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Alli's '73 Bronco Build

NATEandALLI

Jr. Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2016
Messages
112
Hi all,
Posting on behalf of my wife who's not much of a forum person. She's been wanting a EB for a while and finally took the plunge and bought up a '73 that we found on eBay. Wound up dealing with the seller directly, struck a deal and had it shipped from Denver to Orange County. Like all things bought sight unseen, there's always those little surprises when seeing it for the first time. Seller said it was 99% rust free which is mostly is but the reason it's rust free is that someone already did a so-so job of replacing the rusty pieces. It has new floors and new rear quarters and has had some work done behind the front fenders. It looks okay from 10 feet away but after really taking a close look at it it's a little disappointing. I've seen worse go for more than what we paid so I guess it works out in the end.

So we're the 3rd owners - the second owners had started doing some of the resto work. Besides the sheet metal replacement, they also resprayed the interior Ford blue. It's in a state of semi disassembled - guess they called it quits and sold it to the eBay guy. Luckily, it came with a ton of original documentation from the original owner and I was actually able to track him down and talked to him on the phone. He bought it brand new in SLC in '74. He said that the dealer had put a red vinyl top on it and had cut and flared the rear quarters and put on the smoothie chrome wheels. I was pretty surprised to hear that a dealer had cut a Bronco but he said nope, that's how it came from the dealer lot!

Here's some pics of it:

On the transporter
IMG_20160609_132837902_HDR1_zpsj0lzc5wn.jpg


Sitting in the driveway
IMG_7430_zpscqlaaevz.jpg

2e417c91-af78-47be-8b94-d6524be9648e_zpstbx4xw57.jpg

IMG_7406_zps7yppm14t.jpg
 
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NATEandALLI

Jr. Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2016
Messages
112
Took a while to get that first post up there. Had to wait for approval. Will post more about the plans later. Thanks.
 

sprdv1

Contributor
REBEL
Joined
Mar 8, 2007
Messages
81,734
Very nice. Congrats.

That'll be a fun build. Patience, Patience, Patience :)
 

DirtDonk

Contributor
Bronco Guru
Joined
Nov 3, 2003
Messages
47,346
Great start Nate, and welcome (to the both of you) to classicbroncos as well.

Yeah, dealers did a lot of that kind of stuff even back then. Roof racks, cut fenders, air conditioning, roll bars, custom bumpers, etc. Some dealers would do just about anything.
And speaking of modified Broncos, sold through dealers, it wouldn't hurt for you to verify the DSO on the vin tag just in case it turns out to be an unsold Stroppe prepared rig by some happenstance.
Not that this is very likely, but it popped into my head just then and the image of the slight blue tint on the hard top didn't help dispel that.

Have fun with it. And tell Alli it's alright to pop in now and then too. These are family affairs anyway. And if you have young kids, they're going to OWN that Bronco by the tine they're in high-school!

Enjoy

Paul
 
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NATEandALLI

Jr. Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2016
Messages
112
Ok, back again. Been a busy, long week. As far as plans go, we're going to tackle this in stages with the long term end results being a nice looking resto-modded Bronco. I'll talk about the 2nd and 3rd stages now and that'll explain the 1st stage.

I have a '71 Ford F100 2wd short bed pickup truck that's my weekend runner/parts hauler. It was actually Alli's first car back in high school and back then it had a 460 big block and she was the terror of the town. The truck had the nick name "the beast". Fast forward a bunch of years and my father-in-law decided to give it to us since it was mostly sitting at his place. The 460 was pretty tired so he said I had to replace it and so I did. I swapped in a 5.0 HO and AOD trans from a early 90's Mustang. Kept it EFI and all. Runs and drives great but that 220 hp 5.0 is a little weak for my tastes. The 5.0 is coming out and being replaced by a 5.4L supercharged Lightning motor soon. I was originally going to sell the 5.0 and AOD but now that we have the Bronco, I think I know a good place to put it.

I guess I'll let everyone down now - this is definitely going to be a beach cruiser pavement pounder. I doubt it'll ever see dirt and doubt even further that it'll ever see a trail. Can you see where this is going? Yep, going to covert to 2wd. I think initially it'll just be pulling the guts out of the front axle but I kind of envision completely replacing the Dana with a fabricated tube front axle. When the 5.0 and AOD go in, I really don't have to have to mess with trying to adapt it to a transfer case plus we have no plans on ever going wheeling. It'll just be easy to go 2wd.

Another part of stage 2 is replaced the front drums brakes with discs. I'm scouring local parts yards for Chevy donor trucks to get the necessary parts. Stage 3 would be a full frame off resto job. The Bronco has under coating slathered all over the under side of it. I'd like to get the frame and body acid dipped and then powder coat the frame and do al the body work on the body. But that's way down the road.

Stage 1 is to try and get the Bronco sorta drivable with the current 302 and stock brakes. The stock motor starts and runs but has a miss. I do stand alone engine management development professionally and I can't stand messing with old carb stuff - especially on a poor running engine. If it had EFI on it, it'd be fixed already. But alas, it does still start and run so no reason to not try driving on it some before the 5.0 goes in. The big hurdle now is getting the stock brakes working. We're going to pull the hubs and drums off this weekend to see what we're dealing with up front. The rubber brake hoses are all dry rotted and blown out plus the master cylinder has a yucky looking brown sludge in it. The best thing to do would be to replace all the lines and hoses but we'll probably start with the rubber parts first.

At some point we'd like to put some 33's on it and whatever corresponding lift will be needed to fit the tires. Probably 2.5" suspension plus a 1" body lift maybe. One interesting thing now is that the front end is noticeably lower than the back - got a bit of an ass up attitude to it. Were they like this stock? We jacked the front of the frame up about 2" and it leveled it out nicely. I'll post a pic for everyone to see.

So that's the plan. We're open to suggestions. Thanks.
 

okie4570

Contributor
Bronco Guru
Joined
Jul 16, 2012
Messages
9,227
Loc.
NW OK
Congrats and welcome. I to bought a "mutli-white" bronco out of Colorado few years ago. It's 4 shades of white lol. Was originally mallard green, and I've yet to change the white :)
 

DirtDonk

Contributor
Bronco Guru
Joined
Nov 3, 2003
Messages
47,346
I guess I'll let everyone down now - this is definitely going to be a beach cruiser pavement pounder. I doubt it'll ever see dirt and doubt even further that it'll ever see a trail.

Nah. We're used to that by now. No problem from most of us. Frankly, I'd think that a good majority of new owners that can afford to pay current prices and then the cost to fix them up are NOT trying to create a super off-roader any more.
They're cool rigs and get lots of up-thumbing at the local drive-ins and car shows and beaches and coffee shops and ice cream parlors. So that's what a
lot of them get used for pretty much exclusively now.

Can you see where this is going? Yep, going to covert to 2wd. I think initially it'll just be pulling the guts out of the front axle but I kind of envision completely replacing the Dana with a fabricated tube front axle. When the 5.0 and AOD go in, I really don't have to have to mess with trying to adapt it to a transfer case plus we have no plans on ever going wheeling. It'll just be easy to go 2wd.

If you're going to keep the height and attitude of a 4-wheel drive utility vehicle from the 60's, I'm not sure I'd go to the trouble of removing the front axle and fabbing up a specialty one. Yes, it's likely going to be lighter, but it just won't "look" the part anymore.
Seems a lot of trouble for a truck like you want to set up.
I have a friend with a home-built roadster Bronco, but he used a fancy hot-rod chassis with a Bronco half-cab body and it's lowered and looks pretty cool. Just seems to me that if you're going to keep the high truck with big tires look, you'd like to see something under the front.

I could be totally off base on that though. Just haven't seen it done well so don't know what that would take. Maybe yours would be totally cool, so mine is just one opinion.
I'm sure there's someone out there that would love to buy your old front axle.

At some point we'd like to put some 33's on it and whatever corresponding lift will be needed to fit the tires. Probably 2.5" suspension plus a 1" body lift maybe.

The combo you're thinking about is one of the better and more popular setups for an EB used as you plan. However, depending on the 33's and depending on the wheels used, you don't necessarily need any lift to accomplish this. It certainly "helps" and it looks cooler with a little lift, but it's not always needed.

You going to go with narrow tires, or wider? Cut fenders or uncut?

One interesting thing now is that the front end is noticeably lower than the back - got a bit of an ass up attitude to it. Were they like this stock? We jacked the front of the frame up about 2" and it leveled it out nicely.

Yes, they were like that. Sometimes...
It depended on three things. Suspension option, engine and accessory options, and age. By now, who knows how old the springs are, or what has been done to them. But the bottom line is that it's easy to achieve a level look with modern replacement parts.
Most lift kits will level the truck out, but you have to watch out for how it's done. Many of us lift in the rear just slightly less than the front, while others use closer to that two inch variation to achieve a level stance. But as with so many things, it depends on the individual Bronco.

For starters though, you can measure between the top of the axle tubes and the bottom of the frame rails. In stock form, you would see "approximately" 7" in the front and 6" in the back. Anything over that is your lift, anything under is your sag.
Those values are approximate, again, because Broncos varied by package and setup. But it gives you a good well known starting point to work from.

Have fun with the project!

Paul
 
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NATEandALLI

Jr. Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2016
Messages
112
Spent some time on the Bronco this 4th of July weekend. Decided to pull the drivers side front hub/drum off to see what was going on behind there. I also wanted to make sure that I could do it as I've never done it before. It'll be practice for when I find a donor Chevy K10 for disc brakes in a junk yard. It went pretty smoothly. Shoes have lots of life in them. One upper return spring was broken and just fell out upon removing the hub. I think a spring kit and wheel cylinders will take care of the front brakes. Will also need a new master and all new rubber hoses.

We made the Bronco about 10 lbs lighter by spending about half the day scrapping off all the built up grime and gunk that's accumulated over the years. I managed to unearth the front diff ID tag. Looks like we have a 3.54 r&p. Definitely not low enough for 33's. My F100 has 3.70's with 31's and I've always thought that it could use 4.11's. 4.56's are probably too low but the aftermarket 4.33 might work out well. The .67 OD in the AOD will make the low gear freeway friendly.

We're going to Bronco Daze next weekend to spectate. Or perhaps there might be a couple open seats if anyone might be interested in taking some lookie-loos out on the trail. I'm actually from Big Bear and have spent lots of time out on the trails up there. Also, we have some parts for sale in the classifieds. Can deliver to Daze if needed.
 
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NATEandALLI

Jr. Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2016
Messages
112
If you're going to keep the height and attitude of a 4-wheel drive utility vehicle from the 60's, I'm not sure I'd go to the trouble of removing the front axle and fabbing up a specialty one. Yes, it's likely going to be lighter, but it just won't "look" the part anymore.
Seems a lot of trouble for a truck like you want to set up.
I have a friend with a home-built roadster Bronco, but he used a fancy hot-rod chassis with a Bronco half-cab body and it's lowered and looks pretty cool. Just seems to me that if you're going to keep the high truck with big tires look, you'd like to see something under the front.

I could be totally off base on that though. Just haven't seen it done well so don't know what that would take. Maybe yours would be totally cool, so mine is just one opinion.
I'm sure there's someone out there that would love to buy your old front axle.

I'd do it one of two ways. First is either fab up a front end using Dana 44 ends with the 44 knuckles/hubs/etc. It'd look like a 4x4 front axle without the center housing. Would use all the stock pick up points. Or do a fabbed up axle with king pins and use F100 spindles. Either way of doing it is more expensive than just pulling the front driveshaft out and leaving it exactly as it is. Might never happen - just wishful thinking right now.

The combo you're thinking about is one of the better and more popular setups for an EB used as you plan. However, depending on the 33's and depending on the wheels used, you don't necessarily need any lift to accomplish this. It certainly "helps" and it looks cooler with a little lift, but it's not always needed.

You going to go with narrow tires, or wider? Cut fenders or uncut?

Tires would be 33x10.50's. I've always liked the narrower 33's. The Bronco is already cut in the rear and it had some very original condition fiberglass flares partially installed (two screws on each side) when it arrived. The long term plan would be to graft in the front fender opening into the rear quarters. I really like that look - think it looks super clean and like they should have come that way from the factory. But that's way down the road. Based on the looking around that I've done, I think we can pull 33's off with a front openings grafted onto the back. Also planning on not cutting the front. Hopefully 2.5" suspension lift and 1" body will allow for 33's.

For starters though, you can measure between the top of the axle tubes and the bottom of the frame rails. In stock form, you would see "approximately" 7" in the front and 6" in the back. Anything over that is your lift, anything under is your sag.
Those values are approximate, again, because Broncos varied by package and setup. But it gives you a good well known starting point to work from.

Measured the driver side front while I was checking the brakes. 6.25". The drivers front has a pretty good sag in it and the truck has a pretty good lean to it. New springs are definitely in order.

Thanks for all the help Paul.
 
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NATEandALLI

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Jun 25, 2016
Messages
112
Ok, quick question. There are two rubber lines coming off the top of the front diff where the front brake hard lines connect. I take it one is the center brake line and the other is the diff vent? Can someone please confirm?
 

Attac

Contributor
Sr. Member
Joined
Jun 29, 2015
Messages
865
Ok, quick question. There are two rubber lines coming off the top of the front diff where the front brake hard lines connect. I take it one is the center brake line and the other is the diff vent? Can someone please confirm?

Yes. The t block where the brake lines route to each front wheel and where the main brake line all hook together are usually attached to a bracket that is held in place by the diff vent. If you look at the top of the pumpkin you can see the bracket and lines but the diff vent hose is missing in this pic
 

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NATEandALLI

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Jun 25, 2016
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112
Thanks for confirming Attac. Everything is slathered in 40+ years of road grime so it's kinda hard to see what's going on under there.

Another quick question. This Bronco is a '73. It has power steering but it has a T shifter. I thought '72 was the last year of the T shifter and that a '73 should have a J shifter. Was '73 a transition year where it might have either a T or J shifter? Or is the wrong shifter in the truck?
 

Casey4wd

Sr. Member
Joined
Apr 30, 2015
Messages
560
Loc.
Austin, Texas
It is possible. Mine has a T shift and is a 73 with power steering. There is a thread with a bunch of options that occurred between 72 and 73.
 

sykanr0ng

Bronco Guru
Joined
Aug 11, 2014
Messages
5,363
Thanks for confirming Attac. Everything is slathered in 40+ years of road grime so it's kinda hard to see what's going on under there.

Another quick question. This Bronco is a '73. It has power steering but it has a T shifter. I thought '72 was the last year of the T shifter and that a '73 should have a J shifter. Was '73 a transition year where it might have either a T or J shifter? Or is the wrong shifter in the truck?

The change was in early 1973
There also were transitional Dana 20 cases made with some parts from the T shift and some from the J shift.

Serial ranges (Thanks to Viperwolf1):
 

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DirtDonk

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Nov 3, 2003
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Yeah, by all means pop over to Viperwolf's "Mind Your P's and Q's" thread (http://classicbroncos.com/forums/showthread.php?t=221155) and post up your information. We're tracking just those types of changes and narrowing down when in production they happened, and which vehicles got the crossover parts.
If yours is mostly original, mention too what's under the hood. Such as return type fuel line, EGR valve, cold-air intake, etc.

Things like dash indicator lights are part of that change, and we'd be real curious if your T-shift was attached to a manual trans instead of an automatic.
Fun stuff.
If you still have your door decal, what month does it state yours was built in? And was it a CA truck, or FED truck?

Paul
 
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NATEandALLI

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Jun 25, 2016
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Posted in the p's and q's thread. My minds a little blown right now. Not really that big a deal but still, mind blown.
 
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