Need brake line help for 1st Gen Ranger swap to '95-'97 knuckle. I'm stuck! | Page 2 | Ford Explorer Forums - Serious Explorations

  • Register Today It's free!

Need brake line help for 1st Gen Ranger swap to '95-'97 knuckle. I'm stuck!

Son.....of....a.....bitc@ :mad::frustrate:fire: !%*&@#

Not really directly related to the problem, but I'm just venting here. I just missed ANOTHER opportunity for a day of work, due to this piece of crap ( No, not really. I like the truck, I'm just annoyed).

Of course, I get NO calls for x-ray work for MONTHS. The 1 week I have no vehicle, my phone is ringing off the hook.:banghead: I lost 4 days of x-ray work. With that,i could have paid someone else to do this, and had money left over! I may have also lost a VERY good opportunity to get my foot in the door at a new scrap client.:(

Oh well, back outside to toil away at this boondoggle; as soon as I've had my coffee and some Aleve for the headache.
 






Well, its fixed, mostly, and back on the road.

I was able to bend and modify both stock '93 hoses to work w/ the later calipers. I will post more annotated pics, of the left side, tomorrow. The mods required do put both hoses closer to the coil spring. I think they should be ok though. I may add some "protection" to them later.

At full droop, and full left steering lock, the Right front hose is getting a bit short. It still has slack, but very little. Again, while I would like to see more, I think it will work. If the truck were lifted at all, it would be a no-go.

I had the alignment done this afternoon. Although it took nearly 2-1/2 hours, it now has the best alignment this truck has ever had. both sides are virtually even, with -0.75 deg of camber, and just under 6 deg of positive caster. toe is at 0.25 deg toe in. I haven;t driven it much yet, but so far it seems to handle great.

The new 2-piston brakes stop noticeably harder. I am having a weird brake issue though. It also did this with the "old" parts too, so I don't think its related to the swap. The truck pulls HARD to the left under moderate to hard braking, but not all the time. It comes and goes. I had previously assumed it was the old calipers hanging up or something , but it continues to happen with the new parts. Anybody have any suggestions?

Another new issue is the Left side manual locking hub. It won't sit flush against the rotor. The gap also seems to remain in the 9 o'clock position (looking at the brakes, from the drivers side) It's weird. As you rotate the rotor, you can see the gap open /close in the same position.
Also the left axle stub, sticking out of the spindle, has ZERO play in it. Normally, with no hub installed, you would expect to be able to wiggle the axle stub around a little bit. It is tight. You can "force"/squeeze/press and hold the hub against the rotor, but it feels like you are pushing against a spring. This is the same spindle/axle/locking hub combo I used previously, on my '93 knuckle/brakes, that I did not have any problems. The locking hubs can also be swapped side to side, with no change in Left front situation
I am still hearing a sort-of bead bearing noise coming from the left. Its hard to tell though. It could be coming from the rear, or it could just be tire noise.
 






OK, just a "final" update / resolution on this.

First, I never bothered to post the pictures of the modified left front. Its virtually identical to the process as for the right, with pretty much the same bends.
I have been driving it with the re-bent '93 hoses for the last few weeks. I also have had the truck on a lift, w/ the suspension truly at full droop.

1.) IF your truck is stock ride height , you can probably get away with re-bending the stock pre-'95 lines. At true full droop ( hanging in the air on a lift), the hoses end up "tight" but not stretched. In other words, at the absolute limit. Granted, its unlikely that a street driven vehicle will actually see that amount of droop, but if you do, it will just barely be ok, assuming you bent them exactly the way I did. Or, you may rip your brake hoses apart?.......

2.) If your truck is LOWERED, well then you will gain a little extra breathing room.

3.) If your truck is LIFTED AT ALL, forget it. You're asking for a disaster. Maybe, you could make it work enough to gently drive to parts store, for the right parts, but that's it. Avoid potholes, at all costs, on the way.

I have already purchased the correct '97 Ranger 4x4 hoses, and I will be installing them in the next week or so, at the same time I do the SN95 Mustang rear disc brake install, as well as the new '95 up style master cylinder.
 






Back
Top