Started off with the decision on tires and wheels. Red Label Krawlers are awesome, but wear fast, have inner bead issues, and don't have as tough of a sidewall as a swamper. I decided that IROKs were a better choice because of the varied wheeling I do (snow, rocks, mud, etc)

I wanted a double beadlock because I wanted to run low single digits in the snow with no worries. The Walkers are ultra bling, but add an inner beadlock and the price is even more. In keeping with a budget build, I decided I would try some H1 wheels from a hummer. They're rumored to be very heavy, but I found they are only 7 lbs heavier with the insert, than a Walker wheel with single lock. That's still a lot, but I felt the cost trade off was worth it.

I took some H1's I got for 35.00 each.

 

Cut out the old centers, welded in new ones, added inserts from Stazworks, and broke out the paint. I also added a rock ring to strengthen the outer lip.

BTW I had a buddy that blasts hazardous coatings sandblast these for me. Read up on CARC paint and you'll know why.

Not bad for a wheel I've got just over $100.00 in each.

 

The chassis. I picked it up as an unfinished project and cut off everything the prior owner had welded on. Kept the rear axle and the chassis. It wasn't really built for a Chevy drivetrain, but it fit perfectly.

 

Decided that I wanted an all around vehicle this time. Something that could go fast, crawl, and be good in the whoops. There are several camping areas I have that are 75 miles from a paved road. I wanted it to be reliable and durable over all things, but not be too heavy.

I decided to retain the rear Dana 60 that came in the buggy. I decided I wanted to truss it up to handle the air bumps and coilovers in the rough.

 

The truss is really light.

The center section is made from .120 wall sqare and is mig welded to the tubes and arc welded to the diff under the skins. I used high nickle rod and pre and post headed it.

The top of the truss is 1.75" x .095 wall. The skis are .125" with dimple died holes. I decided to connect the holes with .065 and .095 wall tube. It's heavier, but I'm in enough mud in the spring that I knew the truss would be filling up with mud and debris.

 

Another shot of the truss:

 

The axle looks really warped in the photos. It's due to the angle of the truss skin. It goes down more as is nears the diff. I confirmed it's still pretty straight (within about .25" end to end) with a smartool.

It's no big deal though because I'll be running 14 bolt outers on it to go to 35 spline.

More tomorrow.

Ryan

 

You going to run the XRRA with us in Moab??? Looking good

 

That is a pretty bad ass truss

 

Dude if that housing is out a quarter inch you will most likely have problems with two things; 1. if you use a locker it could cause premature wear/failure, if it works at all? 2. The floating axles will work the bolts loose at the ends and cause oil leaks? 3. It could speed up the axle snapping process since it will add a side load to the shaft, even though it is minimal. Just my .02 so be prepared. Good luck Brotha!!

Easy Rick.

P.S. It will probably leak where the tubes enter the center as well.

 

When you weld a truss on like that for example, How do you set up a new set of gears down the road, Cause I use a spreader for the case and I know it doesnt move it that much but will the case still spread with all that welded up? Thanks

 

sweet build, i love the truss keep it up

 

That should get the job done- JEss

 

couple of this, unless you used chromoly, the nickel rod and pre and post heat were probably a waste of time, your welds may end up stronger then the base metal and start cracking. Also why the holes if you just tubed them? If you were worried about mud don't put them in, they really don't add that much strength.

overall project looks cool.

 

When you weld a truss on like that for example, How do you set up a new set of gears down the road, Cause I use a spreader for the case and I know it doesnt move it that much but will the case still spread with all that welded up? Thanks

I've never had to use a spreader on any diff I've ever worked on.

 

BTF1 - Yep going to be running in XRRA this year. Should be a lot of fun. I watched several events last year and kind of got hooked on it. Looking forward to meeting new people and hopefully making some more friends to wheel with.

Easy Rick: Each tube is out about .25 across the length of the axle. I'll be running 14 bolt spindles and welding them on with an alignment jig after all the brackets, link mounts, bump pads, etc are all welded on. Then everything will be perfectly straight. As long as the flanges are square with the spool, all is good. And they will be for sure.

On the case spreader, I don't think it will be a problem. I have a buddy that built one with 1/4 and 3/8ths everywhere and we didn't have problems with it. And it was way overkill.

Weasel: the center section of the truss actually ties into the tubes on each side which are mig welded. I arc'd some gussets to the center section of the truss and then to the diff. That probably wasn't necessary, but I did it as a safety measure. I cut the holes and dimple died them to strengthen the 1/8" I used. I was going to go without holes, but wanted to strengthen it and at the same time add some bling.:grinpimp:

Everyone else, thanks for the props. It will be about 10 times nicer than my Dodge truggy was.

 

We'll see you out there, better get to work on that thing, time is ticking on you

 

I don't really understand how you are going to fix the alignment at the ends, but there are many tricks I am sure I don't know. It does look good and although the dimpled holes might not be necessary they do look cool!:smokin: Lookin Good......

Easy Rick.

 

I don't really understand how you are going to fix the alignment at the ends, but there are many tricks I am sure I don't know. It does look good and although the dimpled holes might not be necessary they do look cool!:smokin: Lookin Good......

Easy Rick.

He's going to weld the spindles on square with the carrier bearings...not even with the tubes. Is it right? Will it work...I'm sure it will. Will anyone ever notice? I doubt it.

 

unless he's got an 1/8" clearance around the axle shaft, that .25" matters. Nothing some creative use of leverage can't fix but dang that's a lot of bend if you ask me.

Looks like a sweet little rig though, I'll keep my eyes peeled down there!

 

unless he's got an 1/8" clearance around the axle shaft, that .25" matters. Nothing some creative use of leverage can't fix but dang that's a lot of bend if you ask me.

I don't know how many times he has to explain this, but he is going to CUT OFF the current full float D-60 spindles, insert an alignment rod and pucks in the diff, center the NEW 14 bolt spindles based on the alignment rod, and weld the new spindles on.

Done successfully all the time in 4-wheeling and industrial applications.

 

I don't know how many times he has to explain this, but he is going to CUT OFF the current full float D-60 spindles, insert an alignment rod and pucks in the diff, center the NEW 14 bolt spindles based on the alignment rod, and weld the new spindles on.

Done successfully all the time in 4-wheeling and industrial applications.

Well since a picture is worth a thousand words how about if he just snaps a few pics when he does it. Then he will not have to type as much.:smokin: I was under the impression that full float spindles self centered inside the tube? I did not know that they just flush mount to the ends and are held on by weld? I would love to see some pics. Later....


Easy Rick.

 

Have you guys ever put an axle shaft in a full floating axle? Some times they have 1/2" of free play to move them up and down because the splines are a sliding fit and we're talking about 3 feet away from that sliding fit. If you even don't think a locker would work in that situation, go put an axle shaft in a differential and see how much free play it has over the length of a 3 foot axle shaft.

 

I followed your last build up thread and I'm looking forward to this one. Keep up the good work!

 

Well since a picture is worth a thousand words how about if he just snaps a few pics when he does it. Then he will not have to type as much.:smokin: I was under the impression that full float spindles self centered inside the tube? I did not know that they just flush mount to the ends and are held on by weld? I would love to see some pics. Later....


Easy Rick.

Same concept as the axle jig in this picture. It was made so we could build toy housings with thicker wall axle tubes with no neck down at the ends.