Probably an 8.8. But look at it and see if the pinion shaft isn't offset to the right by about 4 inches. 8.8 rear cover has a nearly square bolt pattern. 7.5 is more oval shaped
i just went and measured it the best i could...looks like inside drum to inside on the ranger rear is about 53" and offset where the driveshaft connects is about 24". on my 8" rear the width is apox 53" inside to inside, and where the driveshaft connects it looks to be about 25.5" measuring from the passengers side, that is how i measured on the renger rear too. It looks to be an 8.8 according to the tag, it says 4.10L 8.8 then some more numbers...so do you think the 1.5 inch difference will hurt, or should i get the tubed replaced. the long tube on the ranger is bent a little from an accident, i thought that i might be able to get that strait fro less than $100 if i took it to a shop, just for a third member with trac loc and different gear for my 8" is $600, no to mention another $400 or $500 for disc brakes, with my 8.8 it is my understanding that i can swith disc brakes from almost any 8.8, so i think the 8.8 is strong enough since my goal is about 300 hp and a t-5 swap to help with the 4.10 gear, and it should be cheaper to get it right than building my 8" or buying a 9"...what do you guys think...
The overall width is about right for a 67-70 Mustang, but the pinion is offset to the right a bit. Your info about rear disc options is inaccurate. There are aftermarket kits that will bolt on, but as for factory parts, I think the only straight bolt-on setup would be the Explorer discs.
thanks for correcting me on the disc brakes, i wasnt real sure, but i thought that there was some kind of swap...do you think the pinion off set is too much, or do you think it would be ok?
If it's only offset 1.5 inches, it'll probably work OK. There's been others that did this with one's more offset and the only time there was a problem was hitting bumps. Better get it straightened first though, If it's bent right at the end of the long side, it might be better to shorten it to center the pinion and gain some tire clearance. You could shorten it enough to use two short side Ranger axles to save money.
thanks guys for all the replies...one more question, if i do shorten the bent side, how much would i have to shorten it to bring the pinion where it needs to be you think...
If you want to shorten it to center the pinion, just measure both axles and subtract. The difference will be the amount to shorten the long side and use two short axles.
The SVO / Lincoln setups won't bolt on. I'm pretty sure the bolt pattern on the housing flange is different. Earlier Rangers used a small tube housing that had the small bolt pattern on the ends (same as SVOs and Lincolns), but the late ones went to a large tube housing like the Explorer. On top of that, the spacing from the housing flange to the axle flange are different. It would take a custom caliper bracket or some sort of modification to mount them to the late Ranger 8.8.