No, this beautiful Bahama Blue ’76 Ford Bronco isn’t another of the thousands of classic restoration Bobtails seen across this part of the world. It’s not even one Ford built. Far from it.
Spencer and Carolyn Lepman’s Bobtail classic looks every bit that of a clean First-Gen Bronco restomod on big tires, while in reality it’s a full-on custom build that doesn’t have a single part on it that is older than three years.
“We were originally going to fix up our ’73 that we’ve had for 33 years,” recalls Lepman on how their look-alike classic 4×4 came about. “But we didn’t want to hurt it because it’s still beautiful in its semi-stock form. I wanted a Bronco that would go a step further in all aspects of power and off-road performance. After a lot of considerations, Carolyn and I decided to leave that one alone and just build another one that you might say is its Evil Twin.”
That decision lead them up I-5 a few miles from their Albany home to the team of fabricators and suspension experts at CBM Designs in Canby, Oregon. CBM Designs has a stellar reputation in the Pacific Northwest for their classic Bronco builds.
CBM owner, Robert “Crazy Bronco Man” Warke says they started creating the Lepman’s all-new Bronco from scratch three years ago.
“Spencer came to us with a specific goal in mind. He wanted a Bronco that would turn heads, be easy to drive on the open road, and have the power and agility off-road to handle anything the Dunes (Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area) and other off-road outings might throw their way. The build was right up our alley.”
The project began based on an all-steel Shannon’s Bronco body perched atop a Throttle Down Kustoms Bronco frame. From there it was non-stop in the custom 4×4 department.
Putting Out The Ponies
At the heart of the power delivery is a potent Ford Racing small-block aluminum 427 stroker that pumped out 549 hp on a chassis dyno the day before we saw it on the Dunes. The engine is cradled inside the front of an elaborate CBM-built six-point roll cage.
Inside the 351W DART block are SRP pistons, an Ohio Crankshaft kit, Jesel Valvetrain, 220 AFR heads, Patriot/CBM Designs long-tube headers, and topped with an Edelbrock Pro-Flow 4 port-fuel injection system feeding it from a custom 26-gallon fuel tank (with dual pumps).
CBM Designs installed a Cold Case aluminum radiator and cooling system, installed the heating and Vintage Air A/C systems to keep the owners comfortable year-round, and routed all the RaceWire wiring through a single multi-pin plug on the firewall for that clean, race-car-like look.
Always In Control
Behind that is a kitted Ford 6R80 automatic directing the big torque load to an Advance Adapter’s Atlas 2 Pro Series T-case, which was built with 3.0:1 low-range and left-hand front output (OOD) for this Bronco’s needs.
A set of custom heavy-duty Driveline Tech driveshafts finish the 427’s power delivery to custom-built Currie Enterprises axles at both ends, running GearWorks HP 10-inch high-pinion third members with 4.56 ratio.
Lepman had Currie build the Super Duty 609 axles with an ARB Air Locker in the rear, while a Detroit Locker in the front gives the 40-inch Cooper STT Pro meats an equal bite when extra traction is needed, which happens a lot while driving over the mountains of sand at the ODNRA.
A New Age Suspension
An area that CBM Designs has spent decades perfecting is the suspensions under the Classic Broncos they roll out of their custom shop.
These days CBM doesn’t mess with the factory Ford suspension that set the Broncos of old apart from Jeeps and Scouts of that era. Instead, they concentrate on setting them up with the same style long-travel suspension used by pre-runners, off-road and desert racing.
Since this was a ground-up build, the chassis was fitted with a three-link front suspension and four-link rear, utilizing extra-long radius arms and 2.5-inch King Coil-Over Racing Shocks with remote reservoirs and Accutune Offroad springs. This gives Lepman’s classic custom more than a foot of front travel and 14 inches in the rear.
To that the build team installed King hydraulic bump stops, limiting straps, CBM rock sliders, a 4.5-inch lift, RuffStuff trailing arm links, and a Tk1 Racing anti-sway bar kit.
More Finishing Touches
Of course, steering and stopping was also a high priority for the Lepmans. So CBM Designs nuked any idea of going to the antiquated factory Ford steering system, opting instead for a PSC Motorsports full hydro steering. Brakes are Wilwood power discs at the four corners.
The Lepmans also wanted Warke’s team to design an interior that reflected the same attention to detail as the drivetrain and suspension. So, Warke took that on himself, fabricating a complete new dash and center console that made it easy to reach all the vents, switches and shifters when strapped in.
JB Custom Fabrication was sourced for the twin-stick t-case cable shifters, while Lepman tapped Kilduff for a Midnight Express 6L80 shifter. Both routes are fine choices to select drive modes. (Warke also installed a US Shift Quick 6 Gen2 controller that overrides the factory Ford automatic’s brain.)
Front and rear body protection and self-recovery is handled by Bailie Bilt bumpers and a Warn Zeon XD 10S winch nestled up front.
Grab A Seat
For safety and comfort, the Lepman’s headed straight to PRP where Spencer selected a pair of the newest Enduro Series Off-Road reclining, heated/cooled suspension seats along with matching 4-point harnesses.
He also had PRP build the rear seat with the same features “so the grandkids would be comfortable and safe when they go four-wheeling with us,” says wife Carolyn.
“Our Evil Twin checks off all the boxes we’d imagined, and more,” says Spencer of his custom Bronco. “My wife and I are so happy with the build Robert (Warke) did and how wonderful he’s been during this entire project. Now I just need to learn how to drive it so we can really be enjoy everything it delivers!”
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