[rideglobally]

We are very happy to announce that Laser Cutting NorthWest will sponsor
the building of our overland expedition vehicle by providing state of
the art technology and LCNW creative input. Our part will be to
provide our own labor. This is a great arrangement for us because we
still get to build our cruiser. LCNW is located in Auburn, Washington,
here is their website LCNW - Laser Cutting NW



We arrived in Auburn, Washington on August 17th, the following day
August 18th, we got to work at the LCNW facility building our cruiser.
Our plan is to be here until September 1st (14 days). This is what we
plan to accomplished:

1. rebuild the camper shell so that it is completely made of aluminum.

2. build a fuel tank made of aluminum and relocate the fuel tank to
the center of the cruiser. this will reduce the weight of the
cruiser and improved the current design.



There are other things on our list that we want to accomplish if time
permits that is to redesign the bull bar and build a running board.



our ambitious plan is to post daily updates on our rebuild.



we want to thank ih8mud and the community for all your support. our
journey started at ih8mud so we thought it would be appropriate for
the first laser cut to be ih8mud mud flaps (see picture), we hope you join us over the next 14 days... enjoy.

[fernandol]

Great Amado, keep the updates coming!





sweeeeeet mud flaps

[rideglobally]

Day 3 of building: As expected we encountered the first challenge, we found rust in certain areas of the chassis. After a disappointing search for replacement parts we decided we would fabricate the parts, including reinforcement and extension of the chassis one foot. Tomorrow will be the beginning of our rebuilding process. I hope to get a picture of the state of the art equipment here as we rebuild the chassis.

[clarkrw3]

I will be following along....good luck.

[joshoisasleep]

sweet overland build keep the pics coming!

[britklr]

Keep the updates coming!!!

[rideglobally]

day 4: begin the process of fabrication to replace the rusted section of the chassis and building of the camper shell. We have decided to relocate the spare tire at the rear behind the rear differential, this is where the 40 gallon fuel tank was located. The exhilary fuel tank will be moved to the cab section under the passenger seat (will cover more of the fuel tank build later). Below are some pictures of laser cutting sections of the chassis. This section of the chassis will be made from 3/16 thick steel. Day 5 we continue the fabrication of the chassi.

[1tontoy]

Cool. One suggestion: might have trouble accessing the spare if the vehicle is high-centered and/or the ass-end is sitting on the ground. Is good for lowering the center of gravity, though.

Just a thought.

Originally Posted by rideglobally

day 4: begin the process of fabrication to replace the rusted section of the chassis and building of the camper shell. We have decided to relocate the spare tire at the rear behind the rear differential, this is where the 40 gallon fuel tank was located. The exhilary fuel tank will be moved to the cab section under the passenger seat (will cover more of the fuel tank build later). Below are some pictures of laser cutting sections of the chassis. This section of the chassis will be made from 3/16 thick steel. Day 5 we continue the fabrication of the chassi.

[BlueHZT60]

2. build a fuel tank made of aluminum and relocate the fuel tank to
the center of the cruiser. this will reduce the weight of the
cruiser and improved the current design.


When do you need it, and will an LR-60 series aux, 170L tank work. Located in parts rig in sourthern or Central Oregon -depending on where I put it down to rest.


1. rebuild the camper shell so that it is completely made of aluminum.

You will probably want to visit the Alaska Camper factory in Chehalis - way cool, as far as campers go.

Bob

[rideglobally]

Thanks all for your encouraging comments and suggestions. we are almost done with the steel portion of the chassis. What remains are two diagonal gussets placed at 45 degrees will be added behind the spare tire, the diagonals will then connect to the bumper. We understand that creating a solid foundation for the camper shell is critical for the build, we think we now have a plan to do just that. our focus now will be the building of the aluminum portion of the camper shell which is every thing from the chassis forward. we plan to make much progress over this weekend. enjoy

[rideglobally]

Originally Posted by 1tontoy

Cool. One suggestion: might have trouble accessing the spare if the vehicle is high-centered and/or the ass-end is sitting on the ground. Is good for lowering the center of gravity, though.

Just a thought.

Thanks for the suggestion. We are creating a spare tire cavity with an access door from within the camper. We will keep you posted.

[rideglobally]

Over the weekend we spent time engineering. We sat in front of a computer and designed the camper shell with all aluminum. We designed the entire bottom side of the shell of the camper. This morning we will cut on the laser with one piece of aluminum the lower portion of the camper shell. We are first on the lasers schedule. As you will see in the pictures below we made major progress in the design of the bed. This bed design inserts cross members into slots on the main stringers. The innovation here is incredible, using engineering used in other projects and then applied on our expedition cruiser. We have used lasers, 30 foot routers, water jet, press break, and of course welding. I was sent to a half day welding seminar at the beginning of the project for both aluminum and steel welding, using the 350p miller welding machine. I am not yet good at laying those dimes.

Sunday we took the cruiser for a drive at “AJ’s Welding” Randy and Jim welded the flatbed.

Pictured below is cutting a ½ inch aluminum on a 30 foot router, the flat bed design, and welding at AJ’s Welding.

Today we will finish the lower portion of the chassis and engineer the design of the upper portion of the camper shell.

[rideglobally]

More pictures

[sprale]

Looking good!

[joshoisasleep]

wow intense build!

[hicruise55]

Wow! what an awsome undertaking! I cant belive I am so close to where this is being built, let me know it there is anything I can do? Would love to see this thing in person

[rideglobally]

Originally Posted by hicruise55

Wow! what an awsome undertaking! I cant belive I am so close to where this is being built, let me know it there is anything I can do? Would love to see this thing in person

Thanks for your interest, we are working on it daily. If you want to stop by Saturday, would be a good day. go to LCNW - Laser Cutting NW we are in the router facility back building.

[rideglobally]

Much of Day 8 was learning how to weld aluminum. A welding instructor was brought in to give me training on aluminum welding. Learning how to weld aluminum is probably the most significant progress on this day. One hundred percent of the remaining build will be in aluminum.

Pictured below is the progress we have made on the foundation of the camper shell. Today we will finish the final touches on the foundation, mount the floor and then begin the design and engineering of the upper camper shell.

[goneloco]

Why wouldn't you move the rear axle back a couple of feet? That is a long over hange... I would think the truck would ride that much smoother...

Just wondering

[fernandol]

Amado that thing's looking awesome

I would agree with goneloco. You're doing so much to get the perfect rig that you should consider moving the rear axle back, it's not a very big deal on a truck like yours and I think the benefit would be huge.

Too bad i'm so far away, would love to come by to lend a hand.

[roscoFJ73]

Originally Posted by goneloco

Why wouldn't you move the rear axle back a couple of feet? That is a long over hange... I would think the truck would ride that much smoother...

Just wondering

Originally Posted by fernandol

Amado that thing's looking awesome

I would agree with goneloco. You're doing so much to get the perfect rig that you should consider moving the rear axle back, it's not a very big deal on a truck like yours and I think the benefit would be huge.

Too bad i'm so far away, would love to come by to lend a hand.

I got to agree with moving the axle back. It will handle much better on the open road. Big overhangs cause tail wag.
It will be a PITA in the cities as it will increase the turning circle, but you wont be there all that much

[1tontoy]

I think those side panels are cutouts for storage bins..?

[rideglobally]

Originally Posted by goneloco

Why wouldn't you move the rear axle back a couple of feet? That is a long over hange... I would think the truck would ride that much smoother...

Just wondering

we also thought about moving the rear axle, but because of time constraint we decided instead to shorten the camper shell by one feet, we agree it would have been great to move the rear axle. thanks

[rideglobally]

Originally Posted by 1tontoy

I think those side panels are cutouts for storage bins..?

yes those are cut outs for storage bin...thanks

[rideglobally]

It is Day 9 and we continue to strengthen the structure of the bed by adding more gussets and stiffeners. We will weld the aluminum together using a state of the art 350P Miller welder. We decided to reinforce the front bed and rear bumper with 3/16 diamond plate steel. We are creating a cavity for the spare tire between the diagonal bars on the chassis for storage and to strengthen it for towing. All of these components will be laser cut and formed this morning. The rest of the day will be spent installing them. As you can see by the pictures below the floor of the bed was cut by the router and is ready to be attached onto the bed frame. We will install the floor after the spare tire cavity and diagonals are installed. The next phase is the camper shell.

Thanks for all your ideas. We are using them! This is turning out to be a real community build. Ride Globally!

[lostworldexpedition]

This is an awesome build. I can't wait to see the finished product. It reminds me of the The New Cruiser build. I am subscribing to this thread!

You definitely have to stop by on your way home!

Good luck and keep the posts coming.

Luis,

[pint]

Holly cow...this truck is going to be insane!!! I'm jealous as hell!

[1tontoy]

Not that I'm an engineer or anything

But triangulation, angle stock or c-channel stock, and arches are the strongest geometrically for spans.

[rideglobally]

We reached a milestone today! Once again innovative thinking in design and engineering brought it home. State of the art technology is amazing. There is almost no limit on what can be done.

Day 10 was spent laser cutting and installing the bumper. We also began the design upward from the bed. We have decided to make a change on the core structure of the frame after an engineering review. Steel tubes will be attached to a 2” “lip” of the bumper; these steel tube posts will be wrapped in aluminum so that the contact between the aluminum skin and the post is aluminum-to-aluminum. These pictures will be posted when we get to that part of the build.

What a total blast. How fun can a project be? At the end of the day we read your comments and talk about the cool ideas pitched to us from all of you. Day 14 is just around the corner and pressure is on. Many thanks!

[rideglobally]

today this bumper will be painted