What about using Ford 1 ton tie rod ends?

[sykanr0ng]

Trying to keep my Bronco all Ford.

Is there a Ford heavy duty tie rod end that could work in place of the 1 ton Ch**y?

I read of a guy that was having a co-worker give him grief about his "Ch**y Bronco" because he used a Ch**y heater blower motor for the heater upgrade; a'92 F250 blower motor is said to work which got me thinking that maybe other parts don't need to be non-Ford.

 

[needabronco]

First off, neither Ford or Chevy makes any of the parts you've mentioned%). Originally they were Dana/Spicer parts spec'd for particular applications. Ford, Chevy, and even Dodge use many of the exact same Dana/Spicer parts during manufacturing.

The so called 'Chevy' tie rod conversion is only 'Chevy' because you use part numbers that are easily referenced as a 'Chevy' 1 ton front end.... Same thing with a blower motor.

 

[surfer-b]

You can use the Ford 78/79 F150/Bronco TRE's, here are a few pics for comparison. the 1st is a F150 which is 2.125" and the 2nd is what everybody refers to the Chevy 1 ton which is 2.039", both have the 7/8" threads and will work with the dana 44 knuckles unless you have the 76/77 Bronco knuckles which may not allow enough room for the Ford TRE's to clear the wheel

 

[Rustytruck]

Check with BC Broncos they use to cut down the Ford truck steering linkage for the Bronco Dana 44.

 

[bigjhoov]

Check with BC Broncos they use to cut down the Ford truck steering linkage for the Bronco Dana 44.

I don't think they do this any more. Something about the components being made overseas now.

I've seen a set up that used some f350 rod ends. It wasn't as clean a set up as the Chevy stuff in my.opinion.

 

[WILDHORSES]

Here's our version. No Chevy here;D.

Large 1 ton type ends are used for this set up. It fits 78-79 Bronco and F150 knuckles when being used on a EB Dana 44.

http://www.wildhorses4x4.com/product/Tie_Rod_for_F150_Knuckles_Two_Way_Adjustable

 

[DirtDonk]

To add to what was said, and highlight a couple of slight advantages of doing it this way:

1. Having double adjusters with short ends, where the tapered draglink hole is in the much stronger tie-rod (rather than the smaller rod-end), allows you to run this setup TRU or TRO without having to reverse taper the hole. Not a huge deal, but one less thing to worry about.

2. That same centerlink location for the hole keeps the draglink at the stock length. While a longer draglink can in itself be an advantage, you can't really take full advantage of that extra length while the trackbar remains stock length. Saving you from extra fabrication to make it 100%
This equal length feature plays a part in proper street manners in that same "keep them parallel" equation.

3. Eliminates weakest link of the "1-ton" setup. That necking down of the passenger side rod end and putting all the force of the draglink right there creates stress point that bends quite often under heavy use.
This is not usually much of an issue if you don't use your vehicle very hard or don't have very large tires, but it's a weak link in the armor nonetheless. Can't say I've ever seen one break, but they do bend right there and change the toe-in.
After all, in the GM application that tapered hole was never meant for a draglink. Instead, it was the original mounting point for the steering stabilizer shock.

How's that for tag-teaming?

Paul