94 Overhaul

[D94R]

So, with the weather turning cold and we had the first snow of the year already, I took the Ranger off the road. This pushed me into starting down the long road over hauling the Ranger.

She was starting to show signs of "the cancer" on the top of the cab above the windsheild. This is the beginning of my project.




This is what the rust looked like. It had started a couple years ago, and I made some quick fixes by sanding down the spots and using touch up paint to fix them for the time being before they got real bad. At the time I didn't have the time or place to fix it for good. Now I do. The rust ran from one side of the cab to the other. Most were spots the size of a quarter. Not really sure of the cause. Maybe the paint was just tired and showing its age.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA190320.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA190321.jpg




After I started grinding down on the worst spots.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA200326.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA200325.jpg



All the spots on top the cab ground/sanded. Ground down to bare metal where the rust was. The rest of the area I only ground down to the Factory Sealer.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA200322.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA200323.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA200324.jpg





Passenger side rear cab seem. You can see where the paint is split along the seam as the factory body filler has finally gave up. Rust has started to form along this area. Not a lot, but I'm gonna finish weld the seem to avoid as much body filler as possible.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA200327.jpg





Driver side rear cab seem. Already ground down and old body filler ground out.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA200330.jpg




Passenger door lower rear quarter of it.
I had hit a deer a few years ago and it barely skimmed down the door. Only damage it did was to the lower rear there. It pushed against the inside frame and creased the metal. It can be fixed/pulled easily, but has some surface rust starting that needs taken care of too.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA200328.jpg




I'll be using this stuff for a sealer/base primer. Then I'll do the body work on top of it. Should halt any rust from ever forming on the cab again.
No More Rust (http://www.nomorerust.com/)
http://www.nomorerust.com/mssilver1.jpg





PLAN:
Next to happen is the windshield gets pulled and I grind the sealing area to kill any rust around it as well. After that, front fenders get yanked. Then, the core support, header panel, front bumper, head lights and valence are getting replaced with NEW parts. They are rusty pretty bad. Not as bad as Salatings, but getting there.

Engine/tranny will then be yanked. Frame will be also be treated to a grind/sand overhaul and treated to the Nomorerust as well.

Moving to the rear, the cab may or may not be completely pulled to attack the frame in that area.

The rear suspension will be yanked and a parallel true 4-link will be installed. Coilover's are yet to be determined as I need to figure out how to figure coil weights and what not. Rear frame will obviously be treated to a refinish as well.

Gas tank will be ditched in favor of a fuel cell relocated to bed or behind the axle, havent decided yet.

Rear bumper will be cleaned up and possibly rechromed. Not doing a roll pan as I actually want to return the body exterior of the truck to as stock as possible.

Tail gate will be replaced with new as well as the bottom drip rail has the Rot and is beyond fixable. Plus I shaved it year ago and I'm not liking that anymore.

Then, eventually it will be repainted stock. It's a unique two-tone, and I can't picture her painted any other way.



Stay tuned. It's going to be long and tedious I'm sure, but fun!

[D94R]

I still need to pick up a DA sander so I can go over the entire roof before sealing it again. Othewise it looks like my roof has pock marks. With the stock paint, then the respray from when I hit a deer, it had like 7 layers of paint. Pretty thick when I sanded through them all.

[D94R]

I tried pulling the windshield myself. Phuck that, too hard and I cracked it like a some-bitch. Im just gonna call a glass company and have them remove it.

I did succeed in pulling the front fenders before dinner tonight. I'll get pics tomorrow. Then I'll pull the header panel and front bumper off as well.

[D94R]

Fenders, header panel, and bumper gone!
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA260334.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA260335.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA260336.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA260339.jpg




The rust around the support mounts.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA260337.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA260338.jpg




The garage where she is staying for a long time
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA260340.jpg

[D94R]

Core support and hood are off.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA280337.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA280338.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA280339.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA280340.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA280342.jpg

[D94R]

Not much of an update, but fender liners are off, radiator is out and I started removing parts of the wire harness and Alt and Alt bracket. I'm at a halt until I go buy some impact sockets so I can remove the stupid bell mouth exhaust, and the tranny mount bolts.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PA290333.jpg

[D94R]

Got the windshield out and removed the exhaust, turbo and header.

Found some bad news though when removing the header :(

When coming back from Pennsylvania a few years ago after hanging out at Quaker Steak and Lube with the guys it started to pour rain like never before. It was the hardest rain I'd ever driven in. We had popped over a hill and a river of water was rushing across the road, and I plowed through it before I could react. The truck instantly died and had problems running for a few weeks afterwords till she dried out. From then on I always had an exhaust leak. I figured I blew out part of either the header gasket, or turbo gasket. It wasn't till today that I found out what really happened....



I cracked the header at the weld between cylinder 2 and 3. :(
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB010347.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB010345.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB010344.jpg





That explains the exhaust leak AND loss in power I noticed. The instant thermal change in the metal caused by the frigid water hitting the header must be the what caused the crack, its the only possibility.

The flange is still flat though, and I guess the header can be fixed? The turbo is perfect though still. No end play, and still very very very little side plan in the shaft. Not even close to touching the housing.

[D94R]

Window channel cleaned up and all rust ground out.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB030352.jpg


Passenger side core support mount. Worse than the drivers side :( Looks like I'll be cutting the tops off both of them and fabbing my own, should be easy though.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB030353.jpg


Pulling off misc engine parts getting it ready to yank the engine/tranny.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB030351.jpg


http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB030354.jpg

[D94R]

Engine and tranny are out! I might be at a stand still for a while though as far as the exterior goes. I have to make room for my Jeep in the garage so they can clear the road during the winter, which leaves me no room to remove the bed and cab really. Plus, I don't want to be out in the cold power washing the frame and grinding on it. So, these might be the last exterior updates till spring.


I do have an interior to rip apart though :)

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB040355.jpg


http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB040357.jpg


http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB040359.jpg

[D94R]

Good progress! What are you going to coat the frame with?

What was involved in taking the radiator core support out? Any rivets or welds you had to bust?


Nagel, I'm going to coat the frame with the same primer stuff I posted in the first post. That company makes a black coat I'll use too, then a top coat for that as well. It's like POR15, about the same price, but much better product.

The core support had 16 spot welds on the passenger side, and 11 spot welds on the driver side. Various bolts, and the two frame mounts, and that was all that holds it on. Took me about an hour to remove it once I had all the attatchment points found. The hardest/longest part was cutting around the frame mounts because the bolts were rust frozen and weren't coming out without an impact wrench, and at the time I hadn't picked up a set of impact sockets yet.


So how do you plan on putting the new core support in? Do you have to reweld it? Or just bolt it in.
The new core support *should* be spot welded back in to attach it properly. It could be bolted, but I'm gonna do it right.

hey matt if you want to drill out the rivets holdin the core support mounts and send them to me with the log i'll fix them up the right way . if they are good everywhere but the top. they are like a 100 a peice from the dealer.
Adam, those front mounts are welded to the frame. Not rivets to remove. I'm just gonna pick up some material of the same thickness, cut the top off and weld it in and drill for the bolts. Thanks for the offer though.

[D94R]

Seats, Carpet and some interior panels are out. Carpet is in the trash! Seats will be ditched, but I'm saving them for now incase I need the tracks for the buckets I'll eventually install.

Dash still has to come out.

I'm pretty sure my plan is to upgrade the interior to a 95+ setup. For looks and ease of finding the peices more than anything. It's easier to find the door panels and dash for 95+ than it is for a 93/94 around here.

One thing I'm not sure of is the speedo. Don't know if its cable controlled in 95+ like my 94. If it is, great, but if it takes it from the VSS since it would be OBD-II/EEC-V that may be a problem since I won't have the stock computer (95+ computer) to control it. If that be the case, I'll probably go all after market gauges in a custom setup in the dash.


It also appears that "cutting the floor" for the T5 will be a snap. My truck has a panel that looks like it extends far enough back that has the hole for the stock tranny it it. I maybe able to get away with fabbing a new panel to fit there, and just put the hole for the T5 in the correct spot. Not sure if this is the case for some of the other Rangers who've done the T5 swap or not.

Pics will come shortly.


OH!!! And I scored a free electric fan from my neighbor. I gave him a little 2 gallon air compressor about a year ago, so he gave me the fan in return. It's never been used, and is a 16" I think. It moves 1390 ft^3/min, so it should work out perfect for me :)

[D94R]

Speedo is VSS controlled, but the VSS on the 95-97 rangers is in the tranny as opposed to the 98-01 which are in the rear axle.


Bummer. Either way though, I'd still need the computer to interpolate the data before sending it to the speedo right? I haven't looked at a wiring diagram to see if there is a VSSin and VSSout, or something like that.





Here's the pics.

No carpet or seats.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB190357.jpg

The rust around the holes for the screws of the carpet hold down trim.
Driver side.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB190361.jpg
Passenger side.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB190363.jpg
One of them ground down. Theres enough metal under the rust to not worry about patching, I think.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB190362.jpg



The panel for the gear shift.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/PB190359.jpg

[D94R]

Small Update!!!

Just purchased the major body parts to get the body of the truck back together finally.

Bought the following from an Ebay Store supplier. ( qualitydiscountcarparts( 28567Feedback score) 99.2% score)

Good prices, though it looks like they play the shipping game a little bit to keep fees on their side down. However, since I bought all the parts at once, and over the phone, I did receive a hefty shipping discount with them :)


Tail Gate (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/FORD-RANGER-TRUCK-93-06-TAILGATE-00-01-02-03-04-05-NEW_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1713Q2em153Q2el1262 QQcategoryZ33647QQihZ015QQitemZ250371934626#ebayph otohosting)
http://i17.ebayimg.com/01/i/001/31/e0/67de_1.JPG

Header Panel (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/FORD-RANGER-93-97-HEADER-PANEL-94-95-96-MOUNTING-NEW_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1713Q2em153Q2el1262 QQcategoryZ33645QQihZ025QQitemZ380104687055)
http://i19.ebayimg.com/01/i/001/33/20/b4c4_1.JPG

Radiator Support (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/FORD-RANGER-TRUCK-93-94-RADIATOR-SUPPORT-CORE-NEW_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1713Q2em153Q2el1262 QQcategoryZ42611QQihZ017QQitemZ270283416128)
No pic for this though :(

Smooth Chrome front Bumper (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/FORD-RANGER-TRUCK-93-97-FRONT-BUMPER-94-95-96-CHROME_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1713Q2em153Q2el1 262QQcategoryZ33640QQihZ015QQitemZ250374063149)
http://i21.ebayimg.com/08/i/001/2f/42/ea49_1.JPG

Fog light valance (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/FORD-RANGER-TRUCK-93-97-LOWER-VALANCE-FOG-94-95-96_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1713Q2em153Q2el1262Q QcategoryZ38658QQihZ025QQitemZ380109876218)
http://i9.ebayimg.com/01/i/001/35/74/1e83_1.JPG

[D94R]

That'll look good when its all in ...... why did you need a new header panel? Aren't they plastic?

Fiberglass from what I can tell. I need a new one because I hit a deer in High School. It took out the passenger headlight area. Come to find out, when they replaced the head light, grill, and fender, the header panel was cracked, but they didn't replace it. So I am now.


Parts get shipped out Thursday the 12th. He said they should arrive sometime next week. It's going to pain me though to look at the parts without doing anything with them for months on end. No point in installing them, especially the radiator support, until I've pulled the cab/bed and painted the frame.

[D94R]

Yah, I could have opted to have the parts painted for an additional $150/part. But, the rest of the truck needs resprayed too so there was no point. I'll just do it all at once instead of patchwork painting. Guarantees consistent matching color that way.

[D94R]

A couple parts arrived today.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/P3160410-1.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/P3160409.jpg


Still waiting on: Bumper, 4x4 Valence, Header panel.

Quality looks to be expected with repops. I can already tell I'll need to do a little tweaking on the core support. And on the very right side of the tail gate in the picture, just below the upper body line, the inner frame has slightly creased the skin. Should be easy enough to fix though I thing with a little hammer work and filler to level it all out. I'm not going for a show room fresh, looks like a million dollars, resto here. Just getting "new" parts on the truck so it can live another 15 years or more.

[D94R]

Hows the quality of the tail gate? My brother has an aftermarket tail gate on his truck and the sheet metal they use is a little thin.
Seems good. It's as heavy as the stock one. The crease on the right side near the upper body line is the only blemish I can see. The rest of the metal is smooth, no dents, dings, or waves.

[D94R]

Header panel and 4x4 Valance arrived yesterday.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/P3190416.jpg

Chrome bumper w/o bumper strip came today. Metal on the bumper seems a bit thinner than the OEM. It's a tad flimsy, but then again this has none of the brackets and supports attatched, its naked, so that is more than likely affecting it. I'll find out when mount it all up.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/P3200418.jpg

[D94R]

Well, she's been awaken from her winter slumber. Finally had the time to clean out the garage enough to move her out from the wall so I can get to working on her again.

Really, I think I'm to the point of removing the bed and cab and cleaning up the frame. Then I can do the body work with the frame back under it all. Now I just need to grab a few friends and figure out the best way to pull the cab.




***I EDITED the thread to remove non important conversation. Trying to keep it a build thread and cut out everything non technical or important. ***

[D94R]

Bed off. Tank out (forgot I had 3/4 tank of Premium gas in it :cuss: )
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1797.jpg


Worst rust under the truck. I'm gonna run a fuel cell in the bed so all the cross members will most likely be replaced with tubing... this one for sure though.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1798.jpg

[D94R]

Down to its frame. After power washing.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1922.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1921.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1920.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1919.jpg

[D94R]

Wow looks good! You gonna POR15 it?
I haven't decided totally. Under the cab, where the factory grease paint still existed, the frame is immaculate. From the cab back I had rubber undercoated about 6 years ago (which is a pita to get off). I'm debating having it blasted if I can find someone to do it cheap, and I don't think POR15 likes to stick to bare clean metal very well. The rust preventer stuff I have in my first post might get used as a primer/sealer as it prefers prepped metal, then primer, then good old regular black paint.

[D94R]

Add one more pic.

Evidence of how bad I effed up the tranny crossmember. I cut it out today by removing the frame bracket rivets, but the batts died in the camera, and by this piont this morning the sun was too hot to work any longer till tonight.

Gonna roll with a suicide doors crossmember, not sure yet if I want to go with their radius arm member too.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1923.jpg

[D94R]

Holy crap, that thing sure took a beating. What did you hit?
I backed over a gas fill tank lid (the ones that stick about 3 inches above the ground at the gas station) when I was lowered about 5/7. The rear lip caught the lid, and the result is what you see. The crazy part was it kicked my entire truck into the air, I smacked my head on the roof, stalled the truck hard and I felt the transmission smack the tunnel, and saw sparks fly out from under the truck (most likely from the metal to metal contact of x-member vs lid). It was.... odd.

Touring: Figure I'm about half way done :idea:



I'm pretty sure I'm just gonna get the frame blasted. I started to grind on it, and boy did that suck and was taking forever. Called a place and they quoted $320 if it was bad (which mine isn't) so it should be less than that I hope. Still waiting for a few other quotes to come in. Then I'll paint it myself cause if I'm gonna go with a Cobra or Tbird IRS, then I obviously don't want it powder coated right away.

[D94R]

Finally got around to getting the suspension completely ripped off today. In the end I decided to just have the frame sand blasted, and that's where I dropped it off today. Should be done by mid next week.




No frame
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1967.jpg

[salating]

Mine is still torn apart, these 60+ hour weeks working are rough. I found a site that makes ss brake kits for our trucks. Unfortunately you and me its only for a short bed, but i dont see a problem in resolving that 1ft difference with another peice of brake line and some connectors. You can also get flex brake line in different lengths. Prices are resonable also.

http://www.classictube.com

[D94R]

Thank you for that link. That's just what I've been looking for. I didn't want to go through LMC because they are expensive. There is are a couple brake line places out here that I'm gonna get quotes from and if they aren't cheaper then I'll go online for the lines.

Depending on how the brake line setup for the Explorer IRS is, the short bed lines just might be what I really need anyhow.

[Riddle_Rob]

Says 98+ on them brake lines.

By IRS do you mean independant rear suspension? Gunna be interesting and I'm curious on how it will work out.

Also, 5/7 you should be fine. I'm at 6/8 running 245/45/17s 16 offset out back with notches and don't rub on hard cornering, hard acceleration etc. ONLY when I had over 750lbs of weight in the bed and was riding bed on pumpkin did it start to touch the tire.

[D94R]

Rob, I did their online shopping, plugged in 94 as the year and found brake lines, but didn't pay attention to see if they are mis labeled?

EDIT: HERE (http://www.classictube.com/store/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&product_ID=28852) are 93-94 short bed brake lines.

Anyhow, yes IRS = Independant Rear Suspension. I'm curious as to how its going to work out as well. I'm not worried about the tires touching the upper parts of the wheel well tubs, I'm worried about the outside of the tires touching the very inside lip of the wheel well arches. The Exploder IRS is 1.95" wider per side than stock Ranger axles. Thats right, almost 4" wider overall lol. I thought the tires were close to the lips with the 96 Exploder axle which is only .75" wider per side. So I didn't if I'm going to run into issues or not. Ultimately only time will tell when I come to setting up the IRS.

[TURBO Ranger]

Is a Supercoupe IRS really wide? I measured them up once and they seem to be roughly the same width. Also, must not be too bad of a punkin either, because Cobras used the same one. The only problem with 8.8 IRS is that they like to spit the gears out that aluminum cover, but Theres some people that make girdles, just a thot, also, should be lighter than Expo IRS, also, for that lip on the fender, get alarge steel plate up against it, and use a porta power inside the well to push it out. i got like 1.5" on each side doing that, and you can't tell till you sight down the bedside and see the whole thing has a nice gentle arch out.

[D94R]

Its a bit wider than the Ranger axle, but not much more. But, Tbird IRS is only a 28 spline 8.8. Cobra IRS is almost impossible to find here as well.

[D94R]

ooooooooooooooh...ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh


http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1978.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1975.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1976.jpg

[D94R]

good thing youre not here in indiana.....that would have rusted on the ride home from the blaster, haha.
Yah, gotta love low humidity for that reason.


Cant decide what step to do next. Start boxing it in, or seal it then box it next spring.

Also, the Ibeams and radius arms are going to get blasted too, but not until I can seperate the spindle from the beams.

[D94R]

Yah, I think I'm kinda lucky with the low amount of rust. It was an Ohio truck for 12 years.

The low humidity in Utah is helping a ton. Its still bare steel frame in my garage without a hint of surface rust yet.

I finally got some 95+ spindles for the brake upgrade so I can send out the beams, radius arms, spindles, and a few other bits to the sand blaster!

I also think after all I'm just gonna POR15 the frame.

[D94R]

Only seized bolts I had were for the front radiator support body bushings. They simply wouldn't come out. I had replaced all the body bushings at one point with poly bushings, except for those, so the rest of the bolts came out real easy. Oh, the front hanger bolts for the leaf springs are seized too. Other than that, I really had no problems.

[D94R]

Por15'd most of the frame. Now I just need to flip it over and coat the bottom an inside the frame, then top coat that with Chassis Black from POR15 as well.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/frame2.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/frame1.jpg

[rangergt]

Looks good:thumbsup:, that's what I plan to do to mine sometime down the road.

It can be easy to get overwhelmed jfive. The way I approach it is it's just a bunch of small projects and tackle one at a time. Next thing your done

LMC truck has a lot of parts for the ranger. Lots of work ahead for you yet but it'll be well worth the effort.

[D94R]

LMC truck does indeed have a lot of product. However, I've heard of issues with quality of their products, and they add the "truck freight" charge or "over size" charge to anything larger than your hand when they ship something. You'd figure a company that specializes in replacement auto parts (fenders, bumpers, panels etc) could work out a better shipping price.

I bought my front bumper, 4x4 valence, tail gate, core support, and header panel from an Ebay vendor for the same price LMC wanted for the front bumper and shipping alone. The parts are all aftermarket no matter where you get them from, so you're dealing with the same issues whether you pay a low price, or the gross over price from LMC. All in all though, when examining the stuff I got off Ebay the products are up to par with aftermarket. I'd only expect better if I was dealing with NOS.

[rangergt]

That's good to know about lmc truck, I've never bought from them but I was looking for a few parts and armed with that info I'll look for a new source.

I had a fender bender with my truck years ago and had to replace a fender and as much as I would like to be using an original ford part I was not going to get raped by them. It was 3 or 4 x as much as the import fender from napa. I was happy with the quality of the import fender and when you get into projects like we are you have to take advantage of every deal you can:).

[D94R]

For "proper" body (cab/bed) bolts and small misc stuff like that I'll probably go through LMC. Everything else can be sourced cheaper elsewhere.

The company I went through on Ebay was great with communication and service. They also offer shipping discounts on additional items when you buy them all at the same time. Worked out great for me. I'll see if I can find them for you guys just as another source. I think they changed names since I've bought from them, but it's still the same company and reviews and customer comments etc, they just changed name.

[D94R]

It's D&H Autoparts when looking at the pics of the Ebay ads, but their vendor name is qualitydiscountcarparts.

They had every body panel/part I needed except for a rear bumper I believe.

http://stores.ebay.com/qualitydiscountautoparts

[D94R]

Frame is completely POR15'd and chassis black coated. I'll get some pics this week. Just need to decide on rubber or poly bushings for the radius arms and I can start to reassemble.

[D94R]

Cellphone pics for now.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/frame3.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/frame.jpg

And a comparison shot.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP1939.jpg
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/frame2-1.jpg

[jfive]

man its gonna be a while till your done. I would dread a complete frame up rebuild. So is this gonna be a show truck, fast truck, or a dd somewhere inbetween. I like how your doing it though. Should out last alot of rangers though. Is the black coating that POR 15 you talk about?

[D94R]

Show truck,... not in the sense that it will be flawless. I might do local shows for the hell of it.

Fast truck,... yes, but I'm not building this as a 1/4 mile monster.

Daily driver,... yes. My goal is a very quick and dependable daily driver during the warm months.


The dull black coating in the pics at the top of the page is the POR15 rust preventer. The last pics are of the Chassis Black made by/for the POR15. POR15 itself is not stable when exposed to UV light so it must be top coated to prevent it from breaking down over time, the chassis black serves this purpose.

[D94R]

Front radiator support mounts are made and welded on. Now I just need to finish drilling the holes for the body bushings. It's taking a long time waiting for my cordless drill to charge the batteries for an hour for 5 minutes of working power. Holes have to be drilled to just shy of 1.5", and I'm using a uni-bit to do it, its just the drill that's causing the time delay.



I'm waiting for new Ibeam bushing to come in from DJM. The original ones are shot and not useable.

Also ordered half of the pivot joints I need for the rear 4 link. Call it what you will actually. It won't be as adjustable as a track oriented parallel 4link, but bars will have thread joints on each end to adjust. It will also be triangulated for ease of build. It will be 'overbuilt' compared to the universal junk you can buy from Summit. Bars will be 1.75" OD instead of the smaller 1" OD you get with universal kits. After building a Jeep, I don't see 1" bars holding up....

I'm using Spohn joints, like a Currie Johnny Joint, but cheaper. These have a great following with the off road crowd, and this suspension won't see those extremes.

[jfive]

I think it really depends on the thickness of the 1" DOM. I bought .180 thickness pipe, and no way it will bend. If you went with the .095 that most do maybe, but I think .120 or thicker and you'd be fine. I was gonna gonna go .135 but for a few dollars more I have some strong pipe. Looking forward to pictures of it, cause different is always good.

[D94R]

It's either going to be 1.75" OD, 1/4" wall DOM (WAY overkill), or 1.5" OD 1/8" wall DOM. I'm thinking more along the lines of the 1/8" wall for cost reasons now. We'll see though.



Got one mount completely drilled through, and succeeded in killing one of my battery's and almost setting the motor on the drill on fire. I'm shopping for an electric drill ASAP.



http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/radiatormount.jpg


http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/radiatormountwithbushing.jpg

[D94R]

Bottom of bed after being Marine Cleaned and power washed. Marine clean turns out to be a great paint stripper for unprotected paint. It took the paint down to the factory primer sealer like nothing.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP2214.jpg


Some heavy duty primer for the bare metal and light surface rust. Then I'll primer it and probably undercoat it.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP2215.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP2216.jpg

[D94R]

Flat black. Decided not to undercoat it. Nothing out there that is DIY is what I consider good enough, and in another 16 years if I need to go back and 'undercoat' it again I won't have to try and match undercoatings or remove any undercoating (which sucks). All I'll have to do is grab a can of flat black and touch it up.

I'll do the underside of the bed tomorrow I think.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP2217.jpg

[D94R]

Bed done. Now to tackle the surface rust along the bottom edges of the bed.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMGP2220.jpg

[radrangerXLT]

Matt,

Did you ever think about using spray on bed liner from a rattle can for the bottom sides? I've used a few similar products that were pretty inexpensive, yet durable as well.

I don't think you would gain much weight either if you lay it down in thin enough coats :idea: Just a thought.

[D94R]

Yah, I have parts in the basement and all over the garage. My wife loves the truck almost as much as me so she has no qualms with it.


About the spray on bed coating. Is it really any good? I once cleaned the back half of the frame and used the 3M rubberized undercoating on it. It was hell to clean off (
ended up having the frame sand blasted anyhow) and didn't really hold up that well to wear and tear. The bed coating stuff any better??? I did the duplicolor DIY roll on bed liner on the top of the bed rails on my 07 Ranger and it didn't hold up so well either. If the product hasn't improved from that, then I don't think I'll venture down that road.

[D94R]

Got my Moog ball joints in, finally, so I'll be assembling the front spindles and gathering the parts for the 12" brakes.

$127 for four ball joints was almost tough to swallow, till I used the gift card they gave us at work for them ;)

[fordnut71]

what about lizard skin? its suppose to be a diy product for noise an heat reduction.

[D94R]

I've thought about that too, but like you said it's for noise and heat reduction and is typically applied inside the cab or inner fenders. It says it's supposed to be water proof, but since that isn't one of their main points they pimp I won't rely on it to be 100%.

[ZMan]

I've thought about that too, but like you said it's for noise and heat reduction and is typically applied inside the cab or inner fenders. It says it's supposed to be water proof, but since that isn't one of their main points they pimp I won't rely on it to be 100%.

I watched them use it on Horsepower a few years ago on Spike, they sprayed the whole underneath of a Firebird with it.

[D94R]

Driver side 12" brakes. Gumby's kit is amazing, and all but falls into place. I had to do very minimal grinding on the spindle and caliper bracket.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0236.jpg

[D94R]

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0237.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0238.jpg

[michaelconklin]

Those are nice i like them I didn't know they worked on 94 trucks I thought it was just 95+

[D94R]

I had to change to 95-97 Spindles and the supporting brake hardware.

[D94R]

All these "clearance" pictures are of the eccentric set to ~0* Camber and max Caster. If Camber is adjusted too much negatively or positively, the brake kit bolt will hit the beam effecting turning ability. I have no idea how much I'll have to adjust them once the engine and front sheet metal are back on to get it into alignment.


3" 1/2"-13 Grade 8 bolt for the eccentric pinch bolt. Clears the spindle so far.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0239.jpg


General shot of backside of beam without steering stop.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0244.jpg


Full left lock. (as far as I can turn them by hand anyhow)
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0248.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0249.jpg


Full right lock.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0250.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0251.jpg

[D94R]

No picture updates today, but I have my link tubing sitting in the garage waiting for the rest of the tabs to come from suicidedoors. I welded my axle tubes for shits and giggles since I have nothing else to do.

The tubing I had to get was 1 1/4", 1/8th wall because they didn't have 1 1/2", 1/4 wall in stock. I'm beginning to rethink that decision though. I'd really like the link bars to be 1/4 wall, even though I'm sure what I have will be plenty strong. They are bigger than the bars you get with Summits "universal" kits.

[D94R]

Just waiting for the brackets to come in the mail and a buddy to finish sand blasting the frame to engine mounts so I can plop it back in for the weight and figure out ride height for the rear setup.

[D94R]

Tie rods will be painted, they are still good. They were replaced roughly 20k miles ago each side. The adjusting collars need a good painting as well, but are otherwise in good shape still. I just need to go buy paint.


I bought the suicide doors parallel 4 link kit yesterday. I decided it wasn't worth my time to try and fab up the frame brackets and what not. Plus I couldn't make them as pretty as something cut with a laser jet, or water, or however they cut them. Build time is 2-3 weeks though on that :(

[D94R]

Soo, here I sit, on the 11th of June, with no suicidedoors 4-link. I called on the 1st of this month to see where it was (shoulda arrived already if it was only gonna be 2-3 weeks) and Ricky said it was gonna ship out Monday the 6th. I had stuff ship from Connecticut on the 6th and arrive today and still no 4-link. I didn't pry into why there was a delay from the original quoted ship date when I talked to him on the phone, but I just sent an unhappy email saying if I don't have the link by the end of Monday, I'm starting my paypal claim. Hopefully that will get his ass in gear because as of now, I can't recommend suicide doors for anything, and so far I'm very unhappy with him.


But on a good note, I think I'm gonna order and undercoat the cab and bed with U-Pol Raptor bed liner. I'm reading a jeepforum link about it and it looks like an impressive product. Might do the inside of the bed with it too.

I can't find a manufacture website for U-Pol (didnt look hard either) but here's the jeep forum link I read about it on.
http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f9/my-u-pol-raptor-documentary-lining-tub-580879/

[D94R]

4link showed up today. Spent the afternoon resetting the garage so I can work on setting up the links and give my wife more room in the garage with her car, so no build shots yet.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0380.jpg

[D94R]

Frame has a bolt in notch already from when I was 5/7ish. I plan to set it up around the ride height.

This is my first go at something like this so I'm a bit over nervous on setting this up right. I need to get the weight on the front to get it close to ride height so I can level the rear with it, but I also have to account for the brand new springs and how much they might sag.

If anyone has a 5ish inch drop up front, on a ~26" tall tire, can you supply the measurement from the ground to the top center of the fender arch? that would help tremendously.

[dangeranger93]

muddpawz thats a 25.7" tire im interested to know if this will work also since thats what i wanna do soon

if your asking about the 245/45/17 then yes they work fine i had them on my first bullitts and they fit good, i personally like a little more meat on the back, but for same size tires all around they are good

[D94R]

Muddpawz, that is the exact setup I need measurements for. If you can measure from center of dust cap to top of tire arch that would be best. Measuring from ground to arch can be effected by various things.

[D94R]

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0381.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0383.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0384.jpg




Built to be 36" eye-to-eye.
http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0385.jpg

[boost23]

dust cap to top of wheel arch on mine is 14 3/4''. Or 26 1/2" ground to arch.

[D94R]

Something around ride height.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0394.jpg




Side shot, not ride height.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0395.jpg



Max lift.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0398.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0399.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0400.jpg



Layed out.

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0403.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0401.jpg


Good lord it looks like a bomb went off in my garage.

[D94R]

So I got the bed sitting back on her and measured concrete floor to wheel arches. After I switched the middle and rear cab mount bushings to the correct orientation I have 27" up front, and if I put the rear at 27" the bars are perfect. All that measuring, guessing, fudging numbers, and winging it paid off perfect. Once the front springs settle in I can adjust the rear ACOs to suit me.

Unfortunately, the suicide doors 4 link doesn't have an instant center built into it. The bars are parallel to themselves, so instant center is infinite on the truck. It will be OK though, not building a race car.

[splatranger95]

Unfortunately, the suicide doors 4 link doesn't have an instant center built into it. The bars are parallel to themselves, so instant center is infinite on the truck. It will be OK though, not building a race car.

Ok, Suspension geometry is my new thing Im trying to learn. What is instant center? and what makes it infinate?

[rangergt]

Ok, Suspension geometry is my new thing Im trying to learn. What is instant center? and what makes it infinate?

Instant center is the point (if you draw an imaginary line) at which the upper and lower 4 link bars would intersect. Adjusting the 4 link bars will move the instant center and change the way the suspension reacts. Since D94R's bars are parallel they will never intersect and therefore have an infinte instant center. His suspension is less than ideal for drag racing but for his purpose with what he is trying to acheive it's bang on, my point is that not all 4 links are the same and each have there purpose.

Looks good:thumbsup:.

[D94R]

Nice quick and dirty explanation!


Bought the coil over kit yesterday. Going with this:

Summit Coil Over kit (http://www.summitracing.com/parts/CMB-15-0045/)

http://static.summitracing.com/global/images/prod/large/cmb-15-0045_w.jpg

[jareeb]

so how long till your coil over kit comes?

[D94R]

no idea. Status shows the upper coil over mount bar will ship tomarrow, the rest of the parts show ready to ship. I guess they'll send it all out tomarrow. Then give it a week or so to arrive.

I'm gonna clean up this thread later so don't be surprised to see posts disappear or change with multiple quotes.

[D94R]

I did a MAJOR cleaning of this thread back to page one. I combined posts with quotes and or removed entire posts all together.

If a post didn't show, explain, reference, inform, or generally contribute to the build in a technical manner I removed it to keep chatter and idle chat to a minimum to focus on the build.

[D94R]

All items from the 4link kit shipped today. No arrival date, yet.

[D94R]

How did I miss all this progress?

Looks like it's coming along nicely Matt. Are you setting up the rear suspension for track or street duty?

Street. Won't be ideal for track, but better than leafs.

[D94R]

so four links are good for the streets? mhmhm

The links just act as a locating device really. The suspension or spring part is in the coil overs. 4 link is really no better than leafs, or coils springs, or whatever you wish if going by a general standard. Where the 4 link has an improvement is in handling, traction, axle wrap control and so on.

"4 links" and link systems have been used on street production vehicles for a long time. It's just cheaper and easier for the manufacturer (and ultimitely you) to use leafs.

Mustangs have been using a linked rear end since the start of the Fox body. Dodge used a funky link system for the rear of their trucks in like the 60s for a while. There are other examples out there that can be researched too.

[D94R]

What do we have here???????? Summit ships fast!

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0996.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_0998.jpg

[D94R]

What rate springs did you get with the coil over shocks? i have been planning what you are doing for a while myself.

Went with 130's. It was a shot in the dark. New coils are like $60 a set so not too expensive to replace if I need something softer/stiffer.

[gumby]

I'm a bit late to the party here, but I'm afraid you might come up a bit short on shock travel in the rear with only 5" shocks. Especially with only 130lb springs. If this was a "track only" truck with heavy springs, I'd say you'd be fine, but I think you might want a bit more travel in the rear of a street truck.
I went diggin thru matt'sdrag95's build on CC to see if I could locate a rear shock length that he used, but came up empty....

Good news is if you mock it up and don't like it, the welder series MII coil over front end is set up for 5" shocks :moon:

[D94R]

I can't fit any longer coil overs in the rear at the ride height I'm setting it up at. I'm setting it up at ~27" up front and ~28" in the rear from the floor to top of the wheel arch. That's where I was approximately when I was 5/7. The amount of travel is the same as when I still had leafs.

The coil overs do have 10 settings on them to stiffen the shock. I still may need stiffer springs though maybe. I'll find out when I get it driving. I've set them up for 3" compression, 2.5" droop. Not many potholes here either.

[D94R]

F150, eat your heart out!

No, the mount is not touching the tire on the driver side. The angle of the pics just make it look that way.

I need to extend the lower coil over mounts actually, I need to bring them down about an inch. The bed is sitting about an inch too high right now.


http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_1003.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_1004.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_1005.jpg

http://i177.photobucket.com/albums/w239/D94R/Turbo%20Ranger/IMG_1006.jpg

[gumby]

sweet deal. I like the outboard mounting.

pop the coils off to check your travel, dont forget to check side to side articulation too.

[D94R]

Gumby, got it all in check ;) The bolt end of the shocks has like a built in mis-alignment spacer to it. Plenty of range of motion and part of the reason I mounted the upper part perpendicular to the bottoms.

Nice.

How are the upper coil over mounts held on there, do you have them bolted through the bolt in notch and frame, or tacked in where I can't see from the pics?

Steve, you got it with the bolt through the notch. I'm worried about twisting the frame though and cracking it where it's cut so I need to devise another cross member in there somewhere. Plus I need to get rid of the cross member above the pumpkin.

[D94R]

Got a crossmember built that bolts to the inside of the frame where the upper coilover mounts bolt through. No pics though.

I also set the coil overs to their stiffest setting and jumped up and down on the frame to test. My 200lbs couldn't get them to move but a fraction of an inch so I think I'll be ok with the amount of travel.

[splatranger95]

Got a crossmember built that bolts to the inside of the frame where the upper coilover mounts bolt through. No pics though.

I also set the coil overs to their stiffest setting and jumped up and down on the frame to test. My 200lbs couldn't get them to move but a fraction of an inch so I think I'll be ok with the amount of travel.

That may be a rough ride. (Im sure you know way better than I do,) But I weigh 230, and on my truck I barely move it with leafs and adjustable rear shocks and it bounces me off my seat sometimes over a large bump. May want to loosen them a little if its easier to do it now instead of later with the bed on? It'll probably be a "drive it around for a bit and adjust em" thing though..

Edit. I may be hitting the bump stops over large bumps.... Sorry

[D94R]

I was just saying that if I seem to have too soft a ride, or hitting the bumpstops too often, I can firm up the shocks and help that situation.

[gumby]

Not my truck, but I can tell you all it's riding is JACK STANDS!!! :hehe:

Do work, Matt! :cheers2:

[K G]

I am a new member on this site. I have already bought a triangulated 4-link for my truck and am now looking at coilover spring rates. I am pretty sure you are one of few people that have even attempted this so I was wondering how is the ride. I live in Tampa fl and the potholes are everywhere. would you suggest the same spring rate for my standard cab/splash stepside bed ford ranger?

http://swayaway.com/calculators/swayawayCalc.php

KG

[D94R]

Yup, I have zero idea of my spring rate that I bought is correct, or how it will ride. I'll change them, if need be, when I get driving.


Gumby, it's a roller! No jack stands needed ;)

[D94R]

Sadly, no updates. Haven't had the time to work on it. Which kinda sucks. I wanted to have it back together enough to try and fire up the MS-II this fall ... maybe spring time?

I'm thoroughly unpleased by the upper coil over mounts. I need to redo them. So that is first/next on the list of things to do.

[D94R]

Don't like the design. Don't like how I braced between the rails. Not enough room for the 4" exhaust over the axle cause of the brace.

I want to run a tube through the frame, then hang the upper mounts off that. Lay it back some like Gumby suggested. Something like that anyhow

[D94R]

Super sick build...looking forward to seeing it boosting...
So the mustang 2 setup isn't a bolt on?
I believe fat man's kit is if I'm not mistaken.


No, MII kits are universal, which always means they universally fit nothing.

There's lots of setup, measure, remove, cut, repeat, required to get it to work properly.

[D94R]

Bought: Stock width 56" MII kit

http://www.welderseries.com/blog/online-store/images/22394/?530,530,0,100,100,3606358466

http://www.welderseries.com/blog/online-store/images/5059/?530,530,0,100,100,2862671212



Those are stock photos, I bought the DIY welder kit. Can't wait to get it here and start welding it up.






MAJOR clean up of the thread. Any non important posts were just moved so as to not effect members post counts.

[jareeb]

mustang 2 front end?

also clean up was nice, took me like 10min to get up to date

[D94R]

Yes, MII. The purpose of the clean ups is just that, so you or I don't have to go through 8 billion pages of blabber to know wtf is going on :)

[jareeb]

i hear yeah haha, nice so you plan on drag racing or difting or x track?

[splatranger95]

Congrats Matt. Im falling behind on my build. I was going strong for a while but life got in the way. Im pretty happy youre doing this before me. HAHA. This is where the fun part starts too.

[88gt]

do you have a link for that MII front end kit?

[D94R]

do you have a link for that MII front end kit?

Why yes I do. (http://www.welderseries.com/blog/online-store/21906/)

[beluga420]

Those are nice pieces!! I wonder... Is it street legal to do this to your truck where you live? Because from what I know here in quebec if you touch modify anything from the frame it's not street legal anymore.. Must not go into any inspection with my c-notches...

Clean up did pretty good! Going to do it on my build also!

[D94R]

The truck is gonna stay registered in Ohio. No emmissions or safety where I lived.

Here in Utah it gets sketchy. I'd have to tune it to pass the sniff test, but also wire up a stock computer so they can make sure that works. As far as safety is concerned, you can modify the frame as long as the modification is as strong or stronger than what it replaced. So I can't just cut pie cuts in the frame, but replacing the existing crossmember with this one is good to go.

[D94R]

Crossmember will be here on Wednesday!

I'm also brainstorming how to redo the rear end. I don't like how the coil overs mount. And Gumby's comments about short coil overs on the rear has me worried a bit. So, I'm brainstorming a cantilever setup, the problem is I can't invision one that well. Being as low as I am, and thinking I might try to set it up a hair lower with the MII kit, leaves me stuck with how I want the rear to go together.

[fordnut71]

http://traxxas.com/products/models/nitro/5309revo33

this is a traxxas revo with cantilever this was a inspiration for 1 of the extreme4x4 rigs. maybe it would give you an idea also.

[D94R]

http://traxxas.com/products/models/nitro/5309revo33

this is a traxxas revo with cantilever this was a inspiration for 1 of the extreme4x4 rigs. maybe it would give you an idea also.

I've been pouring over google images of canti setups, the problem with like what is above is it's independent suspension. The packaging of the mounting of the coil overs is a bit easier when one giant chunk of the axle doesn't move.

I really don't know if a canti setup would work. I may just have to say the hell with it and poke stuff through the bed floor to make it all work.

[fordnut71]

i did see pic of some 4x4 cantilever on a ranger , some 4x4 shop carrys a drop in section. the coil overs are layed down behind the rear axle. or maybe do a cobra or super coupe irs

[jareeb]

That's what I thought of when I read that

[D94R]

I've got so much money sank into a 4 link setup I'd hate to go IRS, though I'd prefer one really.

Do you have a link to that drop in canti setup?

The problem I face is packing it all under the bed with the axle so close to the frame and bed. If I do a rear sub frame I can build it as needed. Keeping the stock frame is part of my problem thinking this through.

[Rangerdan2.3]

I like IRS idea, if thats what you want just go for that, so you don't get it finished and not be satified only to rip it out again next year.... I guess thats some of the fun of it though idk.

[jareeb]

http://image.off-roadweb.com/f/9377695+w750+st0/0704or_06_z+2004_nissan_titan_prerunner+cantilever _suspension.jpg
http://image.off-roadweb.com/f/34193534/1201or-14+looking-back-top-four-trucks-of-2011+chevy-1500-4x4-wt-rear-suspension-cantilever-design.jpg
http://www.streetsourcemag.com/uploads/Ownerprofiles/twisted%20one/425200845436AM47761.jpg

google is awesome!!! how theses help man
also found this kit for sale
http://www.kplinks.com/product.php?productid=345&cat=49&page=1

[D94R]

The 4x would be great, but I don't have that much room from the axle to the bed. It's hard to package that with a long enough stroke for axle travel when you've only got 8" of clearance.

And the second one is poking through the bed for bags. Something I want to try to avoid. Though if I have to, it opens up the possibilities.

[jareeb]

Yeah I'm think you would have to put it though the bed

[splatranger95]

Matt, I got my MN12 for 150 bucks, and its gonna fit under the bed. Im going to build a small custom center section, but its going to be mostly a stock frame. You could sell your 4 link fairly easily I think.

[Ron83ranger]

i dont know Matt, if the area you will be doing most of your driving in is fairly smooth, you may be ok with 5.5" of rear travel. this is gonna be a sport truck and there isn't a whole lot of weight at the rear of a pickup. get some good progressive bump stops and you may be ok. if you think about, how much bump travel do you have with a normal lowered ranger? i have about 3.125"(i just checked) of bump travel to my bump stop, but a little more droop travel, only because of the shocks i have.

the front is where you will need more travel, with majority of the weight being there. but you probably know that already. i dont know the motion ratio of the MII lower arms, but a 5" shock travel could net you 8" of wheel travel.

[splatranger95]

I only have about 3/4 of an inch of travel between my axle and my stops at ride height... I dont have notch though.

[D94R]

Yep, Ron, I agree totally. When I was 5/7 I had very little travel, so I figured the rear coil overs I have would just fine. They have 10 stiffness settings so I figured I'd be ok, plus they are integrally bump stopped.

Gumby just had me worrying (damn him ;) )

What I don't like is the mounting of them. I thought the outboard setup would work, but I don't think it will.

[jareeb]

why could you tire hit the coils? looks like it would work

[D94R]

That, and the internal frame bracing gets in the way of some other stuff.