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Post number 3327 has been selected as best answered.

Whats In A Name?

It was hot humid august night. The winds have all but vanished. I was doing my best to keep the sweat out of my eyes. The A/C was dying in my 94 Explorer, lovingly named "Pugly", and there was no relief in sight. I decided it was time to stop throwing good money into bad. I was gonna do the unthinkable,.......I was going to commit the most heinous crime of them all! I was going to trade Pugly in for a newer model! Oh the heart break! The insanity of it all! I couldn't believe the thoughts were even going through my head.

I managed to get the old girl back home, to her resting place. She seemed at ease in her familiar surroundings. I had to come up with an explanation to let her know of my evil plan. So i just gave her that old wink and grin that she likes to see from me as we made it back home from another day of adventure in the treacherous Midwestern terrain. I did my best in hiding my cynical thoughts, as I walked around to her rear flank and gave her that little pat on her bumper, as I always have when we part for the night.

The next morning I gave her a real good bath, cleaned behind her mirrors, and brushed her grill. She still looked pretty good for her age. Oh sure she had the tell tale signs, gravity has got its firm grip on her, and I am not the best cosmetics guy in the world. she didn't seem to mind too much, she still kept her nose up and drove with pride.

After looking at many vehicles I just could not find anything that had the same feel as my old girl. Then it happened! Was I seeing a mirage? Was I so desperate to find another rig that I was blinded by insanity? I found my replacement! I quickly made a sale with the owner, and brought it home.

When I pulled in the driveway, my heart sunk as I looked into the yard to see my 94 looking at me in disbelief. She was sunning herself in the grass looking all shiny and then, she just looked away from me. My heart was tearing in two. I parked the new rig, and walked up to her and gave her a soft spoken "Hello". No reply. I tried to tickle her mirrors, no response. The tension was so great, you could have cut it with a 32 count fine tooth hacksaw. I had to explain to her that she gave me great satisfaction for many years, and we made a terrific team together, but the time has come for her to just relax and enjoy her final days. She finally revved up, and understood, her days as my work horse has ended (so we thought).

I introduced her to her daily driver replacement. The shiny new(er) next generation of her kind. The 95 Explorer XLT. She warmed right up to it. Before you know it they were swapping stories. Now I had to ask her for help. I needed a name for the new ride,
so I went to find her, and what did I see? Those two were grill to grill in the driveway. rubbing chrome! I had to get the water hose out and break them up! Sheesh, she was acting like a girl at the prom dance! I let the name thing drop for awhile.

The new(er) Ex needed to get its shots, and a physical. When I got the word on it's health, I about had a coronary. "What do you mean Doc"! I yelled. "Your kidding right"? I asked. The Doc just shook his head and gathered his tools. As he walked away, He said it had a 50/50 chance of survival. My stomach knotted up, my teeth ground, my heart raced, and I could feel the energy build up as I let it all out, "Why! Why! Why did this have to happen"! I screamed.

The prognostic exam from the doc was as such. It had a blown steering rack, the shocks were gone, the brakes were non existent, front sway bar was cracked in half, the 3rd brake light was out, none of the windows or the moon roof would work, the door locks were broke, the rear end LS clutch pack was burned up, the tires were all in need of replacement, the spare was a Firestone recall and flat, the engine had a nasty tick to it, the TPS was shot, the MAF was corroded, the battery had a dead cell in it, the hood shocks were not working, the rear hatch lock was jammed up and you couldn't open it with out a key in the lock, The carpet was stained to no repair, the rear window wiper didn't want to work, and we could not tell what year its engine swap came from. it was a mess, to say the least.

I went in the house to get my gun. I was gonna just put it out of its misery right there and then. I suddenly realized I was out of ammo, from shooting at the jeep that was in my field. I went to the computer to find a place to buy some cheap ammo, and I stumbled across this website, explorerforum.com that said it could heal any ford Explorer no matter what the problems were! I jumped for joy, I could not believe the things I was reading! I wore out the search button, asked a bunch of questions. I quickly broke out my pen and paper, feverishly writing down things as I was learning! I had found a cure for everything that was wrong with my new transport. It was a Godsend, an angel from the SUV heavens!

I sprung into action. I worked day and night, Pugly was right by my side the entire time, helping me in any way she could. I never seen this side of her, and was really amazed at how well she handled the pressure. She gently squeegeed the sweat out off my fore head with her soft wiper blades as I worked away. After an entire weekend of work, I collapsed. I needed some rest, and so did the 95. The sun crested over the hills, and awoke me to a new day. I shuffled my feet to the window facing the driveway, peeled the drapes gently back, and peered out at the 95. WOW!
It had a its color back, and was looking great! Now as the time went on, (and most of my paychecks), and the selling of almost everything I own, for funds to get the 95 to its former glory.

After some time to reflect on this name thing, I strolled up and whispered into Pugly's passenger side mirror, and she giggled with delight.

I climbed up onto the front bumper in my pajamas and robe half opened, with a cup of coffee in one hand and the daily newspaper in the other, I raised my arms with out stretched hands and proclaimed the new name of the 95.

BEHOLD...........THE BLACK HOLE!!!!!!!! (Then the neighbor yelled at me to close my robe)



The End................(or is it just the beginning?)


Actually, only some of this really happened. :D




View attachment 324381
 



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That used to be side by side with Dollywood in Sevierville. That one got bought out and moved, and Dollywood got bigger. Tourism, a nice place to visit, but traffic from hell.
 



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SDC is huge in Branson. The owners also own a water park(White Water), Another amusement park (Celebration City) and a showboat (Branson Belle) that is an old paddle wheel steamer that takes you out on the lake for a few hours. Big dinner and entertainment on the stage while cruising Table Rock Lake.

She is a good size boat :D

sbb_boat6_lg.jpg

sbb_boat4_lg.jpg

sbb_07house_lg.jpg
 






That paddleboat ride sound's awesome. Make for a great night out!
 


















Went hunting today. Tracked down a set of F-150 leaf springs. :D

There sitting on the saw horses waiting to be field dressed, (cleaned & painted) and installed using the ex main leaf, a custom leaf,and an add a leaf. I need to go get new pins still and wait for the monsoon to stop outside. Then it's game time!
 






It's an elusive critter the F-150 leaf spring. Glad you flushed 'em out!
 






Game on, always eager to see new pics of your Build!
 






The rains parted ways for a couple days, so I attacked the leaf spring mod while the sun was shining. The objective was to maintain the amount of lift that the custom leafs and extended shackles offered, minus the war153 shackles.

I went to a spring shop here and there is a man who is very well known in both the off road racing and drag strip racing world. He builds custom leaf packs for well known drivers/owners across the country. I shot the breeze with him for a good long time and learned a couple things.

According to him, the slider pads between the leafs are only installed for a human creature comfort. They eliminate squeals from the leafs sliding on each other, and that's it. He also informed me that in newer HD trucks the manufacturers are now just using lithium grease instead of the plastic pads. The pads leave a gap in the leafs at the ends and in fact make them weaker. For stronger packs, he removes all the sliders. He told me for any packs he builds for recreational use where they are being used for extreme use, they are removed. He does suggest leaving the spacer shim on the overload spring. Another thing, is to never weld on a leaf as it will weaken them severely and can cause premature breakage. Powdercoating is also frowned upon as heat is an enemy. These are made from a high carbon spring steel, and are tempered. (I found out how hard these are from having to use a carbon bit in a big drill press to make a bolt hole wider on the add a leaf). To shape an arch in a leaf a hydro press and a anvil / sledge hammer is used. He told me a story of using a tree stump and a mini sledge for a trail repair in the middle of nowhere once. LOL

The F-150 leafs are off a 92 2wd. These are 2.5" in width (4wd are 3") and are 5 leaf packs. Years '80-96 are what your after for this mod. After cutting off the stock center pins and leaf clamps, the main leaf is discarded. The lower leafs, including the overload leaf is used.

Here is a nice spring chart to use for reference use.

leaf_springs%20chart_zps40iu4jdw.png


Here is the 4 lower leafs cleaned & painted.

paintedleafsloose.jpg


I re-used the Ex main leaf, a single leaf I had made from a spring shop that was added to my old packs, plus a short add a leaf. Here they are stacked and the 1/2" center pin bolt installed loose. You can see the arch diff in them. Each leaf you install in the packs will net you up to a 1/2" of lift. There are 7 leafs in these new packs.

packloosewithcenterpin.jpg


Use a couple C clamps to draw the leafs together, then simply tighten the nut on the center pin nice & tight.

packcompressed.jpg


Cut the bolt to size. You can leave a little of the stud on as it will fit inside the hole on the plate. Just don't leave too much of it.

centerpincut.jpg


I ended up using some 2.5" U-bolt style spring clamps until I can get a diff style. 2 flat stock bars with bolts are better to clamp them with than the U-bolt as it offers more surface contact and less stress to the leaf. As soon as I cut & drill some up, I will replace these. Here is the packs finished.

packfinished.jpg


Getting started with the install.

passsidepackinstall.jpg


Both sides installed with stock shackles.

packsinstalled.jpg


Before with war153 installed.

95warn153backon.jpg


After with stock shackles and new leafs.

finalheightfromnewpacks.jpg


Objective accomplished! I got 4" of lift with these new packs, and have the needed lift for the 35" tires. Total cost for these packs with hardware/paint.....$100


:D
 






I like, looks like they turned out good.
 






Excellent write up mate and great photo's. Awesome mod, especially for that price. Go you bloody legend:D:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:
 












Thanks Greg, & Froader! Is it just me, or has this rig came a long way in the last year or so? LOL :)

I do have to add that I want to get new U-bolts. The stock size are pretty small compared to what can be used. The stockers are only like 3/8" & I want to get a set of 5/8" on there for the added strength. That means I have to drill out the holes a 1/4" wider on the plates. Sure it's a PITA, but I believe it's well worth it and will give me some peace of mind. Back to the spring shop on Monday for a new set of U-bolts. :D
 






I did the 5/8's bolts on my Ranger and drilling the Explorer plates were relatively easy...:biggthump your stock bolts are 1/2" ;)

..Have you decided if you were going to use 3-1/8" or 3-1/4" u-bolts?
 






I measured them with a caliper and they are 3/8". Maybe different on the ex than the ranger? Or they just call em 1/2" when they are not? Either way, I'm glad you chimed in and knowing you also did it makes me feel even better about it. :thumbsup:

Mine are a little harder because they are modified skids, (2 plates) and I cant get an impact on them. I have to use a very deep well socket to get to the nuts, and there just ain't enough room for the impact. I do use an air ratchet after they are broke loose to help speed it up some.
 






<snip>Another thing, is to never weld on a leaf as it will weaken them severely and can cause premature breakage. Powdercoating is also frowned upon as heat is an enemy. These are made from a high carbon spring steel, and are tempered. (I found out how hard these are from having to use a carbon bit in a big drill press to make a bolt hole wider on the add a leaf). To shape an arch in a leaf a hydro press and a anvil / sledge hammer is used. He told me a story of using a tree stump and a mini sledge for a trail repair in the middle of nowhere once. LOL <snip>

Did he say what to use to keep the srping from splaying apart without limiting travel? I can get 2" separation from my main spring and the 2nd leaf at full droop which is currently limited by shock length.

This is what I mean.

5673413883_d4ffbac1f4.jpg

Spring speration by maniak_az, on Flickr

~Mark
 






hmm, we powdercoated phillips leaf springs with no ill effects in two years. I'm not saying it's a good idea and won't cause problems though. We may have just gotten very luck with phillips. There is probably also a lot less weight on his most of the time than on an explorer, so I'm sure that helps things too.
 






Mark, he recommends them to be clamped together on at least one side, and if you can on both. Thinner leaves(lots of them too) is the only thing that will give us more flex, and articulation w/o being too stiff. I thought about not clamping them so they can articulate more, but wheeling where I do, there is too much brush that can get snagged in the gaps. Tree roots are stronger than one might think.

I brought up the idea of tack welding a U-bolt to the leafs just to stop them from going from side to side and getting out of alignment, that is when he informed me about heat and not welding to them at all.
 









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Thats a good idea Techie, as long as the bolts dont get into anything when flexed real hard. I like it tho. Still have the articulation and they wont splay out of alignment.
 






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