gonna try this bronco II tire carrier thing out

[Klutch]

hey guys, i just bought a tire carrier off a bronco II at the junkyard today for $25 and figure ill make it work for my truck, the hatch on the bronco II was made out of fiberglass so i wouldnt have to reinforce the latch there would i? im gonna use the strengthening plates that were with it. i know ill have to definately reinforce the side with something, would angle iron be enough if i weld it to the floor in some kind of brace? just looking for any heads up stuff on what to look out for.

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=171783&page=9

im basically going off of SurrealNJ's designs

 

[tweakedlogic]

I never got around to installing mine. I bought one a couple of years ago, but it still hangs in the shed. I like the idea, but I think I want something that hangs the tires a little lower.

As far as the reinforcement goes, I believe I read some where that a guy used 1/4" thick flat stock for the fender stiffener, but later noticed some deformation. So he thought that a plate that was big enough for all four bolts, and went out further was needed.

For the tailgate, I don't think that much is needed as it doesn't support any weight. just keeps the arm from swinging around. I would think if you wanted to reenforce it, you would need little more than some 16-12 gauge cut into a plate and use screws to fasten it to the tailgate. Then mount the latch to that.

Be sure and take lots of pics. you might be able to convince me to do mine. Although that would mean I would then have to buys a spare wheel and tire.

 

[Klutch]

i definately will, ive been stuck at work alot but thursday im working on it and my new brush guard all day. im trying to think of a way to make it look half way decent on the outside and on the inside i figure ill just get a big thick steel plate and weld it with braces to the floor and bolt it just to be sure. dont want that thing coming off lol (and dont need to be sued for destroying another car) but yea ill definately take pictures. any ideas on how to make it look a bit nicer on the outside besides just bolting a piece of angle iron on there?

 

[tweakedlogic]

any ideas on how to make it look a bit nicer on the outside besides just bolting a piece of angle iron on there?

Yeah, do it on the inside. Forget the angle iron. You want it to look like Ford put it there right? Just cut a big plate that will be just small enough fit the inside of the quarter panel. You will have to shape it some so it will follow the curve. Not perfect, just close. Use 5 minute epoxy or something to hold it there. then drill your holes for the mount brackets. the plate on the inside will spread the load enough to not tear the quarter panel. Especially if you use 12-10 gauge sheet. Just don't let anyone hang on it and swing out. Kids and drunken rednecks are bad about this sort of thing.

For the latch, I would use stainless sheet and stainless screws. Evenly drill your screw holes so it looks professional. After you have it mounted, and the holes drilled for the latch, polish it if you want. But I really don't think you need any reinforcement for the latch. But I have been wrong before. Maybe someone will chime in.

 

[gmanpaint]

I would definitely reinforce the inside of the hatch. The sheet metal is a thin gauge, and the force of the tire being pulled on by accelerating could eventually rip the panel, allowing the tire to swing away from the vehicle.

Some ideas floating around my head for the door catch bracing...
A large flat plate wont work most likely because of the inner door bracing.

For vertical bracing... If you were to bend a couple wide rectangle sections into a "Omega" U shape to go over the bracing and still sit flush to bolt it to, that would work to distribute the load.

For Horizontal bracing....Some rectangle flat sock bars wider than the catch mount attached to both upper & lower sets of bolts would give it a bunch more support.

Even some large fender washers would help some.

Just some random ideas here

 

[bats]

Like every one else said, reinforce it very well. Somewhere in that thread SNJ said that the carrier started tearing the inside quarter panel at the seam.

 

[Klutch]

yea id really like to make it look like ford put it there but the mounts from the bronco II wont work on the explorer :/ my friend came up with the idea to make a brace on the inside out of 1/4" steel and make a plate formed to the fender on the inside and a plate on the floor with a 45 degree angled piece of steel attaching the 2 and welding all that together, then using grade 8 bolts to bolt it to the floor with another piece of steel on the underside. i just dont know how to make the hinges look good or work to it yet. the hitch came with a small 1/4" reinforcement plate about the size of an iphone or something and i figure ill just put another wider plate inbetween that and the sheet metal. i definately dont want any ripping apart of the truck or damage. for added security im gonna add a lock to the latch so it wont rattle loose for any reason.

 

[Backwoods "X"]

As I still have my 84 BII, I thought that I might share some insight on this idea. The hatch on the "X" does, indeed, need extra brace work to keep the weight of the spare tire from tearing the rack latch bracket off. I have had to replace the hatch on the BII twice because of this, even with the factory bracing intact. The latch does quite abit to hold the weight of the spare, more so than you think. I have never had an issue with the latch undoing itself, even when I only "catch" the safety,and the tire swinging out, even when out 'wheeling in the woods. The biggest thing that I have heard of with the design that Ford used, is that somebody either backs into something while on the gas ( like I did when trying to get enough room for a running start to get out of a deep creek and "found" a very large Oak tree with the spare tire, and so tore the hatch up to the point that the rack had to be pulled...) or, peels the rack off of the side because they MIS judged the passenger side clearance.

 

[Klutch]

hmmm i didnt think of that about the trees, designing the outside to look good but also not break is a bit of a mind bender for me

 

[Backwoods "X"]

The rack took the hit just fine, but, the hatch itself was toast from the impact of having the sparetire on the rack drive the rack into the catch mounted on the hatch, and thus destroying the mount area. I had to replace the hatch to be able to use the rack again. I tried leaving the rack on after hitting the tree, but, the hatch started tearing apart, just like a steel one would if you were to start a "rip" in it. Oh, and the bumpstop on the bottom of the rack was bent back about 3 inches from the wreck, so that should give you an idea of the speed that I had when I trashed the hatch. This was with a factory designed and installed model, so you might want to get a good look at the BII hatch mount style and see what you can do from there. I am simply going to mount my spare to a modded BII rack that is a part of the rear bumper that I am going to be building to avoid having the body/hatch hopefully getting whacked.

 

[gmanpaint]

What about making it a swing down instead?

This is what I am planning on doing. It will attach to the bumper and swing to the ground when unlatched. I will have a couple of "Stop" bars added so that if a rear impact does occur, it wont shove the whole thing thru the hatch.

 

[Backwoods "X"]

I have seen a couple of the "swing down" carriers out here, and the biggest issue with them is keeping them from "pitching" fore/aft as the vehicle moves. I think that the best attempt at stopping this was a design that actually put the rack into a "strained" position, so that the rack itself had to be shoved into the catch bracket, just past the stopblock that kept it from going up more. I think that there was maybe an inch of "strain" that the rack had to lean back past, but it didn't seem to "pitch" nearly as badly as the other styles. I have also seen alot of attempts at using different springs to help with the tire being lowered/raised, torsional being the most common. Go look at an equipment hauling trailer that has the spring loaded ramps and you can get a better idea about the spring setup.

 

[gmanpaint]

I have also seen alot of attempts at using different springs to help with the tire being lowered/raised, torsional being the most common. Go look at an equipment hauling trailer that has the spring loaded ramps and you can get a better idea about the spring setup.

A simple stock tire cable winch set up (its already provided under the rig) is all I need, if I get to the point where it is too heavy for me, but doubt it.

 

[Klutch]

i already have the bronco II mount so i might as well stick with that, but that added strain thing is a good idea, i got a chain for free from my work today too so ill lock it up with that. wednesday afternoon and thursday im gonna start working on it to see what i can come up with

 

[Jason94sport]

FYI, on the B2 I used to own, I had the bracket tear from the hatch from the weight of a 30X9.50X15 15X8 wheel combo. Was ok for a few months then I was driving on the the HW & heard a pop & a weight shift to the rear passenger side & saw it swinging.

 

[mr cribb]

I liked this idea until I read the destructive tendencies of a failed carrier.

My idea was fabbing up a custom bumper and using an aftermarket ***p tire carrier. I have seen a few that are built really well.

 

[Backwoods "X"]

My "version" of using the BII rack on the "X" is going to include the actual weight of the spare and the mount/swingarm resting on the original plastic cladding on top of the bumper. I found a thread discussing building a "backbone" for the factory bumper and a double swingout set-up. I am going to be doing something pretty similar, but with the spare on the Drivers' side, so that I can actually see out the back window.