Prevolander 93 Bronco

OBS460

Well-known member
I fondly remember my 1985 Bronco I had in high school, they're quite capable rigs when lifted a little!

It looks great, keep up the good work.
 

jackflash

Observer
I love the 4.56s with 34's. Pulls like a dream, pretty much never down shifts on the highway and can climb almost anything on the trail. Although I like my 4x4s to be goat like.

I cruise at 72 on the highway, running about 2200rpm. Never really push it harder than that. I calculated the gear ratio I wanted for back country camping. Most of the time we are loaded pretty heavy and it never has a problem.

Running BDS arms. They are not terrible. I really like the Desolate stuff. If I could afford it I'd go with the Stock Width 2.5″ Shock Front & Rear Package they have.
 

Madmaxwell87

Observer
Ok thats good to know. Out here cruise is 75 so I need a little more speed. Nature is a drive away around here so I need an ok highway RPM.

I love Desolate but Solo and Threat make good stuff too. I am hand picking from those 3 companies the different bits and pieces.
 

Bama67

Active member
I too have a Bronco.
96 Eddie with a 351, with only 85k original miles
4.88 Nitro gears with Tru Tracs front and rear
35" Cooper ST MAXX

so far I've done a 4" lift using mixed components.
BDS extended radius arms.
Deaver superflex rear springs
Camburg shackles to drop rear about 1.5" because the Deavers had way too much lift.
Pro Comp front springs best riding of the off the shelf springs from what research I could gather.
Bilstein 5160 Shocks.
 

Madmaxwell87

Observer
I too have a Bronco.
96 Eddie with a 351, with only 85k original miles
4.88 Nitro gears with Tru Tracs front and rear
35" Cooper ST MAXX

so far I've done a 4" lift using mixed components.
BDS extended radius arms.
Deaver superflex rear springs
Camburg shackles to drop rear about 1.5" because the Deavers had way too much lift.
Pro Comp front springs best riding of the off the shelf springs from what research I could gather.
Bilstein 5160 Shocks.
Thats a nice set up! What RPM are you at when cruising on the highway- 70 mph- 23-2400?

Eventually I will go with Deaver Q80s and some longer shackles to go with my Threat under bed shock mount.

Do you know what exact 5160 you're running in the rear? I am planning on some Bilstein 5165s until I get those Deavers but am trying to figure out valving and compressed length.
 

Bama67

Active member
Unfortunately I never get my Bronco up to 70, almost all of our roads here are dirt and I never go much past 50 mph. I also can't remember the part numbers for the 5160 on the back, sorry. I'd go look but I'm out in the middle of the ocean right now on a ship.
I liked the Q80s but ended up with the j40

I got the 4.88 because at the time I lived at Colorado at 9,400' but I really like the new gears anyway. MUCH better than the 3.55 that were stock, even with the stock 31"
 

jackflash

Observer
awesome. we should start a Bronco only thread and stop stealing Madmax's thread.

I too like the solo stuff. Have not heard of Threat motorsports, but I'll look into them.
 

NorthernWoodsman

Adventurer/tinkerer
I used silicone sealant around the edges so hopefully they wont leak and get fogged up like most cheap lights do.

Silicone, if you used sealant with actual silicone in it, will draw water into it. Silicone is hydrophilic. If you used silicone, it's too late and you can only ever use silicone there again as the stuff leaves a film that only more silicone will adhere to. If you didn't use actual silicone you're better off and could maybe even clean it off and add a marine grade sealant. 3M makes really good stuff meant to handle wet, salty, harsh environments.
 

Madmaxwell87

Observer
I got rid of the tube but I'm pretty sure it was GE All Purpose Silicone Sealant Caulk which says its 100% water and weather proof.
 

Madmaxwell87

Observer
More projects to do- replace the cracked heater hoses, replace the whining power steering pump, and eventually install the Threat Under Bed Shock mount I just got. Need to get some 13" travel Bilstein 5165s first and then I'll cut out the stock mounts.
 

Madmaxwell87

Observer
Took advantage of having family in town over the holidays to replace the heater hoses. A previous owner applied some caulk looking stuff to the firewall around the heater hoses. Had to scrape/ peel that off enough to get to the inlet and outlet of the heater core. After that it was a quick job with new hoses and clamps.

We also took a look at the rear brakes. Even with all of the air gone it never felt like they engaged enough. Turns out I re-assembled them wrong when I put the new shoes, hardware and drums on. The cable that works the auto adjuster was in the wrong order on the top pin making all my reverse braking do nothing in terms of adjusting the shoes out to the drum. Fixed that and went for a drive after turning them out by hand and some more back ups and it's a night and day difference. Happy to have confidence in the brakes again.

With the Black Friday sales going on I purchased the previously mentioned Threat rear shock mount but added a Ruffstuff specialties rear diff cover. It's a beefy cover that comes with a lube locker and hardware. I'll remove the old one and change the fluid and clean up the rear axle soon.
 

Madmaxwell87

Observer
Just finished some work on the Bronco. Spent some time and wire wheeled the entire axle and then sprayed it with undercoating. I also swapped out the stock diff cover for a Ruffstuff Specialties one. It's super thick and holds a little more fluid so I'm not worried about the rear end for a while.

I also swapped out the power steering pump, belt tensioner, idler pulley and serpentine belt. It wasn't a fun job but it should hopefully help with the whine and continue to cross off replacing old things on this truck.

Next up is to attach and wire the Garmin back up camera I got and sync it with my Overlander.
20201229_124731.jpg
 

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