Mechanix's going solid.

[Burns]

Oh, and I really like my WH 5.5"

yeah i like mine to.....

 

[Kirby N.]

I have the 6.5" w/winch springs I think they provide a better ride on and offroad than the 5.5 WH springs they replaced

I agree. I am running the 6.5" w/ winch coils. They ride well and flex well. Very Happy. Ran some WH 5.5s, and some stupid lift 8", the BCs are far superior to either IMHO. I am running Full hieght f150 buckets too. Can't beat the customer service either- chuck himself emailed me about them!

 

[mechanix]

We finllay got a heat wave here in MI, it went from -8 to 18 degrees now, so I decided to do some work on the truck. I got the 9" removed from the donor truck, I got it all torn down and the spring perches and shock mounts cut off. Next step will be to wire wheel the whole axle tube to remove all the rust and other junk. I have a set of 5.14's comming I bought off Ebay and I think I might go with a spool.

This is the donor truck, good ol' Michigan weather got to it, the underside is very rusty.

Here is the rear end torn down rear for some cleaning and fresh paint. This is after I cut the spring perches off and shock mounts.

This rear end has some sort of a locker/limited slip. Any ideas what this thing is? I tried to take a picture but I can't seem to get a good one.

 

[james t]

Trashlock... er i mean Traclock.

 

[mechanix]

Trashlock... er i mean Traclock.

I am going to replace it with a spool. Also the 3rd member has some pretty big webs on it is this normal or do I have some kind of heavy duty 9"?

Today I welded on the spring perches and wire wheeled the whole axle tube. I am waiting on the gears to arrive so I can finish the rear up.

Anyone seen a cheap diff cover for the 9"? Mine is pretty rusty and I am affraid one good wack on a rock or something and it will be a gonner.

I am going disc on the rear end, stay tuned as how I did it using over the counter parts..mostly.

Eric

 

[sn0border88]

Hmmm... 9"'s dont have diff covers but alot of places make pices that can be welded on as a kinda skid plate. GreatLakesOffroad on pirate4x4 has some great stuff as far as diff protection goes and their prices for the quality cant be beat.

Spools in 9" are the way to go, real cheap to pick one up. I love mine.

 

[Burns]

are you going full spool or mini spool

 

[mechanix]

are you going full spool or mini spool

I really havent decided yet either way. I was checking Ebay and found a mini for 6 dollars. They are cheaper than a locker by far and for the most part do the same.

Burns what arms are you running? I think I saw them in your SAS thread but I can't seem to find them. Also can you post a pic or two please?

 

[james t]

Go full spool. The stock carrier is a weak point.

As for the "big webs" on the 3rd, thats just how they look. Post a pic, but id bet its just a stock truck 3rd.

 

[sn0border88]

dont even consider a mini spool on a 9", the reason they are $6 is because they are ****. Would you trust a small $6 piece to hold up to the abuse of your driveline?

 

[mechanix]

Well it has been awhile sence I updated, I admit I am not very good on taking pictures of everything along the way. At this point I have the 9" fully assembled under the truck mounted. I installed 5.14 gears, and a full spool. I converted the drum brakes to disc brakes. I still need to run hard lines to the brake hoses and buy and mount shocks for the rear.

As for the front I am still ordering parts. I have the axle torn down to be cleaned. I bought a set of gears from a guy off Ebay, but some how I got a drive shaft. lol. I have most of the parts to get the axle mocked up but still missing a few things.

Here is a pic of the disc brakes installed.

 

[Burns]

oh shiny

 

[mechanix]

oh shiny

Thanks. What did you use for a track bar Burns and how did you mount it to the axle and frame?

 

[cloaked_chaos]

What will you be doing with your old rear axle? I need a replacement for my brother's 91 (in my sig) since his chunked out. He then cut everything that was left out with a grinder, removed his rear axle and now runs front wheel drive using his tcase, which probably wont last too much longer like that.

 

[Burns]

Thanks. What did you use for a track bar Burns and how did you mount it to the axle and frame?

This is the first try. I had to drop the track bar later on after i change the coil bucket down on the frame more. For more lift. All i did the second time is got to steel plates and added them to the sides of the orginal track bar and drilled new holes.

 

[mechanix]

Well I havent done much work on the SAS. Working alot and time with the family. Still waiting for alot of parts to show up.

For those who have done this, are the Chevy TRE's the best route? I have seen some go with heims's and some wiht TRE's.

Also what did you's do for drive shafts? Keep the stock or make/ buy new ones?

Also did you use Early Bronco springs or use Bronco springs for the front?

 

[Burns]

I used the early bronco coils. The bronco coils would be to stiff for the explorer.

On my drive shafts i was able to keep the front one and had to have my rear one extended either 3.5 inches or 4 inches.

I want tres to...lol

 

[mechanix]

Where can I get the lower coil mount, retainer and the upper retainer? I saw them as a kit on the Wild Horses website, but they are 90 dollars. Maybe this is a good price. They also have them in stainless for the "bling" factor. Thoughs, comments?

I got my diy bead locks today. Waiting for the rims, c bushings,gears, and some other misc to get here. They seem to be taking there sweet ass time.

Eric

 

[james t]

You really only have two options to get all that stuff- salvage yard or early Bronco vendor which means big $$$. Yes it seems crazy to pay almost $100 on coil retainers but that is about average price for all that new.

 

[mechanix]

Thanks James. I will order them today.