Part II, J-Brace Installation-Yikes

[FreezingFlatlander]

Bolting the J-Brace itself in place is the easy part. After the commotion of peeling enough of the wheel well liner back to gain access and cutting out the metal on the corner of the box sheet metal to allow the steel backing plate to slide up the vertical channel of the box structure, the bolting the J-Brace in place went well. The J-Brace is a very stout piece of metal.

 

[pablo94sc]

That definitely should have been included from the factory.

 

[HighDesertRanger]

Oh snap! That definitely is stout. And something Ford should have included from day one.

 

[tbalt14]

So there are no bolts to replace the rivets that were removed?

 

[Rapture2423]

So there are no bolts to replace the rivets that were removed?

And with that question what holds the new top bolt in place? Just a washer and nut on the other side?

 

[tbalt14]

And with that question what holds the new top bolt in place? Just a washer and nut on the other side?

I'm assuming there is a 2 layer vertical with a nut welded to the inside piece he slid up through the hole. The bolt then pinches the original metal.

 

[FreezingFlatlander]

To answer questions-Replacement rivets came with the kit but I had not installed them yet when the pictures were taken. And there were two nuts welded to plate that you push up inside the vertical channel that the bolts thread into so that the bracket is then secured to the vertical portion of the box structure. I have not said that this brace is necessary for everyone as maybe it isn't but I choose to install it as I do drive on really rough roads and may put a tool box on the front of the box, I assume Ford made this J-Brace kit for a reason.

 

[Zangor]

This should be a Manufacturer Recall fix- Truck buyers don't anticipate that you need to install this to use a toolbox or a cap/canopy.

Its a bit of false advertising in my opinion that the trucks need this to do basic truck things

 

[engus13]

I doesn't appear that you needed to remove the original rivets that you did. It doesn't look like the bracket interferes with that section. It looks like the only modification would be cutting that corners piece out. Can you confirm?

 

[FreezingFlatlander]

I doesn't appear that you needed to remove the original rivets that you did. It doesn't look like the bracket interferes with that section. It looks like the only modification would be cutting that corners piece out. Can you confirm?

The steel Pop Rivets did have to be removed as stated in the instructions as they were among the many other fasteners holding the wheel well liners in place. For some reason these rivets were made of a very hard material and it took some effort with the Sawsall using a carbide blade to cut them off. Without removing the rivets one would not have been able to access the area where the J-Brace was to be installed.

 

[engus13]

The steel Pop Rivets did have to be removed as stated in the instructions as they were among the many other fasteners holding the wheel well liners in place. For some reason these rivets were made of a very hard material and it took some effort with the Sawsall using a carbide blade to cut them off. Without removing the rivets one would not have been able to access the area where the J-Brace was to be installed.

Thanks, make sense now.

 

[24'Ranger]

Are J-braces required on full-size trucks like the F-150?

 

[atimberwolf]

Are J-braces required on full-size trucks like the F-150?

None that I've ever purchased. Not sure about 2024 models.

 

[LFRR13]

Per my dealer, the "TSB/recall" is not on Raptors and the J-braces are back-ordered and being drop-shipped from manufacturer to dealer directly. No word on availability.

 

[Rapture2423]

BTW here are the instructions for those interested (Raptor variant of item)

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