Has anyone fabbed ub some type of extended radius arms using rod ends?? Seems to me like a fairly easy way to gain some need wheel travel for us ttb guys. I know, I know SAS, but right now I'm making due with what I have till I finish my 59willys, then I'll go with a sas.

Anyway, anyone happen to have any pics/links of any homemade extended radius arms using a rod end to acheive more wheel travel?? Seems to be a fairly simply concept, just looking for different designs, and feedback.

I have a 1988 bronco 2, with a 5.0, full size 1978 D44 and a 9" under it. 4.88 gears, detroit locker each side, atlas 2, and a 6" lift. EB coils in front, an add-a-leaf and extended shackles in the rear.

For my heim joint radius arms, I bought a piece of double extra strong stainless steed 7/8" and a 3/4" diameter, two heims, and two 3/4 fine nuts, and two 3/4 course thread nuts.

I hung 3" x 3" 3/16 boxed steel under the frame, and drilled a 3/4" hole through them for the heims to mount in.

Welded the steel to the nuts, and then threaded everything together. I spaced and aligned the front end by multiple 3/4" washers (9) in the boxed steel for perfect alignment and play.

Need a pic still? I'll see if I can get something together to throw you an idea.


Adam

Do you mean something kida like this.

http://www.odysseyoffroad.com/wristedradiusarm.jpg

Heres the URL http://www.odysseyoffroad.com/

Originally posted by Adam McLaughlin
I have a 1988 bronco 2, with a 5.0, full size 1978 D44 and a 9" under it. 4.88 gears, detroit locker each side, atlas 2, and a 6" lift. EB coils in front, an add-a-leaf and extended shackles in the rear.

Adam

Good fabrication on that Adam.. Its a simple way to extend your arms w/o spending 300+ on a manufactured set. What hiem did you use? The zerked ones, or somthing like Ava. eng. sells?

Btw, insted of having to mention your rig in every post, go and put it in your signature. Caus, you telling us what your are running dosent have anything to do with the question that was posted. And it kinda comes off smug. Its all good though, i know you just want to get the word out :D:D

Adding hiems to a ttb set up will not yeald mutch more than road vibration. Unless you Cut and Turn your axle halfs. With drop brackets, your damn near at full flex with the standard bushings. Extend your radius arms, that is allways a good step foward. That will give you a few more inches of droop and compression. Hiems will add about an inch or so of flex. Not worth it.
As seen below, this BII has standard ford radius arms and a sas. The sas radius arm is the same length as the extended arms for a ttb suspension. As you can see, the bushings are realy not limiting any suspension travel.

Limiting factors of a TTB you should be addressing are as follows. Coils too stiff. Custom ones are a good investment. Best bet is to get a set of EB coils. They are mutch softer.
Shocks. Even with a JD or Skyjacker hoop, the shocks will bind out on you. Take them out and flex your truck. Measure your front axles at full droop, and order a set of custom ranchos. Use an f250 shock mount to gain the longer shock.
Punny stock radius arm, go and extend it. :D Also, renforce the drop brackets with gussets. They crack and bend often.

Im not going to yell sas at you, because i know that it will be own the line sometime. But untill then, enjoy the fact that you can still outwheel most jeeps out there. Behold the power of FORD!http://home.earthlink.net/~mattsara/bb/hoofhearted.jpg

Originally posted by SMC

Take them out and flex your truck. Measure your front axles at full droop, and order a set of custom ranchos. Punny stock radius arm, go and extend it. :D Also, renforce the drop brackets with gussets. They crack and bend often.



Ok, I do plan on the custom shocks, but need to find out how much flex I'll have first, therefore I need the custom rad. arms first. Also I have already had the drop brackets reinforced as I have bent one once......Won't happen again.

I do plan on estending the puny stock radius arms, but instead of making them threaded at the end and bolted on, I am wanting to use a rod end. Similar to the one pictured above, only obviously without the wrist action. I know I've seen it somewhere, but not sure where.

I'm thinking something along the lines of this:

http://www.off-road.com/ford/zim/radius.html

First off, go back to MBB, ya stupid fawk.

Secondly, with a regular-old set of SL extended arms, you have 3" more droop than your springs will allow.

The Zimmerman's exploder never worked. There was a lot of thought and effort that went into it, but it blew apart more axles and busted more TTB arms than it was ever worth.

IIRC, they wound up selling that truck and building a second one with a SAS. That's pretty much how all TTB projects end up -- spend lots of money, do lots of fabbing, throw that junk in the trash and drop in a straight axle.

Geez thanks for the help:flipoff2: :flipoff2:

But lemme think about it.....SL arms cost how much....and this would only set me back some time, and the heims.

Now I have a question for you......was the zimmermans' explorers front end problems due to over flexing because of the radius arms, or because of all of the other mods they did the the front? Also if they were continually grenading front axles due to overflex wouldn't some limiting straps help that.

I know a SAS is the way to go, but I don't have the cash to do it right now....if you would have read above you'd know I plan on one in the future, but not the near future. Also this is the reason for not buying a set of SL arms.....whenever I can fab up my own.

The Zimmerman's Explorer didn't work because the more travel you get with a TTB, the more ridiculous angles the pass side axle u's are expected to survive. All that droop only makes it easier to snap axles.

Wouldn't your limiting straps defeat the purpose of the extended arms? :rolleyes:

The whole reason I brought up the SL arms in the first place is because a longer arm *without a $50 heim* already exceeds the shock and spring combos that you can fit in a TTB bucket by 3". (Since you're so astute at reading others' posts, you probably already picked up on this)

So... you're going to swap in 78/79 buckets, custom coils and F250 towers? Just so you can keep one more tire on the ground? Big fawking deal. Use your brilliant limiting strap idea to keep the TTB arms at reasonable angles and buy a locker instead.

And just to beat a dead horse a little more, sit down and figure out the costs of a 78/79 D44 swap vs a TTB lift. Then come back and tell me all about how you can't afford an SAS. :flipoff2:

Originally posted by tonto
Do you mean something kida like this.

http://www.odysseyoffroad.com/wristedradiusarm.jpg

Heres the URL http://www.odysseyoffroad.com/

some ones been shopping at the tractor shop :D :D
well how does it hold up , i was thinkin of doin somthing like that but didnt think it would hold .
so did it work ?

For the record, it's a bronco II body on an early bronco frame.

http://home.earthlink.net/~mattsara/bb/hoofhearted.jpg

http://www.alloffroad.com/pictures/issues/july/whoops_july22.jpg

http://www.alloffroad.com/issue/2000/july/contents/whoops_july.htm

Originally posted by sclemons
The Zimmerman's Explorer didn't work because the more travel you get with a TTB, the more ridiculous angles the pass side axle u's are expected to survive. All that droop only makes it easier to snap axles.

Wouldn't your limiting straps defeat the purpose of the extended arms? :rolleyes:

The whole reason I brought up the SL arms in the first place is because a longer arm *without a $50 heim* already exceeds the shock and spring combos that you can fit in a TTB bucket by 3". (Since you're so astute at reading others' posts, you probably already picked up on this)

So... you're going to swap in 78/79 buckets, custom coils and F250 towers? Just so you can keep one more tire on the ground? Big fawking deal. Use your brilliant limiting strap idea to keep the TTB arms at reasonable angles and buy a locker instead.

And just to beat a dead horse a little more, sit down and figure out the costs of a 78/79 D44 swap vs a TTB lift. Then come back and tell me all about how you can't afford an SAS. :flipoff2:

;)

I already have the 6" superlift on the truck. Got it from a buddy for putting carpet in his house, so adding it up........SAS=some money and TTB= FREE.

Big difference in price, and the sole purpose of doing things this way. He had a 6"superlift on his bronco that he totalled, and gave, GAVE, me the lift. Therefore it seems logical to me, maybe not you but you are entitled you your opinion, to do the ttb thing until some of my other projects are finished.

I was unaware that SL arms gave you that much flex. Thanks for the information. I will look into possibly just making regular extended arms, but wanted a little more travel. But if it isn't going to benefit me then so be it...I'll save $50 in Heims.

Oh and I have a locker...matter of fact I have two.. Minispool rear and detroit front, But thanks for the advice.

Originally posted by smoothcharlene
But if it isn't going to benefit me then so be it...I'll save $50 in Heims.


That would be my advice.

Nothing wrong with running TTB. I did it for 8 or 9 years. Having been there done that, I highly suggest not spending a penny on upgrades to the TTB. Nothing you do is going to make that big of a difference offroad. Save your money or spend it elsewhere until the day you can do the solid axle swap.

Originally posted by Nobody


That would be my advice.

Nothing wrong with running TTB. I did it for 8 or 9 years. Having been there done that, I highly suggest not spending a penny on upgrades to the TTB. Nothing you do is going to make that big of a difference offroad. Save your money or spend it elsewhere until the day you can do the solid axle swap.

I 2nd that....and I have the all mighty $1200 skyjacker class 2. Its summed up in 3 letters, "POS". Sure the drop brackets will never break, wait can't say never:D But I know, for a fact, it will never ride, flex, articulate...etc....like a SAS.

I started working on my 44 this weekend, and can't wait to get it in. Take it from someone who dumped a lot of unle sam's reenlistment bonus into a package lift kit....IT AIN'T WORTH IT! Save your money, and do it right.

Originally posted by sclemons
First off, go back to MBB, ya stupid fawk.

sounds like a marriage proposal to me :flipoff2:

Geez fellas. First, not EVERYBODY is a hardcore rock crawler. A SAS is not practical in every aspect, and in every application. Alot of people simply do not want to sink the time into such a major modification. TTB works just fine in most offraod applications. A good chunk of off roading nuts do not need that modification right away. Let them build up to it. Far be it for me to be speaking having sas myself, but 99% of all BII/Rangers/Eplorers that are off roadind still have the TTB suspension. And they are still happy, and wheeling just fine. Sh!t, t wasent untill a few years ago that the BII/Ranger sas came to be. Rember when cutting and turning yrou beams was the way to go? So back off and let things evolve.

smoothcharlene, use what works for you. You got the lift kit for free, so run with it :D Hiem if you want to, extend or bend this or that. In time, you may tune your suspension just the way you want it. When ever you get around to it, go ahead and do a sas. No pressure.
The simple downfall to the ttb is the fact that it is an indipendent suspension system. It will never have the flex, nor the duribility of a solid axle.
You cannot go past 18" of travel w/o running into axle, slip joint and u-joint problems. A limiting strap is a good thing, but then all your work is for nothing. But again, go ahead and tinker. You will get your suspens just the way you want it. And dont let us badger you too mutch about it. :rolleyes:


sclemons: Take a chill pill man. Get layed and smoke somthing potent. Caus your comming off like a fat abused child here.

Nobody, I know Hoof Hearted's rig is a EB, but it still has bushings on the radius arms. Just showing that hiems are not realy nessary.

Originally posted by SMC
Nobody, I know Hoof Hearted's rig is a EB, but it still has bushings on the radius arms. Just showing that hiems are not realy nessary.

Technically, Brooke is using these bushings at the frame..... He kept blowing out rubber ones.

http://www.edynamicconcepts.com/images/s1970_bl.jpg

sclemons maybe you are not intending to sound like such a prick or maybe you just got a cactus shoved up your a$$, but your manners do need a little work you fawkin :rainbow: ...maybe head up to BC for some potent smoking!

Anyways, I ran a 6" Skyjacker Stage II on my 96 F150 for about a year before I was forced to sell it...the extended rad arms helped a little in the flex, but most of the articulation came from the 6" lift leaf packs out back. This is where I would focus my attention if I were you. The TTB system does not bind @ the rad arm bushings as much as you may think...you can always get some seamless pipe and use that to extend your rad arms...get some pipe that fits closely over the threaded end of the rad arm, weld and gusset this pipe to the rad arm as you see fit...get a friend to machine up a new threaded bushing end to be welded on the pipe so you can use all the factory bushings in the mount that you have moved back about 12 inches...should cost you about $50 and a case of beer! Heim joints will wear out and need replacing because they are exposed to the elements and they are ungreasable. I got some 20,000lb tie rod ends off a kenworth that would work and last longer!

Just my $0.02 cents wirth...

Originally posted by desteurm
sclemons maybe you are not intending to sound like such a prick or maybe you just got a cactus shoved up your a$$, but your manners do need a little work you fawkin :rainbow: ...maybe head up to BC for some potent smoking!

Anyways, I ran a 6" Skyjacker Stage II on my 96 F150 for about a year before I was forced to sell it..

Just my $0.02 cents wirth...

Typical Canadian.....jump into battle after the war is over :flipoff2:

Originally posted by Nobody

...I highly suggest not spending a penny on upgrades to the TTB. Nothing you do is going to make that big of a difference offroad. Save your money or spend it elsewhere until the day you can do the solid axle swap.

AMEN brother! If you've got TTB fine, drive it like you stole it ('til it breaks!). But don't dump any money into it 'cause on average for every $200 you spend AND/OR every hour of labor you put into it you gain about 1/4" susp travel on a good day. Anyone out there wanna draw a graph? Kinda like the one in the Xterra thread where the guy drew a graph of how his intelligence actually dropped after reading it??? :)

As for sclemons, I love it! It's great to see the whiners whine. Entertainment at it's best! :crybaby:

Originally posted by 2bit


Typical Canadian.....jump into battle after the war is over :flipoff2:

Bwahahahhahahah


I like sclemons.....he shares my point of view.....he probably even wheels once in awhile.

Originally posted by SMC
99% of all BII/Rangers/Eplorers that are off roadind still have the TTB suspension. And they are still happy, and wheeling just fine.


out of all the BII/Rangers/Explorers that have TTB and really wheel and not just occationally hit a dryed up mud hole... more than 1% have solid Axles.... I would take my guess as to somewhere in the ranger of 25% and then another 25% would like the solid axle but can't get one yet. Seriously how many people on here can REALLY wheel with the TTB yea it's good but SAS ain't THAT expinsive

for the $$ i spent on my Sh!tlift i could bought a D44 and EB coils and buckets and brackets and made a really nice lift. Live and learn but the guy got it for free so run it but don't put $$$ into. I've believe with extended arms you gain some more presure and torque on them due to the length becuase I have had two extended arms break on me. Yea.... i don't baby my sh!t.

I admit, the TTB suspension truely sucks. But still, alot of people think its just fine. As for the more than 1% bit, i dbout it. Out of the thoushands apon thousnads of BII/Rangers out there, how many have solid axles? Sh!t, i only know of one other ranger in nevada that has a solid axle. How many do you know of? four, maby five? Eh, what ever. Do what'cha want to do. :D

here are some heim'ed camburg radius arms and extended beams...
Jaron

geocities.com/jaronolson/explorer.jpg

Take the step-up approach! Use the lift you got for free, Buy the hardened stubs, Buy the 44 taction aid of your choice. All of these items can be used on most any SAS you might consider in the future.

I don't think that anyone asked if yours was a full size application? Mine is.

I bought mine with the lift already on it, and i've just been patching it back together thru the years. I am running 1 1/4 rod ends on some home brew radius arms because the cheap ass first generation supperlift 6" kit that was on my rig when I bought it had the caster all screwed up, and the tuff country POS arms that I bought didn't even survive one trip thru the Rubicon without buckling. I don't have any pic's of the arms but I get out there every chanse I get. I jump, bump, grind, and generally beat the crap out of my driveline and these custom arms are one of the best things that I have ever done.

As for flex, I don't think that I will ever have flex like the BII pictured above, But its still nice to be able to max the wenee ramps out that the Jeep guys can't. If I need more travel than that, it's looking like its time to look at building a rock buggy.

If I get any pics in the future they will show up on my supperford site:

http://www.superford.org/registry/index.php?vID=33

Til then, happy trails

When I got my B2 the first thing I did was toss the TTB and put in a 60. :flipoff2:

Did anyone else catch that this guy said that he had a Detroit in the front of his Ranger TTB??? He must have made his own:confused: :confused:

Originally posted by FearMe
When I got my B2 the first thing I did was toss the TTB and put in a 60. :flipoff2:

:confused: I thought the first thing you did was replace the entire B2 rolling chassis with an EB chassis? :D

Ok then, the first thing I did when I got my B2 was to throw everything away except the body and put it on something else. The only good thing about the B2/Ranger is the cheap and plentiful body parts. Even Matt's looks cool and about the only thing he has left is body and frame. Best advice to you B2/Ranger guys is to keep the body, maybe the frame and start over:flipoff2: