Pistola... West Texas Bronco Buildup

[akb3]

I appreciate it guys. Comments like those keep me going. I've tried to take my time to take special care in fitting everything perfectly. I hope everything works once it's time to turn the key. I'll need all the help I can get when I break out the Centech harness. Dreading it. I'm definitely not an electrician.

 

[akb3]

What aftermarket steering wheel do you guys recommend for the stock column? I need to go ahead and get one.

 

[akb3]

Got my wheels in finally. Had a guy refinish a set that I found locally. These should look good with a set of km2's.

 

[akb3]

Got my lower steering shaft put in this afternoon. It's the telescoping shaft from BC. Nice product. I have the 4x4x2 box and had to cut about 5 inches off the larger shaft to make things fit correctly. Very beefy. Overkill for my purposes, but it looks cool.

 

[akb3]

I'm putting on 1/2" spacers and need to replace my wheel studs with some that are 1/2" longer. I searched the threads with minimal success. Does anyone have a part number I can have for the wheel studs I'm looking for? Dana 44 disk / Ford 9". How much stuff will I have to take apart to get to the point of getting them off? If I get the caliper off will I be able to get out the wheel studs? Any advice is more than welcome. I need to get this done as soon as possible. Thanks!

 

[akb3]

Well I ordered longer wheel studs from Summit which are not here yet. I also tried a 1/4" wheel spacer, instead of the 1/2 inchers I have to see what that would be like and it fit perfect.

Got my fuel selector in. Pretty simple. I went ahead and mounted it right side up since I had a clean slate to work with. I still need to tweak it, because it's just not parallel with the deck yet.

Got my power brake setup on (except for the hard lines to the proportioning valve. Napa sells these new poly hard lines that you can hand bend and flare. Just as tough as steel they say. I'm waiting for them to come in. They are a nice gun metal color.

Still procrastinating on the Centech harness. I guess I should just start it.

 

[dave67fd]

Keith, I have to commend you on your attention to detail. Great job your doing with your "child".

 

[englewoodcowboy]

Dive into that harness... with as much attention to detail as you have been putting into everything else, I do not see you having any troubles with the wiring at all.

 

[akb3]

Dive into that harness... with as much attention to detail as you have been putting into everything else, I do not see you having any troubles with the wiring at all.

I went and got my installation instructions to go over. You got me all fired up about this now. I'm wondering how long it takes to get one installed for the average person. I've got a couple of issues though. A one wire alternator and 1 wire distributor. Hopefully those things will be covered. I'm probably on the lower end of the knowledgeable scale when it comes to this though.

 

[markperry]

Keith, I had never attempted to rewire anything but maybe a car stereo much less a Bronco. The whole thing took me the better part of a weekend to finish and I believe the one thing that didn't work when I was done was the cigar lighter.

Their is instructions on the single wire distributor ie: HEI and believe they don't recommend the single wire alternator but they do tell you how to do it, and if not their are many more than qualified people here that will help!

 

[FRANKO289]

Hey Keith .... great work & thanks for the pics !!!

about the wiring , its not that bad .... It's So Simple a Caveman Can Do It !!!

 

[akb3]

Keith, I had never attempted to rewire anything but maybe a car stereo much less a Bronco. The whole thing took me the better part of a weekend to finish and I believe the one thing that didn't work when I was done was the cigar lighter.

Their is instructions on the single wire distributor ie: HEI and believe they don't recommend the single wire alternator but they do tell you how to do it, and if not their are many more than qualified people here that will help!

I guess I'll find out why they don't recommend a 1 wire alternator. I also guess I better save all the other wire that is needed for a standard alternator in case I need to switch.

 

[akb3]

Hey Keith .... great work & thanks for the pics !!!

about the wiring , its not that bad .... It's So Simple a Caveman Can Do It !!!

I hope you're right!

 

[englewoodcowboy]

I have never been a fan of the one wire... never bought one already made but had a few converted over the years and they always failed at the worst times, biggest issue was a ready available replacement. Spent an evening studying a stock wire diagram on a late model and saw that the exciter circuit (second wire on stock) was simple to hook up and it gave you a dummy ligt on the dash to know when it was charging or not. Been running off the shelf alts ever since and I can always find a ready replacement in a pinch.

 

[akb3]

I have never been a fan of the one wire... never bought one already made but had a few converted over the years and they always failed at the worst times, biggest issue was a ready available replacement. Spent an evening studying a stock wire diagram on a late model and saw that the exciter circuit (second wire on stock) was simple to hook up and it gave you a dummy ligt on the dash to know when it was charging or not. Been running off the shelf alts ever since and I can always find a ready replacement in a pinch.

Point taken. However, the alt is already installed and I might as well give it a shot. I think the down side of the 1 wire alt's is some of them don't start charging until the rpm's get up around 3K right? I've got a 60 amp 1 wire from CarQuest. Wondering how all this is going to work out. Hopefully I won't regret it.

 

[akb3]

Well here's my latest "fix" to one of my problems I created a while back. I cut off my stock shifter arm and replaced it with the Lokar one instead causing me not to be able to reuse a stock neutral safety switch. After searching and searching, I have had to fabricated an aluminum bracket to fasten to the stock neutral safety switch location. A microswitch will attach to the bracket and be activated while in the Park position only. So I'll only be able to start the Bronco while it's in Park. Not the ideal thing, but better than no safety measure at all. Anyone see any downfalls to this other than not being able to start in neutral? After hearing the words of NGABronco echoeing through my head about safety, I knew I had to think of a solution. And he is certainly right of it's importance. Hopefully this will still give Pistola a cool look and some added safety when cranking. By the way, Lokar has no fix for this problem. I could've welded the arm back on, but it would've cut down on the custom look I'm going for. Update --- I can't get the damn aluminum to quit cracking out on me. This bracket is going to drive me nuts. Pics of it may be coming later than sooner. 2 steps forward, 1 step back.

 

[stock1970]

quick question. what is the specs on your rims.. offset and are they 15s.. just curious if it would be better to get less offset to avoid need for spacers and longer studs.

 

[akb3]

quick question. what is the specs on your rims.. offset and are they 15s.. just curious if it would be better to get less offset to avoid need for spacers and longer studs.

I think that less offset would be better, although to get the stock 10 holes to fit without rubbing my aftermarket tie rod, I had to space out 1/4". Although 1/4" is not much at all when you're talking wheel spacers. If you're diligent in keeping an eye on the torque on the lug nuts then you shouldn't have problems.

 

[akb3]

Slowly but surely I trudge forward. Got my tires in yesterday. Got them mounted this morning. I really like the old school look. Got the microswitch mounted to my transmission for a "Park Safety Switch". Got my headers and Derale Power Steering cooler in.

I'm still looking for the right wheel stud in order to clear the wheel weights / tie rod. For all you gurus out there. I know that Bronco disk hubs are set up for .625" diameter knurl. Would it be possible to go with .618" or some other size in order to get a longer wheel stud. The problem is, is that I'm going to have to run a 1/2" spacer and need at least 2.5-3" stud. Is it smarter to just find a larger diameter knurl stud that's the correct length and have my hubs drilled to that spec? Please help. I really want to put these wheels on. Thanks.

 

[Izzy]

Looking great!!! Those the BCB headers? I got mine today as well. Looks like everyone that was waiting is receiving them after his latest shipment. There sure are purty huh?