Your frame does separate . You need to drill out the 16 rivets , 8 per side at the front leaf spring brackets and the frame will separate there . YES , I am sure .

 

The frame on the parts truck is not the same height as the one on my 1998. Can it be because its produced in 07/97 and then its a 96 model? Dont the change model year in august?
I can see that my 98 is rivited together as you describe.

 

What year is your parts truck ?

 

What year is your parts truck ? Are they both 2wd ?

 

They are both 2 WD
Parts truck VIN 1FTCR14A6VPB42119
Its a supercab with 125 wheelbase.

 

Rear frame sections should be identical . Look back at the pictures I have posted . This should help you immensely .

 

PS , as long as they are both 6' beds . 7' beds are different in the rear .

 

Jody, Your thread on rear frame replacement excellent-except for the finger. Would like to know where you located the replacement frame parts. How can I get that information from you?

 

Hello , I got it here .
Allied Auto Wrecking
Great guys and great service .

 

Thanks Jody, I'll be on the phone in the morning. Your pictures look good. Need the entire rear section. I'll keep you posted.

 

Holy crap!! i was scrolling though the pics and the finger of death pops out at me! man i hope that is doing better for you. thanks a ton for the great pics. i just bought a 2003 4x4 edge and love it. what i didn't see when i bought it was some cross member rust where the rear gas tank strap secures to. THAT was fun to find out at inspection. i cant believe the whole rear frame can be bolted on. i figured i'd have to find a welder.not sure i need to go that far but i like the idea of no rust under there so if i end up there your documentation is immensely helpful. could you point me in the direction of where to find replacement bolt sizes for the spring shackles, shock towers etc. or did you just go by a service manual? i can pick one up. Great job though, except the finger.... Thanks again.

 

Hello sir , my finger is healed nicely thank you . I have the grade 8 bolts and hardware @ work , I can post up the exact size for you this morning . The heavy crossmember you speak of that supports the fuel tank comes with the rear frame section , mine was non existent on the original frame , completely rotted out , hell , even half the strap was gone too !

 

That would be great thanks. I checked out the site in NH and it looks like they have quite a few frames in decent shape and seeing all your info here I feel better about this being the right way to go.

 

I looked through all the frames they had and everyone looked like new . I paid around 500.00 for mine give or take 50.00 I cant exactly remember . I used 7/16 -14 x 1 1/2 grade 8 bolts and nuts on ALL frame fixtures .

 

(...this thread, and hopefully my truck!)

Great write-up Lilmags!

One question hopefully some kinds folks here can answer. I just purchased a 2002 Ranger Edge 4x4 Supercab, knowing that it had severe frame rust out back. I knew it was fixable, and got a great deal on it. My question is, when looking for salvage/replacement frames, do I need to limit myself to only 4x4 frames, or will 4x2 work as well, since I only need the rear and don't care if it had coil springs or torsion bars up front?

I would think that as long as it's a super cab, any rear section should do, right?

Thanks!

 

Yes , 2WD and 4WD are the same in the rear . Good luck with your project !

 

Awesome, thanks for the confirmation. Now I just have to decide whether to drive to NH, NC, or MI to get a decent frame. It's tough driving to any one of those places to buy something sight unseen, but I'm leaning towards Allied in NH based on your experience and others in this thread. It's the most expensive, but it's half as far away. Sometimes time is more valuable than money!

 

The frames they have are like new , every one of them . They have them shipped up from Georgia and such . You will not be disappointed . I bought a house recently in Townsend MA , I'm about 10 miles from Allied now .

 

My folks live in Athol, MA, so I'll probably stop by and see how they're doing, help break up the trip a little.

 

Good boy , I'm sure Mom and Dad will be glad to see you !

 

Lilmags,

I'm trying to do a similar thing with my 2003 ranger. When you drilled out the frame rivets, did you drill from the outside of the frame on the inside? Thanks for the detailed write-up and pictures, BTW.

 

Yes , I drilled a pilot hole with 1/4" bit then I drilled the head right off with a 1/2" bit . Then you use a 3-5 LB Hammer and a nice punch and pound the rivet blank from the outside in . I had an air compressor and used my air hammer and a round straight bit and that made it easier . I hope this helps , and your welcome for the write up . PS Have a half dozen or more good 1/4" bits and at least 3 good 1/2" bits to get the job done .

 

Truck looking good,finger... not so much. Hope that heals up well how long did it take you away from your project?

 

About 2 months , and even after that every time i banged it I saw stars ! Its all better now but I dont have much feeling in the end . Ranger is still running great too . If I hadnt fixed it , it was heading to the bone yard and my Mom and Dad would have been out thousands . Im glad I took it on .

 

Lilmags, I've finally got a rear frame and rear end section for my frame swap and after crawling around under the truck, I had a few more questions:

Do you have to remove the gas tank? Can't you just remove the straps holding it up and brace it in place until the new frame section goes in?

Did you have to weld anything to rehang the exhaust?

I've read elsewhere that when you drop the driveline, you should mark it so you can put it back together aligned same way. Why is this, and how did you keep track when replacing the rear end with another?

When Bolting the frame back together, did you use grade 8 hardware? what size bolts and did you have to drill out the holes to make them fit?

Thanks again!