Pete M

The arms splay outward and essentially pretend to be your transmission.

But 10.5s do fit better. And they are easier on drivetrains. These are all relative statements though and 12.5s can be made to work with the proper planning. :cheers: For what it's worth, I run 12.5s up front and 14s out back. :D But then I'm not running Jeep width axles anymore and don't really drive it on the street. :brows:

Nope. Yours will work just fine. Remember which way it faces though. I don't believe it's reversible.

Then I have a bunch of assorted tips. -I noticed in your ad that your were looking for 10" rims. I'd recommend 8"ers. They retain the bead better and the tire will stick out less. -I'd recommend 33x10.5s as they fit much better than 12.5s. BFG mud terrains come in that size as well as some other brands. Don't forget to look into the metric sizes too -You should look into upgrading the rear axle if you've got a Dana 35. -You'll want to upgrade the U-joints and shafts in the front axle. -Gearing, gearing, gearing. You'll want lower gearing to push those 33s around. -If you don't have flares and want some, look into the aftermarket variety as they are wider and bigger than stock. -I would go with a 4.5 inch lift kit and either go with full on aftermarket leaf packs or do SOA and find some Explorer or 2wd MJ leafpacks in the junkyards. (if you go with the Explorer, you'll need to reuse your main leaf and then cut the eyes off the explorer's main leaf and retain it too as an anti-wrap AAL.) What I would do: -4.5" coils -longer swaybar links (as opposed to drop brackets), -a quality adjustable track bar -stock YJ flexible brake lines (longer than stock MJ) and then relocate the brake line bracket on the body -New longer fixed lower control arms and adjustable upper control arms .....OR...... -drop brackets and stock UCA and WJ LCA (if you don't know what they are scroll down to the bottom of this page: http://comancheclub.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=1556) -SOA the rear with a bastard pack created from either 2wd MJ leafs or 4-leaf Explorer pack and the original 4wd MJ main leaf .......OR..... -4.5" lift leafpacks -Mopar performance leaf perches (like $10 from the dealer) -new U-bolts (beefier than stock if possible) -A stock flexible rear brake line from a mid 90s Dakota (longer than stock MJ) -33x10.5" BFG muds or 34x10 swamper LTBs on stock TJ 15x8" aluminum rims -a junkyard Dana 30 from an XJ/MJ with 4.10 gears and then swap in the later modal Dana 30 shafts that have the bigger 297 U-joints -a late 90s Explorer 8.8 axle with 4.10s, posi, and disk brakes (I would buy a single 2" steel spacer and put it on the passenger side, then center the axle on the new WMSs and burn in the perches in the appropriate spots) -Mopar Performance leaf perches Whew. I hope I didn't miss anything. :roll: Feel free to ask about any of the gibberish I just spewed. :D

What size tire are you looking to run and what kind of offroading will you be doing?

Clever! :thumbsup: But it's not recommend that you pull from those two bumper mounts. They are just flimsy sheetmetal and not designed for pulling.

Spring compressors are sometimes loaned out by auto part stores like Autozone. Aside from that, I personally feel all the other tools you'll need you should own anyways so go get them. :D Don't forget to spray all the bolts down with PB Blaster or other rust penetrating spray (not WD-40) for several days before you plan to do work. And always always expect something to go wrong. For example, if the truck were a daily driver, it's best to start right after work on Friday to give the maximum amount of time. And on that note, if your truck is rusty like mine are, I highly recommend getting longer swaybar links rather than the sway bar drop brackets. Those bolts holding the sway bar up have a tendency to snap right off. On my 88 I snapped off 3 of 4 (and that's with spraying them down with PB for a week prior). Fortunately I ended up not needing a swaybar on that build. For my 90, I don't dare touch them. :(

Anti-seize? :D

Interiors are nothing. I could probably referb my entire interior for under $50 if a nice one comes through the pull-yur-part. Don't dawdle on this one. It sounds like a keeper.

Careful, you're going to spoil yourself with all that torque. :D And for the record, I'd give him the 2 Gs. Why squabble over such a small amount to get a great truck like that? Don't get me wrong, I'd still offer 1700, but I'd find something to sell to make up the difference if that's what it took. :brows:

There's always the junkyard in a pinch. :cheers:

Another reason to get control arms is the need to center the axle in the wheel well. Notice how close the tire is to the back of the flare in this pic:

Any control arms designed for a 4.5-5.5 inch lift will work. Adjustable are preferred so you can dial in your caster. Or you can use your stock arms and buy drop brackets. You do get what you pay for when it comes to control arms (and trackbars for that matter). The higher priced ones will tend to offer both better features as well as better build quality (stronger materials, better welds, etc).

Actually that particular rust isn't "Jeep rust", that's "Ford rust" and it was that Bronco's previous owner's fault for leaving the poor thing parked under pine trees next to his neighbors lawn sprinkler for 15 years. :roll: I fear the day I have to do ball joints on that thing. :(

This comes up every once in a while and my opinion remains the same until they fix it. It's only half a lift kit. There is no way you could ever get me to lift my truck that high in the air and do nothing about the control arms. That, and you can do an SOA in the rear for about $25 (perches, U-bolts, and beer to trade for the welding), not the $120 or whatever it is they charge for the weld-free kit. It's a clever idea that solves a problem that's not really a problem at all.

If I remember right, MJ perches are 42" on center.

Turning can be a real pain in the arms. If the drivetrain binds up enough it won't move at all. :( So I'm going with a regular ol' locker up front. A cure for the spool is adding a power assist ram up front, but I don't have the money or resources to pull that off right now.

I've thought about that. But the bracketry would be pretty involved since there's a bunch of stuff in the way. :(

I'm betting these be them. :brows:

I try to view problems as a chance to upgrade. It keeps me from getting depressed about how much work my trucks need. I hate to repair, but I love to improve. :D

Manufacturing defect I guess. :hmm:

My new trackbar bolt arrived in the mail today. :D The longer conical wedge is fixed in place. The smaller one slides on the thread and the trackbar mount gets pinched between them. The trackbar affixes to the left hand side. The end result should be no more slop in the Ford axle's trackbar mount. :D I still need to find a 2044 tapered reamer before I can install it. The leafpacks are complete. Just a shot of the new axle. The perches aren't burned on yet (nor are they at the right angle since I don't own an angle finder yet). I've decided to take my own advice and bolt the whole thing together and then drive to the shop to get all the welding done at once. And I successfully pulled the truck into the garage today before the downpour hit. But rumor has it my friends are hitting the bars tonight so further progress will have to wait until tomorrow.

It just means that on the trail I have to carry standard, metric, torx, allen, and "miscellaneous". I found it hilarious when I read in an offroad magazine that they suggested only bringing the tools that you need when working on your truck. :roll:

You know it'll end up like this: :D Rotts are very loving animals.

It's not all that different than the WJ grille. :dunno: Taller for sure. But to those who want to be different. There's no denying that you'll be different while sporting the new fascia.