Moving front axle forward

[MEAKIN]

so i want to know who has moved their axle forward, what size tires they are on and if they would change their placement given a second chance. also if there was any unusual steering obsticals to overcome besides moving the box and lengthening the shaft. on my project im using a radius armed d60 with 39.5" boggers if it matters. thanks

 

[1badexplorer]

I moved mine forward but it's on an Early Bronco not a ranger. The problem that I ran into was I ended up cutting into the structural parts of the fender and the back of the body tub and it weaken it some. I also had almost no front bumper left at the corners because of the stretch. I'm running a dana 60 front and 14 bolt rear with 44 boggers. I stretched the wheelbase 8".

 

[MEAKIN]

nice bronco, i wish the body on mine was worth working with.

 

[1badexplorer]

nice bronco, i wish the body on mine was worth working with.

Mine wasn't the greatest either but luckily I was cutting so much to fit the 44s that you can't tell now how bad it was before I started.

 

[LittleBigFoot]

I've got a D44 in the front of my ranger, stretched about 3", maybe 4.

I'm runnin 35x15.5s

I'm changin out leaf springs here soon, running a different main leaf and shackle set up but I'll be at about a 6 to 7" stretch grand total.

The further forward the better in my oppinion.

 

[wahlstrom1]

Running 37's with prerunner fenders I'm planning on bring my 8.5" lift height down to around 6.5" by pushing the axle roughly 2.5" ahead. The stock centered location means anything over a 35" tire needs a large amount of lift or doing some fender trimming.

Using the stock steering box location, I figure 3" is about as far as I could move the axle ahead without causing any other issues.

 

[UrbanRedneckKid]

You could turn the pitman arm backwards(180*), and use high steer arms off of the back of the knuckles. That allows you to put the axle way forward.

 

[NMB2]

my front is pushed forward 4" w/ 39.5 IROK's and a Dana60

 

[slammer67]

Using the stock steering box location, I figure 3" is about as far as I could move the axle ahead without causing any other issues.

x2
I moved mine forward about 2", planning on a 37" max size tire - but I have 'glass fenders for more room.

 

[MEAKIN]

so by looking at nmb2's rig if a guy goes 6" forward with around 10-11" overall lift you shouldnt have to cut the fenders at the rear of front fender just remove front bumper and trim off the sheetmetal that hangs down behind the bumper. sound about right?

 

[NMB2]

maaaaybe. Thats ALOT of lift so you might get away with it, I also dont know what purpose your truck serves.. .Mud truck yes...... my truck has only maybe 5" lift, and when i stuff the tire it still hits the back of the fender even with all of the cutting ive done, I had to put in bigger bumpstops and cut more.

 

[NMB2]

Running 37's with prerunner fenders I'm planning on bring my 8.5" lift height down to around 6.5" by pushing the axle roughly 2.5" ahead. The stock centered location means anything over a 35" tire needs a large amount of lift or doing some fender trimming.

Using the stock steering box location, I figure 3" is about as far as I could move the axle ahead without causing any other issues.

I got away with 4" with the stock box and pitman arm, and i was using links that were much to big at 2", so with a smaller 1.5" tie rod and drag link 4" should be pretty easy w hi-steer.

 

[dirtraider]

I moved my front axle pretty far forward. The box is about 4" forward, then i used a longer flat pitman arm off a f250. My shit is slammed on 38.5s....

 

[MEAKIN]

mud mostly around here, some off camber stuff and creek crossings and such. no rocks that ive seen. 10-11" is with the body lift so i may remove the 3" blocks later if its too tall. better to start tall than come up short!

 

[bronchoII]

i have a d44 in my 90 bII its moved foward about 7 Inchs I'm 38.5 swampers it works great