Mar1ne
Full Member
I bought this 1974 last fall and started making a plan for it. I have been driving my 66 daily since I bought it last year and plan to do the same with this one when it's done. I hope to have it finished sometime towards the end of this summer. I know how deadlines go, so I won't hold my breath, but we'll see what hiccups I run into.
I'm not from the area where I live now, but this Bronco has been here since the 80's according to local folklore. I purchased it from a guy who cut a deal with the original owner.
Stripped it down throughout the fall and began working on the frame. This was a mistake before the bodywork, which I'm sure a lot of you will recognize quickly. Of course there ended up being a little bit more than I thought there would be.
I cut the hitch and dual shock mounts off the rear of the frame. I should've it more of the splatter around the original welds with a flap disk before coating. I also asked for the VIN to be preserved and apparently the shop forgot. It's clearly visible with the body off, but will be a pain if someone wants to verify it in the future.
I live about an hour from Wild Horses, so luckily I can make some bulk orders and skip shipping.
2.5" Lift with Bilstein shocks
1" Body lift
Track bar
Disk brake front
New rear brakes
Brake lines
Axles all around
15x8 US Mag Wheels w/ 33x12.50 BFG KM2
Front and rear end were built by a local shop with 4.11 gears. I had wire wheeled the housings and cleaned them to the best of my ability. Once returned I sprayed them with POR15 metal prep and followed the directions for clean metal application. I brought them into the house for a couple days to come up to temp and then painted them with two coats of Semi Gloss. I put a final layer of Top Coat in the can on so I could get a good uniform texture. I think they came out great.
Body back on, prepping for metal work.
I bought a 6x8 welding blanket to drape over the frame while I'm working on it. The center floor brace had the center section removed and three separate sections removed for I'm assuming various transmissions. The bottom of the drivers door post is rotten.
I ran 2x4's down the firewall onto the frame in the engine bay and lagged them into place to keep the nose where it needed to be. Floor came out and this is where I am running into a "what do I do first?" scenario. The brace was already out, so removing the floors before the other work seemed like the right first step. The rot in the door post was due to a hole near where the brace attached to the inner rocker area. So, I took a section of the rocker out to see what I was dealing with. I put a bottle jack in there to keep that corner extra braced.
I appreciate all the advice and look forward to sharing the progress with everyone. I'll be getting the sheet metal done in the next few weeks hopefully and then sending it out to media blast and epoxy primer after confirming the rest of the metal is good to go. Once finished there it will be dropped off at the paint shop. I will be doing a 351 and AX15. I am unsure exactly what specifics on the engine, but that will come pending reading other member's posts and any suggestions for my specific use.
I'm not from the area where I live now, but this Bronco has been here since the 80's according to local folklore. I purchased it from a guy who cut a deal with the original owner.
Stripped it down throughout the fall and began working on the frame. This was a mistake before the bodywork, which I'm sure a lot of you will recognize quickly. Of course there ended up being a little bit more than I thought there would be.
I cut the hitch and dual shock mounts off the rear of the frame. I should've it more of the splatter around the original welds with a flap disk before coating. I also asked for the VIN to be preserved and apparently the shop forgot. It's clearly visible with the body off, but will be a pain if someone wants to verify it in the future.
I live about an hour from Wild Horses, so luckily I can make some bulk orders and skip shipping.
2.5" Lift with Bilstein shocks
1" Body lift
Track bar
Disk brake front
New rear brakes
Brake lines
Axles all around
15x8 US Mag Wheels w/ 33x12.50 BFG KM2
Front and rear end were built by a local shop with 4.11 gears. I had wire wheeled the housings and cleaned them to the best of my ability. Once returned I sprayed them with POR15 metal prep and followed the directions for clean metal application. I brought them into the house for a couple days to come up to temp and then painted them with two coats of Semi Gloss. I put a final layer of Top Coat in the can on so I could get a good uniform texture. I think they came out great.
Body back on, prepping for metal work.
I bought a 6x8 welding blanket to drape over the frame while I'm working on it. The center floor brace had the center section removed and three separate sections removed for I'm assuming various transmissions. The bottom of the drivers door post is rotten.
I ran 2x4's down the firewall onto the frame in the engine bay and lagged them into place to keep the nose where it needed to be. Floor came out and this is where I am running into a "what do I do first?" scenario. The brace was already out, so removing the floors before the other work seemed like the right first step. The rot in the door post was due to a hole near where the brace attached to the inner rocker area. So, I took a section of the rocker out to see what I was dealing with. I put a bottle jack in there to keep that corner extra braced.
I appreciate all the advice and look forward to sharing the progress with everyone. I'll be getting the sheet metal done in the next few weeks hopefully and then sending it out to media blast and epoxy primer after confirming the rest of the metal is good to go. Once finished there it will be dropped off at the paint shop. I will be doing a 351 and AX15. I am unsure exactly what specifics on the engine, but that will come pending reading other member's posts and any suggestions for my specific use.
Attachments
Last edited:
