MG Metal Works DIY kit knowledge share

[moto657]

Originally Posted by mgmetalworks

1. Our brackets will fit the Eseries cutaway frame. There are not a lot of differences between those frames and the full body van frames. Mostly cross member differences towards the middle/rear of the frame. Up front, they are the same.

2. The manual shift t-case that fits the 6R140 is Part Number bc34-7a195-bb. These came in the 2011-2016 F-series gas trucks. I haven't had hands-on experience doing this swap yet but from my research, it looks like the Eseries comes with the fixed yoke tailshaft similar to the 4x4 trucks, not the longer slip yoke style. Which makes conversion easy from what I can gather.

Thanks for the quick and clear response. All good news. Now the wheels in my head are really turning!

[zombiecarp]

Hello fellow MGMetalworks 4x4 van conversion people.


I am finishing up my conversion on my 2000 E-350 7.3 ambulance with 2016 F-250 axles, 4.30 front with OX, rear factory E-locker, ATS 4R100, NP271, rear tank, Skyjacker (not SL) coils, Pro-Comp leafs and 35" tires. What I have left is to finish installing the rear tank, figuring out the front ABS and trans sensor (looking into the Abbott ratio converter), T-case shifter, sway bar, shocks (going to try and find Bilsteins) and then measuring and ordering driveshafts.


I have been reading through this thread all morning and found a few of my answers and still looking for a few more. I realize some people have left off the sway bar but I am trying to adapt my 2016 SD sway bar and it is narrower than the frame and doesn't look like it will work without some fancy custom brackets. Are the earlier SD track bars wider? The picture of a 2005 sway bar on Rock Auto looks different than my 2016 but I cannot find any dimensions. Anyone know? I'll attach a few pictures of her. Tia!

[desertsherpa]

To reuse the stock swaybar :
I took the mounts and flipped them forward, making the forward hole the new rearward hole.
This has the unfortunate consequence of interfering with the forward mount hitches (I bought two, and send them both back due to this interference).
Once you do that you can order new endlinks. I think I used these :
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Moog K80015 Stabilizer Bar Link Kit

Removing the bumper allows you access to put a nut on the back of the bolt for the new forward hole, because there is not enough meat on the frame to tap it there (I tried).

I also had to grind the edge off some washers to get a flush mount on one of the bolts, as the bottom of the frame is not perfectly flat where you put the new hold. (edit see washers in post below w/ photo)

[razorsedge]

Originally Posted by zombiecarp

Hello fellow MGMetalworks 4x4 van conversion people.


I am finishing up my conversion on my 2000 E-350 7.3 ambulance with 2016 F-250 axles, 4.30 front with OX, rear factory E-locker, ATS 4R100, NP271, rear tank, Superlift coils, Pro-Comp leafs and 35" tires. What I have left is to finish installing the rear tank, figuring out the front ABS and trans sensor (looking into the Abbott ratio converter), T-case shifter, sway bar, shocks (going to try and find Bilsteins) and then measuring and ordering driveshafts.


I have been reading through this thread all morning and found a few of my answers and still looking for a few more. I realize some people have left off the sway bar but I am trying to adapt my 2016 SD sway bar and it is narrower than the frame and doesn't look like it will work without some fancy custom brackets. Are the earlier SD track bars wider? The picture of a 2005 sway bar on Rock Auto looks different than my 2016 but I cannot find any dimensions. Anyone know? I'll attach a few pictures of her. Tia!

I don't have a 2016 SD sway bar but I do have one from a 2012 and a 2005. I was hoping to use the 2012 bar because it's a lot thicker than the van one but there's no way it'll fit. The 2005 bar is thinner. And not any wider. It's 44.5" wide. The van bar is your best bet IMO.

Here's a couple pictures of the 2012 and 2005 SD bars together.

[desertsherpa]

Originally Posted by zombiecarp

Hello fellow MGMetalworks 4x4 van conversion people.


I have been reading through this thread all morning and found a few of my answers and still looking for a few more. I realize some people have left off the sway bar but I am trying to adapt my 2016 SD sway bar and it is narrower than the frame and doesn't look like it will work without some fancy custom brackets. Are the earlier SD track bars wider? The picture of a 2005 sway bar on Rock Auto looks different than my 2016 but I cannot find any dimensions. Anyone know? I'll attach a few pictures of her. Tia!

The van frame is a different width than the trucks. The bends in the sway bars reflect that..

[zombiecarp]

Thanks for the replies so far.

Originally Posted by desertsherpa

The van frame is a different width than the trucks. The bends in the sway bars reflect that..

Yup I understand, this is why I am having this issue. Might button up all the other details and work on this once its back on the road.

Originally Posted by razorsedge

The van bar is your best bet IMO.

There is no way to attach links to the van sway bar or am I missing something simple here?

Originally Posted by desertsherpa

To reuse the stock swaybar :
I took the mounts and flipped them forward, making the forward hole the new rearward hole.

You mean stock SD sway bar? This is basically what I was planning on doing but cannot get my SD bar to reach without moving the mounts inward. Its very close and maybe its due to the thickness of the bar I have. It wouldnt be too hard to fabricate brrackets to do this just looking to see if there is an easier solution.

[razorsedge]

Originally Posted by zombiecarp

There is no way to attach links to the van sway bar or am I missing something simple here?

You should be able to attach it. What does your van bar look like and what end links are you using?

[desertsherpa]

Originally Posted by zombiecarp

Thanks for the replies so far....
There is no way to attach links to the van sway bar or am I missing something simple here?

.

Maybe a picture helps...

This is the stock sway bar from my van attached to the frame via moving the sway bar mounts forward. The links are linked in the previous post. The axle is a 2017 F250 Axle. The Truck F250 Swaybar went to the metal recycling depot.




Also if you look at razor's edge photo in post 644, you can see the 90 degree difference in the end link mounts between those two bars. My Truck 2017 and Van 2009 sway bars also had that difference (along with the bend issue). My van bar presents a horizontal hole to bolt to the end links. They then go through the attachment point on the axle vertically.

The moog links are ~18 right now. I would get the stock sway bar on there, and learn if its good enough.

[zombiecarp]

Originally Posted by razorsedge

You should be able to attach it. What does your van bar look like and what end links are you using?

The SD bar has end links and the van bar slides into bushings on the cross beams. I am not there at the moment for a better picture but these are the two bars side by side.

[zombiecarp]

Originally Posted by desertsherpa

Maybe a picture helps...

Ok yes that helps. My van must have a different sway bar setup I guess. All three vans I have owned recently did not have sway bars with end links. Sounds like i am going to go walk around the pick and pull.