*edit* Just got done searching and found this has happened to others as well.

My wife was backing out of the driveway and head a big bang/pop and the steering wheel wasn't straight anymore..

After jacking up the truck and looking it looks like the mount where the tracbar bolts to the axle is broken in half. I know this mount is welded to the ubolt bracket and that's welded to the axle tube itself.

It had the skyjacker part on it that raised the track bar, but I had pulled it off when I put an adjustable trackbar on it. This way it's angled matched the centerlink angle. I was told it eliminates bumpsteer doing this. It does have the upper trackbar drop bracket on it.

Unfortunetly I have recently become unemployed, so now I don't have many options right now..Does anyone have any ideas on what I can do to fix this?

I'm wondering If I should have it welded, put the skyjacker lower braked back on for stability and move the trackbar to the 4" hole on the upper bracket.

Here are pics.

Bigger resolution pics can be found here. Just click on them twice.

http://www.supermotors.net/vehicles/...ry/15851/66772

 

You have a Super Duty huh?
This is common with leaf sprung trucks from 99-04. This happens when there is too much load on the trac bar itself. You may have had the angles correct, but there was an excessive load on the trac bar.
The reason I say this is because you mentioned that after the "Bang" (which should not happen anyway, the trac bar should not have any load when the truck is on a reasonably level surface) the steering wheel went crooked. If this is the case, the trac bar has ben adjusted incorrectly, and this pre-load busted the trac-bar mount.
You can weld it, but it appears that you have greater than 4 inches of lift. This amount of lift should not even require a trac bar at all. The springs are plenty stong enough to prevent the side to side motion.
Small stock springs can sway, and even wobble, if the trac bar is not present, but springs with this much arch may not require anything at all.
As far as the steering wheel goes, you can adjust the drag link to get the wheel straight again, and you should be good to go.
I have been driving leaf spring SD's for a while now, and even had an excursion (8" lift) with not trac bar. 6 inches should not be too terribly different.
Unlike coil springs, the trac bar used under a lea sprung truck is different. The axle is controlled latteraly by the leaf springs themselves, and larger spring packs provide that much more strength.
Free up the trac bar, and throw it in a pile, right next to the sway bars, if you have not removed tham already, and you should find a better riding truck.

 

I've already removed the sway bar. It made it to stiff.

I'm running a 6" lift with procomp springs with the 7.3 diesel motor.

The bang came when she was backing into the driveway and the steering wheel was turned to the right to manuver the truck into place.

This is the first straight axle'ed truck I've owned so when it comes to stuff on it I know how to put on suspension lifts on it, but don't know the ins and outs of what the trac bar stuff.. I know it centers the axle.
So It would be ok to run it without a track bar with the 6" lift? You're saying with a strong leaf pack the track bar is not needed?

I know older Fords had springs and no track bar.

New concept to me to just pull it out all together.. I'll do some more research on it and see what pulling the track bar will do.

 

As I mentioned I have not run one for a few years, and I notice nothing negative.
This is a simple geometry problem, and it is more common than most will ever consider.
See be placing a greater angle on the trac bar, (even with an adjustable bar) the range of motion, or arch that the trac bar moves on during suspension cycles is different than the cueved lea spring will allow.
See the leaf spring simply tries to compress and extend, so only the shackle angle will vary. The axle seldome tries to move from left to right.
Stco track bars are reasonably flat in thier angle, and adding angle can create this tension at the ends of the trac bar.
Add more angle, like when the pass side wheel reaches full extension, and the axle naturally tries to move towards the driver side of the truck. The trac bar pulls it this direction, and the leaf springs offer resistance. This resistance will find the weakest link, and in the case of the SD, the weakest link is the Trac Bar mount. You have broken the mount that is common for most SD owners, with lifted trucks.

SHould you chose to keep the trac bar, you might make, or have made a bracket that mounts it higher, so you create far less angle.
You will also consider a drop pitman arm to also decrease the angle of the drag link too.
Easy fix really, just like the sway bars, this trac bar, even the adjustable one, can add some resistance that is not necessary.

 

I have a drop pitman arm on it already..

It makes complete sense on what you're saying about removing the trac bar.

I'm just trying to read up on it as well and see how many others have done it. I'm not the type of person to just do something cause I read it. I'm sure you understand, but I will give credit where credit is due. I'm really considering going on there and pulling it off..

Cause the pop happened on Sunday and we drove all over the place on monday. Just hearing pops and creaks.. Come to find out the mount was broken..

I had looked under it on Sunday and monday but the mount is hidden behind the tie rod and I missed it.

 

I agree with you 1 million percent. Dont take anything for granted, and do as much research as you can, until you are completely comfortable with your decision.
I know your truck will be just fine, and unless you have added crazy long spring hangers, and shackles, you should be just fine without the trac bar.
You may even notice an improvement in the ride quality.

 

Well.. Let me just say you had the best idea ever. I'm not sure why the other posts did not have this recomendation in it..

I did speak with a bronco friend of mine who really knows his stuff and he agreed with you.. Rear shackles = no trac bar needed. Front shackles = need trac bar. Thankfully the superduty has rear shackles.

I went up and down the street a couple times.. Already I notice a huge difference. The poping noises are gone. The hum from the power steering pump is gone. Truck seemed a lot smoother and going in and out of the driveway was very smooth.. huge fan..

Thanks again for the recomendation.. Just saved me a lot of time money and stress.

Think I'll need the trac bar for hitting the mud pits or is it better without it?

 

Good question, but my opinion is still the same. No trac bar at all.
Your springs are still stout enough to control the springs. My toys have hit the local mud pits (I live in So Ca also, actually not far from Riverside), and I even tow the tow haulers with them.
Never a problem, and I dont suspect I ever will. Well, the Excursion is gone, but you get the idea.

You freed up all of that tension that was in the front end, and as I mentioned, I believe that you will really appreciate the new ride and drive of your truck.
Congrats. Hit me up when you decide to go muddin.
Where do you like to go? I am an avid Glamis guy, and I enjoy Johnson Valley, (I like rocks too) and I visit Azusa Canyon with a bunch of frequency.

 

We just go to Azusa once in a while. We have an 87 bronco on 40's that we've been dying to take there, but don't have a trailer for it.

We've hit up Azusa a couple times.. We do want to do more stuff but right now I'm unemployed.. Looking for an IT job. Once that happens we'll be able to do more..

 

Right on man! I am there just about every weekend, unless I am at one of the other places mentioned above.
We have to shake down a Jeep this weekend, and we will trailer up to Gorman. I wanted to hit Glamis for the Holiday weekend, but am having second thoughts. Has been incredibly hot, and I do not want to waste a trip and be miserable. Been there done that, and it is just too darn expensive to do all of that!
I can understand money being tight, and typicaly, most of the fellas flat tow thier rigs if trailers or tow trucks are not available.
I am also a board member for Azusa Canyon Off Road Associaltion. You will notice my avitar, well this was taken at Azusa. Yes, I do refquent this area. I have been for years. My first trip was probably when I was around 5 years old. Maybe I was 6, but either way I was young. I learned how to drive in that place. I was driving quite well by 7 years old ( It was a 67 Jeep CJ5 with a 12:1 327 and a Muncie 4 speed) Only thing I could not do very well was push that darn clutch in when I was so young. Skinny little legs just did not have what it took. As long as I could keep going I was just fine though. Funny stuff.
I have a fab shop in Ontario just off of the 60, and a storage shop in Pomona, again just off of the 60, and reside in the foothills just north of the 210 Fwy. (Claremont).
PM me, and we can exchange contact info.
BTW, you have mentioned Broncos. I would like to see yours, sounds nice.
I too have a couple Broncos, and one is for sale. I have an 84 Bronco (body style just prior to yours) that is bone stock. Super clean original owner truck. I have to sell it because I need space. Too many projects lately. Anyway, it can be had for a song. I will just about give it away, and would rather do that than send it out for scrap, even though scrap is fetching decent money.
Regardless it can be a good driver, but would make an excelent parts donor. Everything is functional and straight.
Hit me back man. Good chatting with you...


75

 

Hey does you 75 have a cage in the back with a radiator mounted to it? (Just wondering)


Here's our bronco and F250.

 

Not my red one, but my orange one does. It has two radiators in series. A ford ratiator up front, and a chevy crossflow in the bed.
Image of The boyz waitin to play - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Image of Rear mount radiator - Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Couple of nice trucks you have there. My last SD was almost the exact same! Same colors, except mine was a V-10 (sort of a mistake).
Mine had a 6" BDS lift with a 2" hanger kit.
Bronco looks real nice. How does that TTB front axle hold up with the boggers?
Consider an SAS yet? I know, I know, money and time right?
Looks real nice.

 

Nice rigs you got! I thought your red one looked familiar to me, but it's not the one I thought it was.

The TTB handles the 40's pretty good.. It does wear out ball joints and tie rods faster then I would like. My wife has had that thing almost vertical coming out of a mud pit and hit the front tires while still on the gas and the only thing that happend was the hub exploded and the ujoint on the drivers axles blew up. Was awesome..

I do want to SAS it, but the fabritech kit costs way to much for me, and I don't have the skills to weld...

bronco is the wifes.. not mine. She also drives the F250.. I only get to use my motorcycle.

 

Right on man, thank you for the compliment. As far as your SAS, we can make whatever you need. There is not a need to ever use a mass produced kit for the SAS. We can use quite a bit of your existing components, and make what we do not have. We have the technology, lol.
In time I guess. I like to help out, and plenty of the guys I wheel with do as well.
Still tossing around the Glamis idea this weekend, so time will tell, as it is approaching very quickly. I guess I have a day to decide. I have fuel and everything packed, just need food,,,,and adult beverages.
If I do not go to Glamis, I will probably head out to azusa for sunday.

 

The easiest and lest constly would be to get a coil spring dana 44 and use my existing coils and stuff.. Then would just need to mount a trac bar. Guess I'll hold onto the Fabtech adjustable one I just took of the superduty. Wonder if I could make the radius arms I have work..

I have everything but the axle.