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The Daily Duff 2/27/16

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jduffent

jduffent

Sponsor/Vendor
Sr. Member
Joined
Jan 3, 2003
Messages
508
Just sent out our most recent newsletter last night. Lots of new products and our event schedule as well. The trailer is filling up for free MEB parts delivery as well… One week tip we're loading them all up!

Suzy

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/...cials.html?soid=1104039006949&aid=ewqF-pqE5uc

We saw a lot of bounces with familiar names this time, if you didn't get your copy direct to your mailbox, you can visit this link to update your info:

http://visitor.r20.constantcontact....aFDnW20CbiH42MSAIjitIEmlJLTGWl4dm-TiZX3nxP-pG
 

Monster Mike

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Dec 29, 2010
Messages
1,768
Just posted this on Facebook, figure id share it here too.

2" body lift Kit made for 66-77 broncos. The 2" lift blocks are machined out of Billet aluminum then anodized duff blue. Nick​ from Nicks trixs makes these for us exclusively. Nick is another one of those Bronco Businesses that is crazy about Quality. we really Love doing business with him. The kit also comes with all new body bushings and hardware. this entire kit is American Made. we stress american made for 2 reasons. we would rather support our local and american economy first and we feel we can control the quality far better this way. so please support American made companies and parts. Thanks Everyone!

http://www.dufftuff.com/2_Body_Lift_Mounts_Hardware_Combo_1966_77Bronco_p/6440.htm







 

Monster Mike

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So a few months back i brought back from the dead a very popular product. The 1/8" rocker guards with side tubes. Why did they go the way of the dinosaur you ask? well there were some concerns about the guards warping from the heat of welding on the side tubes. I looked at the design and It was a challenge i was eager to accept. Whats great about these guards is they can still take a heck of a beating but the guys that don't see themselves beating on their classics like them for their built in step and those "oh sh*t" moments they weren't expecting. Plus two huge benefits from a cost stand point they are half the weight of 1/4'' rocker guards so the shipping is cheaper and they cost $100 less retail!! Lots of winning going on right there :)

find them here at the James Duff​ shopping cart website:

http://www.dufftuff.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=rocker+guards&x=17&y=17



you can see here right after welding the tubes to the plates theres only a slight ripple still left which will be gone once its bolted up.



 

Monster Mike

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I haven't had much time lately to share or be involved in the everyday happenings with all my Bronco peeps. I'm currently Training 2 guys in 2 different departments while tag teaming the boxing and shipping duties with Suzy. Our Veteran Shipper moved on a couple weeks ago and we are revamping the shipping and packaging department before we hire someone to run it. Unfortunately the fun stuff gets put on hold when you have to work 12-14 hour days. Not complaining about the work load, I love what I do and I love that our work helps so many people build a bronco of their dreams.

So Today I want to talk about one of our most popular products. The Long Travel Radius Arms. When I first started working for the Duffs I watched how they were being built and I was impressed with how much welding goes into these arms. There were only a few details I thought could be improved. Quite a few skilled welders and fabricators have worked for Duffs over the years but when I came onto the scene all of them moved on. All that was left was Tony who had spent 3 years in manufacturing working his way up from a hobbyist to a skilled weld & fab guy and a couple new guys that were still getting familiar with building all the different parts. Their welding techniques still had room for improvement. Their welds created an excess amount of clean up and the open corner welds were either undercut or over filled. I worked with them on weld settings, gun control, metal prep and weld pattern technique. Now that the welds were dialed in, I had one other thing I wanted to ensure, that the guys were welding in the threaded bung for the heim joint so it was 100% safe and strong. Don't get me wrong there has never been an issue but I wanted to ensure that there was a proper amount of weld gap between the insert and the tube. I made sure everyone was clear that every weld on these arms was critical to the safety of our customers.

There's a lot that goes into building a long arm Kit. Especially since we offer the arms for Dana 44's and Dana 60's as well as every model of bronco and a few years of explorers and rangers. It's our number one priority to have a supply of them on the shelf ready to ship out at any given time.

I want to leave you all with this. I love what I do and I love being a Duff. My Mission is to make sure everything we build and everything we ship out is a quality product that you are extremely happy with. There is always something that can be built better and sometimes there is a quality control issue that needs to be addressed. Make sure you contact me or call James Duff first so we can do everything in our power to do right by you and fix the problem.

As you can see the wall thickness is .313 which equals 5/16"


I set the weld gap to 5/32" for optimal weld penetration.





In this pic you can see the fit and finish of where the tube and the plate make contact. The guys used to back fill all the gaps with weld but this method proved to overheat the tube in a critical area and the welds rarely looked good w/o some grinding. So now we have a collar that fits perfectly around the plate and tube and looks great after it's welded.


Our stiffener plate is stitched in and provides moisture to escape (arm is upside down in this pic)


In these next few pics you can see the heat signature of where Thea arms are welded inside and out. Stress relief zones are left unwelded to give a perfect balance of strength and give. if a weld were ever to fail between the tube and plate it can't spread all the way from front to back. With so many guys using these arms for hardcore fun we have to build in safety standards for them as well.








These next 4 pics are from 2 arms I randomly pulled off the shelf. Each arm has to look this good or better to pass QC before We will allow it be shipped to our customers. Here is our signature color duff blue.





And here is our other color option Silver Vein. It has an added cost due to the sv which also has a clear coat added. So Essentially this option has a stronger PC coating.



 

Monster Mike

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Dec 29, 2010
Messages
1,768
Don't have any pics yet but Suzy came up with another sweet front bumper design. Just for you guys who want a non winch plate bumper all smoothed out. I'm about to get the prototype bent up and welded. I'm also offering this setup with the optional hoop w/ light bar tabs.

We're going to be getting as many prototypes out in the next few months as we can so we can display them in the brand new Duff Catalog coming out for the Bronco 50th 2016 and James Duffs 50th in 2017.
 

bronconut73

Bronco Guru
Joined
Aug 7, 2012
Messages
9,916
Can't wait to order my arms.....
And rocker covers with nerf bars.
It will be pretty soon.
Giddy as a kid at Christmas.
 

Monster Mike

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Dec 29, 2010
Messages
1,768
Can't wait to order my arms.....
And rocker covers with nerf bars.
It will be pretty soon.
Giddy as a kid at Christmas.

It's looking like a sweet list of goodies!


Keep up the great work Monster Mike Duff ;)

Trying buddy!

Took some time off from R&D to completely go through every pallet rack in manufacturing. Also changed some things around so our work space flows better. Will be upgrading our lathe and buying a mill soon too.

Now back to getting loco and silver prepped for OCBR. They are both running our premium shocks. Testing will be complete by the end of the year. Our premium line up consists of a smooth body with a piggy back reservoir. We're still playing with valving and nitrogen psi and offering this shock as an upgrade from 2 per corner to 1. The piggy back is very clean but it limits some placement options. As of right now the front shocks (12") work with our 3.5"+2" body lift using our stage 2 shock hoops. The rear (9")work with the same lift configuration using our stage 2 rear shock mounts. We had to turn the piggyback 90 degrees from front to rear due to our front and rear shock mounts are not orientated the same way. That is the limiting factor as of right now. We could run a remote resi and we might go back to that option so we're not limited but it's just not as clean as the piggy back.

Got the sample pieces drawn, cut and bent for the new smoothy non winch plate bumper. Needs a little tweaking, can't wait to weld it up and see what you guys think. We figure the street guys need love too ;D

Some other small things were working on is a single and double battery tray for a new battery line up. Supposed to be better than optima and much smaller. Lithium Ion with nano technology... Let the testing begin!!!

Also working on bringing back the 2.5" lift. We can already special order the leaf springs in with a 3-4 week lead time but we haven't pulled the trigger on coil springs and I'd like to make sure all our shock lengths will work. I want to design a single shock mount similar to the F250 that works for all our lift kits and both our duff and premium shocks.

Lots more ideas in the works but one step at a time. Things move slow due to wearing many hats and having so much to do.

FYI we are stocked up on bare radius arms and would like to offer them for $30 off retail while supplies last or till the end of September. You can save another $10 when you combine the heavy duty lower coil retainers with your order.

Also a reminder we have plenty of trail doors and hinges in stock. Our trail doors with our hinges are the only ones you can buy that not only utilize the same hinge as your door but lift off for a no hassle swap. For you guys that already bought the fancy stainless polished lift off hinges from wild horses, toms or bronco graveyard we also have a trail door for you.

I gotta post pics of our adjustable track bar, I think it's the nicest, cleanest built track bar on the market. Fully tig welded, all the ends are machine finished and every piece of DOM that our bushings slip into are turned down on a lathe. Then it's sent to powder coat for a clean black finish. I know some guys want a heim on the frame end, it's on my list as an option to make however a heim is not street legal in every state so we started by playing it safe. I recently had a customer ask me to custom build a track bar with a heim on both ends. The cost is about double though. Most broncos do great with our track bar just the way it is :cool:

Ok ok I know it's cruel and unusual punishment giving you all these updates and no pics but...back to working on broncos for me, later! ;D;D;D

Here is a cool info pic of our adjustable track bar.

 
Last edited:

Monster Mike

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Dec 29, 2010
Messages
1,768
*EXCITING NEWS!!*

James Duff Inc. Will be posting an official announcement soon about the brand new 2.5" suspension lift kit for 66-77 Broncos.

In the mean time I'd like to share with you the first bronco to get one installed. Steve Bailey aka Pirate Steve has accepted my offer to take his Bronco from stock height to 2.5". After he bought our plate winch bumper and installed it with a new winch I knew his electric green uncut Bronco was the perfect candidate for this lift. Pretty soon we will have the lift installed and I think the Bronco will have just the right amount of attitude :cool:









 

Monster Mike

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Dec 29, 2010
Messages
1,768
More product development for the 66-77 Bronco guys

Bumpers.

Introducing 2 new front plate bumpers.

First we have what I like to call "The Smoothy" this bumper is giving the street Bronco guys a new Duff Tuff look w/o all the off road accessories. Just a flat smooth look that sets a serious tone. We deleted the winch and made the center plate flat across the top. No shackle mounts, no hi lift jacking points and we also grind smooth every weld. End caps have JD etched into them and the Bumper comes bare and works on all 66-77 Broncos with 0-2" of body lift.

Next is the one I'm especially fond of. This is called the Hidden Winch smoothy bumper. That's right, we stuffed the winch inside the bumper! This option will work on 66-77 Broncos with 1" or more body lift. This Bumper can be optioned out to the max if you'd like. As of right now it's displayed as just a smoothy with the hidden winch option. Down the road we may offer more options but we have to take it one step at a time.

As I stated above this is just a teaser, the product will take 2-4 weeks before it's available to purchase.

The winch we used is a 9,000 warn with remote control pack. The integrated style i.e. 9000i or 9500i won't work. Neither will a 10k or bigger or 8274.

Check out all our products at our new website dufftuff.com




 

Monster Mike

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Will you be able to run your long arms with the new 2 1/2" lift kit?

The long arms did not work with our 2" lift back in the early 2000's however I will be testing the new 2.5" with our arms once I find a local candidate ;D:cool:
 

Monster Mike

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The new 2.5" lift is installed and we are thoroughly testing it as I write!





The lift that was installed is what we call the Ultimate suspension.
here is the link to the 3.5" which is identical just 1" lower.

http://www.dufftuff.com/System_G_3_5_Ultimate_Suspension_Lift_Bronco_p/5000g.htm

Like most lifts there are additional items that may or may not be required. At 2.5" There are many add ons that aren't necessary like Longer Brake lines from the frame to axle,longer e-brake cables, longer drive lines, Radius arm drop brackets, rear pinion shims and you have the option of 4 or 7 degree C bushings depending on the amount of caster you started with at stock height. Yes it can vary anywhere from 2-4 degrees from the factory!

However there are some add ons that I feel are a nice addition to your lift that should be considered. For example, brand new upper and lower coil retainers, new leaf spring hardware and a drop pitman arm or an adjustable track bar.

This brings me to an interesting conclusion. 1,000's of lift kits go on using a drop trac bar bracket. Most lift kits are included with them however only the premium lift kits come with a drop pitman arm. 99% of the time if your dropping the trac bar you will need to drop the pitman arm so your steering geometry stays aligned with the trac bar. With our kit we recommend that you bolt and weld on the drop trac bar bracket. then you have to buy a $65 drop pitman arm remove the old one which can be a chore and install the new one. lets do the math. Drop trac bar bracket retails at $50, Drop pitman arm $65 plus a couple hours of grinding, welding, repainting, pressing, pulling and re torquing. For the hobbyist this may be a bit more of a chore then he/she is comfortable with. They might even have to get a buddy or a shop to help with the welding of the drop bracket or the removing of the old pitman arm. That's an added cost and added time. So far in real cost we are at $115. I say lets bypass all of that nonsense! Lets build a kit that deletes the drop bracket and doesn't require a drop pitman arm. Upgrade to an adjustable trac bar. The new bar retails at $139 and can be installed in under 30 minutes in your driveway. Literally for $25 more you just removed a 2 hour headache and you have infinite adjustability to re center your bronco over the front axle. I think this is a no brainer. what do you guys think? should we make this a new option for our lift kits? here is how the new 2.5" lift looks with an adjustable trac bar and no trac bar drop bracket or drop pitman arm.



here is the info on the trac bar we build. it is a very nice piece that is the only one on the market 100% tig welded.




Here is some more pics of the install.









here is all the tools used to install this lift minus the welder and the torch.

 

Mike81

Jr. Member
Joined
Feb 12, 2016
Messages
148
You guys got any of old fuel can racks for your plate bumbers. I have your bumpers on my rig with the spare tire but not the fuel can rack. If you got a used one laying around that needs work or is damaged I'd even me Intrested in that. Thank you
 

Monster Mike

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Dec 29, 2010
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You guys got any of old fuel can racks for your plate bumbers. I have your bumpers on my rig with the spare tire but not the fuel can rack. If you got a used one laying around that needs work or is damaged I'd even me Intrested in that. Thank you

No used or damaged one laying around sorry bud. I do have new ones in stock. What year was your bumper purchased?
 

Ss69

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Joined
Nov 3, 2013
Messages
136
Loc.
Chattanooga TN
The long arms did not work with our 2" lift back in the early 2000's however I will be testing the new 2.5" with our arms once I find a local candidate ;D:cool:

Local candidate, you say? Haha I'm definitely interested in one of the new lifts for my truck. Have good luck with them so far? I'm planning on taking a day off work one day soon and making a trip up to pick up some things and check out your shop. Think that would be ok? I wanted to stop by when the power tour came through last year but it happened to be on a Saturday.
 

Monster Mike

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Definitely stop by anytime! We have 2 candidates putting them on as we speak. Will know how they work very soon!
 

Monster Mike

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The 50th Celebration has passed and now its time to celebrate 50 years of James Duff. I will say something more official in the chat section but I figure its great to revive this thread too.

We are very excited for this year to get started. We will have a new catalog coming out to help celebrate the huge mile stone Mr. Duff has achieved. New products will be announced, as well as some big news. I have been working hard with Suzy and the guys in the back to give everyone the best product we can offer. As a lot of you know we are crazy about quality! Plus we are Bronco fanatics. We live eat and breath Bronco's like many of you. Here's to another awesome year of Bronco Events. Hope to see many of you in the following months!!
 

bronconut73

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Aug 7, 2012
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50 years of Duff....Nothing to sneeze at there...

Not many companies of any kind even make it half that long. And at half that long most companies would consider 25 years a huge success.
But to make it that long in the automotive aftermarket is sort of unheard of...
Sure you got Edelbrock, Holley, Summit, Speedway, etc...
But just think of all those name plates that are gone....
And somehow this little family owned and ran business has stayed not just in business but relevant, and leaders in their segment.

I am very happy that Suzy didn't let it go when Pops retired. I am also very happy that Monster Mike can't leave anything alone and is constantly making things we didn't think could be better...Well better....

James Duff....racing legend and the Grandfather of the modified eb....My freaking hero....

A daughter that has taken the reins with a seriousness that has made her a star and success in the industry on her own. She is like Cher, Madonna, Oprah, she doesn't need her last name. In Bronco circles she is Suzy. Just Suzy. She has the Duff name but doesn't need it. She has made a name for herself in this industry above and beyond the historic Duff name. Quite a damn feet. To step out of and away from your father's "HUGE" shadow and do it your way. The whole time garnering the respect of the eb world. Not an easy group to get respect from at times, by the way.

Must be pretty cool to be James Duff and sit back and see your daughter and son in law making what you built, better and even more relevant than it ever was.

Not meaning to leave Richard out, but frankly, we don't hear much about him anymore...Lol....His contributions are certainly real as well, as this has always been a family business. Richard and Suzy worked in all segments of the shop even the dreaded shipping department, haha...

Yes I'm a Duff fan. You guys all know that.

But the facts are pretty clear.
Duff is the originator and still the best.

Very proud to call Suzy and Mike friends.

Mike and Suzy,
Congratulations on what you've done so far, but I know there's much more to come. 2017 is going to be great!

Mr. & Ms. Duff,

Behind every great man is a great woman. She can not be left out.

Mrs. Duff,
Congratulations on your amazing accomplishments in the last 50 years, and congratulations on raising such great kids too.


Steve in Orlando
 
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