Coco's Mods: Recessed fuel cap & filler neck, P. 14

[Dusty]

Sounds good to go then. Tech is under control, and roger on staying out of the extreme heat.
It's just so fun to be out in the thick of it sometimes though!

Full trip reports expected as always! ;D
By the way, are there any old threads on the basic buildup and engine & mods and such?

Thanks

Paul

Not really. This one was never really intended to be very cool. It just sort of evolved into it over time. I originally put it together just to have something to wheel while my trail rig was in pieces (whch it still is LOL). So I had this old '71 Bronco sitting in the back, and I just did the bare minimum to it to get it running and driveable. Well one thing led to another and it slowly started getting upgrades. I wanted more power so it got the 5.8. I hated the 3-speed so it got the C4. I wanted to beef up the drivetrain and a wider stance so it got the full width D44 and 9. But it wasn't until later on that I started developing a plan for it, until then it was just bolt on whatever I needed to address whatever my concern was at the time. The result is I never really thought about or took care of cosmetics or creature comforts. So while it evolved into a fairly capable rig mechanically, it always looked like hell. 8 different colors from all the rigs it was pieced together from, cancer here and there, the ghosts of previous owners mistakes still evident in places. But a few years ago I started getting a little more focus about what I wanted to do with it, and it became more of a project build than a temporary measure. So I've been trying to be a little more careful and deliberate with it in the last few years, with an end goal in mind. I hope to finally get to the cosmetic stage this summer and actually get everything painted one color LOL...

Anyhow, no there is no real build thread for it. It would be a pretty laughable build thread though, since most of its existence was so haphazard rather than a deliberate, high quality build like so many of the awesome build threads on this site. But I do have photos of some of the earlier work I've done to it, I may throw some of those up in this thread some time.

Thanks for asking about it

 

[Dusty]

Getting ready for the Big Bear Bronco Bash and I was having a hard time getting all my crap tied down so I had time for one more addition to the cage. I drew up these "Tie-Down Gussets" and had them cut out on the laser at work. Added them to the foot plates at the back and at the B-pillars and now I have a place to hook some straps.

 

[Dusty]

The last big thing I wanted to get done before BBBBB was to get a rear bumper on it. I needed some attachment points back there because we sometimes get a Jeep or two on the trail with us and those usually need a yank . anyhow I only had a day to bang it out so I made a very simple pre-runner style bumper very similar to the one I built for the front a while back. The tow points are strong but I thing the ends need more bracing so Ill just try not to back them into a rock until I can finish it up

 

[blazinchuck]

Getting ready for the Big Bear Bronco Bash and I was having a hard time getting all my crap tied down so I had time for one more addition to the cage. I drew up these "Tie-Down Gussets" and had them cut out on the laser at work. Added them to the foot plates at the back and at the B-pillars and now I have a place to hook some straps.

those are killa! i want some!!;D

 

[Dusty]

those are killa! i want some!!;D

Chuck how many do you need? I had a couple extras cut out.

 

[MarkH@Wildhorse]

I like those tie downs! I always welded old Driveshaft u bolts... a bracket looks nicer.
Fill your trailer, come to Rubicon.

 

[Dusty]

Coco's Mods: Tie-Down Gussets & Rear Bumper (p.5)

Chuck 4 of those tie-down gussets are on their way to you

 

[blazinchuck]

Chuck 4 of those tie-down gussets are on their way to you

you Da Bomb;D

 

[Dusty]

Couple pix of Coco from Big Bear Bronco Bash this weekend...

Steffie driving, on Holcomb Creek...


Exiting the rock garden at the lower end of Holcomb Creek...


Overlooking Big Bear Lake, from Gold Mountain Trail.


Built Ford Tough!

 

[broncoitis]

The panels came out nice and clean for sure and that light bar really puts out some light. Not so noticeable in the first pic but the one with the telephone poles really tells the story.

Saw the pics posted of BBBB and looks like it was a blast!

Cage is looks great! Keep the updates coming. ;D

 

[Dusty]

Well I hadn't touched Coco much at all since coming back from Pismo in July. This weekend I finally had a chance to finish a couple of little projects on it. First thing I did was replaced the worn out F150 tie rod and drag link with a BC Broncos heim steering setup. I'd had this sitting on my shelf for years, finally got around to using it.









Next thing I had to do was replace one of my fuel lines, which had turned into a soaker hose:



Some have said this was due to the new fuel forumlations. Who knows. That hose held up a good 10 years though, so I can't complain too much I suppose. Anyhow I figured I'd just make a new one so I went rifling through my hose box...



Turns out I had one already made up that fit just right. 10 minutes, problem solved

 

[Dusty]

Next thing I did was finish up the install of a new Buckaroo hood from Wild Horses 4X4. I had actually hung the hood on the hinges a few weeks back, but hadn't gotten around to installing the hood pins and gas springs (hood shocks) until this weekend.



Both the pins and the hood shocks would be a bit of a challenge since I don't have the stock inner fender and core support that the supplied brackets are made to bolt to. In both cases I had to do some fabrication. I started with the hood pins.



I know this is elementary for many on here, but I figured I'd post some photos of the step-by-step process for anyone who's never done a set of these and wants to see what it takes. Disclaimer: I'm a sloppy mechanic and my work isn't the best looking LOL...anyhow, start out by figuring out where you want to place the urethane grommets for the hood pins. On a Bronco with a stock core support, a natural place to mount the pins is where the hood bumpers mount on that little triangular piece at the corner of the core support and inner fender. I don't have that so would have to fabricate my own pin mount. That left me some lee-way on where to locate it but I still needed it to be in a good spot to fabricate a simple bracket to mount the pin to my tubular core support. With no inner fenders and a tubular core support its easy to poke your head inside the fender to see up in there to take measurements and mark things, with the hood closed. So for me the first step was to mark where I wanted the pin to come through, and drill a small pilot hole.



Follow that with the correct size hole saw for the urethane grommet.



Drop the grommet in, then drill for the supplied stainless steel button head screws, using the grommet itself as the drill guide.



Install the hardware and voila. I did find out that the stainless steel button heads supplied with the hood pin kit are just a tad too short for use on the Wild Horses fiberglass hood. There's an extra layer of reinforcing fiberglass on the underside so its pretty thick there. The hardware supplied is probably intended for use with sheet metal and thinner fiberglass racing skin style hoods.



Next to mount the pins underneath...

 

[Dusty]

I'm actually doing this backwards from what many of you would do. Like I said if you have the stock core support and can mount the pins where the hood bumpers were, you'd install those first, and let that dictate where the holes need to be in the hood for the grommets. But I'm doing it the other way around because I had a little leeway on the placement of the pins, so I installed the grommets first then made brackets underneath to hold the pins where they needed to be in order to match the grommet placement.

Anyhow, again this may be 101 for most on here but I thought I'd take some photos and show the steps for anyone who's never tackled a simple fabrication project. Some of these tips may be useful for other projects where a bracket or tab is needed, not just specifically for hood pins. Again my disclaimer: I'm not the best mechanic or fabricator, many on here can do a much nicer job. Especially when we get to the welding---let's face it my welds suck. But anyhow for anyone interested, here are the steps I usually take for a simple fabrication job like this.

The first thing I usually do is make a cardboard template. I like to use manila file folders because they're stiff enough to hold their shape but thin enough to easily cut. I took some very raw measurements underneath where the hood pin needed to mount, drew it out on the folder and cut it out. I left everything a little too long so I could do some further trimming later.



Using cardboard you can bend it the same as you intend to bend the final sheet metal piece.



Up under the hood, I placed the hood pin through the hole in the cardboard bracket to see how everything fits up. Looks like the flanges are a little long and need some trimming...



Using a Sharpie you can mark it right in place.



A little more trimming with the scissors and we're just about close enough.



Once the cardboard template is how we want it, trace it on to the sheet metal. In this case I'm using 1/8" plate.



I like to use a pneumatic cut-off tool. An electric 4" angle grinder with cut-off blade works as well. If you have access to a metal bandsaw that's a great tool for cutting out brackets like this.



I don't have a brake at the house for making nice bends, so I use the cut-off tool to score the sheetmetal on the inside of the bend.



Before bending the flanges I drilled out the hole for the pin. Its easier to clamp the piece down for drilling while its still flat.



I have an assortment of aluminum and steel blocks that I can use as anvils when shaping metal. This small aluminum block was just right for this job. I simply clamped the piece over it, with the scored bend-lines down, along the edges of the block, then used a hammer to tap the flanges down into place.



Now test-fit the metal bracket in place, to see if it fit as well as the cardboard template did...



After a little more fitting, bending and trimming, I finally had both sides just right, then burned them in.



Pay no mind to the ragged remnants of the old hood pin mounts I had cut off, from my old hood. I'll smooth those out later LOL...

 

[Dusty]

Last thing to do was install the hood shocks. Again my lack of inner fenders put me at a disadvantage, as the kit comes with some really easy to bolt-on brackets to attach the lower end of the hood shocks to your inner fender.



So once again I turned to the cut-off wheel, grinders and welder and made my own. I won't bore you with the step-by-step this time. But the finished product works great! Again, no laughing at my shitty welds LOL...(those are just tacked in place for now anyhow, until I can pull that piece out to get a better angle on it with the mig gun)







And while I was working on the Bronco, Pink was in the back yard working on the spa cover. Looks like her handiwork is almost as nice as mine.

 

[broncobsession]

Looks awesome! I would strangle the dog.

 

[u10072]

Great build Dusty -- on of my favorites! How do you like the full width action? What did you do about the rear radius arm mounts? If I go full width I hate the thought of changing the axles mounting points-- even in the rear. I've fit a narrowed 79 Dana 44 housing under my Victoria project but have thought about using my 75 f150 44 under my halfcab project in the future. Would love to know your thoughts on how you like yours so far. Using the WCB fenders would be great!

 

[INPHOBIC]

Can't believe I had missed this thread! Bronco is awesome. Love the SoCal look.
But Mainly that rock slide for the pool is way too cool.
Kepp at it. Then come help me finish mine!

 

[Dusty]

Looks awesome! I would strangle the dog.

I want to strangle her but she's just too damn cute.

 

[Dusty]

Great build Dusty -- on of my favorites! How do you like the full width action? What did you do about the rear radius arm mounts? If I go full width I hate the thought of changing the axles mounting points-- even in the rear. I've fit a narrowed 79 Dana 44 housing under my Victoria project but have thought about using my 75 f150 44 under my halfcab project in the future. Would love to know your thoughts on how you like yours so far. Using the WCB fenders would be great!

I love full width. Its so stable off-road. And with the backspacing of the wheels I'm using its just right and is a perfect fit with the WCB fenders. Not sure what you mean about the rear radius arm mounts. They're WCB +12" arms, so the pivot mounts are located on the frame same as if it were standard width axles. If you have a 75 D44 you're money ahead. That one has the welded-on C-bushing wedges which you can simply grind off then re-weld on in the correct location. On mine I have a 78/79 D44, with the cast wedges that can't be moved. I moved the coil buckets outboard on the frame a little instead. More work.

 

[Dusty]

Can't believe I had missed this thread! Bronco is awesome. Love the SoCal look.
But Mainly that rock slide for the pool is way too cool.
Kepp at it. Then come help me finish mine!

Yeah the pool comes in handy when its 110 degrees and you're working on the Bronco and need to cool off quickly.