1” lift threw everything off, almost.

[Torkman66]

Unless you follow a clear process for aligning, you will chase your tail. This is how it is done right:
1. Do not put any body shims in...yet
2. Have all parts removed from body (doors, fenders, hood, grill, tailgate)
2. Snug down all body mount bolts
3. Install doors and see what you get. If gap is wide on top of rear door and high at rear rocker, add shims to rear body mounts only. This will close the gaps at the top at quarter and the rear of rocker gap. All conditions here:


4. It takes many hours to get the doors perfect. Once you get the gaps close using the body mount shims, combine that with shims on the hinges. Again, this process takes a long time especially if you have not done very much of this type of alignment before. Just keep at it and you WILL get the doors to fit perfect. A 3/16" gap along rockers and quarters is perfect, but you decide what you can live with. Just keep at it until the doors are what you want. Make sure you adjust the doors up and down to align perfectly with the top of the quarters.
5. Now install the fenders and the grill. Leave all bolts loose and you only need two grill bolts per side. The fenders can move forward and aft, in and out. Align them fore and aft to make the gap with door what you want. If your using new fenders, they may not be made correctly. In nearly all cases, the fenders will need work or you can just get them close if that is OK with you.
6. Once you have the fender to door gap correct, test fit the hood. CAUTION: do not immediately go to the hood hinges. Start by aligning the hood left right first. Don't worry about the tip of the hood at the grill until you align the hood up at the cowl perfectly left to right. Minor little nudges left or right until the gap with the fenders on each side are exactly the same. NOTE: It is possible to widen or narrow the hood to fender gap by pulling the fenders outward or pushing them inward. That will throw off the fender to door alignment but you can easily fix that by slightly adjusting the doors in or out to match the new fender location. Key is to get the fender to hood gap at the cowl correct left and right before going to the hood to grill alignment.
7. If the hood is too long (front sticks past grill front edge, all you can do is move the fenders forward. This increases the door to fender gap but short of cutting and welding, a hood too far forward requires fenders to move forward. If the hood is too short at front of grill, you can shim the hood hinges forward. If it is short on one side and long on the other, you can add a hinge shim to bring one side forward slightly. That also moves the hood gaps diagonally. Work on it until the hood front lip aligns with the grill.
8. Finally, you can move the grill left or right slightly to align the gaps at the hood. The grill does not move much, but you can move left to right a 1/16" or so. Fender bolts must be loose to do this. You can also move the body left or right a bit with the body mounts loose, but be careful doing that because it can mess up the doors and then you start over.

Finally on this...it is a long, somewhat frustrating process to get all this aligned but you must work from back to front (Doors, fenders, grill, hood). A little tweak in one place throws another gap off somewhere else, but there is a sweet spot that looks great if you just keep at it. The factory guys putting these together did thousands and thousands and could look at the gaps and know exactly what to do. They became really good at aligning...it was their job (although many of the Broncos came off the line with less than nice body lines). Point is, it can be done. Just be patient and figure it will take several days of tedious alignment to get it right. But it absolutely can be done!

If using any new body panels, you MUST align them before paint to ensure they fit without major surgery. If you paint it and think the new parts will fit perfect, you will be very dissapointed.

 

[m_m70]

Unless you follow a clear process for aligning, you will chase your tail. This is how it is done right:
1. Do not put any body shims in...yet
2. Have all parts removed from body (doors, fenders, hood, grill, tailgate)
2. Snug down all body mount bolts
3. Install doors and see what you get. If gap is wide on top of rear door and high at rear rocker, add shims to rear body mounts only. This will close the gaps at the top at quarter and the rear of rocker gap. All conditions here:

4. It takes many hours to get the doors perfect. Once you get the gaps close using the body mount shims, combine that with shims on the hinges. Again, this process takes a long time especially if you have not done very much of this type of alignment before. Just keep at it and you WILL get the doors to fit perfect. A 3/16" gap along rockers and quarters is perfect, but you decide what you can live with. Just keep at it until the doors are what you want. Make sure you adjust the doors up and down to align perfectly with the top of the quarters.
5. Now install the fenders and the grill. Leave all bolts loose and you only need two grill bolts per side. The fenders can move forward and aft, in and out. Align them fore and aft to make the gap with door what you want. If your using new fenders, they may not be made correctly. In nearly all cases, the fenders will need work or you can just get them close if that is OK with you.
6. Once you have the fender to door gap correct, test fit the hood. CAUTION: do not immediately go to the hood hinges. Start by aligning the hood left right first. Don't worry about the tip of the hood at the grill until you align the hood up at the cowl perfectly left to right. Minor little nudges left or right until the gap with the fenders on each side are exactly the same. NOTE: It is possible to widen or narrow the hood to fender gap by pulling the fenders outward or pushing them inward. That will throw off the fender to door alignment but you can easily fix that by slightly adjusting the doors in or out to match the new fender location. Key is to get the fender to hood gap at the cowl correct left and right before going to the hood to grill alignment.
7. If the hood is too long (front sticks past grill front edge, all you can do is move the fenders forward. This increases the door to fender gap but short of cutting and welding, a hood too far forward requires fenders to move forward. If the hood is too short at front of grill, you can shim the hood hinges forward. If it is short on one side and long on the other, you can add a hinge shim to bring one side forward slightly. That also moves the hood gaps diagonally. Work on it until the hood front lip aligns with the grill.
8. Finally, you can move the grill left or right slightly to align the gaps at the hood. The grill does not move much, but you can move left to right a 1/16" or so. Fender bolts must be loose to do this. You can also move the body left or right a bit with the body mounts loose, but be careful doing that because it can mess up the doors and then you start over.

Finally on this...it is a long, somewhat frustrating process to get all this aligned but you must work from back to front (Doors, fenders, grill, hood). A little tweak in one place throws another gap off somewhere else, but there is a sweet spot that looks great if you just keep at it. The factory guys putting these together did thousands and thousands and could look at the gaps and know exactly what to do. They became really good at aligning...it was their job (although many of the Broncos came off the line with less than nice body lines). Point is, it can be done. Just be patient and figure it will take several days of tedious alignment to get it right. But it absolutely can be done!

If using any new body panels, you MUST align them before paint to ensure they fit without major surgery. If you paint it and think the new parts will fit perfect, you will be very dissapointed.

Unless you follow a clear process for aligning, you will chase your tail. This is how it is done right:
1. Do not put any body shims in...yet
2. Have all parts removed from body (doors, fenders, hood, grill, tailgate)
2. Snug down all body mount bolts
3. Install doors and see what you get. If gap is wide on top of rear door and high at rear rocker, add shims to rear body mounts only. This will close the gaps at the top at quarter and the rear of rocker gap. All conditions here:

4. It takes many hours to get the doors perfect. Once you get the gaps close using the body mount shims, combine that with shims on the hinges. Again, this process takes a long time especially if you have not done very much of this type of alignment before. Just keep at it and you WILL get the doors to fit perfect. A 3/16" gap along rockers and quarters is perfect, but you decide what you can live with. Just keep at it until the doors are what you want. Make sure you adjust the doors up and down to align perfectly with the top of the quarters.
5. Now install the fenders and the grill. Leave all bolts loose and you only need two grill bolts per side. The fenders can move forward and aft, in and out. Align them fore and aft to make the gap with door what you want. If your using new fenders, they may not be made correctly. In nearly all cases, the fenders will need work or you can just get them close if that is OK with you.
6. Once you have the fender to door gap correct, test fit the hood. CAUTION: do not immediately go to the hood hinges. Start by aligning the hood left right first. Don't worry about the tip of the hood at the grill until you align the hood up at the cowl perfectly left to right. Minor little nudges left or right until the gap with the fenders on each side are exactly the same. NOTE: It is possible to widen or narrow the hood to fender gap by pulling the fenders outward or pushing them inward. That will throw off the fender to door alignment but you can easily fix that by slightly adjusting the doors in or out to match the new fender location. Key is to get the fender to hood gap at the cowl correct left and right before going to the hood to grill alignment.
7. If the hood is too long (front sticks past grill front edge, all you can do is move the fenders forward. This increases the door to fender gap but short of cutting and welding, a hood too far forward requires fenders to move forward. If the hood is too short at front of grill, you can shim the hood hinges forward. If it is short on one side and long on the other, you can add a hinge shim to bring one side forward slightly. That also moves the hood gaps diagonally. Work on it until the hood front lip aligns with the grill.
8. Finally, you can move the grill left or right slightly to align the gaps at the hood. The grill does not move much, but you can move left to right a 1/16" or so. Fender bolts must be loose to do this. You can also move the body left or right a bit with the body mounts loose, but be careful doing that because it can mess up the doors and then you start over.

Finally on this...it is a long, somewhat frustrating process to get all this aligned but you must work from back to front (Doors, fenders, grill, hood). A little tweak in one place throws another gap off somewhere else, but there is a sweet spot that looks great if you just keep at it. The factory guys putting these together did thousands and thousands and could look at the gaps and know exactly what to do. They became really good at aligning...it was their job (although many of the Broncos came off the line with less than nice body lines). Point is, it can be done. Just be patient and figure it will take several days of tedious alignment to get it right. But it absolutely can be done!

If using any new body panels, you MUST align them before paint to ensure they fit without major surgery. If you paint it and think the new parts will fit perfect, you will be very dissapointed.

I agree with this 100%.^^^^

next step is installing new fenders, hood, doors, quarters, and tail.

So is all this metal bad?? This is a lot of metal work. Nothing new will fit the same as the original. Nothing.

 

[Torkman66]

Yep, correct. Some of the original was not perfect for sure. But the after market stuff is mostly all bad. Some may be slightly better than others, The grills are usually OK. The fenders are almost always totally screwed up. I think DC sales the fenders in three pieces so you can align them and spot weld them right. I have drilled out many fender spot welds in order to get the parts put together correctly. Hoods are usually pretty good as well. Doors, I strongly suggest you get originals that are in good shape and restore them. By far, the Bronco bodies are the most challenging to get right. Pretty much everything else is easy.

 

[TheVazha]

Unless you follow a clear process for aligning, you will chase your tail. This is how it is done right:
1. Do not put any body shims in...yet
2. Have all parts removed from body (doors, fenders, hood, grill, tailgate)
2. Snug down all body mount bolts
3. Install doors and see what you get. If gap is wide on top of rear door and high at rear rocker, add shims to rear body mounts only. This will close the gaps at the top at quarter and the rear of rocker gap. All conditions here:
View attachment 915780

4. It takes many hours to get the doors perfect. Once you get the gaps close using the body mount shims, combine that with shims on the hinges. Again, this process takes a long time especially if you have not done very much of this type of alignment before. Just keep at it and you WILL get the doors to fit perfect. A 3/16" gap along rockers and quarters is perfect, but you decide what you can live with. Just keep at it until the doors are what you want. Make sure you adjust the doors up and down to align perfectly with the top of the quarters.
5. Now install the fenders and the grill. Leave all bolts loose and you only need two grill bolts per side. The fenders can move forward and aft, in and out. Align them fore and aft to make the gap with door what you want. If your using new fenders, they may not be made correctly. In nearly all cases, the fenders will need work or you can just get them close if that is OK with you.
6. Once you have the fender to door gap correct, test fit the hood. CAUTION: do not immediately go to the hood hinges. Start by aligning the hood left right first. Don't worry about the tip of the hood at the grill until you align the hood up at the cowl perfectly left to right. Minor little nudges left or right until the gap with the fenders on each side are exactly the same. NOTE: It is possible to widen or narrow the hood to fender gap by pulling the fenders outward or pushing them inward. That will throw off the fender to door alignment but you can easily fix that by slightly adjusting the doors in or out to match the new fender location. Key is to get the fender to hood gap at the cowl correct left and right before going to the hood to grill alignment.
7. If the hood is too long (front sticks past grill front edge, all you can do is move the fenders forward. This increases the door to fender gap but short of cutting and welding, a hood too far forward requires fenders to move forward. If the hood is too short at front of grill, you can shim the hood hinges forward. If it is short on one side and long on the other, you can add a hinge shim to bring one side forward slightly. That also moves the hood gaps diagonally. Work on it until the hood front lip aligns with the grill.
8. Finally, you can move the grill left or right slightly to align the gaps at the hood. The grill does not move much, but you can move left to right a 1/16" or so. Fender bolts must be loose to do this. You can also move the body left or right a bit with the body mounts loose, but be careful doing that because it can mess up the doors and then you start over.

Finally on this...it is a long, somewhat frustrating process to get all this aligned but you must work from back to front (Doors, fenders, grill, hood). A little tweak in one place throws another gap off somewhere else, but there is a sweet spot that looks great if you just keep at it. The factory guys putting these together did thousands and thousands and could look at the gaps and know exactly what to do. They became really good at aligning...it was their job (although many of the Broncos came off the line with less than nice body lines). Point is, it can be done. Just be patient and figure it will take several days of tedious alignment to get it right. But it absolutely can be done!

If using any new body panels, you MUST align them before paint to ensure they fit without major surgery. If you paint it and think the new parts will fit perfect, you will be very dissapointed.

View attachment 915781 View attachment 915787 View attachment 915786

You sir are a national treasure. Thank you for this super detailed write up. I will review in detail and post updates as we get the tub cleaned up!





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[Wild horse 75]

@Torkman66 very detailed write up. I’ve screenshot it to save for when I have to do mine. Thank you.

 

[sprdv1]

Fantastic advice, thank you gents. With this new boost in confidence that we can get her alligned, I’m starting to tear her down. Will report back once I get the new panels on!

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hell yeah.. Best of luck

 

[TheVazha]

It was a loooong day

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[Torkman66]

Looks great! When you start to line up the quarters, do it with self tapping sheet metal screws. They hold tight and allow you to get it exactly where you want it. You can even install the quarters and hang the doors to check door/qtr gaps before going back and welding in the quarters. Even if you need to put a screw into a visible area, the hole is very small and can easily be filled with a quick weld and mild grind. Key is that the screws allow you to get it all lined up before welding it and finding out if it is off somewhere by 1/8". Once you know for sure you have it right where you want it, start spot welds and begin removing the screws as you go. Also, the top of the qtr will warp from too much heat if your not careful. Stich weld every 4 inches. Also, please remember that when installing new body panels, it is NOT a race. Go slow. Check and check again before any cutting. Install ANYTHING that aligns with or bolts to the section you are welding in to ensure everything lines up BEFORE final weld. It takes a lot of time. Requires a lot of on and off and on and off. But if you want it right, thats how the top restorations are done. Your work looks great!! Keep going.

 

[TheVazha]

Looks great! When you start to line up the quarters, do it with self tapping sheet metal screws. They hold tight and allow you to get it exactly where you want it. You can even install the quarters and hang the doors to check door/qtr gaps before going back and welding in the quarters. Even if you need to put a screw into a visible area, the hole is very small and can easily be filled with a quick weld and mild grind. Key is that the screws allow you to get it all lined up before welding it and finding out if it is off somewhere by 1/8". Once you know for sure you have it right where you want it, start spot welds and begin removing the screws as you go. Also, the top of the qtr will warp from too much heat if your not careful. Stich weld every 4 inches. Also, please remember that when installing new body panels, it is NOT a race. Go slow. Check and check again before any cutting. Install ANYTHING that aligns with or bolts to the section you are welding in to ensure everything lines up BEFORE final weld. It takes a lot of time. Requires a lot of on and off and on and off. But if you want it right, thats how the top restorations are done. Your work looks great!! Keep going.

Thank you kind sir!! I appreciate your kind words and advice.

What are the two huge plastic boxes at the cowl? I finally got the cowl to bare metal and took the two plastic boxes off. I see a lot of the high end builds just eliminate them all together. Are they necessary? Couple items:

- I have a vintage air system but I also don’t have a hard top
- truck will never see rain (I don’t have a hard top and monitor weather closely)
- truck is used exclusively for short drives in my immediate county

New plastic box things are not expensive, so I could easily replace, but I do love how it looks without them. Thoughts?


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[Wild horse 75]

The box on the drivers side is a fresh air vent for the driver. The passenger one is the fresh air intake for the stock heater box. If you have a vintage air setup the passenger one is redundant although some people use it to run the heater and A/C lines back into the engine compartment. The drivers side one is personal choice, although with A/C you won’t need cool air being blown in while you drive. You can get a storage box that replaces it or just get a block off plate.

 

[TheVazha]

The box on the drivers side is a fresh air vent for the driver. The passenger one is the fresh air intake for the stock heater box. If you have a vintage air setup the passenger one is redundant although some people use it to run the heater and A/C lines back into the engine compartment. The drivers side one is personal choice, although with A/C you won’t need cool air being blown in while you drive. You can get a storage box that replaces it or just get a block off plate.

Very cool! My lines are all run through the firewall so I guess I don’t need either! Just have to find a cleaver way to seal them up!


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[TheVazha]

Front clip done. This weekend the rear, and then I’m ready for gapping!


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