1980 Longbed Pickup Build - Epically Slow Style

[Sam Stewart]

Add-A-Leaf???????

Long story. The back of the truck is probably 2" or so shorter than the front. So, I want to try to bring the rear up a little for clearance reasons. It doesn't really matter for looks of course. The Tacoma springs are pretty flat so we discussed taking a leaf out of another Tacoma pack. That pretty much won't help because the springs are flat and also it's only a 2 leaf spring with an overload so the springs are long. So, I acquired a pair of 3rd (I think) leaves from an FJ60 OME (I think) pack from my friends at ACC. They have a little more arch than the Taco springs.

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[Sam Stewart]

Hey some metal tubes and stuff showed up. Cool.

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[4xsteve]

Oh, okay. That's not what I think of when I hear "add-a-leaf". I thought you were going to put in an actual mini add-a-leaf as helper springs to add height and/or payload. Which of course, would kill the flex you'd just spent all that time adding in. You can also fine tune your final height with shackle length. Dunno if your shackles are anything nice or high-dollar, but you can easily make some longer ones for added height and added flex. Just remember that for every inch of shackle length increase, the truck only gains half of that in height adjustment.

 

[Sam Stewart]

Oh, okay. That's not what I think of when I hear "add-a-leaf". I thought you were going to put in an actual mini add-a-leaf as helper springs to add height and/or payload. Which of course, would kill the flex you'd just spent all that time adding in. You can also fine tune your final height with shackle length. Dunno if your shackles are anything nice or high-dollar, but you can easily make some longer ones for added height and added flex. Just remember that for every inch of shackle length increase, the truck only gains half of that in height adjustment.

Yep. I already have super long shackles. They aren't real fancy but I did actually buy decent ones. The flex is my #1 concern. In fact, if I put the OME leaves in there and it does kill my flex, I'll take them back out. Again, it's not for looks or payload or anything like that. Just additional clearance for the 37s and anything else I may come into contact with.

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[Sam Stewart]

Doesn't look much like a cage right now...

 

[4xsteve]

NO FEAR at GSMTR now!

 

[Sam Stewart]

NO FEAR at GSMTR now!

Psh! I have no fear already!

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[4xsteve]

Psh! I have no fear already!

Now I think YOU are getting us confused!

 

[Sam Stewart]

Now I think YOU are getting us confused!

Highly possible.

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[71-CRUISER]

They are Ironman springs BTW.
We don't have any OME parts at the shop and haven't for several years.

 

[Sam Stewart]

They are Ironman springs BTW.
We don't have any OME parts at the shop and haven't for several years.

Thanks for the correction. I was thinking they were OME that you had taken off and replaced with Ironman for some reason.

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[Sam Stewart]

Got the LEDs in. Somehow lost the hardware for one of them. But they are wired and they work!

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[jynx]

Cool. If it doesn't rain too much I hope to make some headway on mine this weekend.

And what is it with you and hardware? Didn't you make like 20 trips for hardware when it was still up at ACC? I bet somebody took something out just to mess with you...

 

[Sam Stewart]

Cool. If it doesn't rain too much I hope to make some headway on mine this weekend.

And what is it with you and hardware? Didn't you make like 20 trips for hardware when it was still up at ACC? I bet somebody took something out just to mess with you...

Maybe. I do have trouble with hardware tho...

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[Sam Stewart]

So here's my new list:

Oil change - DONE

Hubs - Pulled and disassembled. Need to clean up and paint (or send to ACC for powder? )

Valve cover gasket - That thing is pouring. Going to replace it and the half moons.

LED lights - Going to install and wire. DONE

Roll cage - 4xinnovations DOM here, waiting to be installed

PS return hose - tightened the clamp, going to add an additional clamp

Rear u-joint

U-bolts - left the original bolts and just swapped out the nuts. The u-bolts were completely loose when I set the weight on the springs. Not good!

Add-a-leaf

CB stuff - Dan

Spare tire - Steve

Updated.

Updated again.

 

[Sam Stewart]

Hub guts:

 

[jynx]

Hey what kind of "CB stuff" is Dan hooking you up with? I need to see about getting something for this and am trying to decide on a handheld with a magnetic antenna or if I should go back to a fixed mount with and permanent antenna.

Didn't you pick up some kind of hand-held before ACC last fall?

 

[Sam Stewart]

Hey what kind of "CB stuff" is Dan hooking you up with? I need to see about getting something for this and am trying to decide on a handheld with a magnetic antenna or if I should go back to a fixed mount with and permanent antenna.

Didn't you pick up some kind of hand-held before ACC last fall?

There is a thread in the GA Cruiser forum about that exact topic. I don't know jack about CBs so I asked about getting my handheld (the same one I had at the ACC ride) to perform better. Dan offered up a mag mount and cable from his old setup so I'm going to give that a shot. Honestly though if you're looking for a permanent solution I would get a tunable fixed mount. One day when or if I have bumpers that's probably what I'll do.

The opinions are pretty strong on both sides. Check out the thread and you'll see what I mean.

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[Sam Stewart]

Thought of another thing I needed. Accessory outlet. I had put one in at one time for my fancy AC system (redneck fan) but somehow it disappeared. I do recall removing it when I did the dash but there's no telling where it went. I'll def need that since the camping is a little more primitive and I'm pretty sure there are no outlets. Gotta charge up the old cell phone somehow!

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[Sam Stewart]

Went ahead and just picked up some paint for the hubs for now. Whenever I get around to tearing down the axle for rebuild and longs I'll send all the bits to ACC for powder.

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