build log 9
I inspected the frame everywhere and identified any areas where rust had compromised the thickness. There were three areas that I cut out to full thickness metal and welded back in with stock thickness material. In all cases these were areas where brackets had been riveted on...
build log 8
With the front axle under the truck a moved my attention to the rear suspension. I ordered all new leaf spring mounts from advanced auto parts. I removed the bed to get better access to the frame.
At this point I decided the bed was a total loss from rust damage and I...
build log 8
At this point I needed to start thinking about the leaf spring mounts for the front. I got a set of leaf spring mounts from barns 4x4 as a starting point and fabricated the required plates and braces to achieve the correct leaf spring spacing. My goal for the front end was to have...
build log 7
The last questions were where to run the shackle. I much prefer rear shackle front leafs due to keeping the front leaf in tension under hard front impacts while wheeling. It’s a lot harder to buckle (fold up) a rear shackle leaf set up. I looked at a lot of ways to do this on a...
build log 6
To overcome the up travel limitations I moved towards the axle under leaf configuration. This greatly complicates the steering. The leaf spring ends up directly where the steering linkage wants to sit with the stock xj knuckles. A lot of guys end up running S shaped drag links...
build log 5
At this time I removed the TTB and gave it to my cousin for his 88 ranger project. His truck only had the dana 28 so this was perfect for his James duff lift
tare down day
where the TTB lives now
Then I spent a lot of time looking at axle under versus axle over for the leaf...
build log 4
I went ahead and ordered some U bolts for the front dana 30 and fabricated the top plates. At the time I also used some heavy wall box tubing and fabricated some spring pads. Later in the build I switch these out for a nice set of anti wrap units. I have access to lots of various...
Build log 3
At the time I did not think I could afford to spend the money on a three link set up so I started research on front leaf sprung options. I found a few examples of rangers that did this using Wagoneer front leaf springs, and some examples of YJ front leafs. I found that SD truck...
build log 2
After researching all the options and considering my budget at the time I decided to look for the following parts at local salvage yards. Rear chevy 63” springs for the rear suspension. A dana 30 high pinion front axle out of a xj, or yj jeep. I wanted one without the vacuum...
gradan07 1991 build
I would like to start out by thanking everyone on the forum whose build thread provided most of the information i needed to build this project over the last 5 years. I have been a long time ranger station reader but never spent the time to document my build. I started...
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