This is my write up for the Stone Crusher steering system. This system replaces the inferior stock tie rod and drag link set up with with stronger components that can handle the modern uses of our modified Broncos…especially for those who are running and using larger tires. The kit does not include any tools. However, most people will have all of the needed tools to complete the install already in their garage. If not, they can be easily obtained at almost any hardware store. The kit gives the specifics of the install by providing instructions for various configurations. It also tells you how to do a rough alignment. If there are any specific questions, contact the manufacturer to meet your needs. I found them to be quite helpful and willing to respond in a timely manner.

After reading the instructions, becoming familiar with the parts and getting a firm understanding of what will be required for the install, you are ready for the install. The next step is to secure the vehicle from rolling and to dismantle the older components. I did this by chocking the rear tires and implementing the parking brake.

With the vehicle safely secured, I was then able to loosen the lugs on the front tires. Later the front end will be lifted to make access easier to the spindles. I then broke the tie rods by using a tie rod fork and some WD-40. My drag link simply separated from the pitman arm once the bolts were loosened. Once this was done, I jacked up the front end, removed the front set of tires, and set it back down on a pair of jack stands. I then removed the tie rods and the drag link from the vehicle.

With the vehicle ready to accept the new components, it was time to assemble the kit and get it ready for assembly. The kit is high quality. The new rods are beefy and come powder coated for long lasting protection. Cadmium plated heims joints and grade 8 hardware along with washers and bushings round out the kit. An extra set of heims joints are also included in case a repair needs to be made on the trail.

When you compare the old with the new it’s easy to see the difference. The old components are worn out and are the cause for sloppy and even possibly dangerous steering.

Before you can actually start to bolt the kit up, the pitman arm and spindle holes need to be enlarged with a 3/4″ drill bit. The holes are originally tapered, but need to be straightened out to accept the new bolts.I pulled my pitman arm and drilled it out on a drill press. However, all of the drilling can be done on the vehicle. Just take your time and remember to use low RPM’s and lots of cuttig oil.

After the drilling was done I cleaned it up by using a Dremel tool and a polishing stone. I wanted to make sure the area was smooth and free of any burrs.

Since the kit comes with instructions explaining how to assemble it either in the stock position or in the tie rod over position to give you more clearance on the trail, I won’t go into specifics on bolting it up and how or where bushings and etc. need to be placed.

With the linkage in place I drilled an 1/8″ hole through the retaining nuts and bolts to slip a cotter pin in place to keep everything locked together. The kit doesn’t include them, but I also bought some grade 8 split washers for added security.

The entire install took me about four hours with the largest time consuming part being the drilling. However, the kit was relatively easy to put on and looks great.

Tech article by Duncan (Cougar)

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However, those same tires that wore your arms out before you put in power steering, now tend to wear out your power steering pump. It has been documented by quite a few Bronco owners (myself included) that stock Ford pumps do very poorly when asked to tackle 33″ or larger tires. The average lifetime for a stock pump ranges anywhere from 1 week to 1 year (depending on tire size, driving style, etc.) but always seem to go out in a very noisy and inconvenient fashion. One solution to this problem is to go with the Ford heavy duty style pump. Aside from being fairly expensive, this route has still resulted in some premature pump deaths. Another more popular solution is to convert over to the Saginaw, or “canned ham” style pump. This pump seems to take the torture better and I’ve heard few stories of dead Saginaw pumps. (My Saginaw pump out of a junk yard has lasted quite a bit longer than both of the “new” Ford pumps I had on previously)

The donor vehicle I found for my pump and bracket was a 1978 Country Squire station wagon with a 351 M engine. I took both the pump bracket (aluminum bracket that bolts directly to the pump) and the engine bracket (steel bracket that the pump bracket bolts to and usually pivots off of) but ultimately I only used the pump bracket on the vehicle. These are the two pump brackets. The one on the left is the stock Bronco bracket compared to the Saginaw bracket on the right.

Both the stock Bronco system and the 351M Saginaw system use very similar mounting methods. So similar in fact that I was convinced I had found the perfect bolt up until I got home and could compare the two brackets side by side. Both use a pivot bolt that slips through the pump bracket into the head and an adjusting bolt that keeps the pump from pivoting once the belt is tight.

The only thing keeping the 351M pump bracket from bolting directly up to the stock Bronco engine bracket was the distance between the pivot hole and the adjustment arc. By simply using the 351M engine bracket as a template for the correct position and length of the curved slot I spent 15 minutes with a die grinder and cut a new adjustment slot in the Bronco engine bracket. In the photo to the left the bottom slot is factory cut for the stock pump bracket. The top slot is the new adjustment slot needed to mount the 351M pump bracket. Notice the very small portion of metal left between the two slots. The lower slot was later filled in with a welder to increase strength of the bracket.

This was the finished system before being mounted in the truck. The only thing left was some minor shimming to align the Saginaw pulley with the crank pulley. By putting various size washers between the brackets and the head the pump should align easily. Because the fittings on a Saginaw pump are a little different from the stock Bronco pump, some fittings or line extensions must also be made up. The Saginaw pump I used (and these will vary between models) had a 3/8″ male flared fitting at the pressure side instead of the 3/8″ female flare on the stock Bronco pump. This was a simple fix using a short length of hard brake line with 3/8″ female flared fittings on both ends to connect the pressure hose and the pump. An added advantage to this was that I could bend the hard line close to the body of the Saginaw pump so that it cleared spark plug wires and the dipstick. Other Saginaw pumps may have different fittings, but special fittings or hoses can be made to connect almost any size flared fitting.

See below for photos of the bracket and PS system installed.

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After installing the 89 Crown Vic engine, I had been wanting to upgrade the stock plastic power steering pump to the Saginaw style to help turn the 36″ Swampers. What I quickly realized was nobody had a quick and easy solution to fit that sag pump on a non-HO engine. For those of us running the speed density 5.0 with the ps and alternator on the drivers side (see engine pic), here is the solution to fit a sag pump in there.

After locating and grabbing a few sag pumps, I realized they had a wide variety of tanks used for different applications. The tank in the photos is from a late 80’s Volvo wagon that also had a York AC pump mounted to the bracket. I spent some time over the weekend fitting the pump to the stock Crown Vic ps bracket and found the Volvo tank is clocked a bit more to the drivers side than the one I pulled from an Econoline van and allowed less grinding of the bracket.

The pics I have seen of the NAPA version with the round can looks like a great solution as well and may even require less grinding. All I needed to do was hog out the two lower holes holes a bit (Green on Photo 1) and grind some of the casting webs on the bracket (indicated in red). On the pump, a small bit of casting around the upper right mounting hole needed to be removed (Red circle in photo 1). The the lower hole also required a spacer as the sag pump mounting face is not flat like the stock c2 style pumps. I made one by grinding a square nut and placing it between the pump and bracket. I’ll also need a slightly longer belt as well due to the pump mounting slightly off center in the bracket compared to the stock pump.

Took me about a half an hour of grinding and fitting for this mod. This is also a great time to add in the dual return for the hydroboost on the pump tank while you’ve got things apart.

Tech article by eds66bronco

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