Many hands make light work- and by Monday my body will be ready for light work!

We didn't get as much done today as I would have liked. Similarly to Dbcfr's SAS, the positioning and mounting of the steering box took up the majority of our day. The driver's side outer plate, inner plate and steering box mounts are all in place and welded. We should be able to get the driver's and passenger's side frame plates done by tomorrow night. Tomorrow is a partial day, and Monday will be a full day.

We had a couple of setbacks. For one, Dbcfr's air compressor went the way of the buffalo. That took Plasma and air tools out of the arsenal. He has a backup compressor that just needs a new cord, so hopefully we will be back up and running tomorrow. The last bandsaw blade that we had finally gave up the ghost as well. It had served us well, but the bandsaw is out of commission until Monday.

We made progress, but not quite as much as we had hoped. Perhaps we can play catch up tomorrow.

MC

 

good luck

 

Looking good man def love to see ifs changing to sas ... Just reminds me I need to finish my 85 damn free time is hard to come by

 

Plating is almost done. I need to finish beefing up the motor mounts in the morning, then cut the shackle holes and weld in the tubes. I'm going to run RUF's (R'sUF?), so compressed length from eye to eye will be 48". However, relaxed arch is 44". Because I moved the front hanger so far forward, I will have to cut my shackle tube holes right under the front gusset of the body mounts. This should provide for a reasonable shackle angle. Dbcfr's rig measures 42" eye to shackle tube, and the angle is a bit extreme. We will eventually cut his back and install a second set of tubes.

So, in order to get this rolling tomorrow, we have to accomplish the following:

Cut shackle tube holes and weld in tubes
Cut inner fenders back more to allow for 14" shock hoops
Check distance from shock mount up and determine if TG shock hoops will work without modification, modify as needed.
Weld brake line brackets to shock hoops and route brake lines
Attach calipers
Hang axle and springs on truck
Attach steering box and hoses, fill with PSF
Attach drag link
Measure and modify steering shaft as needed
Attach shocks
Do a Stanley alignment
Bleed brakes
Do whatever it is that I am currently forgetting
Prime bare metal
...

It will be a long one.

 

I am hoping you got it on the solid axle now!!! you had a pretty long list of things to do. If your now doing anything with the ifs hubs i will buy them from ya, not the locks just the hubs and i still need to get that front hanger from ya. let me know what you want for everything. cant wait to see your rig up close. what gears did you do in the axles??

 

I dont know if you fixed this, i just saw in on page 4 of yur thread..
i had the same problem making my quick release hinges..the top bolt, i have to come in from the bottom and put a nut over it..and the bottom one, it doesnt go all the way down bc of the bolts on the hinge...how do you have yours set up now?

 

It is close. It is not done. The RUF's ran into a problem. I installed the TG-provided 18mm front spring nut when I built my hanger. Unfortunately, the RUF's have an oddball front bushing (1.575 in OD) which is not compatible with the little TG bushings. I need to source a bushing that is 1.6 or so OD and 18mm ID. I know others have had this problem. I just need to do some reading and figure out what the fix is.

We did finish the the frame and get the rear tubes installed 44" from the hanger holes. We also extended and beefed (cause it was out anyway...) the steering shaft.

Pics:

Frame (Toyota)

Frame (version 2.0) with steering installed


This is the rough version of what I had to cut away from the body in order to fit the steering box as far forward as I wanted it. Others have posted from the front, but I'm not sure I have seen much from this angle.


This is the extended and armored steering shaft.

We are at a standstill until I can figure out the bushing issue. After that, it should be a sprint to the finish.

The springs I am using (for my reference at least) initially are stock RUFs with the overload removed and replaced by the bottom two leafs from an AllPro +4 front set. They look like springs. I didn't take a photo.

MC

 

Yeah, I fixed it. I might have developed the cheapest removable door mod out there (yeah, gauntlet thrown...). I purchased four 5/16" x 3"ish J bolts from the local True Value. I paid .97 a piece for them and they each came with a nut. I removed the stock pins and I simply drop a J bolt in from the top of the bottom hinge and stick one up from the bottom of the top hinge. The weight of the door with the assistance of the threads on the bolt keep them in place at the top. I have never had one slip out. Door removal and replacement can be done in about a minute.

MC

 

thats just how mine work..the wieght of the door keeps the top one on..but i put the bolt on just in case after 2 bolts fell into the fender and i cant get them out..

 

that steering shaft is beef for sure, how much did you have to extend it?? that sucks about the bushings. hope you can find something that will work. sounds like your getting close almost ready for that shake down run. its gona look nice. you guys sure do armor plate, no messin around there.

 

If you are going to take the time to build it, you might as well build it right. We do go a bit overboard. 3/16 would be fine all the way around, but I needed 1/4 for something else anyway.

I extended the shaft 3"

 

thats cool, it wont bend thats for sure. i wish i could come up the hill to help during the week but cant. this weekend going to mens retreat. cant wait need the break from everything. anyways good luck on getting her done soon. check out my axle on my build, just getting started, but not as much beef as your guys.

 

Sexy as all get out man u sure are lighting a fire beneath mine to finish my 85 guess I need 2 start slingin parts at it again

 

No worries, Coug. Have a great time.

Thanks, L4C91!

Today was good. We got the truck sitting on the ground! Ride height with stock RUF (+ two bottom from an AllPro front set) looks great. We clearanced the bottom of the frame plating to fit the drag link TRE bolt, mounted the steering box, bolted the springs in with the TG supplied rear shackles for a start, hung the axle under it, attached steering, did an in-air allignment, cut the stock hanger portions off of the TrailGear shock hoops and built our own, and welded on the driver's side shock hoop, gussets and braces.

Pics:

RUF's


The remains of Plasma vs TrailGear Shock Hoops


Built stonger, and with an inch or two more altitude




On the truck:


The results of LOTS of measuring and calculating to squeeze every last reasonable bit of forward axle placement and approach angle out of this build (and what had me very happy this morning):





That is with 33"s.

The tie rod and drag link do not hit, but there isn't a lot of spare room. I'm comfortable with it the way it is, but I'm pretty happy I didn't move the axle any further forward.

Because I'm using RUF's, and the pin is offset to the front, the axle (and thus the tie rod) move back as the spring flattens under compression. At full droop, the tierod is almost under the drag link at the driver's side, but as it compresses, the drag link stays in place while the tie rod moves back.

I didn't get a photo of the pinion angle, but at droop, it is flat, and as the springs compress, it actually tilts up a few degrees.

Overall, I'm happy. Monday we will get the other shock hoop on, and get brakes and steering plumbed and bled. We are in the home stretch. Seeing it on the ground makes me very glad that I took the time to do the math on moving the axle forward. I get a decent pinion angle, decent shackle angles, and my driveshaft angle will be a little better because the axle is farther away from the T-case.

MC

 

Everything came out really nice! Definitely diggin the results of the approach angle. Hopefully we can all organize a trip or two in the summer time to go test out the rigs.

 

do you have a picture of the frame reinforcements plates before you fully welded them on or just tacked on?

 

SPC Mike- I think I do. Let me check tomorrow. I also have pics of the other measurements that you needed.

Got her "done" today! I actually drove home. I still need to address the drive shaft, as well as bump stops and a steering stabilizer.

My tie rod is awfully close to my drag link. I braked hard and bottomed out my U bolts on my frame and the links didn't touch, but I've since given the U-bolts a haircut, so we shall see. I would be a little happier if it there was 1/2" more clearance. I'm going to run it and address problems if they arise.

First impressions- there is a lot of road texture being transmitted to the steering wheel. The rest of the truck rides pretty smooth, and I think having the stabilizer in play will help quite a bit with steering wheel vibration and bump steer. There is certainly more body roll than with an IFS truck, but that is the point, isn't it? I like it. It's too late to go flex it out too much, but driving it around the neighborhood hasn't made me regret anything. There is a different feel to the rig. It will take a little getting used to, but even now, I kinda like it. I extended my wheelbase quite a bit (I'll measure later), and I can feel it. The front end is definitely a bit higher than it was. I'll let it settle for a week or so and then get some comparison pics.

While we were working, I went ahead and replaced my PCV and grommet, and in doing so cracked the old PCV hose. It doesn't appear to be leaking, so I should be good until I can grab a new one at Napa. I have a good day or two of random tasks to do soon.

In the next few weeks, I need to:
Finish bump stops
Attach steering stabilizer
replace valve cover gasket
replace rear main seal
address driver's side headlight ground issue
Wire in my mechanical temp gauge so I can read it at night
Rebuild my rear shock mounts and attach new Bilstein 12"ers
rewire backup lights
replace starter contacts with 4crawler parts
replace PCV hose
Attach fascia between windshield and hood
reseal upper corners of windshield trim
Apply touch up tan paint
undercoat fender interiors
other stuff that I am forgetting.

I need more time so I can sit around and do this instead of work. Maybe I should get fired and start collecting welfare.

MC

 

Good work MC. Looks great. I can't wait to see the comparison pics

 

SPC Mike asked for some measurements of my front hanger. My hanger has the same pertinent dimensions (spring separation, mounting bolt size, spring box inner width, etc), so I just measured a trail gear one that was left over.








And, in case anyone cares, this is the practical difference between Bilstein 5125 12" and 14" springs.

The truck, as it sits right now:

 

Looks amazing MC. Its come a long way since you rescued it from that barn fire. Props my friend