Nobody's 1970 Bronco

Post by **Nobody** » Sun Jan 06, 2008 9:41 pm

As some of you know, I retired my Bronco II. For the last year or so, I have been working on my 1970 Bronco.

It's was mostly stock when I got it. 302, 3sp, Dana 20, Dana 30 Front, Ford 9" rear, ,manual steering, manual brakes. You know, all the bells and whistles.

Here is a list of upgrades I have been working on. It's been a long slow process. But I'm getting there one step at a time.

- 5.0L HO from a 1992 Thunderbird
- NP435 Transmission
- Dana 44 Front axle
- Power Steering
- Hydroboost Brakes
- Chevy Tie rod conversion
- Tru-kool Aluminum radiator
- Gorilla War Flares
- 20 Gal Fuel tank
- 3.5" suspension lift
- 2" Body lift

DBrown · Post by **DBrown** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 4:32 am

looks like you are moving along! how well did the NP435 shifter fit?

tekatlarge · Post by **tekatlarge** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 4:41 pm

Hey that Looks GOOD man.. I like professional workmanship!

BTW what size and type of tire is that front tire on your bronco?

Post by **Nobody** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 6:38 pm

DBrown wrote:looks like you are moving along! how well did the NP435 shifter fit?

With the 2" body lift, it fit perfect. My hole was a little off though since the tranny isn't centered on the tunnel. I don't think I can remove the tranny without removing the engine at the same time. I'd have to cut the hole bigger to be able to slide the tranny back. It was a real SOB going in with just one person. Mostly because of the small hole.

I'm not quite done reshaping the shifter. It still hits the twin sticks a bit in 2nd gear. Might just chop down or ben the twin sticks instead.

Post by **Nobody** » Mon Jan 07, 2008 6:41 pm

tekatlarge wrote:Hey that Looks GOOD man.. I like professional workmanship!

BTW what size and type of tire is that front tire on your bronco?

I wouldn't go so far as professional. For me it's a balance between making it nice and actually getting it done. I don't know how some people do such nice work. I would have liked to clean up and paint more, but that will have wait a few years. Most of the stuff I took apart I did clean and paint before going back on though.

Tires are my 36x12.50R15 Radial Swampers from my Bronco II.

DBrown · Post by **DBrown** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 5:25 am

I have always heard that you had to hack a big hole in the pan to get it to fit but that actualy looks better then I thought it would.

so did the np435 bolt to the original cross member?

Post by **Nobody** » Tue Jan 08, 2008 6:15 am

I already had the AA NP435 adapter on my Bronco II. So yes it uses the factory crossmember. I also purchased the heavy duty motor mounts on a mass buy last summer.

ranger5.0 · Post by **ranger5.0** » Wed Jan 09, 2008 5:46 pm

Looks like you might need new tires... Those don't hold air very well.

Looking good.

DBrown · Post by **DBrown** » Sat Jan 12, 2008 7:34 am

are you going to use the rear from your BII or stick with the 9" from the EB?

Post by **Nobody** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 8:00 pm

I will be putting in the Dana 60 from the Bronco II.

I reassembled the wiring harness in the driveway today. I took 99% of the wiring from the car. about the only thing cut was the stuff going into the doors. I still might pull the keyless entry touch pad. Seems like it might be usefull for something someday.

Post by **Nobody** » Sun Jan 13, 2008 8:03 pm

The Donor:
1992 Thunderbird
5.0L HO
99,000 miles

Post by **Nobody** » Sun Feb 24, 2008 9:17 pm

Here are some pictures of my homemade exhaust. Not quite done yet, but I'm pleased so far. I'm running stock manifolds. I purchased some Mandrel U-Bends from summit. 2" off off the manifolds and dump into a single 2.25". I have a dynomax muffler that's not installed yet. I also still need to make the tailpipe.

Overall, it's not that difficult. Just a little time consuming. It was also my first real project using a mig. So don't be too critical of the welds!

DBrown · Post by **DBrown** » Mon Feb 25, 2008 4:55 pm

so you plan to keep the underside of that thing that clean from now on?

the welds look good to me, did you buy a tig?

it's looking good, is it close to getting back on the road?

Post by **Nobody** » Mon Feb 25, 2008 6:26 pm

I hope to keep it pretty clean of mud. Grease and oil seem to do wonders for rust prevention.

I think it's close to being back on the road, but I've been saying that for over a year now.

Now I get a few hours a weekend vs all weekend 20+ hr missions. I still look at a project and think I can knock it out in a weekend....then the wife and kids bring me back to reality.

Major projects left:
- Finish Exhaust
- Install Fuel tank
- Plumb fuel lines
- Install radiator
- Wiring
- Finish plumbing the hydroboost and power steering

At that point it should be driveable. Then I need to:
- Install Rear Dana 60
- Install York On Board Air
- Bumpers
- Fender Flares
- Roll Cage

Then I'll be on to paint/body and other pettty stuff. Probably on the 5 year plan.

I'll reply to your welder thread in tools.

Bob Myers · Post by **Bob Myers** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 7:49 am

Looks great, simple straight forward and tough. My opinion, and only a suggestion mind you but,, I would cut the exhaust pipe in two right past the left/right miter joint and put either a flat flange or a header collector 3 bolt flange in there to facilitate the removal of some of the exhaust for tranny/clutch repair.