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Project Bronco Showroom | |
| The Bronco Showroom # 9 | Page 9 |
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A true Bronco fan is someone who adores their Bronco so much that they will never, ever part with it no matter how old it gets, no matter how much work they have to put into it, or no matter what happens to it. A rare breed indeed! Never-the-less, Jack Keller is just such a person. Jack has owned this beautiful, fully-loaded Ranger XLT since 1987. He and his father have spent the last eight years working on and off to fully restore this Bronco to better-than-new condition.
The truck has around 153K miles (only about 15K since the restoration), a 400M, C6 automatic transmission, NP205, Dana 44 front and ford 9" rear end, dual Rancho RS5000's up front and singles out back, a single RS5000 steering stabilizer, BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A's on 15x10 Eagle 589's, Energy Suspension polyurethane bushings up front and body mounts, tilt steering, cruise control, and A/C.
Jack says his truck has been a joy to drive up until a few weeks ago when someone pulled out in front of him and he paid the price. (See the last 3 thumbnails below). Jack is now in the process of searching for parts to rebuild this beauty as he is ready to get back behind the wheel.
-- Hat's off to you Jack! Good luck with your repairs and I hope you're able to get her back on the road soon. |
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Chris purchased his Bronco from the original owner in 1992 with only 100K original miles on it. The Bronco was originally blue and white and was equipped with the optional 400 engine. Chris has performed a full restoration on his Bronco which includes a new 429 engine, C6 trans, and NP205 t-case. The Bronco also sports a 2" lift, 33" tires, and new custom inside & out blue and black paint job.
-- There's nothing like a fully restored Bronco to show off as your pride & joy! |
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Anthony bought his Bronco in the fall of 2000 after searching and lusting for one for over 5 years. He used to have a '92 Bronco that he replaced with a a '77 Bronco (he still has it), but he still wanted a full-size model and finally found this gem just down the street from his home. This Bronco was one of the first Big Broncos built and rolled of the line in August of 1977. As you can see this Bronco Custom features all of the XLT chrome and even has the optional square head lights. It also has factory quad shocks, a NP205 t-case, C6 trans, 351M engine, a 100 MPH speedo, privacy glass, full carpet and a bench seat. Anthony has added a tilt steering column, a sport steering wheel, a fog lamp switch, poly bushings, a rear sway bar, intermittent wipers, and a factory GT bar (roll bar).
Anthony's future plans for his Bronco include a reupholstered front seat, new shocks, sliding side windows, new carpet, and a paint job. If the 351M ever dies he will probably replace it with a 460, but that is in the far future.
-- Here's another example of a RARE fully-loaded Custom that was one of the first Big Broncos to roll of the assembly line. With all of the XLT chrome options and the factory 100MPH speedo, there is no doubt that this one is definitely a keeper! |
 
Justin
Stout's 1978 Bronco Ranger XLT, Hamburg,
Pennsylvania
Justin purchased this good looking Bronco for just $800.00 exactly the way you see it. The Bronco has a 351M engine with an Edelbrock intake and an Edelbrock 650 CFM Performer carb. It sports a 6 inch Rugged Trail lift as well as 10 (?) Trail Master shocks -- all riding on 35x12.50x15 B.F. Goodrich All-Terrain KO tires. The rest of the Bronco is all original. Justin plans on performing a complete frame-off restoration on his Bronco in the near future. -- Man, you buy a nice set of wheels & rims and you get a Bronco for free! What a deal. Good luck on your resto! |
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-- Oh that's nice! Take a close look at the factory towing mirrors Ford used to put on the heavy-duty Camper & Trailer Special trucks! This is probably one of the best preserved Trailer Specials in the country -- very rare indeed! |
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Rick purchased this beautiful '79 Custom last year (2000) for just $250.00!!! (not 2,500, just 250 bucks). The body was 4 different colors and there were even plants growing in the interior, but as you can see Rick has just about restored his Bronco from the ground-up. Rick gave the Bronco a new paint job that he applied himself. He then cleaned the inside, painted what needed to be painted, built the custom boxes in the cargo area, tinted the windows and had a friend in the carpet business lay down all new carpet with some extra heavy padding underneath to help quiet the ride down. The front seats and center console were donated from an '87 Bronco.
Rick replaced the original engine with a freshened up 460 (it only had 68,000 miles on it) with a Comp cam & lifters, an early double roller timing chain set to get rid of the retard, Clevite 77 bearings, Melling hi-volume oil pump w/ARP oil pump drive, a FlowKooler hi-volume water pump, a new distributor, and L&L headers flowing through 2.5" dual exhaust. Getting all that power to the ground is a brand new heavy-duty ATF C6 transmission and 3.50 gears w/ a limited-slip in the back.
Rick plans on adding an Edelbrock Performer 750 CFM carb and a Weiand Stealth manifold as well as replacing the current 33X12.50s tires on 10 inch wheels with 35" Thornbirds, a 4 inch lift and all polyurethane bushings in the front end.
-- I would have never thought you could make a $250.00 Bronco look so good! Just take a look at that 460 --- it looks like a factory-original installation. Nice :-) |
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Justin is working on building his very first Bronco. He is just 15 years old, but from the looks of things he already has a good start on it. The Bronco is mostly stock and has a 351M engine. Justin installed a 2" suspension lift on it and is currently working on the body work. Justin plans on rebuilding this machine from the ground-up.
-- Oh yea, a new black paint job, tinted windows, 35" tires........ I can see it now :-) |
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Mike bought this immaculate Ranger XLT in 1986 when he was just 17 years old. Although Mike has owned his Bronco for 15 years as of this writing, the Bronco has only managed to rack up 158,000 miles, and that is with no engine or drive train work at all! The original 351M still runs strong considering the amount of wear on it. Mike plans on putting a fresh engine in when the bearings finally give way, although he admits he's been waiting the last 4 years for that to happen.
Mike has installed a 2.5" Ranchero suspension lift with 35" swampers on American Racing rims. All the rubber bushings have been replaced with polyurethane bushings and Mike says they made an huge difference in the way it drives. All of the rust on the Bronco has been repaired and the truck was repainted about 8 years ago. There is a small amount of rust coming back due the salt the state of Pennsylvania throws on the roads but Mike plans to repair it soon. The interior is original with a few modifications, including factory roll bar he got from a friend who rolled his Bronco off an icy highway.
-- Ah, One of the few people who have owned their Bronco longer than I have owned mine (but only by a year :-) I feel the same way! Nice truck Mike |
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Ouch! Here's some photos of Nathan's F-250 chassis Bronco after plunging down a 15 foot embankment. As you can see from the pics, Nathan was a-okay. The Bronco didn't fare quite as well, though. Fortunately, the running gear suffered little, if any damage so Nathan plans to rebuild the Bronco and get it back on the trails ASAP. Nathan points out that most of the money is in the running gear so all he needs is a good Bronco body to get the 'ol beast up and running again. If any readers out there know where Nathan can get a replacement Bronco body near Crestview, send me an email at webmaster@projectbronco.com and I'll forward the info to Nathan.
Nathan's Bronco sports a F-250 chassis, 42" tires, and a 390 engine.
-- Umm, yea, maybe keep an eye out for a good roll bar too :-) |
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Anthony
Wilson's 1978 Bronco Custom 
Garrett Hood's 1979
Bronco Ranger XLT - Trailer Special
