'85 Ranger Restomod

[RobbieD]

Yeah, not worth the effort. It is so twisted up I doubt it would even fit in the housing anyway. I about guarantee that crack will leak too.

At least you got a perfect box out of the deal. "Rejoice in the victories, brother, no matter how small they may be." (I can't remember if Saint Lima or Saint Cologne said that, but I'm almost pretty sure that it IS in the Good Book)

 

[sgtsandman]

Hopefully Rock Auto will make it right. I find it a bit disconcerting that a worker would pack an obviously damaged part for shipment.

 

[Dirtman]

Hopefully Rock Auto will make it right. I find it a bit disconcerting that a worker would pack an obviously damaged part for shipment.

Blame a system that requires warehouse workers to run on quotas. Taking 20 minutes to go find a higher up to inform them that the only part left on the shelf for that order is damaged means missing your quota and getting reprimanded or losing potential bonuses/raises in the future... so in the box it goes to become someone else's problem...

 

[racsan]

I breifly worked at a kroger distribution warehouse, it was about 14 years ago and in order to try and meet “quota” (they had a different word for it, but in a nutshell it was quota) . I worked through my breaks & half of my lunch but still needed to be “20% better”. no way, being taller may of helped, trying to stack things way above your head, especially big bulky items like cases of water or 50 pound bags of dog food is quite the workout, youre in a warehouse with lettered aisles, each section numberd and a radio headset. “B-44 pick 5” and so it goes over and over as you fill your pallet and you’re grabbing and stacking and running to the next spot. Youve seen signs in workplaces saying “X days without a incident “. I never saw the # above 3. I lasted about a month before I found something better, closer and way less stressful. No doubt that packer was in such a rush he didn’t notice the damage or just couldn’t afford the time loss to fix the issue. Doesnt make it right but I can understand how it would happen.

 

[Bird76Mojo]

Yeah, not worth the effort. It is so twisted up I doubt it would even fit in the housing anyway. I about guarantee that crack will leak too.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

My FIL just inherited a really nice 66k mile '91 Ranger from his BIL (who inherited it from his father who bought it new)

He decided he wanted to put bucket seats in it so he offered me the split bench as he had no plans for it, so I says sure. The bench seat kinda sucks for long distance driving.



Surgery time:



I have tried Explorer highbacks and Eddie Bauer BII buckets both of which failed due to hitting the back of the cab... so I stuck the DS in with just the two outside bolts to get a feel for it. It was deemed good enough to proceed.



And because I had replaced the floorpan I had to pull the sill plate and rear speaker on the DS so I could drill a new hole in the floor for the front inside mount.



Mounting tracks on for the PS and of course this little cheesy wire breaks that works the latch on the tracks. Great, it is going to be a PITA to mount that in without being able to slide the seat around.



But wait, from the shadows the savior of the farm appears...



Not like we are trying to hold hogs but that should work.



Done!



Man them XLT guys don't know how good they have it, it is like driving around while sitting on a couch. Armrest is nice... I am a happy camper. Also it is easier on the rear window if a guy can whack his head against the headrest rather than the back window in an accident.

I need to figure out what to do about the color, new covers are $100+. IIRC the upholstery guy said figure $150/seat to recover a bucket... we have a car club meeting tomorrow night and I am going to bug him about it.

And of course my neat cupholder which worked so perfect pinched between the bench seat and the floor is flopping in the wind now because the center of the split bench is a inch or better off the floor.

 

[RobbieD]

I need to figure out what to do about the color

Easy peezy:

"metal - wood - more"
Fabric would be "more", right?


Seriously, those are some nice seats. Kind of a bummer to have to recover them, but the green over tan color scheme is a good one, and it really makes your truck stand out.

Nice score!

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Easy peezy:
View attachment 62643
"metal - wood - more"
Fabric would be "more", right?


Seriously, those are some nice seats. Kind of a bummer to have to recover them, but the green over tan color scheme is a good one, and it really makes your truck stand out.

Nice score!

BTW "boots brown" is a pretty good match for my tan, it is what I used for my cupholder.

My wife's grandfather was a smoker and they do have a few burn holes in them so they are not super perfect. Even if I wanted gray I would probably want to recover them eventually because of that.

 

[RobbieD]

I have the same gray color in my '90 Bronco II, but straight buckets and not 60/40. In a lot cases the seats of this vintage wear very well (as the case in my B2).

I think you'd be making a good investment, in having those recovered to match your interior.

By chance, did you find a build sheet stuck in the springs of your old seat's bottom cushion? There was one in my '84, but it was pretty much fragments.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

By chance, did you find a build sheet stuck in the springs of your old seat's bottom cushion? There was one in my '84, but it was pretty much fragments.

I didn't notice anything but maybe my FIL removed it after he pulled the seats. I forgot about those, I will bug him about it.

 

[racsan]

The build sheet in my 94 was under the passenger carpet near the trans tunnel. Get some good quality black seatcovers, not sure where or cost but that might be a more cost effective option.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

The build sheet in my 94 was under the passenger carpet near the trans tunnel. Get some good quality black seatcovers, not sure where or cost but that might be a more cost effective option.

He didn't see anything when he pulled them.

Black won't work, it sees too much dust they would be gray pretty quick. Ebay is full of all sorts of colors for around $100 and with unknown fit/quality.

By the time I get what looks like "nice" seatcovers online I am in the ballpark of just redoing what I have. Good saddleblanket covers are friggin $200+

I am still feeling things out, I will have a better idea tomorrow after I talk to the upholstery guy. I might be way off on what I think I remember him saying way back when too.

 

[Roert42]

I believe Carhart sells seat covers that are made to fit a ranger 60/40. Would probably match your truck

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

New evaporator shipped yesterday...

Welded four bolts on one of the backing plates for my slider:



Dropped the fuel tank, drilled four holes and installed the plate:



Tweaked on the fuel sender arm so it will actually go a little below the red line before I am out of gas (it would run out not even fully lined up with the red line)



And threw the fuel tank back in it which is much more difficult with the rear driveshaft installed.

 

[Bird76Mojo]

The build sheet in my 94 was under the passenger carpet near the trans tunnel.

Same place on my 87, under the vinyl floor.