a fair amount of trail riding. Other than being ugly and super heavy, I feel the need to replace the bumpers ASAP. I think a rear bumper like this would be awesome: It can carry 2 gas cans and my 35" spare. http://tinyurl.com/7zsrmbl

I'll be the first to admit...I have a hard time waiting to do things I have a passion for. Weighing the benefits of whether to wait for deals or buying now usually doesn't cross my mind if I find something I want and have cash for it. Kid in the candy store syndrome...

This is how I'm thinking right now. I want to change out my bumpers, install suspension, new wheels/tires and change my exhaust. Oh yeah, seats too...need to sit lower.

1) I can replace my front and rear bumpers at any time. Other than removing the current bumpers, nothing else needs to be done before installing the new bumpers.
2) I need to install my new suspension before changing my tires out or changing exhaust.
3) I need to change out my seats to something where I sit 3"+ lower and install shoulder type seat belt or multi point harness.

That will be my current order of change unless someone else has a better idea.

[Justin]

Protofab makes a bumper that looks exactly like that. Sounds like a good order to me. I love my NP435, they're great transmissions. I'd suggest shoulder belts if your rig isn't just a trail rig. I switched mine from harnesses to a shoulder belt and it's much nicer to get in an out of. I miss the security on the trail, but not enough to switch back any time soon. They're also easier to mount safely, as mis-mounted harnesses can cause major injury in a crash.

[Jesus_man]

Price that Protofab bumper and then talk to Crawler Creations. He may be able to save you some money and add some custom touches. Either way, check to see which way that bumper mounts. It may require a stock frame unless you have the tools to modify.

Get comfy seats. PRP, Mastercraft, Recaro, Corbeau are a few to look into.