Ranger Edge long travel input please

[redrider121]

What's up everyone. First actual post in TRS (aside from that inroduction page). Anyways, I've got a stock 05 ranger edge 2wd. As most of you know, the edge's came factory "lifted". But Im considering trying to fabricate my own long travel suspension system. I'm looking for ideas or people who have already done this to an edge.

Camburg, Blitzkreig, and a few other companies have long travel kits for purchase, but I don't have the cash or the will to lay down 12K in a nice long travel system.... so my solution is to build my own!

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[doyouquaxu]

Without the use of Google define these terms

Castor
Camber
Spindle
Upright
Scrub Radius
Ackerman angle
King Pin Inclination


If you can accurately define those 7 terms, you're ready to move to the next step of building a long travel kit, the next step is step 2, there are 398,765 steps, better get started.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I have a basic grasp of all except 'upright'. Please elaborate.
Thanks,

Richard

 

[bilzy7]

12k... Who said you need to spend that much... Figure out your front end suspension... Then attack the rear... I planned on doing rear myself and having a shop install my front suspension... Then my wife raped my face and I was broke... Ugh... Good times.

 

[doyouquaxu]

10k is the average cost of a blitzkrieg kit to drive your truck in stock and leave with a front kit put on a ranger, 1500ish less if you don't want bypasses. you're lucky you have an edge truck though, less cutting on the frame.

 

[redrider121]

Yeah, its around 10k for BLitzkrieg and more for camburg.. if you let them do all the work.

I understand all of those terms aside from upright just like alwaysfloored. And the rear suspension is really simple to me, I'll tackle that later.

What I had in mind was something along the line of scrapping the torsion bars that are on my truck now and fabricating a boxed lower a-arm with 4130 chrom-moly (maybe some other material, idk yet). And offsetting the control arm towards the rear by means of an offset, as well as with a full suspension rotation to get roughly 10* of castor. With the suspension rotated back slightly, and the king pin angled back also, it will give me a zero camber when driving straight, positive and negative to the left and right tires when I turn right, respectively, and vice versa to the left. My hopes with the suspension rated back slightly is that it will soak up bumps a little easier. (I'm using dirtbike fork geometry for this)

I don't really care about ackerman angle because turning radius really doesn't bother me. I learned to drive in a chevy 3500 long bed daully crew cab lol.

 

[motorbill87]

With it set back, do you mean bringing the front centerline towards the rear of the vehicle? Youre going to have clearance issues with bigger tires if you do.

Having an idea in your head and actually building the parts is a completely different reality. I'm not tryintg to be a dick but do you have a good solid know how or background with metal fabrication and welding? If you're not solid on that matter i wouldn't even try to make any suspension components.

If you are a well rounded fabber and welder than more power to you! I build most of my own components my self but found out quick that you've gotta have the good quality equiptment cause a good build doesnt come from harbour freight tools lol.

 

[doyouquaxu]

only problem with setting it back is that you'll run into clearance issues with your tire and the fire wall. if anything, people like to push the wheel base forward and inch or two to clear bigger tires at full lock at the fire wall.

if you design the arms with enough internal ribs and whatnot, you don't have to use 4130 plate. you can, to be a baller, but a lot of kits are made of mild or less expensive steel.

 

[redrider121]

Sorry, I should have specified.

I was going to run 32" tires and leave the control arms close to their location and push the lower a arms towards the front so clearance isn't an issue.

Welding isn't an issue. I've been welding for about 5 years now. I prefer stick or oxy-acetelen, but mig and fluxcore are easy too. As for Tig welding, I have lots of friends that Tig weld for a profession.

Do you think if I used an internal ribbing method with medium steel the supports should be vertical or triangular (on the inside)?

Also, does anyone know about front shock angle? because I see some buggies and rails with the shocks mounted at 45* to vertical (or close to it). Are there benefits/drawbacks to this?

 

[doyouquaxu]

Vertical ribs between the plates. Id say mig weld everything.

The shocks should be as close to 90* in relation to the lower arm at bump as possible. Angling forward or back doesn't matter much, as long as everything clears

 

[Cody Ray]

I'm all for people building they'er own stuff, but just remember that you will be depending on these parts to support the weight of a vehicle and whatever off-roading you will be doing. Not to mention the fact that if you get into an accident because of a mistake in your fabrication you could be in serious dooky.

 

[Cody Ray]

Without the use of Google define these terms

Castor
Camber
Spindle
Upright
Scrub Radius
Ackerman angle
King Pin Inclination


If you can accurately define those 7 terms, you're ready to move to the next step of building a long travel kit, the next step is step 2, there are 398,765 steps, better get started.

Where is toe

 

[doyouquaxu]

they'er

i have never seen someone fail that miserably at spelling THEIR

Where is toe

it's part of step 2.

 

[Cody Ray]

They're isn't a misspelling of their, I just used the wrong word. Did someone pee in your cereal this morning or do you just enjoy pointing out trivial things to make yourself feel like a big man?

 

[doyouquaxu]

They're isn't a misspelling of their, I just used the wrong word. Did someone pee in your cereal this morning or do you just enjoy pointing out trivial things to make yourself feel like a big man?

i piss in my own cereal because i piss excellence.