Shran's '86 Build

[greasmonky]

holy shit this is my dream build right here!!!!
i may need to copy ur flat bed
perfect truck!!!

 

[Shran]

Thanks! Copy away

I am starting my V8 swap in the next couple of weeks so it is probably not going to move for a while. Probably at least a year. In addition to the V8, I also need to redo my steering completely, and I need some softer coils for sure... new front shocks... etc etc etc. This truck is getting ridiculous.

Downey, all my front lift stuff went on my Bronco II. I was going to leave it stock height and cut the fenders so 33's would fit, but this worked out better.

 

[Shran]

I destroyed the clutch in this about a month ago and so it sat while I decided what I was going to do with it. I decided that the engine would be better off in my B2, so got that pulled and sold the tranny and transfer case the next day. It is on the back burner for a bit while some other projects get completed. I need to finish a few things on the B2 and part out a couple vehicles before I can do anything, but I am planning on having the V8 swap completely done by early this summer so I can do wheel it all summer before my club's big event in August.

More pics to come as soon as I do something.

 

[Shran]

Some things came up that prevented further progress for a couple months, but I have been literally busting ass on my V8 swap (frame horn got me in the right cheek the other day.)

I was using a carbureted 302 from a '76 Bronco but found an '89 Crown Vic with a 5.0 that I couldn't pass up that will work way better. Spent a couple weeks taking the car apart and scrapping it, and a lot of cleaning later I'm another month behind schedule.

So as of today I have the engine, tranny and t-case mounted and I am working on some small unrelated wiring projects before I put the front clip back on. In case anybody is curious, the stock Crown Vic exhaust manifolds DO NOT work (well) for this swap, you have to move the fuel filter and notch the passenger side frame. The Bronco manifolds I have worked a lot better with no modifications.

 

[Shran]

I am almost done as of last night. I need to have exhaust built for it, get some new front shocks, tune my electric fans, and put the front driveline in but otherwise it is damn near finished.

During the latest phase of this build, it also got repainted and I put a sunroof in, as well as a bunch of other little things.

Here's the latest pics from this morning:

 

[Boggin]

holy shit!!! i love this truck.. great work!

 

[jeeplessjohn]

yeah i am pretty jelous you need to help me to my b2 man lol i helped with yours lol

 

[jhammel85]

This is an awesome build. Any updates?

 

[Shran]

This is an awesome build. Any updates?

Thanks man. Nothing much is new I guess, the exhaust is done, front driveline is done, and I have taken it out wheeling a few times. Definitely needs shocks in the front, and an alignment, has some overheating issues and it is occasionally very hard to start. Need to do something about my track bar angle too.

I will be honest, it is definitely not as much fun to drive as I thought it would be. It is just squirrelly as shit, lots of bump steer and little problems that annoy me. I am extremely burnt out on working on it right now so it is on the back burner until I get a shop to work in and my credit card paid off.

 

[Shran]

I'm still alive, figured I'd do a bi-yearly update...

V8 swap has been thoroughly tested. Still running great. I have not changed the clutch hydraulics at all and it's still horrible to drive but I have gotten really good at shifting w/o the clutch.

I also did a major makeover of the flatbed and added fenders/wheel wells. Lots more rear suspension uptravel now and it looks cool.

My crappy EB D44 got trashed (actually, put back under an EB) and I now have a narrowed 78-79 high pinion D44. I would not recommend anyone put an EB axle in a Ranger unless you have zero inches of lift because you either have a crap pinion angle and WILL ruin your front driveline, or your caster will be WAY off. Just don't waste your time, get a high pinion housing.

I also dropped a metric ****-ton of coin on RCV axle shafts for the D44, as well as Warn 30 spline locking hubs. They are 110% awesome and worth every penny, and incredibly easy to install as well. I was breaking at least one u-joint every time I went out and my shafts were getting pretty twisted.

The only other new item was some used 15x8 chrome mod wheels to replace the white spokes. Looks better.

I am pretty much done with the build for probably the next couple years. I have been in some child custody bullshit and need to get that taken care of completely before I start building trucks again.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Glad to hear you pulled yourself up off the edge of the earth

Hope you get your stuff straightened out so you can get back to working on your truck again.

 

[Shran]

Glad to hear you pulled yourself up off the edge of the earth

Hope you get your stuff straightened out so you can get back to working on your truck again.

Thanks man. Mom kinda fell off the deep end so I've had my kid for a while, now she feels like fighting...whatever! Dumb.

Anyway, here are a few pics.

Today:

Fender modification:

Much better (still pretty high, but works) pinion angle with my new HP D44 housing:

"New" steering (will be building a new tie rod eventually, this one has been cut and sleeved.)

And my favorite new addition that cost more than any other mod so far, and came in the smallest box:

 

[1lonlyranger]

sweet truck you did it right .

 

[Shran]

My latest item for this build is a set of half doors. My "full" doors are super straight and I am always worried about ruining them...so usually they come off in the summer for EVERY wheeling trip (which gets tedious.) I wanted something that will keep things like water bottles, cell phones, etc inside the truck in off camber situations as well as something that I won't have to worry about damaging too much.

I picked up a set of doors from a Bronco II off craigslist for $25. I immediately started stripping everything off of them, leaving only the door latch assembly. Window tracks, lock, etc are all gone. The inside handle is gone too. I don't mind reaching out to open the door, so after gutting them, I cut the window frame off and notched the door so I ended up with this:

After that, I put them away for a couple weeks while I gathered materials, which consisted of some 1.25" angle from a bed frame and some sheet steel from a Lincoln hood that I repurposed. Next, cut angle, weld in as a frame around the notch...

This makes the door really stiff. It was really floppy after cutting the window frame away. Next, fill in the lock cylinder hole...

Then cut a piece of the Lincoln hood, measure, and bend so that it fits in the notch.

I used two pieces for this. I could have used one but my hood section wasn't long enough. I welded all the way around and used a ball peen hammer to form the sheet steel to the notch. After that it was just a matter of cleaning up the welds and grinding them smooth.

I am half done with one door right now. I will be welding a large section of steel on the inside to cover up all the holes. Then going through with body filler for the low spots and lock cylinder hole before I sand and paint. More to come as time allows!

 

[03ranger30]

Slick looking rig, I defiantly like that flatbed you got going there