dangerranger1983 build

[mc_muench]

looks sick...I love the multi color thing, leave it...but ou sir, need tires

 

[dangerranger83]

That's all next spring. As for paint, the title says gray, so that's going to be the color, a dark gray is what I'm going for. The hood will have truck bed liner on it due to the hood kf my truck is maonly used as a work bench. But I want to get the cab corners fixed and I know where I can get both sides for $40.

This truck isn't just a play toy/DD. Its a learning tool for me. Everything from engine swapping, suspension and eventually body work will be done to it and at the sametime I will have learned a bit more on how to do these things.

But due to cold weather comming up and other things I do during the fall/winter is comming up, work on it will slow down.

But to do A SAS in about 2 weeks time is fast plus how many other 21 year olds do this by thereself, not many. The only help I got was brake lines, my dad help me run them and helped me bleed them, other then that, I was on my own while he watched, to make sure I wasn't about to kill myself.

Right now getting her back on the road and driving again and getting me through till spring when more mods. begin is my number priority for it. Unit then she's my heinz 57 truck.

But a few things that need done are shocks, steering stabilizer,choke and front driveshaft.

 

[dangerranger83]

Well just got done ordering my shocks, should arrive to me Nov.2-3.

 

[04sd]

Looking good
I don't understand the need for a d30 SAS but it's nice to see someone fixing up an old Ranger and using it as a dd.

 

[dangerranger83]

I had got it for free and my d28 was junk, everything on it was shot. Plus aftermarket parts are more avalible for a d30 then a d28.

 

[kroussinoffroad]

I was nervous about the SAS. and about the best advice i got was from one of the bench racer's that hangs out in my garage. He told me before you get 40 miles from home on some back ass trail and have it break, what you need to do if go pound it thru the whoop section behind your house (ATV TRAIL) . After doing that i found that the trac-bar frame bracket needed a little more support and i needed spring hold down's. other than that everything held up very well. the only thing i have issues with it the trans x-member holds the trans up too high and under WOT or HARD hit's it rubs the floor ever so slightly. other than that it has held up very well and havent seen any catastrophic failure YET. still waiting to break or bend anything that people dog on it about as i have another axle sittin next to the garage and had 2 spare sets of axle shafts with the "big" joint's. Oh and i am picking up a dana 44 out of a waggy tomorrow. and a 9'' 44 outta a f-150 next week. not that im gonna swap them in right away but if i ever get the bug to do it i will have them here.

 

[dangerranger83]

If you do the D44 swap, send your d30 axles my way.

Of course a d44 waggy has a six bolt pattern iirc. I would do an EB d44 mself to keep it narrow width, ya its a LP axle but still stronger then a d30. But they have a 5 x 5.5 bolt pattern and didn't you just buy new rims?

As for my truck, still has a little side to side body movement when you go to turn the wheel then the wheels turn so I think my frame trackbar mount is flexing so thats on my to fix list. I'll get to full test things after I get my shocks on it. I have to get the front driveshaft done before the snow flys.

Another question.......when you go to engage it into 4wd high, do you have to be at a stop or can you still be driving when doing this? And how has your gas mileage been now that you have a live at all times axle? One thing I need to do is change my transfer case fluid, my dad has never done it in the 11 years he owned it.

 

[escort_gts]

i never had a problem shifting to 4h while driving. You just dont want to shift when turning or while accelerating. Its best to push in the clutch first.

 

[04sd]

I had got it for free and my d28 was junk, everything on it was shot. Plus aftermarket parts are more avalible for a d30 then a d28.

Yeah, but a 1st gen Explorer dana 35 is a bolt in upgrade. And at least in my area you can pick up a complete Ex for scrap value or maybe an extra $100. That gives you a d35 plus an 8.8 for the rear.

 

[dangerranger83]

Thats the problem...its still TTB. When I talk flex, I want the body to stay as leveel as it can while the axles do all the flexing up and down. With a TTB this isnt as easily done. Plua one thing that plagues the TTB is how the wheels moves and how they wear. pLus there is still a larger aftermarket of parts for the D30 then the TTB D35.

For me to pick up an exploder in the j/y is $800.

I did this swap as a learning experiance and to teach myself stuff. I dont learn as much doing bolt in stuff. A built not bought truck I wanna say.

Thanks escourt, I just wanted to be sure of that. Now to go look up how much fluid my transfer case takes.

 

[Robert_1967]

Thats the problem...its still TTB. When I talk flex, I want the body to stay as leveel as it can while the axles do all the flexing up and down.

Now you need to save up and do a 4 link in the back, that way the truck will stay level.





Robert

 

[dangerranger83]

Let's not take it that far

If I want it to be level all I need to do is take out the overloads but I like the rake it has. I think I need to do a diesel swap.

 

[escort_gts]

yes diesel swap would be the way to go. I might do something like that in the future.

A 4link rear would be a challenging idea.

 

[Robert_1967]

I didn't mean to remove the rake,, I meant to ad flex so the truck would stay level when one front tire is up high, and the other side rear tire is up high.

I like a little rake in a truck, my BII has some, when I got it, it felt as if the front end was riding high, so I added two inch blocks to the back, gave me just enough to make it ride the way I wanted.


Robert

 

[kroussinoffroad]

i would have to say that mine flex's pretty good with leaf's in the rear. You can make leaf's flex just as well as coil's.

as far as milage go's i never monitor how many miles ive traveled. besides you wouldnt want my milage as i dont think ive ran a tank of gas thru it on the road. i towed a 1900 lb camper two dirt bike's all the camping/riding gear about 150 miles round trip i also made three lap's around the mx track with my truck and a couple of runs to the corner store. and i got back and had bout 1/4 tank. so i dont think it's too bad.

The waggy d44 is six lug but i have 5 ar's sittin next to my garage that were new about 2 years ago and might have 3000 mile's on them. they were on my brother's K-5 until he swapped in one ton's so i will prolly just run those. my dc-1's will go on the Bll

Here is a comparrison pic of coil's v.s. leafs.

the gay-five is on 37's with a b-52 front and interwove 4'' lift springs andthe rear is just DIY shackle flip with 4'' springs she clear's the 37's really nice