another C-bushing Q w/ Cage arms

[Rockrawl]

Hey everybody,
I finally got my CAGE arms on that I bought with the mass buy deal. When I did it I moved the axle 3" forward. I was actually shooting for 2", but somehow ended up with 3 and it fits fine ;D I'm going to need to trim the inner fender but that's alright. For those that are interested, I moved the track bar bracket on the frame 1" forward, used the WH track bar riser on the axle, and moved the lower coil buckets back 1". So far it looks like this worked out pretty well. The passenger side especially has very little lean on the coil. The driver side has the upper coil tower welded on further back than the passenger side so it has a little more lean, but I think it'll be alright. I do have a couple problems to solve that I'd appreciate some adive on:

With the Cage arms and 4 degree caster bushings my pinion angle is essentially parallel to the ground. This gives a pretty steep angle even at ride height. Any suggestions on what bushing I should use? Can I turn the 4 degrees over or will that be too much? I have a set of 4's and 7's but I have a feeling you guys are going to say use a 2. What do you think?

My other problem is it looks like with much droop below ride height that the CV joint on the t-case side of the front driveshaft will bind. I need to get my front driveshaft lengthened anyway, so what should I do about the CV? I haven't looked at this closely yet but it seems like a single joint at each end may work better? Would I have to change the t-case yoke to do this? I haven't looked into this very hard yet but a push in the right direction would be much appreciated if anybody has some experience/ideas on this.

Thanks guys,

 

[TJK74]

Yep the correct thing to do would be to go with 2 degree bushing and see how it looks. If that doesnt do it then flip the 2 degree bushing back wards and you should be good. as far as the bind goes yes you will most likely have bind at less than full droop and will need to get a high angle CV or have your current one clearanced then you should be good. Dont ask me how I know all of this!!!;D ;D ;D Lets just say after deal with my CAGE arms I know changing C-bushing like the back of my hand

 

[Skuzzlebutt]

If you drive on the street caster is more important than pinion angle. Improving one of these will make the other worse, unless you're going to rotate the knuckles.

 

[ROKDWLR]

I'll be installing Cage arms 3" forward this weekend. When ordering Jim Cole asked what the rig was used for. When I told him trails more than highway he suggested 2 degree with my 4 1/2" lift for a better pinion angle but to expect it to be a little darty (is that a word?) on the HWY.

 

[Rockrawl]

Thanks guys, looks like I'll be going with the 2 degree. It drives excellent right now with the 4 degree but the pinion angle looks really bad; even when you just bounce on the suspension it goes below level! I guess now I'll have a full complement of caster bushings....yipee, just what I need
Hey Rokdwlr, I'd be interested in hearing how your install goes if you have a chance.

 

[ROKDWLR]

Hey Rokdwlr, I'd be interested in hearing how your install goes if you have a chance.

Will do. Did you get the old style frame mounts or the new heavy duty ones? They sent me the new ones and it looks like the frame and brackets will need some grinding to fit over the frame.

 

[Madgyver]

Rockrawl,
Does it look like your front crossmember will have any clearance issues with the Dana44?

Do you have any pics?

I plan to do the same relocation of the front axle with a smaller lift for a lower CG. More droop than compression on the suspension.

 

[Rockrawl]

Just got home today and my new WH shocks arrived! So hopefully I'll get a chance to put those on tomorrow. I'll try to get some pics then. The cross member looks like it will be fine though. As does the track bar (in its new location) and the diff and pitman arm.

The frame brackets that I got did require some mild grinding on the frame to clean up the boogery factory welds. The nice parts was that the fit was so tight that I didn't have to clamp or tack them in place during the install. Minor forward and back adjustments were made with a BFH until everything was right

 

[Rockrawl]

Here's some pictures of the bronco! Its still a work in progress but it has come a long way. Wheelbase went from 90 3/4" to 94". I wonder if the stock RAs were pulling the axle back some because it doesn't look as far forward as some of the ones on here...what do you guys think? Anyway, the only tight clearance I see is between the track bar and the front sump of the oil pan. It has about 2 1/2 inches so it may be alright; I think I'm just going to keep a close eye on it and see. Everything else looks like it can't be hit before the springs are fully compressed. Hope that helps.

side shot
another side shot
track bar to diff and crossmember
track bar to front oil sump
Comments are welcome

 

[Rockrawl]

I just did a quick search and learned that stock wheelbase is 92". I guess I'm just 2" over stock...I wonder why I started at 90 3/4"??? I really doubt a measurment error given how many times we checked it but I'm not sure why else it would be so short....

 

[ROKDWLR]

Your truck looks great. The front axle does look farther forward but in the second picture it looks like your rear is forward too. Maybe it's the angle of the picture or the way the flares are mounted?
I had the same issue you mentioned with my rear axle. The first time I moved it back 5 1/2" and did a shackle flip. My wheelbase was only 96" and I confirmed 92" before the move. I still don't know why.