Suspension lift install guidance

[trophybass]

?:? Ok here i go. This weekend i plan on installing a 3.5" susp. lift. I bought the lift newish(only on truck a couple of months). So i need to know the ins and outs of installing this thing. I have no instructions for it & i want to know the the order of the things i'm supposed to do. And all of your tricks and helpful hints. Heres me list:
1976 wagon w/stock suspension. p/s, p/db:
3.5"rancho lift w/ dual shocks for the front(no double mount though do i need 2?)Drop trac-bar brkt & Blocks for the rear.
6 Degree 14 pc. c-bushing kit from duffs for 76-77
drop pittman arm from WH for 76-77
Air, tools, jacks, stands etc.
Mechanically inclined EB owner(me)Oh yeah 2 other guys to help
Now i know i will need longer brake lines and other misc things but right now i need some insight on the install itself what to remove first, what to hold when, what to clamp where, what to cuss about & what to beat on and throw when you know the normal MOD stuff. I know it might be an involved help list but any help would be greatly appriciated. From looking at things it looks pretty easy but we all know how that goes. And as far as the instructions from Rancho go,They supposedly faxed and mailed them to me but i have yet to see either. Thanks guys, Alex

 

[TexasBronco]

No you do not NEED double shocks...some people swear by them but for normal trail and street use you should be fine.

I will soon be installing a 4 inch lift on my bronco and here is the order I plan to do it...anybody correct me if I am wrong.

of course before starting this lift the bronco and put jack stands on the frame, or stick something on either side of the wheel to stop it from rolling.

I would start by disconnecting the emergency brake cables so they won't get in my way. Then go around to all for corners and remove the brake lines. Put a jack under the rear diff and lift as high as the lift is going to make you final height. Put the jacks stands on the frame. Take off the rear wheels and loosen all mounting hardware attached to the axle Then with your friends helping to balance the axle lower the jack and then roll it of the way. If you are using blocks, go ahead and jack the axle back into place with the blocks and redo all the steps backwards (double checking everything as you go). If you have to add a leaf it is a little harder. There should be a bolt that runs down through the leaf pack... Go ahead and loosen that once it is all the way undone put your new leaf in place and with a longer bolt (should be part of the kit) finger tight it into place. You do not want to draw the leafs together using just this bolt alone. Get 2 large C-clamps and use them to help squeeze the leaf pack and tighten up the bolt as you go. Once done torc the bolt down to specs (or as hard as you can manage). Reconnect the brake lines and e-brake for the rear and you are done with the rear...Just becareful cause you may need a longer driveshaft. The front is a LOT harder...but don't worry it is still do-able. Start by again jacking it up into position and putting the stands where needed. Remove the tires. Disconnect the trac bar, and all things holding the front axle in place. I am not sure if you need a spring compressor, but either way be very careful when working around the springs once you start disconnecting things. Your new trac brackect I think needs to be welded on, so do that and any other welding next. Then replace your bushings, and coil and slowly jack back into position. The drop pitman can be installed once you have the things bolted back into place since it will be pretty easy to do. Over on the side <----- there is a tech article about working with the coil springs and may be of some help to you. Once the axle is back in postion double check everything, put the new brake line on, put the tires back on and set it on the ground. BE SURE TO BLEED THE BRAKES!!! the suspension on a bronco is pretty straight forward and like I said this is just how I PLAN to do it, I haven't done it yet and there may be a better way.

 

[72bronco]

You can start on either the front or the back, doesn't really matter. I'm assuming that you know how to jack up your vehicle and properly support things with jack stands etc. so I'll skip those types of basics. Let's go with the front first:

Disassemble the front end:
- Support vehicle on jack stands by frame and front axle with hydraulic jack.
- Remove tires, disconnect drag link, disconnect tie rod, remove track bar, pull pitman arm off steering box, disconnect hose from axle breather, remove rubber brake line from axle
- Remove shocks, remove bolts on top of coil mounts, remove bolts that are located inside coils at the bottom, remove front coils
- Unbolt four bolts on radius arm cap and remove old C bushings, unbolt rear bolt holding radius arms in place, remove radius arms and radius arm bushings

Your axle should now should be only connected to the vehicle by the front driveshaft. You can balance the axle on the jack and move it around as needed.

Now is a good time to clean, prep and paint any parts before you reinstall them.

Time for reassembly:
- Install new radius arm bushings and put radius arms in place. Put bolt on end of radius arms but don't tighten yet.
- Install new 7 degree C bushings and radius arm caps. Make sure you put them in with the correct side up. Don't fully tighten yet. You may need to disconnect the front drive shaft to get the radius arms back in place.
- Torque radius arm bolts at rear of radius arms.
- Drop axle to ground and alternately torque bolts in radius arm caps making sure that radius arms are even (read article on fixing bronco lean).
- Assemble coils, you may need to fidget with them but they should go in. Also see article on coils spring install.
- Assuming that you're using the stock shock mounts you can now install the shocks
- Bolt track bar drop bracket into place. Weld drop bracket.
- Install drop pitman arm.
- Replace bushings in track bar and bolt into place
- Reattach tie rod and drag link, install new extended brake line, attach front drive shaft, attach breather hose
- Don't forget to get a front end alignment when you are done, you'll also need to re-bleed your brakes.

The rear is easier but I'm tired of typing. Maybe someone else can take a stab at that one or I can come back to it later...

 

[trophybass]

Man, you guys are great. The rear is no problem its the front that seems intimidating. One ? thought you say weld the trac bar drop bracket? The one that i have was removed from another bronco(i think) along with the lift that i puchased. Does it have to be welded on or is that a installers choice. Welding it does of course sound much safer to me. Also how difficult is it to change the radius arm and C bushings?Does it all kid of come apart in a reasonable order or is it a bi$%h to pry this and push that?
thanks, Alex

 

[broncnaz]

after your all done plan on doing it again most people dislike the Ranchos lift kits because of there harsh ride but hey practice makes perfect good luck

 

[Madgyver]

Very FIRST thing to do is to disconnect your battery!!

 

[trophybass]

Man ,Mine rides so rough now that this shouldmake it feel like a caddy. The stock front springs are literally collapsedand it looks and feels like sh%t.;D Thanks- Alex

 

[TexasBronco]

Man ,Mine rides so rough now that this shouldmake it feel like a caddy. The stock front springs are literally collapsedand it looks and feels like sh%t.;D Thanks- Alex

I hear you man, I keep getting told that my Superlift will ride like S&!T, but I am young and can take the jolts. What I can't take is sagging springs, and dead shocks which make you feel as if you have no control over the vechile.

 

[El Jefe]

yup, i just installed a 2.5" superlift and on my short dry runs it DOES ride pretty damn hard.... One other thing about the add-a -leafs: Make sure your provided leaf-thru bolt is the EXACT same diameter as your take off bolt. Else make a quick trip to the hardware store and get a hardened (grade 5 or 8) bolt - preferrably an allen head bolt as these are usually harder than grade 5. I found this out the hard way....and yes, use C-clamps and silicon grease between the leaves in the rear. The front is laborious but by no means difficult. Me and a buddy from work did it in one afternoon after work. It will pay off to have two floor jacks and two people to roll the axles out from underneath the truc and make sureyou torque everything on the front simultaneously to avoid bronco-lean....HTH

 

[72bronco]

I've heard that the Rancho lifts ride pretty harsh. Of course it all comes down to your needs and, more importantly, your budget. Regardless, the most important thing is to always make safety your priority. Whenever you are working on things like steering and brakes make sure that you do the job right.

To answer your question about the track bar drop bracket, yes, it must be welded. If you just bolt the drop bracket in place you could have movement and even eventual breakage of the track bar bracket. Improper installation could affect your steering and handling. A bolted bracket could still have some slight movement or could come loose. Do it right, bolt it and then weld it. On the same safety note, make sure you use a good torque wrench and torque all bolts to spec. Also replace those old cotter pins.

The radius arm C bushings aren't really that difficult to change out. If you balance the axle on floor jacks you can move it around pretty easily, which makes it a cinch when you're bolting things back together. Just be careful not to drop the axle on any important body parts. Also, read up on threads regarding bronco lean so you only have to assemble things once and don't have to take everything apart again cause you made a mistake. On my one to ten complexity scale I'd have to give the front end a 3, though your results may vary. Having a friend help would make the job a lot easier, though I did the entire installation myself. Just keep asking questions cause the guys around here really know their stuff.

 

[trophybass]

Guys, thank you so much for your input and please keep it coming this is exactly what i'm looking for. As far as the ride goes i;m 31 and can still take the jolts(i hope) i know its not my wifes expy or my 150 but it will feel a whole lot better than it does now(i hope) any way couldnt i just change the springs later on for something a little softer when my budget allows. Also since it will mostly be driven on the street do i need to go with the double shock setup or not. Since the rancho ride is so rough wont 2 front shocks just make it worse? There seems to be 2 schools of thought on double shock setups. Good or bad? Thanks-Alex;D

 

[supermottl]

A lot of people like the BC springs, so go with them when you change.
it can't hurt to pull one shock and ride around with one per wheel. Give it a try.
I currently run 2/wheel, but I don't think I need it and I'll prolly pull one off this summer

 

[Lttrbox]

Ive been running the drop track bar bracket with just the bolts for over a year with no problems. I do agree with the welding part of this, but I chose not to because of a mod Im going to finish tonight. I am flipping the tie rod over the knuckles which requires relocation of the track bar. Part of this mod Ive been planning (which is why I posponed welding the drop bracket) is to move the axle mount about 3 inches higher. This then requires that the other end of the track be moved up. I could use the stock mount, but I figured I would unbolt the drop bracket, cut to shape and then weld it in for added strength.

Thats my two bits for not going immediately with the welding.

 

[broncnaz]

Not trying to scare you away from your rancho lift just giving some info I currently have a shkyjacker with soft ride springs which was way better than my worn out stockers but they have started to sag and I cracked 1 leaf on the passenger side so now I have a set of BC rear springs that I'm going to install. and stay with my skyjacker front springs for now.
you don't need the double shock set up but you do need to check your shoucks if they are valved for a double shock set up then you should problably use them, if they are just regular shock than just go with singles

 

[trophybass]

I know there is a rancho chart to our left(i thought) but how do i tell how they are valved? Also I cant complain too much i only paid $250 for all this stuff which i thought was a hell of a deal and it was all my budget could afford so i got it all while i had a chance. For that price i'll deal with a rough ride at least 'till i can afford softer springs;D

 

[Cougar]

I'm in the midst of putting the front end back together and this has been very helpful! I just need to remove a couple of lines and disconnect the pitman arm when I get home tonight so that I can reposition the axle to slide the radius arms back into their brackets. Where exactly are the articles on the infamous "Bronco Lean?" Do I just need to torque the radius arms the same on both sides and alternate sides as I do it?

In my kit, I have an adjustable track bar...no bracket. Does this sound right? I figured I just need to adjust the bar's length factoring the new 3.5" lift to get the geometry correct. Anyone? Sorry to hijack the thread, but at least it's still the same topic. ;D

 

[trophybass]

What has been the hardest part of your install and roughly how long has it taken you. Are you doing alone or with help? Sorry so many ?'s just trying to get all my ducks in a row. No hi-jacking going on here just more input for me to reference when i get going. Thanks.
PS from what i have read i beleive most people feel an adj. trac bar is a better option.

 

[Cougar]

The hardest part has been trying to figure out how to do it without consulting the experts here. It looked simple enough... My brother in law helped me start it the other night and we thought we could just do one side at a time, but in the end you have to just disconnect everything or there isn't enough "play" to get things back together. We had a hard time bolting the radius arm and cap back together over the new polyurethane bushings, but it can be done. We ended up using some C clamps to hold and bring the parts together. The problem I have right now is putting the radius arm back into its bracket on the driver's side. That's why you need to disconnect everything to free the axle. It needs to come forward enough to slide back through the bracket, but it's almost impossible to assemble the arm and cap without freeing the arm from the bracket. I'm sure it's easy for someone who does this all of the time, but for us being first timers, my brother in law and I felt like lab monkeys with tools (and beer) trying to do it. It's not terribly complex or difficult, but it does take a little time. I have about three hours into it now and probably about another hour and a half to finish it.

 

[trophybass]

well good, it sounds like i will be in the same boat as you ooooo aaaahhhah ooooo aaahhhah;D . Thanks man, ALex

 

[77BroncoWag]

after your all done plan on doing it again most people dislike the Ranchos lift kits because of there harsh ride but hey practice makes perfect good luck

hope your fillings hold;D
First EB I bought had one of their kits on it.
OWwwwwww. 15 years later my back still remembers it