I have finally had a chance to work on the Bronco a little over the last couple of weeks. Hadn’t been able to do much since the middle of October.
I finally got everything stripped off the body, and moved it outside a couple of days ago so I can concentrate on the rolling chassis. I did find some rust holes through the grill shell, just forward of where it attaches to the fenders.:-X I though it was solid, but apparently not. Still kicking around options for the body. I’m basically down to two options, either the tub kit from the graveyard or the tub from Northeast Classic Ford. Still have some time before I need to make a decision.
Today I got all of the gear lube drained from the transmission, transfer case and front axle. I’m not sure how long the gear oil had been in them, but it had been a very long time. I’ve owned it for a little over 20 years now, and I have never changed it. It smelled really bad!
Driveshafts are out, and I should be able to pull the engine, transmission and transfer case off tomorrow. I need to keep it as a roller for a little bit, have a little project coming up that I’ll need the lift for. Once that’s done, I can remove the axles and start cleaning up the frame.
My current plan is to clean up and paint the frame and suspension. Clean up and put seals in the axles, (and whatever else they need) then get it back together as a roller.
Once that’s done, take the engine apart and see what it needs. I’m hoping I can get by with just gaskets and seals since it’s got such low mileage. We shall see once I get into it. Same plan for the transmission and transfer case: refresh, gaskets and seals.