Lunyou's Budget Cruiser buildup thread

[lunyou]

Here is my build up thread. Not too much right now but I hope to be able to update this thread when something new happens and by the end of the thread my truck will be "finished", which is a very liberal term since we are never finished with out trucks.

This is inspired by the *edit: the other guy is DAZZA on the board who has a budget cruiser, so thanks to you man.

Overview(what I hope to accomplish by the end):

IN order by which I want things to come about

Chop Top(much like Tapage though probably not as nice)
Rust repair using fiberglass filler(learning while I go)
Creation of Fiberglass interior panels for back seats and rear area.
Self Roll-on paint job.
Rhino line lower half of truck.

From here down it will just be however things go(what cheap parts are forsale etc)

Home-Made Roll Cage
Enough lift to run 37s: Probably AAL(s) and SOA eventually
Small body lift
Custom Front and Rear bumpers
Sliders
Custom built center console
2 rear bucket seats to replace rear bench seat with custon rear center console.
In bed spare tire mount
winch

the next post will start with what I have accomplished

lunyou

[lunyou]

YESTERDAY I started work on my new budget cruiser. I brought home a wheel grinder from my dads. I purchased a paint removing disc to start the process

I took all the paint off of the rear quarter panel and most of the rear passenger side door.....From here I got side tracked due to classes.

TODAY: I purchased a Stihl reciprocating saw from Wal-Mart. I got home and immediatly started prepping the truck for chopping. The process I used was the following/

First I removed all of the interior panels and trim. Then I took the doors apart to remove the windows. locks, actuator, etc out, but left the door handle on the inside and out. I did this to both doors.

After that I advise to remove the rear hatch to make the top lighter when it is finally time to remove it. Be careful there are wires running into the hatch for the rear wiper and there is also the rear washer tube. Once the hatch is removed make sure there are no wires that you are going to cut through in the panel, there wasn't in mine except for those to the rear wiper as they traveled up what I am going to call the 'D' Pillar.

Next I figured out where I wanted to cut, I choose the body line that is right below rear windows, you can find it really easily. But if you do this remember you might want to leave some steel above your desired "finish line" so that you will have something grind on. weld to, and finish.

Using the new saw I started in the back and cut all the way, slowly, to the rear doors. Then I decided to just cut the window frame off of the top of the door, less work and cleaner. I repeated this process on the other side. The cut across the top is a bit difficult. You can either cut above your head with the headliner in the way, cut from one side as far as you can reach switch sides and do the same, or you can cut from the top. I started the cut were I wanted it from the ground, did the same on the other side, and then crawled my fat butt up on top. I weigh 200lbs and the roof was starting to sag a bit with me especially the more I cut. The cut itself is actually easy since it is just one sheet of steel compared to the 2 or three you were cutting through on the sides.

Once you have made the cut on the top it is time to remove the top. I had 2 friends helping me. With the 3 of us, 2 on the sides and 1 inside picking straight up it was relatively simple to remove it. With only 2 it could get difficult to remove since it will be hard to drag it off and there are not any really good safe places to get ahold. Once on the ground two people can move the roof easily.

I have the top removed now. Be very careful if you do this as the edges you are left with will cut you clear to the bone in no time whatso ever. I actually used the trim from the rear hatch to line most of the sharp edges until I can get to fiberglassing the area.

I apologize that I have no pictures as of now. My camera eats batteries like I eat steak(which I did have a great one in the middle of this work, right before the cut across the top).

I guess it took me about, with supper time included 5 enjoyable hours to get everything removed and the top cut off. Of course I stopped and visited with the fellow apartment tennants who stopped by to see what all the racket of the sawzall was.

Tommorrow I hope to finish sanding off all the paint in the areas that need to be fiberglassed so I can get rid of those shapr edges.

lunyou

[saint60]

where are the pics?

[D'Animal]

Originally Posted by lunyou

TODAY: I purchased a Stihl reciprocating saw from Wal-Mart. I got home and immediatly started prepping the truck for chopping.
lunyou

STIHL does not make Saws Alls or any other reciricating saw. If we did we would not sell them at wal-mart.

I think you meant SKILL (?)


Post up those pictures. I want to sit back and see who get done first. You or Tapag.

[lunyou]

They are still outside waiting to be taken. Like I said my camera eats batteries so I Have to take pictures during daylight so I can do away with the flash. As soon as I get batteries I will take a slew of pictures.

lunyou

[lunyou]

Originally Posted by D'Animal

STIHL does not make Saws Alls or any other reciricating saw. If we did we would not sell them at wal-mart.

I think you meant SKILL (?)


Post up those pictures. I want to sit back and see who get done first. You or Tapag.

D'animal,

I apologize for my ignorance. When I purchased it I do not know what I was thinking. I saw the the short brandname and the color scheme of the box and immediatly my mind tricked me into thinking stihl. It is a SKIL reciprocating saw. Great marketing by SKIL. Scary how your mind can trick you huh.

Pictures to come guys.

lunyou

[lunyou]

Okay....today I didn't get much done as me and wife did alot of running around town and everytime I would start to work on my truck a neighbor would stop by to chat about the project or life in general, which is okay by me. Not only do I get to explain the project I also get to hear their recommendatoins and thoughts along with helpful general knowledge that has nothing to do with the project at all.

What I did get done was just simply taking some more paint off of the body and taking more exterior parts off like the vent on the pass side along with the exterior trim on the Pass. window. Also took off the rear views.

Mostly this post is just for the pictures that everyone wanted yesterday. I will apologize in advance for the pictures.....they were taken with my phone.

The first shots are all pretty self explainatory(SP):







lunyou

[lunyou]

And some more:







And this final one is so SPEEDY(my blue 60) doesn't get jealous.



lunyou

[serenity]

looks sweet you and tapage are gonna have twins

[lunyou]

well they will be twins but not identical.....I am not even going to try and act like mine will be the same beast as tapage's.

Mine is the budget version. Thanks for the compliment.

lunyou

[D'Animal]

Is that caked on mud olong the bottom of the driverside of the vehicle or is that rust and missing sheet metal?

[lunyou]

I was wondering when someone would ask about that....one of the POs decided to spray that insulation, the type found around pipe fittings, down in the space between the rear quarter and the inside panel. I am not completely sure if this was done before or after the panel rusted out. It is in both sides but the passenger side's quarterpanel isn't rotted out like the driver's side.

I will remove it before to long so that I can start the fiberglassing. Right now it is giving my quarters a little extra stability for when i decide to trim some more. And Lord knows it needs some trimming.

lunyou

[lunyou]

Here is a closer shot of that insulation



lunyou

[D'Animal]

I'll bet you that it is quite with all that insulation.

[lunyou]

you would be surprised. The truck doesnt' have a cat and only a small muffler on the exhaust. It sounds really good.

I am afraid that the insulation might have helped in rusting out the quarter.

I haven't driven it down the road at speed to much so I cannot vouch for road noise reduction.

lunyou

[serenity]

damn thats some bad rust. gonna chop the quarters back? if its gonna be a wheeler it might be a good idea anyway. whats the cage gonna look like (photochop?)?

[beaufort-fj60]

cut the body off from the b pillar back and replace with a taco or old mini truck bed.

[FJWhat]

wow, you cut the top without removing the rear side windows! You could have kept a lot of body stiffness had you left the window sills, oh well. Time to break out the sheet metal and welder. Or I guess you could just fill all the voids with more of that foam

[lunyou]

Originally Posted by FJWhat

wow, you cut the top without removing the rear side windows! You could have kept a lot of body stiffness had you left the window sills, oh well. Time to break out the sheet metal and welder. Or I guess you could just fill all the voids with more of that foam

Yeah i cut the top out with the windows. I didn't know I should take them out.

I really wasn't a fan of the body line that would be left if the window seals remained. That foams is the devil in my book and will be removed as soon as get to to working on the panels.

It is going to be a wheeler and I am already trimming the body in my mind trying to get the look I want.

When I get home I can try to post a sketchup of what the basic roll cage is going to look like. It hasnt been triangulated yet but that is pretty simple stuff.

lunyou

[DirtyLittleSecret]

Man. I just bought a new plasma cutter and would have an absolute hayday over there...
I HATE RUST.

[lunyou]

I would have loved to have a plasma cutter and the skills to use it...but oregon is quite a ways to drive home topless .

lunyou

[lunyou]

quick queston, what would you guys do about the rear tailgate area. The gate that is in it is shot beyond repair. I was thing one of those tailgates you can buy for a truck that lets air through but that doesn't help rigidity. Next I was thinking about possibly having a couple pipes welded in across the back to stiffen it up some and thing I could modify one of the above mentioned tail gates to fasten to the tubes to keep stuff from leaving the back.

another thing.....I saw a picture of a 60 with bucket seats for the back seat instead of the bench. I cannot use my bench anymore due the back seat support mounts/latch being in the way of the top removal. Whos was it?

thanks

lunyou

[fjman]

If you have good glass in that hatch, Do you wanna sell it?

[DirtyLittleSecret]

I'd definitely think about doing some additional box framing with the rig. Either "weld in" or better yet figure out a "bolt in" crossmember for added rigidity. Could also add a truck bed organizer (adjustable stick type) to help hold things in the rear/add more rigidity too.
Or, build a wicked roll cage with expanded steel mesh curtains!

[Mace]

the insulation most likely caused the rust.. It sucks :(

The upside, is it gives you a nice area to cut off


BTW, the STHIL comment from D'ainmal was pure comedy