What did you do to your Ranger today? (Part Deux!)

[superj]

Dropped off at my mechanic's shop to replace the inner tie rods. Gave up on trying to break them loose without a proper lift.

Took possession of Roush front and rear sway bars today. Can't wait to install them.

you can get this at your local autoparts place. we had to get it to do the inner tie rods on the focus st

Best Inner Tie Rod Tool Parts for Cars, Trucks & SUVs (autozone.com)

 

[Lefty]

Even work trucks should be maintained better than that. Sad, ain't it? And you know lots of those you saw in the boneyard were personal vehicles.

There was a YouTube video (since deleted) showing an auto shop preparing to fix the steering box on a (approx.) 2002 Ford Super Duty work truck. The video was posted in a thread on BITOG before deletion. The frame was rusted so badly that the repair was impossible. The Super Duty was not repairable without replacing the entire frame. Pieces fell off when the shop owner tried to raise it with a lift. One of the crossmembers under the bed was totally gone.

Yet the business owner of the truck said he really liked it and had wanted to keep it running. Then why didn't he get it rustproofed and undercoated after he bought it new?

I tell myself sometimes that I'd like to find a limited-slip 3.55 axle to replace the standard open-diff 3.55 my 2011 has. The limited-slip had been a factory option, but discovering one in a boneyard would be like finding a needle in a haystack. The axle would have to come from a 2010 or 2011 as earlier axles won't interchange. Think I'll just leave well enough alone. Everything inside the diff was super-clean when I changed the diff fluid last year.

Call me crazy, but I continue to quest for that limited slip. I look at the door codes and/or those 4X4 decals. I go to the boneyard anyway, looking for other smaller parts in what has become an attempt at a complete restoration. This summer's plans include removing the tub and paint the frame with Synmast Epoxy and/or POR 15.

I rather like the idea of restoring common cars and trucks. They represent a certain era of American automotive history often showing how simple but inexpensive upgrades made them so popular. So, for example, mine is a 2004 Ranger Edge, which comes with a few fiberglass body parts and a torsion bar front. It's also the last of the flaresides, a one hundred year old tradition.

This will never be a collector's item, but it's mine. Like so many others here on this site, I'm having fun!

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

I’ll never understand how a lot of people trash their vehicles. My parents always took good care of their vehicles and kept them clean and neat. I do the same. I’ve watched people with brand new 80k and up trucks beating the heck out of them, smashing bedsides and tailgates and all. Often it’s a “contractor” doing it. I’ve said something to a few people like that over the years and the answer is usually along the lines of “hey, it’s just a work truck.” Eff that! I still cringe when I get stone dumped in the bed of my 95 F-150 and stuff hits the cab or tailgate. For dang sure if I spent $80k on a work truck I would be doing my best to keep it nice for as long as possible. And the filth inside of peoples vehicles, ugh. I won’t even call people pigs for that anymore, it’s an insult to pigs. Absolutely disgusting.

 

[Lefty]

I’ll never understand how a lot of people trash their vehicles. My parents always took good care of their vehicles and kept them clean and neat. I do the same. I’ve watched people with brand new 80k and up trucks beating the heck out of them, smashing bedsides and tailgates and all. Often it’s a “contractor” doing it. I’ve said something to a few people like that over the years and the answer is usually along the lines of “hey, it’s just a work truck.” Eff that! I still cringe when I get stone dumped in the bed of my 95 F-150 and stuff hits the cab or tailgate. For dang sure if I spent $80k on a work truck I would be doing my best to keep it nice for as long as possible. And the filth inside of peoples vehicles, ugh. I won’t even call people pigs for that anymore, it’s an insult to pigs. Absolutely disgusting.

I find that people treat me different when I bring my almost pristine old Ranger in for repairs. The ones who care treat it much better. I'm the customer they want to have.

You might enjoy watching SarahnTuned who is busy restoring her Grandmother's old Ford Ranger. It's become something of a family heirloom. It's always been well maintained, but she explains she has OCD and kicks it up a notch.

 

[Blmpkn]

Call me crazy, but I continue to quest for that limited slip. I look at the door codes and/or those 4X4 decals. I go to the boneyard anyway, looking for other smaller parts in what has become an attempt at a complete restoration. This summer's plans include removing the tub and paint the frame with Synmast Epoxy and/or POR 15.

I rather like the idea of restoring common cars and trucks. They represent a certain era of American automotive history often showing how simple but inexpensive upgrades made them so popular. So, for example, mine is a 2004 Ranger Edge, which comes with a few fiberglass body parts and a torsion bar front. It's also the last of the flaresides, a one hundred year old tradition.

This will never be a collector's item, but it's mine. Like so many others here on this site, I'm having fun!

Just look on ebay. Pretty sure you can get used ford carriers for around 2-250. A Yukon duragrip by itself can be had for 550 or so, a duragrip with new gears and a master kit can be had for 850ish.

I paid around 750 for install. Not gonna be cheap however you slice and/or dice it... worth every penny though.

 

[Lefty]

Thanks. I must say that the advice given here has been impeccable. I have learned a lot, but as long as I am questing for other parts, I will continue to search for a LS. A new old Ranger arrived at the U-

Pull today. I'm driving out there in a few hours. I'm going with another Ranger owner. The quest is part of the fun.

 

[Isk Stark]

you can get this at your local autoparts place. we had to get it to do the inner tie rods on the focus st

Best Inner Tie Rod Tool Parts for Cars, Trucks & SUVs (autozone.com)

I tried using that, but unfortunately whoever put the previous inner tie rod must've used a fork lift to tighten it down, and the tool was actually flexing and slipping off.

 

[Curious Hound]

I’ve watched people with brand new 80k and up trucks beating the heck out of them, smashing bedsides and tailgates and all. Often it’s a “contractor” doing it. I’ve said something to a few people like that over the years and the answer is usually along the lines of “hey, it’s just a work truck.”

That says a lot about the contractor and his overall mentality. When I ran my electrical contracting business. I kept my truck decent. Not pristine. But in a condition that said "This guy takes care of his stuff". That truck had my business name on the side of it. That projected an image. I wanted people to think I'm a decent guy, neat, clean-cut, organized and ready to do business. I cared about the quality of my work and hoped that my truck would show that.

I had to get on an employee one day. He was riding with me and he threw an apple core out the window. That burned me up. He said "It's just an apple core. It'll rot and decay away in a few weeks." I told him that's not the point. People behind us just saw my company truck throw litter in the ditch. They don't know what it was. They only know that my company just littered. That's not who I am. That's not how I do business.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

That says a lot about the contractor and his overall mentality. When I ran my electrical contracting business. I kept my truck decent. Not pristine. But in a condition that said "This guy takes care of his stuff". That truck had my business name on the side of it. That projected an image. I wanted people to think I'm a decent guy, neat, clean-cut, organized and ready to do business. I cared about the quality of my work and hoped that my truck would show that.

I had to get on an employee one day. He was riding with me and he threw an apple core out the window. That burned me up. He said "It's just an apple core. It'll rot and decay away in a few weeks." I told him that's not the point. People behind us just saw my company truck throw litter in the ditch. They don't know what it was. They only know that my company just littered. That's not who I am. That's not how I do business.

This. So much!

Although I’ll never understand how I always tried to take as best care of my trucks as possible and do the best job possible but these idiots smashing up their “work” trucks always seemed to have more work than me.

When I worked for my dad doing concrete construction years ago, several times employees would climb up on the side of the dump truck and step on the paint to do it. That usually incurred a good scolding and if they were dumb enough to say something along the lines of “well, it’s just a work truck” there was a sudden nuclear blast level explosion. Most employees never made that mistake again.

 

[lil_Blue_Ford]

I find that people treat me different when I bring my almost pristine old Ranger in for repairs. The ones who care treat it much better. I'm the customer they want to have.

You might enjoy watching SarahnTuned who is busy restoring her Grandmother's old Ford Ranger. It's become something of a family heirloom. It's always been well maintained, but she explains she has OCD and kicks it up a notch.

I’ll have to check that out. I have a bit of OCD, but usually try to keep a bit of a lid on it. If I had a garage with a lift though, it would be game on.

 

[sgtsandman]

I try to take care of my stuff but I don’t freak if they get a scratch either. If it looks like something that might rust, I’ll give it some touch up paint. You use something to do work, wear and tear and occasional accidental damage is going to happen.

 

[superj]

i just made a great score on facebutt market place. a dude with a single cab ranger is selling his side steps for 20 bucks. they look like they were hardly used (his truck is a 2011). hopefully a 2011 single cab and a 2004 single cab use the same mounting points because all the online sites show them being able to fit.

since its an on road truck anyways, might as well get some nice little bolt ons for it

 

[Angry Possum]

My New rear Taillights are cometh today.
Ill pop them on in a few days.

 

[superj]

Ok. Problem 1: no mounting brackets. He had a shop remove these and install the new ones but the shop lost/tossed the brackets.

Problem 2: where do the back parts mount? The front is easy but no idea for the back mounts.

Problem 3:. Possibly not going to fit as his truck was extended cab

 

[Uncle Gump]

Those step bars typically mount under the body mounts.

The bars from a super cab won't fit a standard cab.