The trac bar thing has been eating at me, so I decided to go back through my build and see how everything looked when I built the trac bar in the first place. Looking at it, I may be alright if I lessen the bend that I just put in it a couple weeks ago. With it unbent, which is how I ran it for 2 years, it barely gets into the engine crossmember. May not even touch the oil pan.
If I decide that that won't be enough, I think I'll use part of my existing trac bar bracket for the new one. The left side will become the right side, essentially shifting the trac bar forward the width of my bushing. That's more than a full tube width, and would be more than enough to clear the oil pan. Only pushing it forward that much, I think I'd be able to put a bend in the bar, and use my existing axle side bracket.
Thanks for keepin me goin guys. Life is still pretty crazy. Dad's still in the hospital, midterms are this week, work has been nuts. It'd be nice if something would just go smooth for once. It seems like every obstacle I come to while trying to put my truck back together crushes my motivation.
I've taken a step back and assessed this situation, I think my solution will work. My gears are turning again.
edit: just so its all on the same page, here's the pic of the oil pan/engine crossmember.
The bushing at the frame side is 3" wide IIRC. I think pushing the bar 3" forward would be plenty. I may even switch to a flex joint instead of the bushing. hmmm.
edit II: Looked up weld on joints from ballistic and currie. I'd like to go with a 2" joint, so it wouldn't push the trac bar forward as much, but they're only offered with a 1/2" thru hole (ballistic) and 7/16" thru hole (currie). My bushing is 9/16" thru, and if I reuse half of the trac bar mount, I'll need that size for the replacement joint. I could go with another forged 2.63" ballistic joint like I have on my radius arms. A bit pricey, but it would work (9/16 thru bolt), and would push the bar forward about as much as the bushing would. Decisions decisions.