The what did I get myself into 1971 Restomod - BUILD THREAD

[Audifan]

Link to that dome light?

https://www.ssvworks.com/product/dome-light-with-billet-mount-for-1.75”-tube

 

[Audifan]

Had a local glass shop cut me a custom windshield and glue it in like a modern car to give me a flush mount windshield without the ugly gasket.

Came out great.

Simple process if you can find a glass shop to do it.

Measure, cut, black prime edges, lay thick bead of glue to bring it out flush and then stick it in.

 

[Audifan]

Added some interior LEDs and rock light LEDs. Can change colors from white to other colors, but my kids like them red.

Mounted 3 under the dash, 3 under the rear seat and then 2 rock lights in each fenderwell.

 

[Audifan]

Finally figured out the stereo and had a buddy come out and help me.

I was worried it was going to be weak and underpowered, but boy was I wrong. It turned out Awesome and way more powerful than I need or was expecting.


Components:
Pioneer head unit
Pioneer 4 channel amp (100amps x 4)
2 Focal 130 5-1/4" front speakers (mounted in fiberglass door panels from Jason Gamroth)
2 Polk MM1 6.5" round marine speakers for front of rear quarter panels
2 Power Bass 8" self powered down firing Subwoofers ( I bought 2 because I was afraid one would not be enough since they are only 150watts...I was wrong)

I mounted the amp to a piece of black ABS so that I could slide it under the WH storage cubby on the passenger side, but still pull it out to access it if I needed to.

Ran all the wires and got it all ready for carpet, then I can do the final install and lay it all put purty.

 

[Audifan]

I got the itch to install the front bumper and since the grill is already buffed out I could get away with it.

Its starting to look like something!

Lights work and winch is installed but I need to figure out a custom mounting solution on the frame for the winch control box since there is no room for it to fit in the bumper.

Also added a front camera for shits and giggles since my head unit has a separate plug for it, and the cameras are only $35.

 

[hsach]

The windshield looks great! What is the name of the glass place? I might have to go this route with mine when I get to the glass replacement.

 

[Audifan]

The windshield looks great! What is the name of the glass place? I might have to go this route with mine when I get to the glass replacement.

It was fast glass in Reno.

 

[DirtDonk]

Yeah, that's slick. Been wanting to go that way on multiple old vehicles I have. One is easy since I don't want the chrome trim, but I've been wanting bright trim on a Bronco since the seventies, so not going to give up that dream without a fight.
I wonder if there is some way to attach existing Bronco trim to it without the gasket/seal in place? Love the smooth look more, but have had the dream too long to give up yet.

Also want to do the same treatment to the hard top side and back windows as well.

paul

 

[DirtDonk]

By the way, did they need any kind of a hard spacer under the glass to get it up to level with the metal? Or was it just a thicker bead of silicone that did it?
Or maybe it does not need anything special in the first place, being about the right depth to begin with?

I know we've had these discussions before in other threads as other members have done the same over the years. But it's nice to update the information to help remember, and get any new angles on it.

Thanks

paul

 

[Audifan]

By the way, did they need any kind of a hard spacer under the glass to get it up to level with the metal? Or was it just a thicker bead of silicone that did it?
Or maybe it does not need anything special in the first place, being about the right depth to begin with?

I know we've had these discussions before in other threads as other members have done the same over the years. But it's nice to update the information to help remember, and get any new angles on it.

Thanks

paul

No spacer needed. just a thicker bead.

 

[hsach]

It was fast glass in Reno.

Thanks Audifan, I will keep them in mind. They have done all of my other windshields over the years, never thought to ask them about the flush mount for the bronco.

 

[sprdv1]

I got the itch to install the front bumper and since the grill is already buffed out I could get away with it.

Its starting to look like something!

Lights work and winch is installed but I need to figure out a custom mounting solution on the frame for the winch control box since there is no room for it to fit in the bumper.

Also added a front camera for shits and giggles since my head unit has a separate plug for it, and the cameras are only $35.

Never know what you might catch on that camera Long as it ain't a rock or tree

 

[sprdv1]

No spacer needed. just a thicker bead.

Great point..

 

[Audifan]

Found some thin Aluminum rear quarter panels on ebay and decided to give them a try. I'm being generous to say they fit OK out of the box. I had to trim 3/8" of an inch off the top and shave the bottoms quite a bit to get them to sit nice...and I'm sure once we install the carpet and jute we will have to trim them some more before we cover them. But the good news is they are thin, strong and easy to cut.

I cut out my courtesy light holes, speaker holes and a slot for a USB/12v charger, then applied sound deadening.

 

[Audifan]

Finally got shocks on her...even though they are not the shocks I wanted. I wanted 7100's but WH and everyone else was out of the longer travel ones I needed for the front and were not expecting them till may. Then I settled for 5165's...and they had 3 of the 4 I needed, but could not find the 4th one anywhere else. So I would up settling for some Rancho RS9000XL's, just so I could have some shocks. Not what I wanted, but at least they are adjustable so I can see if that makes them worth while.

Also rigged up a mount for the winch control pack since the factory mounts do not work with my upside down mounting position.

 

[JeffG]

The front camera is a cool idea and very inexpensive. Your build is looking awesome.

 

[Audifan]

I've been really bad about updating this thread the past few months, even though we made some great progress.

After my last post in March, I had a professional paint shop guy come out on the weekend and cut and buff the paint. he also fixed some nibs and spots in the paint I didn't know how to fix.

It came out great.

 

[Audifan]

Being an TopCoat F11 fan boy, once the cut and buff was done, I couldn't help but apply 3 good coats of F11 and then put the side emblems back on.

Really love the way the satin black and the red accents complement the Chalk Gray paint. Very happy with this color combo.

At this time the fender flares were still in the shop getting painted so couldn't put them on.

 

[Audifan]

All of may and June, the bronco sat in the upholstery shop while they took their sweet time "working" on it. However, when I went down to check on it each time practically zero had been done, until they magically got it all done in a week, when I said I was going to come pick it up and take it somewhere else.

The downside of that was as I tried to drive it home, the brand new TCI AOD would not shift out of first gear no matter what we tried. So instead of driving it home, I trailered it to the transmission shop where its been ever since.

4 miles on the transmission and TCI won't warranty it, but I can ship it to them and they will fix and charge me a rebuild fee. I purchased it from summit, but they do not carry that model anymore and they won't help with it either.

So paying out of pocket for a transmission shop to fix a brand new unused transmission.

If this was in the winter I would not care, but I've missed half a summer of driving it, and Hot August Nights is coming up soon and I CAN"T miss that.

here's a few shots I got of the interior before dropping it off at the transmission shop.

 

[hsach]

The bronco is looking incredible! If you don't mind, which upholstery shop did you use? You can PM me if you don't want to make it public. Just curious since I just picked up my '78 bronco seats from a local shop as well. I waited a long time, but the results were definitely worth it, had them redone in leather and Houndstooth. That is really a downer about the transmission. I am in a similar situation with my '67 bronco. I am trying to decide on buying Engine/Tranny from a major manufacturer like TCI, but don't want to fall into the same situation when I install it and they don't stand behind it. Finding an engine builder locally seems much harder now also.

I hear you about wanting it done by Hot August Nights. I missed a show and shine already waiting for my seats. I hope you are able to get it sorted out by August, I would love to see it around town.