I'm starting to plan out some of the suspension upgrades that I'd like to do down the road. Long radius arms are on the list, as are a way to mount longer shocks front and rear. For arms, it looks like there are 2 main options-the Cage/Bloody Knuckle Garage/Duff design and the All 4 Fun arms that are sold by most of the other vendors.

For shock towers, I've got a set of the F-250 towers, but am thinking about going with a set of longer hoops and a single Bilstein 5150. I've got no idea on the pros and cons of the various mounting options on the rear.

What have you guys used, and how do you like it?

When I was talking with Jim Cole/Bloody Knuckle about arms & stuff, I asked about his choice of rear shock location.

He recommended forward of the axle. He felt that with the right shock & mount he could flex as well as inboard mounting, but with better dampening.

When I went to my f/w axles, I used stock style shock mounts in front of my axle. I like how it rides, but its hard to say what made the difference (f/w axles? shock location? new WH springs?). The only thing that is the same is I'm still running my 15 year old JD cheapo shocks.

My plan is to build a custom upper rear shock mount down the road for new shocks (I have some extra wiggle room with the wide axles). I don't intend on adding a body lift & I don't want to cut up my floor yet. So it limits my choices. I like the look of these:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Early-Ford-Bron ... 1e696ffc1f

But they are a little pricey.

I'm running JD Super hoops with single cheapo JD shocks with my BKG arms. I'll never run 2 front shocks again. Again, hard to tell if the f/w axles, arms, or single shock made the difference, but it all rides so much better than my old set up (2 shocks, stock arms, stock axles). The JD Superhoop is fine for my setup without a body lift, but you could get taller with a body lift.

I've seen those as well. They're really similar in function to the Duff Stage II mounts. http://www.jamesduff.com/eb/shockmounts.html

Added a little info on my front end set up above

I dunno why, but your stuff didn't even cross my mind when I put up this post. So, that begs another question. How much of a difference is there between a setup like yours that has new brackets and one where the stock Cs are retained?

I'm running long arms up front and extended shock mounts on both ends and really like it. The PO put the system on and instead of using a body lift he cut into the inner fenders and floorboard to make the room. Not the prettiest hack job, but I prefer not to have a body lift & I would go the same route if I were to install the system myself.

Clint, your system also allows for adjustable caster as well, correct? I don't know if the other long arm systems provide this or not. Never really looked in to them

OK, makes sense. How does getting rid of the Cs affect street performance? It seems like it would allow significantly more body roll, as the axle wouldn't double as a sway bar.

OK, thanks. I've contemplated something like the Currie Antirock with a set of soft front springs down the road, which with address most additional body roll.

I'll be curious to see what you're thinking. I had been contemplating using their universal kit and cutting a hole through the frame for the tube.

I have Clint's arms and can vouch they are NIGHT and DAY difference over the stock setup. My arms aren't super long, but they flex great because there is no bind. Right now my shocks limit my down-travel, so I'd like to get my shock mounts as high as possible someday and remeasure for what I need. But then, you may run into trouble with driveshaft bind. On obstacles that used to scare me because I would carry a wheel, I walk right thru now stable as a spider.

I did gain a LOT of body roll, but I do not have nice shocks and I don't care too much about that. I wouldn't mind sway bar someday tho!

When I modify my front suspension more, I want to raise the coil bucket up as high as I can, along with the shock mount and run springs for a higher lift while not physically lifting my bronco at all.

I was just looking through the new WH catalog and they now offer front and rear sway bars. Not the factory style that mount on the axle either. Frame mounted bars with quick disconnect links.

I've seen those. I think they're made by Hellwig. Seem like a great option, although I'm not sure if the rear one has disconnects.

you may not need both sway bars.. the front might take care of most of the sway... but would definitely be street friendly with both!

I have been contemplating a sway bar up front on the 76 but iam still undecided, drives pretty well as is

Anyone have a measurement to how far the coil bucket can go up without hitting the inner fender?

Whoa, never thought there was THAT much room up there! The potential...

How big a deal is it to go to coilovers? Seems like if you're ripping out the entire front suspension anyway, that the only down side would be the (significantly) added cost of the coilovers themselves.

Clint, how high have you gone with the coil tower?

I would think that with a good set of coil springs you could get all the flex you need. Mine are not a good set.