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I would imagine PMFs brackets would have the same gap. I think they are only made for the 05+ frame unless they have a 99-04 option I am not seeing. You would not have to remove them (which is a giant pain in the butt), but I think you would still have to shim them and drill all new holes on the bottom for correct alignment. You still have to drill the missing holes in your frame, too.
I would imagine PMFs brackets would have the same gap. I think they are only made for the 05+ frame unless they have a 99-04 option I am not seeing. You would not have to remove them (which is a giant pain in the butt), but I think you would still have to shim them and drill all new holes on the bottom for correct alignment. You still have to drill the missing holes in your frame, too.
Yep, I understand that. My thoughts were to weld in spacers/washers for the gaps. In a perfect world someone would be making brackets for 99-04 trucks... hint hint. Just trying to find a way to save time on the radius arm brackets because that's what I lack.
Got the brackets bolted to my frame today. I ended up using two 1/2" grade 8 washers stacked in the gap for each bolt. They fit perfectly, and they can't go anywhere as long as the bolt they surround is there. Here are today's pics:
These center the punch in whatever hole you are trying to drill into. One for small holes...one for bigger holes. They work GREAT, are very accurate, but are hard to use with only two hands when working upside down.
The spring loaded cone self-centers in the hole as you push the body up against the surface the hole is in.
Then you tap the pin with a hammer to mark the center of the hole on the surface to be drilled. The pin is not held in, so when upside down, it falls out. Took me a bit to adjust, but it got done...
These were recommended by another guy who did this mod. I also endorse them. They go through the frame super quick at slower speeds making nice spiral shavings. Don't run your bits too fast...well, except the step bit.
Harbor Freight specials...work terrific.
This is the one you need if drilling with the brackets bolted to the truck like I did. I left the brackets on the truck and drilled the two extra holes.
Right angle drill sure makes life easy under the truck.
Center punched and 1/8 bit run through. There is a shadow on the right side from my work light. The pilot hole is perfectly centered.
After running the step bit through. It cut through the frame like a hot knife through butter. Took less than 15 seconds to make a 1/2" hole.
Uppermost hole on side of brackets drilled out.
All four side mounted bolts drilled/installed.
All three lower bolts installed.
Some may notice two of the bolts on the bottom side are smaller. I used grade 8 3/8-16 x 1.25 bolts there. Not enough clearance with the fuel pump and the side bolts to use 1/2" bolts, AND I didn't want to weld and drill a 1/4" steel plate next to my fuel pump, fuel lines and brake line. My little MiG welder would be pushed to its limits to weld that up. I used the two stacked 1/2" washers to fill the gap, and the 3/8" bolts fit perfectly in the misaligned holes. I am thinking I might weld the bracket to the frame on the sides at a later date. The brackets are rock solid. I'll snap a pic of the washers in the gap tomorrow morning.
For hardware, I used 1/2" flange bolts and locking flange nuts, and I used washers (5/16 grade 8) on the grade 8 3/8" flange bolts to cover the hole completely. I used grade 8 3/8" locking flange nuts on the top side with another 5/16 grade 8 washer up there, too.
Is there a handy source for those center punches? Looks like they're a little better option than the multi-size sets you can get. I'll need some when I build the adapter plate to go from my 12V to ZF6 bell housing, and that's not something I want to mess up.
Got the brackets bolted to my frame today. I ended up using two 1/2" grade 8 washers stacked in the gap for each bolt. They fit perfectly, and they can't go anywhere as long as the bolt they surround is there. Here are today's pics:
These center the punch in whatever hole you are trying to drill into. One for small holes...one for bigger holes. They work GREAT, are very accurate, but are hard to use with only two hands when working upside down.
The spring loaded cone self-centers in the hole as you push the body up against the surface the hole is in.
Then you tap the pin with a hammer to mark the center of the hole on the surface to be drilled. The pin is not held in, so when upside down, it falls out. Took me a bit to adjust, but it got done...
These were recommended by another guy who did this mod. I also endorse them. They go through the frame super quick at slower speeds making nice spiral shavings. Don't run your bits too fast...well, except the step bit.
Harbor Freight specials...work terrific.
This is the one you need if drilling with the brackets bolted to the truck like I did. I left the brackets on the truck and drilled the two extra holes.
Right angle drill sure makes life easy under the truck.
Center punched and 1/8 bit run through. There is a shadow on the right side from my work light. The pilot hole is perfectly centered.
After running the step bit through. It cut through the frame like a hot knife through butter. Took less than 15 seconds to make a 1/2" hole.
Uppermost hole on side of brackets drilled out.
All four side mounted bolts drilled/installed.
All three lower bolts installed.
Some may notice two of the bolts on the bottom side are smaller. I used grade 8 3/8-16 x 1.25 bolts there. Not enough clearance with the fuel pump and the side bolts to use 1/2" bolts, AND I didn't want to weld and drill a 1/4" steel plate next to my fuel pump, fuel lines and brake line. My little MiG welder would be pushed to its limits to weld that up. I used the two stacked 1/2" washers to fill the gap, and the 3/8" bolts fit perfectly in the misaligned holes. I am thinking I might weld the bracket to the frame on the sides at a later date. The brackets are rock solid. I'll snap a pic of the washers in the gap tomorrow morning.
For hardware, I used 1/2" flange bolts and locking flange nuts, and I used washers (5/16 grade 8) on the grade 8 3/8" flange bolts to cover the hole completely. I used grade 8 3/8" locking flange nuts on the top side with another 5/16 grade 8 washer up there, too.
Nice job Mike.
I've got a MIG with some *** that you are welcome to borrow if you like.
I would imagine PMFs brackets would have the same gap. I think they are only made for the 05+ frame unless they have a 99-04 option I am not seeing. You would not have to remove them (which is a giant pain in the butt), but I think you would still have to shim them and drill all new holes on the bottom for correct alignment. You still have to drill the missing holes in your frame, too.
I know fabteh makes their brackets to fit the 99-04 frame ( I used them ) And I'd be willing to bet PMF would make them for you as well if they already don't.
You washers sound like they will work fine however, I'd keep an eye on it for a while to make sure it doesn't start to bend. But I doubt it will.
Speaking of keeping and eye on it, I use a red paint pen and put a line across the bolt and frame, it make the easy work to do occasional scan for loose fasteners
Easy to see which of these bolts have loosened if all the lines were straight to begin with.
Fwiw marking your bolts makes for a quick visual check to find lose or loosening bolts. It's a race trick but I still use it on most of my stuff, especially critical applications like suspension, driveline and steering.
I like the Nissan brand. They have a fine point and the paint flow control is excellent.
The sharpie brand of paint pens have a big wide tip and lay down far to much paint for bolt marking. Sharpies are easy to find at HD and Lowes and such.
The nissans are available at welding supply stores but I buy them off Amazon
Get the Super Fine tipped ones
Here are the pics of the spacer solution I came up with...
Front two bolts/spacers on driver's side
Driver's side rear spacer/bolt
Passenger side complete. In this pic, for the intersecting set of bolts, I was testing a 2" bolt coming in from the side with a 1.5" bolt coming up from the bottom. Not enough room. Replaced the 2" on the side with a 1.5", and problem solved.
Driver's side. You can see the intersection of that same set of bolts on this side. Here I tested a 1.75" bolt from the side with a 1.25" bolt up from the bottom. It works, but there are no extra threads coming up out of the lock nut on the bottom. Need a 1.5" bolt to have the security/peace of mind the extra threads provide.
I then went around and marked all the bolts with a paint pen as Pirate suggested.
So, the brackets are installed. I can now focus entirely on getting the rest of the front axle cleaned up, and then I will paint it. If the weather co-operates...
I got the step bits locally. They are HSS, and they cut very well considering the small amount I gave for them.
I need another right angle drill. Mine kicked the bucket during the last hole. It has served me well over the years, and paid for itself 100 times over.
I've got a MIG with some *** that you are welcome to borrow if you like.
Be careful...I may take you up on that. Mine is good to 3/16, but after that it just doesn't have enough "ooompfff". I wouldn't trust it on stuff this important.
Post 161 has the link for the center punches. Best I've ever used...
Thanks, I scrolled right over that post. Which one is the right size for a bumper hole? The holes I need to make are the same size as the factory rear bumper holes.
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