Long Distance '85 Ranger Build

[85_Ranger4x4]

I have had the truck for almost 19 years, she may not look like much but I have made many special modifications myself. I have been tweaking it somewhat for a long distance drive to a Ranger/Bronco II/Explorer gathering at a offroad park in Ohio next week. So there will be long distance driving (about 800 miles each way) and camping (offroad park has a campground) and offroading but not all at the same time. I feel a lot of things cross over though especially with an older experienced rig. I generally go thru components and clean things up before I install them so there is a lot left out of here.

It looked like this when I got it but with a black grille, I also made the grille guard when I was in high school:



I did the 3" bodylift in 2006... pre digital camera.

In 2011 I did a V8 swap, it has evolved some but looks like this now:



Then I got tired of the one wheel peel so I snagged an Explorer 8.8 w/ limited slip that even had factory disk brakes for $100. Gearing matched the front to boot (3.73's)



Initially I started out with a C5 automatic (similar to the venerable C4) with the stock t-case. Only complaint was cruising at 60mph turning 2700rpm, so to save big money on gas (ha) I decided to do a 5 speed swap last summer.



And of course my BW1350 would not go onto a fullsize transmission... so I snagged a NP205 that has similar dimensions and is friggin bulletproof. I did a DIY twinstick conversion while I was there too.



I modified two factory levers and made my own linkage, it shifts like a dream:





While the interior was out I replaced the cab mounts and fixed a bad floor pan, the other side looks new:





And then sound deadening and new carpet:





Yes I know the seat looks like crap, it is on the list. Chrome shifter is out of a '04 FX4 Level II Ranger which I really like. Knob is for a T-5 swapped '66 Mustang, I liked the stock look and needed metric threads.

Now the weakpoint of the whole system is the front axle, a Dana 28. Since I also have to get the driveshaft redone due to the t-case upgrade I deemed it a good time to upgrade the front axle too especially since my stock axle still had the factory ball joints and u-joint crosses. The crosses in the axlehafts were getting a little loose for some reason. So I snagged a Dana 35 out of a '95 Ranger that had the dual piston bolt on front calipers.

Out with the old:



In with the new:



So we have the new "normal" It will go back to looking like this with the drop in bedliner and rollbar after the trip and my topper will go on my pickup box trailer.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

And then for the trip, I figured I would need something to keep gear dry and maybe slow down it running off while I am en route... enter the $40 20st Century topper from Craigslist. I had to replace the lock and fix the light.







And of course every good offroader has to have a hi-lift... well if I have something that big with me I will never need it so it is good insurance. It is such a natural place for it to be on top the wheel well but it NEVER stays there. I had been thinking about adding the bracket kit for a couple years, now I think I am going to get another bracket kit for my other truck too. It is so nice for it to have a home out of the way and it will be awesome when dealing with farm equipment instead of it wandering wherever it wants in the back of the truck. BTW the jack was my great-grandfather's farm jack and normally lives in my garage.





And it is carburetor and I don't have the budget at the moment for a FiTech so I did some googling on how to make a Edelbrock better offroad. There is a channel that lets fuel from one bowl run to the other bowl so off camber you have one bowl leaning out and the other flooding over. A quick fix for that is to insert a piece of fuel line.



They make spring loaded needles too but they sound like a pain to set and nobody seems that positive if they make much of a difference.

Snagged a $50 refurbished Garmin on Amazon for kind of a HUD if what is going on around me, also has a rudimentary compass and tells me the speed limit. While setting up for a car show I went the wrong way up a one way street (street was closed for the show) and it turned red and was freaking out I was going the wrong way. Kinda neat little thing for cheap.



Car show was featuring vintage campers so I took advantage of my setup with some old camping gear I had:



Ok, this is the 21st century, one 12v cigarette lighter probably won't cut it. So I drilled two holes in this knockout on the firewall and added two usb chargers and another 12v port. They are wired to come on with the key since they light up for as long as they have power. I still have the factory 12v cigarette lighter for constant power if I need to charge something when I am not in the truck. It is kinda neat the GPS comes on now when I start the truck.





Look ma, no wires! This is running off the 2.1a socket



And then I have the 1.0a USB port to charge my older GoPro which doesn't like the newer faster chargers.

Gear loadout so far. Spare tires (only one is pictured) and tool/spare parts tote in the front. Ground tent/ground cloth, air mattress/compressor and bedding in tote across the rear axle. Cooler with ice for drinks on the road/groceries, camp kitchen for once we get there and another tote with camp stuff I don't want running around the truck loose (like the camp stove) I have actually done a little bit of testing as I would much prefer to have the spare and tools at the back for when we are on the road but the truck rides much better with the heavy stuff between the axles. My FIL is going too, I hope he has room for the luggage, if not it can ride on top the totes.



So that is where it is at right now.

 

[Todd780]

Looks good!

 

[Deleted member 9101]

I loooove that it has a 5.0 swap!

 

[jpat30]

sweet

 

[jeep-N-montero]

That is pretty sweet, my brother's first truck was an 87 Ranger, followed by a 94 Ranger, then a 2008 f150, and currently has a 2013 f150. I guess you can say he is a Ford guy!

 

[Dances with Wolves]

Very cool truck!!!!! How was the fish?

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Very cool truck!!!!! How was the fish?

A little woody.

They were fake, I just used them as props for the car show. Real fish would have been a little rank being on display all day.

The fishing rod, flashlight and dietz lantern were my great grandfather’s, sleeping bag was my moms from when she was a kid that I used in Boy Scouts. Stove was my dads, he gave it to me a few years ago.

 

[Mekcanix]

Very cool! I built a Bronco II up a few years back (LOL feel like a life time ago) Did the 302 C4/C5 hybrid trans 8.8 rear with Detroit locker and a D 35 front I found I needed to keep a couple of spare locking hubs in the back as I found them to be the weakest link
You are making me miss my BIII02 ( yeas I am lame I called it that)

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Very cool! I built a Bronco II up a few years back (LOL feel like a life time ago) Did the 302 C4/C5 hybrid trans 8.8 rear with Detroit locker and a D 35 front I found I needed to keep a couple of spare locking hubs in the back as I found them to be the weakest link
You are making me miss my BIII02 ( yeas I am lame I called it that)

I have a big rubbermade tote of Warn lockouts in the barn. For a couple years the JY sold them $9.99/pr and I rarely passed a pair up knowing they would eventually dry up.. and they pretty much have. Which reminds me I need to dig out a pair for the trip. Two of those are the automatic hubs that came with my axle, spindles are a PITA to pull, I found that one just laying on the ground so I nabbed him too.



There is a heavier duty Warn hub you can get, originally made for the rear of a Jeep D35 when it is being towed. Supposed to be a lot better... hard to argue with the price of used regular ones though.

Warn Jeep Hubs for the Dana 35 - The Ranger Station

Many 1983-1996 Ford Ranger 4x4 owners have replaced the 29071 manual locking hubs on their Dana 35 TTB with the Warn 37780 Jeep hubs.

www.therangerstation.com

Front lockers are hard on hubs, I had thought about doing a limited slip out of a Jeep but never found one before the axle went in, I didn't look really hard either. A selectable locker would be nice so it is either there or it isn't there... maybe someday.

 

[Mekcanix]

I actually have those hubs on my XJ I got a used Hub conversion kit for my D30 on my XJ years ago. They are noticeably heavier

 

[Chorky]

This is pretty freaking awesome! Makes me miss my old ranger

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Back from Ohio, everything went great now I just have a pile of video to edit...

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Mid-winter update on the truck:

I converted to LED headlights a couple weeks ago, winter set in so I haven't been able to drive with them yet:









I also snagged an auto dimming compass mirror from a Grand Marquis, set me back a whopping $4. They are around $160 on Amazon. Kind of an OEM aftermarket thing, a cheap way for Ford to get a compass into a car they didn't want to redesign (much like me!) so they stuck one of these stand alone units in it. Three wire hook up, hot with the key, ground and hot in reverse (so it won't dim when you are backing up) So now that I have a compass no more getting lost!

Amazon.com: Gentex 50-GENK5AM Auto-Dimming Rear View Mirror with Compass: Automotive

Buy Gentex 50-GENK5AM Auto-Dimming Rear View Mirror with Compass: Automotive - Amazon.com ✓ FREE DELIVERY possible on eligible purchases

www.amazon.com

And for my big winter project I play with at work on break:



(tire and jerry can locations are approximate until I can get the bumper on the truck and dial it in where things will land)

Progress so far:

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

I have had later model Ranger rear springs in it for awhile, they have always seemed a little on the soft side. I was under it checking the rear diff oil before the Ohio trip and noticed they looked a little funny:



I had a set of Explorer springs in the barn so I thought I would just throw them in... but the bushings were dry rotted/shot.







x4... yeah hours of quality entertainment to be had

And back together we go:









Also replaced the slider pucks in the springs, the originals had done their duty:





I asked my brother (Sr Master Ford tech) if he had any pointers on how to do this, he said "it isn't worth my time, by the time someone pays me to do it they could have had new springs and then some" And after doing it I agree, in the future it isn't worth my time either, especially getting the old ones out is a PITA.

So I go to replace them and note I have a seized shackle. Nice. The other one feels like it is full of gravel when it moves and has a little side to side play. The correct way to attack this would be with the bed off. But it is in my garage and I don't have room to get the topper off let alone the bed.

Eh the hangers are old, for $20 a side lets just replace them and the shackles.

The seized one had been off the truck at some point before, it was bolted on so it came willingly.



The other one was still riveted, it put up a fight but came eventually.



I have noticed if I get after it on loose ground in 2wd I can get a lot of spring wrap/wheel hop... which I don't like. Some of it may be the whooped springs, the factory lift blocks were not helping either. So with the Explorer springs giving a little lift I decided to try to delete the factory blocks.