does anyone lower rangers anymore???

[dniksch]

I had a 95 Splash Extended cab 4.0 performance ford rearend. Lowerd 4/6 and did it myself. with Mustang 95 Tri bar GT wheels on it. I have now a 93 long bed reg cab. Was going to lower it 2 in front and 4 in back. any ideas on how to do it? I did the I beams before and dont want to dump that much into this truck.

 

[Casper98]

get some 2" drop coils and a flipkit

 

[Surrey]

Cut your coils, and flip your shackles. drop for the cost of 8 bolts.

 

[forzda]

Cut your coils, and flip your shackles. drop for the cost of 8 bolts.

Personally I wouldnt cut the coils , just get 2" drop springs to go withthe shackle flip . if you need more rear drop you could use longer shacles along with the flip

 

[--weezl--]

cutting the coils isn't that big of a deal... it's sure not the proper way to do it though...

something you COULD try to do is replace the front coils with coils from another vehicle, one with smaller length coils, but roughly the same weight on the front wheels...

or you could take a cutting torch to the springs and just bend the hell outa them... (using the torch for heat, not cutting)

 

[dniksch]

Ok, so how do I do the shackles? Just flip them? and thanks for all the responses!!! the shackles does that do a 4 inch drop? I dont mind getting new springs in front or if I grab a pair out of a junk yard and cut them how much do I cut off just one coil??

 

[--weezl--]

easiest way to do the shackle flip,

take your bed off (if the bolts will come out)

jack up the back end, via the frame, so that the suspension has no weight on it

remove a bolt from the shackle/hanger (only need 1, doesn't matter which) loosen off the other one

remove rivets from hanger (rear one) probably need to grind them off (drivers side MAY have bolts, i'm told this is an odd, but slightly common quirk of ford)

lower frame of truck, so that the springs are above the mounting location of the hanger

check shock travel, make sure that they will not be too long

flip the hanger upside down, and install using grade 8 bolts, tighten it up (replace if rusted out)

apply liberal dose of flat black rustolem style spray paint, bedliner, or tar underbody spray

replace any worn bushings on spring, or shackle (replace shackle if necessary)

bolt up the shackles, making sure NOT to tighten them at this point, snug only

lower truck back onto it's on feet

tighten shackle/hanger bolts

re-install bed, checking for shackle clearance, as it may interfere

as for the front springs, cut off 1 coil at a time, trying it after each coil, until you reach the desired height, remembering that after the bottom "double coil" is gone, each coil is worth a lot more height... so maybe cut 1/4 coil off?

 

[dniksch]

sweet thanks

 

[--weezl--]

no worries!

of course, if you had gotten yourself a torsion bar ranger, you could lower the front so much easier! all you have to do is loosen off 2 bolts and it will drop you down... not sure how far though...

 

[stmitch]

The shackle flip will only drop the rear 2 inches. If you want a 4 inch rear drop, you'll need to get a flip kit.
On the front, drop springs are cheap, and most say they ride better than cut stock springs.
If you cut your springs, use a cutoff wheel that won't create much heat. DO NOT TORCH YOUR SPRINGS! Usually, 1 cut coil = 2 inch drop.

 

[--weezl--]

Could do a flip, then belltech 6400's for 4", IF there is room between the spring and the bed...

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Instead of a flip you could just get an Explorer axle, they are already spring under and you can get disc brakes (95-01) at the same time.

You would still have to install shock mounts though...

 

[--weezl--]

or both for even more drop

 

[dniksch]

found a flip kit bracket for 15 bucks on craigslist. waiting for the guy to email me back

 

[--weezl--]

flip kit bracket? why does this sound like something that's not needed?