longtravel 2wd suspension set-ups

[mikeyfrombc]

i have a local source i can barter some KING or FOX shocks for my ranger , i,m looking for 18" to 20" of wheeltravel in the front and around the same in the back , for the front i,m gonna build longer Ibeams and such but need to know what travel shock to get for the front , and in the rear i,m gonna go with a leafspring set-up with that rocker set-up on the rear again i need to know what stroke shock to use .

thanx

mikey

and if anyone has built a similair prerunner style ranger i,d like to see some pics and hear some do,s and don,ts or any suggestions

 

[F150hybred]

Only thing I can offer is a site that does just what your talking about only on a grander scale. Thing is, with the grander scale comes a grander price. Should be good for some ideas though.



http://www.camburg.com/fords1P.html

 

[mikeyfrombc]

Only thing I can offer is a site that does just what your talking about only on a grander scale. Thing is, with the grander scale comes a grander price. Should be good for some ideas though.



http://www.camburg.com/fords1P.html

thanx

seen that site before , i did some digging on desertrides.com and found a suspension page and found all the info i was looking for from several sources ,

shock stroke for the front is 14" to 16" and the rear is 16" for most leafspring set-ups i,ll need a coilover in the front and a set of deaver springs for the rear , the rest i can fab up i have access to a bender at work and there is a cnc laser in the shop beside work . i think i,m gonna try and find a ext cab ranger chassis and use that for building the suspension while i,m still driving my truck and then swap it all over when i get time .


http://giantmotorsports.com/fab/index.php

this site has tons of images and info , it was very helpfull for what i,m looking to do .

 

[Jim Oaks]

I knew a guy running an Autofab kit. Really nice with lots of travel. He had the 4WD kit. They have 2WD kits as well.

http://www.autofab.com/Ranger%20home.htm

I've heard of I-beams from Newline Products (714-774-5877). Check out this Ranger with their I-beams:

http://www.off-roadweb.com/features/0707or_1986_ford_ranger_prerunner/index.html

 

[mikeyfrombc]

I knew a guy running an Autofab kit. Really nice with lots of travel. He had the 4WD kit. They have 2WD kits as well.

http://www.autofab.com/Ranger%20home.htm

I've heard of I-beams from Newline Products (714-774-5877). Check out this Ranger with their I-beams:

http://www.off-roadweb.com/features/0707or_1986_ford_ranger_prerunner/index.html

DAMN that silver ranger is nice , same yr , colour and cab style as mine , wish mine looked like that thou LOL

 

[canyoncritter]

18-20 inches, take it your going to go swingset/crossover sterring....15-16 is about max with the stock sterring.before things start getting goofy.

12 or 14 is the most common used on the front of a ranger.and 16 or 18's for the rear.depending on what leaf pack is used.And not all shock brands are the same lenth. even thought both are "14's"


newline made a awsome kit in the day with king pin beams,But I don't belive they offer kits anymore as they got in to the trophykarts.

are you going to build your radius arms and beams yourself? or buy a kit?

 

[mikeyfrombc]

18-20 inches, take it your going to go swingset/crossover sterring....15-16 is about max with the stock sterring.before things start getting goofy.

12 or 14 is the most common used on the front of a ranger.and 16 or 18's for the rear.depending on what leaf pack is used.And not all shock brands are the same lenth. even thought both are "14's"


newline made a awsome kit in the day with king pin beams,But I don't belive they offer kits anymore as they got in to the trophykarts.

are you going to build your radius arms and beams yourself? or buy a kit?

i plan on doing as much as i can myself ( 20yrs exp as machinist/fabricator ), i have an above average shop set-up at home , i have a full machineshop and have a tig, mig and plasma and torches . i also have a buddy who has a cnc laser and the shop i work at has a hyd mandral bender , and i,m goin to be adding a bender in the next few months to the never ending collection of tools LOL .this is gonna be a longterm project the truck is my daily driver , so i,m gonna find a parts truck to use as a fixture and such .

i gather you have some experinace with similair set-ups and rangers ??

 

[canyoncritter]

I have alittle. No expert by any means. I have had a couple long travel trucks in my life.

Are you looking to machine your own beam ends and build everything from scratch, or do you want to improve/re-work on factory parts?

do you want equal lenth or un-equal lenth beams?


do you want balljoints, or king pins

 

[mikeyfrombc]

I have alittle. No expert by any means. I have had a couple long travel trucks in my life.

Are you looking to machine your own beam ends and build everything from scratch, or do you want to improve/re-work on factory parts?

do you want equal lenth or un-equal lenth beams?


do you want balljoints, or king pins

i,m thinking equal length , i,m gonna build tubular beams and everything else , not sure on the ends yet weather i go with balljoints or kingpins , i will use bj,s on the steering , DOT is harsh on heims when it comes to steering , they won,t let you insure the car with them , my buddy went thru this lastyear with his prostreet car .

who else makes the kingpin style front beams ?? i,m consdiering using f150 spindles and brakes if i use bj,s .

 

[canyoncritter]

http://www.blitzkriegoffroad.com/?actn=viewproduct&id=16&pid=45

offers the kingpin beams ends and spindals and hubs so you can fab your own beams.

http://www.canddfabworks.com/My_Homepage_Files/Page3.html

also offers the kingpin beams ends and spindals etc


or you can also use the beams ends off the f250s and 350's or the late 60's threw the 70 era of ford 2wd trucks.As they all had the 1 inch king pin even certian years of vans as well

But now you have to find the correct spindals that convert to front steer and 5x5.5 bolt pattern...and they are very hard to find.and are sorta weak by todays standards.

The old newline kits were built out of such beams and spindals.Pretty much stock ford parts with a few "tweaks" in the right places and plated over.


best bang for the buck would be balljoints and use D44 beam ends.fullsize breaks,a decent/good spindal.bigger bearing and spaced far enuff apart.

 

[STXRANGER]

Check out Dezertrangers.com, they have all u will need to know and more.
If u have the resources, then go with equal length, u will be rewarded with better handling and improved suspension cycle. U will also need to buy/make an engine cage to mount your shocks to. Also in the rear u will need to make a bed cage for the rear shocks. As for the 20" of travel and leaves, that wont happen very easily or cheaply, ur best bet is the giant 64" leaves and about a 18" shock, which will get u about 18" of controlled travel. As for the front, the king pin and d44 beam ends are about equal in strength, so whichever u choose will hold up to just about anything. As for radius arms, u can mount those basically anywhere, but the best is to fabricate a new trans crossmember and make the pivot brackets built into the design. Hope that all made sense!

 

[mikeyfrombc]

Check out Dezertrangers.com, they have all u will need to know and more.
If u have the resources, then go with equal length, u will be rewarded with better handling and improved suspension cycle. U will also need to buy/make an engine cage to mount your shocks to. Also in the rear u will need to make a bed cage for the rear shocks. As for the 20" of travel and leaves, that wont happen very easily or cheaply, ur best bet is the giant 64" leaves and about a 18" shock, which will get u about 18" of controlled travel. As for the front, the king pin and d44 beam ends are about equal in strength, so whichever u choose will hold up to just about anything. As for radius arms, u can mount those basically anywhere, but the best is to fabricate a new trans crossmember and make the pivot brackets built into the design. Hope that all made sense!

thanx for the info , i,ve been on the site you mentioned , lots of knowledge there

 

[STXRANGER]

no prob! Also, dont go cheap on materials, iv seen some really bad things happen when people use cheap mild steel. You should look into getting 1-3/4" od .120" wall DOM, that is the most universal size, you can use it for the roll cage and other tube structures without having any strength issues. If you plan on racing this truck, youll need 2" for the roll cage. If you need more info just hollar!

 

[94STXRanger]

^What the?! Hmm that name looks FAMILIAR!
haha jk.

 

[dangeranger01]

18-20 inches, take it your going to go swingset/crossover sterring....15-16 is about max with the stock sterring.before things start getting goofy.QUOTE]

My friend has 12" wider beams with a 14" travel coilover (Fox) Running stock drag link just extended and it cycles 23" of travel w/o any issues. Not hardly any noticable bump steer. It may be from having the beams so long but still no issues with the steering.