89 BII

[McWillies]

Finally got the new shocks installed. 6 hours of arm wrenching pain later First one took the longest, on the top stud there wasn't any thread to put a wrench so I could loosen the nut, so I ended up getting my brother out there to help me hold it, took about 30 minutes but we got it. All the others went pretty smooth except for all the bolts having 30 years of rust built up on them... WD-40 is my friend. Haven't drove her yet, don't want my arms to give out while I'm driving The old front shocks were completely dead, the rears had a little life in them but you could tell all 4 had been in there for a VERY VERY long time.

When you take the cap off, how far down is the coolant?

Not far, few inches. I could stick my finger in the hole (hehe) and touch the coolant.

 

[McWillies]

Drove it around for a few minutes, did good. Feels alot better than before. Before every time I hit a bump it felt like my wheels were gonna fly off.

Edit: Drove it for a few more minutes to school. I definitely notice slight differences but overall it didn't live up to my expectations (I was expecting a lot more than what I should've been I guess) Going over some bumps that I'm familiar with just haven't changed at all. There is this one bump and every time I hit it, my rear axle feels like it's gonna shoot out the left side of my truck. Guess I should probably just slow down when I get to it instead of going 45

In all seriousness, I definitely feel a difference, certain places in roads that used to pain me to go over now feel slightly better. I just can't wait to get some new coils and leaves to throw under it. Next time I'm gonna coat all the nuts and bolts in WD-40 or liquid wrench or something the night before, make my life a little bit easier. Can anybody guess how much lift I will get with the new stuff? Just OEM height but my current suspension sags a good bit. 2-3 inches would be my guess, sound about right?

 

[bobbywalter]

well....i took the time to read this because you seem like a good kid.

like mentioned previously, intended use is the key to any advice.


seems your going the right way.

simply put, the b2 stock...... is a monster trailmachine for the time period of vehicles that imo bitchslaps jeeps with just good tires in 235 or 30x9 and a drop in locker. even the pathetic d28 is livable with those tires and jbg support these days. the trucks are awesome for trail work...though i do not like them for hi-way work.


i disagree with some of the previous posters assessment of the 4.0 vs 5.0 vs 2.9 scenario. the 4.0 is a night and day difference all things being equal. the 5.0 in stock trim from a 150/bronco or car that is non ho or better has too many cons to a 4.0's pros as far as useable power goes. but...in the case of stockish builds, the 2.9 geared is definitely a decent unit if it is running correctly.

but for that matter a 2.0 or 2.3 ecoboost or ls v8 would be a better idea today if you actually want more power.. the gm 4.3 is a beast as well.

rolling the fenders is not hack if done right..and can actually be the correct solution.....been doing the baseball bat since the 80's...of course in certain situations it can obviously be considered hack....so that is a toss.


body lift? even if engine swaps are not on the horizon, you have the biggest piece of shit transmission ever. a 2 in body lift and fresh bushings and well antisiezed bolts will be a worthy investment for this old beast to make maintenance much easier.

leaving it stockish till you actually know what it is you want to do is a great idea since it is your main transportation. having a solid unit like you have is a blessing most will not see so enjoy it.

the explorer axles are much wider and will require some work. there is ways to do the rear with no welding.

so just drive the dang thing and have fun for now.

 

[McWillies]

well....i took the time to read this because you seem like a good kid.

like mentioned previously, intended use is the key to any advice.


seems your going the right way.

simply put, the b2 stock...... is a monster trailmachine for the time period of vehicles that imo bitchslaps jeeps with just good tires in 235 or 30x9 and a drop in locker. even the pathetic d28 is livable with those tires and jbg support these days. the trucks are awesome for trail work...though i do not like them for hi-way work.


i disagree with some of the previous posters assessment of the 4.0 vs 5.0 vs 2.9 scenario. the 4.0 is a night and day difference all things being equal. the 5.0 in stock trim from a 150/bronco or car that is non ho or better has too many cons to a 4.0's pros as far as useable power goes. but...in the case of stockish builds, the 2.9 geared is definitely a decent unit if it is running correctly.

but for that matter a 2.0 or 2.3 ecoboost or ls v8 would be a better idea today if you actually want more power.. the gm 4.3 is a beast as well.

rolling the fenders is not hack if done right..and can actually be the correct solution.....been doing the baseball bat since the 80's...of course in certain situations it can obviously be considered hack....so that is a toss.


body lift? even if engine swaps are not on the horizon, you have the biggest piece of shit transmission ever. a 2 in body lift and fresh bushings and well antisiezed bolts will be a worthy investment for this old beast to make maintenance much easier.

leaving it stockish till you actually know what it is you want to do is a great idea since it is your main transportation. having a solid unit like you have is a blessing most will not see so enjoy it.

the explorer axles are much wider and will require some work. there is ways to do the rear with no welding.

so just drive the dang thing and have fun for now.

I appreciate your honesty and the fact that you took the time to read my thread. I stated in the past that I am new to all of this, the automotive world that is. I am trying to do simple bolt on swaps for now, seeing as I don't know how to do anything else. I don't plan on doing an engine swap any time soon. The main reason I was looking at axle swaps was for the gearing. From what I've read, you can only go up to 4.10s in the d28 (not sure about the 7.5). I hadn't thought about the axles being too wide.

As for being appreciative, trust me when I say I AM. I haven't had the best home life thus far, which is a shame but it has really helped me to understand how grateful I should be for everything that I have and will have.



Off that topic, I am gonna try to do the radiator and brake fluid this week. I have work today, not sure about the rest of the week.
I just remembered something that I forgot to check yesterday while I was doing the shocks. My transmission dipstick tube (no idea what it's called) seems to be blocked by something. When I try to put the dipstick in, it goes down almost all the way, but there is still about 4 inches of dipstick still sticking out. This is a problem because I can't check my tranny fluid which I've been meaning to do recently.

 

[bobbywalter]

are you positive it has a d28? from the picture some early plastic headlight models will have the 35

 

[McWillies]

are you positive it has a d28? from the picture some early plastic headlight models will have the 35

12 bolts on the diff, from what I understand that's a d28

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

are you positive it has a d28? from the picture some early plastic headlight models will have the 35

Worth checking out but I think that was only the real late 1990 model year.

 

[McWillies]

I have some advice for you guys for once. If you plan on working under your truck for 6 hours, don't do it while laying on a gravel driveway... Last 2 days have been killer, everywhere the rocks were touching is sore as hell. Wish I would've laid down some cardboard or something to lay on.

Sent from my HTC One M9 using Tapatalk

 

[McWillies]

Been thinking about the new coils and leaves a lot lately. One thing I'm worried about is my rear end being too high after I install both of them. I was looking at leveling coils that lift an inch or so to counteract this. You guys think I would need those or not?

 

[BlackBII]

If you get leveling coils you'll also need to get adjustable camber/caster bushings so you can get the camber/caster in spec.

If you use explorer leaves it may give you around 1-2" of lift in the rear, which you could fix by removing a leaf or two or by getting leveling coils or coil spacers in the front.

 

[McWillies]

How hard is it to install adjustable camber/caster bushings?

 

[BlackBII]

There's some good info here:

http://www.therangerstation.com/tech_library/Alignment.shtml

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

If you do that you might as well figure on doing balljoints too.

Rather than do that (and axleshaft u-joints which mine desperately needs) to my D28, I snagged a late model D35 for $75 and am putting balljoints, adjustable camber bushings and pretty much fully rebuilding it (brakes, bearings, seals, pivot bushings, steering...)

Of course then you get into doing other things like brakes and steering... but you have quite a bit more axle to show for it too.

Just a little food for thought.

 

[McWillies]

I'll keep it on the back burner, I still need to use it as a DD so I can't work on it for more than a day at a time.

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[McWillies]

Been thinking about aesthetics a lot, rather than the technical side of things for the BII. I haven't really considered what I want it to look like besides the paint and wheels, so I'd like to get some opinions from you guys. I gotta be honest, I don't love chrome, especially with the color of the truck and wheels. I know that this contradicts my earlier statements of wanting to keep the "stock" look, but I have thought about it a lot more. How do you guys think black accessories would look with the brownish color it is painted? I was also thinking a camo/military theme. Some tan and some green with the brown paint wouldn't look too bad. Of course all the cosmetics would come after the mechanics. Gotta get it running good before I get it looking good The current paint job didn't cost me anything, I spent 2 weekends sanding it with one of those little vibrating palm sanders, killed my already messed up wrist using it but I have had to use them for days on end at my current job with woodworking, so I've gotten used to them by now. Then my dad painted it (he used to work a mechanic/body shop). Enough of that, what do you guys think? Give me some suggestions on other color schemes to think about. Also like to mention I've been sick the last 2 days, not working again until Monday. I'll see how I'm feeling on Sunday, maybe I can get the radiator and brake fluid done.