Catching up: My Bronco II build thread

[.38spl]

Spring 2017 I traded a .38 Spl for this 87 Bronco II. It had a small lift, 31” tires, and a bad engine. 90% rust free with previous mild rollover damage. Had sat for four years. I rebuilt another 2.9, replaced both fuel pumps, and put tires on it.

 

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First time out.

 

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Got to wheel it for the summer, and it served as a daily driver. Swapped in a set of 31/10.50/15 Patagonia mud tires, built a bumper, and the wife fixed me up with a 9000# winch for my birthday.

 

[.38spl]

Fall came around, and I had been eyeing this 84 Ranger sitting behind a garage near me. I made a $250 offer and bought it. Again, this one had sat for 5 years. 2.8, TK5, 6” suspension lift, and a near perfect body and paint.

I got stiffed on the title, and as much as I hated to I had to part it out. So the lift was going to the BII.

 

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Then I run up on this 85 Ranger. Had the guy send me a pic of the door sticker, and it turned out to be a 4.10 axle. The truck had been used in the coal fields, and turned out to have had a locker put in the rear at some time. 7.5 lockers are hard to come by anymore, so that was a real score. $200 and we loaded it onto the trailer! Sold the bed, pulled the axles, doghouse, and doors.

 

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Back in business with the 6” lift and 31’s, 4.10 gears, and locker. The wife had also started taking more interest in our off road adventures and wanted behind the wheel.

 

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Then to 315/75/15 on Jeep wheels. I loved the look, but they wouldn’t flex, and they sucked the life out of the 2.9. Also had built a new front bumper while it was down.

 

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Just in time for Valentines Day 2018, I found this poor, abused 86 BII, and picked it up for $400. It run and drove, but had a busted flywheel. And boy, was it ugly. Now this Bronco thing had become a his and hers project.

 

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Two months of late nights. We replaced the flywheel with one from a previous part-out project, done the Escort starter gear mod (I do this to all of my 2.9 starters), replaced the front cap and doors (look familiar?), paint and bodywork, cleaned up a terrible wiring and vacuum hose mess, and added interior from a 94 Explorer a Sport. Then swapped on the 31’s and stock mags from my 87.

 

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Then I swapped the 315’s on my 87 out for these 33x12.50x15 Achilles Desert Hawk M/T on 15x10 Centerline Hellcat wheels.

 

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One of the reasons we ended up with two rigs is because of the lack of space. Ever try over landing with two kids, two Boxers, and two adults in a 120 hp truck that’s 12 foot long? It doesn’t work. So with them together, we got to play for the summer.

 

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Then the 86 broke. First, it lost reverse. So she decided to give it one last hoorah while it still had drive. So this happened on the last camping trip of the year. Once the A4LD got full of mud water, reverse healed itself. 10 miles later, it puked it’s guts up and pretty much died.

 

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And here we are now. Just picked up this 94 Explorer. It will donate it’s 4.0 and related electricals to the 87. The transmission will go into the 86, and the D35/8.8 will be saved for later.

Just a few months back, we welcomed another kid into our home. Now we’re up to three kids (and he’s a six footer!) and three boxers, so it’s definitely time to get the second Bronco back in action. C is 15 years old, and has already been bitten by the Bronco bug. There may be a third rig on the horizon!

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Very interesting story and great writing skills. Liked all the pics. Kudos to you for taking on another kid.
What exactly is the escort starter mod?

 

[.38spl]

Very interesting story and great writing skills. Liked all the pics. Kudos to you for taking on another kid.
What exactly is the escort starter mod?

In time, the sheet metal plate that located the starter gets worn and sloppy. The teeth on the flywheel get some wear too. That’s why we see so many grinding starter problems. On the Facebook pages, there is someone new every week who is on their their third new starter, and it still grinds. I’ve bought trucks cheap because they “ needed a flywheel,” and this was the fix.
A late 80s 1.8 Escort has one more tooth on the starter than does the starter on your 2.9. The starter bendix will interchange. So by swapping to the slightly larger starter gear, you take up the slack and get a more positive engagement.

It’s about a $20 fix. The BWD part number is SD 353.