Goodbye 2.3 4 cylinder...

[mikepotts]

Well the weather has been crappy for a couple weeks now, I hate not having a garage, especially with all the rain and wind. I have a "carport" shelter thing but the rain runs through on the ground like a small flood. I did manage to finally drill the holes in the frame for the rear swaybar bushing brackets and finish the installation.

When I deleted the brake booster in favor of manual brakes I had to remove a master cylinder firewall plate from another Ranger so I could re-mount the master on the firewall without the booster. The brake pedal lever for power brakes is different in the location of the stud from the fulcrum since less leverage is required.

The problem with converting to a manual setup is that the master mounts higher and requires the stud for the brake rod to be closer to the fulcrum for increased leverage as well as proper angle approaching the master cylinder piston.

Removing the brake pedal lever is no picnic on manual trans models since you have to extract the clutch pedal lever. If you've ever done this you know what I mean.

The clutch pedal lever has a long shaft welded to it that slides through the support and brake lever pivot and is kept in place by a circlip on the right side of the support.

In order to gain enough room to the left of the support to clear the length of the long shaft I had to move the main harness out of the way which meant unbolting the round multipin firewall connector from under the hood and separating the halves.

The inner half is held in the firewall by 3 pressure clips and once released allowed enough slack to pull the harness out of my way. When I thought I was almost there I realized the E-brake foot pedal mechanism was keeping the shaft from coming out the last 3/4" or so... aaaaarrrrgggghhhh!!!!

I wasn't about to give up at that point so I unbolted the
E-brake assembly, removed the cable and pulled the assembly out of my way. Success at last!!! But what a freakin' pain... did I mention there's no way to get into a comfortable positon under there???

I decided instead of replacing the brake pedal lever with a manual unit, (which would mean pulling the one out of my other Ranger... no thank you!!!), I would modify my existing unit and re-install it.

I got the measurements from my other Ranger, drilled a hole in the correct location on the lever and tapped it for a 1/2-13 shouldered bolt. I ran the bolt in from the same side as the factory stud 'til the shank bottomed in the threads and torqued the crap out of it, then I threaded a nylock nut on from the other side an torqued it down.

I cut the bolt head off at the appropriate length, ground it flat and chamfered the edge. Next I cut off the excess threads from the nut side and ground it smooth.

I had to make a brass bushing to step the new stud diameter up to 9/16, prefit the brake rod with black bushing, white nylon washers and brakelight switch to get the location of the hole to drill for the springpin retainer. I removed the pieces, drilled the hole and reassembled everything, it worked great.

I got the brake and clutch pedals back together along with the firewall connector, cut the part of the E-brake bracket that doubles as the drivers side dashboard mount, re-installed that piece and the lower dash access panel and called it a day.

So I finally have brakes again except for the E-brake which I am replacing with a Rover floor mounted hand brake. So much for those simple little mods that "wont take long"...

Mike

this reply needs to be stickied in the brakes section! very good write up! very descriptive! i was considering this conversion myself, since my BII is an off road only vehicle with pinion brakes i wanted to delete the power option, making it easier to stop without the engine running. BRAVO!

 

[mikepotts]

i just revisited my post in the brake section with the intention of copying and pasting you reply here... only to see you already replyed to me! thanks again!

as a side note... i am a ford purist! i have been known to bash some people who crossbreed RBV's with motors from other manufacturers (primarily chevy...yuck!). but i have been watching your build thread, and have come to the conclusion that, your build transcends the others, you have put alot of forethought and research into your build, very nice. i have to respect the fact that even though you didnt use a ford motor, you didnt go down the "ive got a 350 right here in the yard, im gonna put it in the ranger" road. you have used an exotic interesting choice that makes good sensebased on it's weight and power potential. WAY TO GO! this is the kind of thinking "outside the box" that makes me open my eyes to alternaitive possibilities. keep up the fine work.

 

[Black P-38]

Hey Mike, Thank you and thank you!!! I appreciate the recognition... and being different is something I like to pursue. I caught alot of flak from some of the Lightning guys when I did the TKO 600 5 speed conversion on my '94 but I did it 'cause I wanted to. It was predicted the truck would be slower than the E4OD but my theory paid off with a much faster truck and WAY more fun to drive.

I think this little Ranger will be surprisingly fast and economical, plus very different and way better balanced than the average V-8 Ranger. Thanks for following the build and for your kind words!!!

Stay tuned,
Mike

 

[mikepotts]

your welcome... it was just credit where it was due!

 

[Black P-38]

Well I have a pair of '97 2wd spindles, rotors, calipers, etc on their way and a pair of 10" drums, shoes etc so I'll take a few pics of the front/rear brake upgrade and post them with some descriptive text. I have new balljoints on the way too.

It will be awhile before I can get to it and I still need to find a pair of 10" backing plates for the rear conversion. I'm also thinking it might be a good time to acquire a trac-loc unit to install since I have to pull the diff cover and axles to replace the backing plates. An open diff with a V-8 wont be much fun...

Mike

 

[Black P-38]

I scored a Trac Loc and a set of 3.73 gears so I'm sacrificing some mileage to be quicker out of the hole. No worries of one wheel peel now!!!

Stay tuned,
Mike

 

[Black P-38]

Picked up some new 10" backing plates for the rear brakes and more pieces on the way so I'll be doing some upgrades pretty soon.

I can't believe I haven't posted any pics in over 2 months... what a slacker...

I'll get caught up on that, hopefully by this weekend so I'll be current before I start any more upgrades...

Stay Tuned,
Mike

 

[Black P-38]

Spending all my time parting out my Lightning but I decided to keep the seats for my Ranger. Sold the racing buckets and bolted in the Lightning high backs... mmmmm comfy!

Spent 14+ years in that drivers seat covering 209,000 miles so it just feels right. Easier to get in and out of too and with the power side bolsters they'll keep me in place going through the twisties. Pics coming...

Stay tuned...
Mike

 

[vortechlightnin]

Mikey, PM sent dude!!!!

You can shoot me an email too at mattporter146 @ centurytel . net

Matty

 

[Black P-38]

Hey Matt!

Long time 'eh? So you see what I've been up to...

 

[Black P-38]

With the mock-up block and heads under the hood, I finished the passenger side header clearance, (boy Ford picked a crappy place for a frame I.D. # on mine). I bolted up the bell and trans and verified that the original Ranger driveshaft is the perfect length, (once I replaced the factory front yoke with the correct Camaro T-5 yoke), YAY!!!

Still need to work out the details of the Range Rover floor mounted hand brake but I've got another passenger side cable so I now have 2 the same length with threaded ends. That will allow me to connect to the new single forward cable while having individual adjustment for each side.

Currently working on auxillary gauges and lighting controls. Still waiting on caliper brackets and decent weather so I can sandblast and paint the steering knuckles/spindles and the driveshaft. That's all for now, I know... still need to post pics...

Mike

 

[Black P-38]

I finally took a few pics, here they are...

And a little something to look forward to in the future...

Mike

 

[Black P-38]

Finally got my caliper mounting brackets! I never thought they would be the most difficult pieces of the twin piston caliper upgrade to acquire... So... if you're gonna do the 95-97 front brake upgrade make sure to buy "semi-loaded" calipers and check and double check with the supplier that they actually DO come with the correct brackets!!!

I did all my homework, emailed suppliers before purchases and here's how it went...

First attempt: Received a beautiful pair of brand new Dorman Calipers with NO brackets.
Emailed the seller... NEVER got a reply, (going on 5 weeks), NICE!!!

I searched everywhere trying to locate an affordable pair of brackets with NO luck.
Oddly, Dorman makes new caliper brackets but ONLY the 4wd units which have a different bolt spacing and average $60 a pair!!!
Be warned, if you think your Ford dealership is the answer... they wanted over $100... EACH!!!

Second attempt: Purchased another pair of calipers "with brackets" , (inexpensive reman units just to get brackets), from a different supplier, received two calipers, ONE had a bracket, a 4wd bracket!!! I called the customer service # and was given a return OK for the purchase and a full refund including shipping. I did receive the best customer service with personal assistance and a guarantee to hook me up with the correct parts. I repacked the calipers and dropped them at UPS for return shipping.

Third attempt: With the help of the customer service manager I re-ordered another pair of calipers, (remember, I'm still just trying to get a decent deal on the correct brackets I was promised with the new calipers I bought in my first attempt!!!). He guaranteed me he would personally open the boxes and not only verify the correct part numbers and presence of BOTH brackets but also measure the mounting bolt spacing on BOTH brackets to be certain they would be correct for the 2wd application. He also apologized for the hassle and assured me that my experience was not typical of their service.

So finally yesterday, June 16th I received my order and all is good. I bought the original pair of new calipers on May 5th.
Hey, it only took me 42 days to get the two pieces I needed to complete the parts purchase for the front brake upgrade!!!
Now I just need to sell the two reman calipers I bought to recoup some of the money spent getting the brackets...whew, Murhpy's law comes to mind...

So, once I get the salvage yard spindles sandblasted and painted it will be time to tear into the front end. I figured since I'll be disconnecting the steering linkage during the swap I'd replace it all with new OEM pieces.

Found an Ebay seller that has the correct 2wd parts and bought everything needed. The tie rod, drag link and both tie rod ends were $69.99, two adjusting sleeves $13.99.

I also picked up new upper and lower ball joints and new radius arm bushings so I should be in good shape for front suspension.

I'll post pics of the parts and process when the time comes...

Stay tuned,
Mike

 

[Earl43P]

What are you planning for rear bias adjustability? It's gotta change the F/R weight bias significantly with that lightweight engine, did I read right - 100 lbs. less than the 4 banger?

I'd plumb an adjuster close to the driver seat.

There are some good tech articles on brakes over heah....

http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp_brakebiasandperformance.shtml
http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp_rearbrake_upgrades.shtml


I admire what you are doing there.

 

[Black P-38]

That's an excellent question... I will probably incorporate a driver adjustable valve.

I imagine the weight bias along with the conversion to manual brakes as well as the front/rear upgrades will all have a collective effect on the degree of efficiency of both the front and rear systems.

I'm sure the inclusion of such a valve will allow for a much better overall result in braking performance than just assuming it will be an improvement. I'm interested in controlled effective braking.

Thank you for the links and the compliment! Yes you read correctly, the V-8 is about 100 lbs lighter. I also will be installing a fiberglass bed cover which will add about 75-80 lbs over the bed. I hope to achieve outstanding weight distribution for the type of vehicle as well as a better than average power to weight ratio and decent economy. We'll see...