ford should have done this

[gwaii]

you tell her....i'll stand clear and be ready to run

 

[Josh40601]

you tell her....i'll stand clear and be ready to run

lol

You sound like me, with school and work and being a single dad, I barely get to look at my truck, much less work on it. Plus with me not being able to Weld, I have to rely on someone else to do it, and so far it has been like pulling teeth with a 5 year old.

 

[gwaii]

ya,for me it's mostly just work.i work mostly on sportfishing boats,so spring is usually real busy as everyone is getting ready for the season,then it slows down for the summer as all the boats are in the water.this year i had a client who wanted a custom fiberglass wheelhouse made for his 27' boston whaler,and until that is done i can't take the time to work on my stuff....or even get it into my shop.

 

[country0001]

That's how I've always imagined a choptop.

 

[ragajungle]

Its like Hoarders meets American Pickers meets PowerBlock TV meets MythBusters! I LOVES IT! It amazes me that giant corporations cant figure out how to build a good transmission but a Redneck in BC can make a totally capable 4wheel steering rig outta bits n pieces - I really wanna come check it out! I was thinking aboot (LOL) going to Davids Farm (See Youtube) to trash a car on SkyHill this summer Maybe a trip to BC?

 

[gwaii]

bring your fishing rod!

 

[gwaii]

ok...back at it.

figured it's time to get to the rear steering on this thing,as i use the vehicle all the time as a yard truck,and theres two pairs of my vise grips holding the steering in the straight ahead position.
i want those back in my tool box.

so heres where i start.
i cut the end off the intermediate steering shaft at the factory weld.turns out the o.d. of this piece is 1",which is real convenient,as this is the size of the shaft on the worm drive.
i fit the end piece in a chunk of 1.50 od .250 wall dom(i.d. 1")and tig welded them together.

 

[gwaii]

this is the extension shaft on the steering rack.the worm drive is sitting upside down beside it to show the output shaft.
i needed to do a bit of clearancing on the shock tower for it to fit.i also cut out a big chunk of floor for access.this will be covered with a removeable panel when done.

 

[gwaii]

the drive on the extension.now it needs to be mounted solidly to the frame.

 

[gwaii]

there...threw some metal at it.

with it mounted i was able to see just how hard this was going to be to turn.was my motor going to have enough power?
well,i was able to turn it with just my fingers on the 5/8" input shaft.no problem.

 

[gwaii]

speaking of motor,this is what i will be using.i was originally going to use a starter from a 150hp merc outboard,which would have the power for this,but needed mods to make it reversible and to hook up to the shaft.
this one was being used on the hose reel for the airport's fuel truck.they wanted it replaced as part of regular maintenance-even though there was nothing wrong with it.
as a bonus,it has the same 5/8" shaft as the input of the worm drive.

now,to get it mounted.

 

[Josh40601]

you do anything else to the ranger yet or you working on this one first then the ranger

 

[gwaii]

you do anything else to the ranger yet or you working on this one first then the ranger

kinda mixing it up.the ranger will get some attention too,but i use this one all the time,and i've been getting tired of looking at the parts i've accumulated collecting dust.
of course,theres a lot of parts for the ranger collecting dust,too.i generally need several projects on the go at one time,that way i don't get too bored with any one job.

of course,theres this too.http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/showthread.php?t=90455

 

[gwaii]

so here's everything put together.i needed a joint in the middle of the motor shaft so the motor could be mounted below the floor level.for this i used the one from the explorer intermediate shaft.it's actually a double cardan cv joint so it operates very smoothly.for the sleeves to connect to the motor and gearbox i used 5/8" coupler nuts with the threads drilled out.these were drilled and tapped for 1/4" set screws.
for the motor control i 'borrowed' a relay set from a winch control.

 

[gwaii]

click on the vid to see it in action.it works well,but i still need to put limit switches in place for the full lock positions,as well as a self-centering switch set.