1981 Pick-up Build (1 Viewer)

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I know gas is the way to go and I'm sure I would never look back.

Back to the build prep. I ordered some weld on knuckle gussets and thus need to pull the knuckle/birf. I rebuilt the knuckles about 2 years ago and would like to avoid a complete disassembly. Anybody ever use the "camo" method as described on pirate? It looks pretty straightforward but re-installation sounds like it could be a little tricky.

I may put the gussets on hold for now and go with a more typical shock mount. This is the lazy way but with the amount of actual wrenching time I'll likely get, I don't want the truck to be down for months.
 
Is the camo method removing the locking hub split ring, then the steering arm/bottom cap? That works pretty well for taking it all off as a chunk.
 
Pretty much - It is the outer hub snap ring, top knuckle cap, and felts/backing plate. Like you said, it all comes off as an assembly which is appealing. Everything was rebuilt and is currently not leaking, so I would prefer to leave it alone.

Any thoughts on to Truss or Not to Truss? It seems like most everyone does, but I've been reading that it can actually lead to bending because you lose the flexibility of the non-trussed housing. This thing probably won't get beat on too hard yet, and I would hate to warp the housing during welding. I'm aware of the stitching method, but it sounds like a lot of the axle gurus state that any welding without some sort of alignment bar will cause warping.

And just for reading enjoyment, this is how I've been practicing my metal fabrication/welding skills:
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And teaching my kids what it means to be from GA:

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yes that method of removing the knuckle works well. If the only reason for removing them is for welding don't bother, just weld both sides on at the same time and work you way back and forth from driver to passenger side to keep the heat to a minimum.

as far as needing the trusses, you probably do not unless you plan on jumping the poor little truck.
 
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The heat may kill your inner axle seals. Id try to carefully remove them without damaging that inner spring. And I'm not sure about the bearing races, i doubt the heat would damage them, but you can pop them out then reinstall after the knuckle cools just to be safe.

And awesome monster truck!
 
When we welded patrick's knuckle gussets on it did ruin/melt the inner seals and the ones we used didn't require as much welding as those Marlin Crawler ones. I might go ahead and buy some new seals just in case.
 
I can not believe you are going to mess with the truck . It is too nice to mess with . Buy something that is already set up to what you are want to do . Do not mess with the truck you have ,
 
FJCRAWLER said:
I can not believe you are going to mess with the truck . It is too nice to mess with . Buy something that is already set up to what you are want to do . Do not mess with the truck you have ,
Click to expand...

I was torn to modify the truck and partially the reason it took me so long to actually pull the trigger. I bought the truck with this intention and enjoy the building almost as much as driving it. If the truck was more streetable (ie power steering, decent suspension, etc) I would have been more tempted to leave it alone. The mods should help with street and offroad performance.

If you want to sell me the 4Runner for cheap, I'll wheel it while the truck is in the garage for surgery.:flipoff2:
 
Take some before and after measurements. Ground to bottom of frame for instance, flex out front and rear tire and measure ground to bottom of tire. Would be cool to compare the differences.
 
Since the truck is out of commission, I had to find another toy to abuse. Seems like I always find myself stuck without a winch...

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Finally started loosening some bolts today and already running into some issues to work out:

1) power steering - I went up to the dealership today to find some parts not readily available (idler pulley bracket and additional crank pulley for the ps belt). From looking at the '81 22r vs 84+ 22r diagrams, it appears the crank pulleys differ. Of course pre-84 parts are discontinued. I've found several treads on ps conversion but wondering if anyone knows if the crank pulleys are in fact compatible between pre- and post-1984 engines. Here is the rest of the ps kit from trail-gear. It seems to be pretty nice.

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2) rear springs - the 3" springs came in and looks like will give a lot of lift. I had picked up a set of springs off a 2wd S10 a while back that are ~57" long but have the same arch as the stock toyota springs. I think I'm going to complete the RUF and then decide which spring to use in the rear. In the pics below, new 3" lift springs on left, S10 in middle, and stock toyota rears on right.
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3) trunnions - I'm sure I'll find the answer pretty easily via search but how do you remove the trunnions from the stock steering arms? Should I replace them even if they appear to be in decent shape?

I hope to make some more progress a this weekend.
 
Sittin outside the california Baja grill waiting for food in Jax Alabama. Trails are pretty dry but the base of hells revenge has been worked by an excavator so unaccessible. Oh well, plenty of riding to do.

Had to see tony's truck porn, looks good. Chevy springs will work well, a bit longer than f150s but not much. They should flex really well.

Can't help on steeing or idler pully but if the trunion bearings are good then no need to replace, spares are a good idea though.

Looks good so far.
 
Looked like a perfect weekend for wheelin over there. Hopefully you got some pictures.

Here is another pile of parts I've got to find a place for. I'm about halfway through disassembling the front end.

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Front end is out. Ready to start cutting unneeded brackets.
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Ready for the new box
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Figured I post this up in case somebody was looking to add PS to a non-PS 22r. I was able to get these from the dealership - all part numbers come from a 1984 22r but I imagine the part numbers span multiple years. I got the PS pump bracket from trail gear.

Idler bracket and pulley:

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Crank pulley #2:
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Part numbers:
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FYI--If you go through the dealership in the future you can get a discount (25% I think) from Beno or Sam Stewart.
 
I saw that but figured the shipping would eat up the savings. Do you know if they can deliver those parts to any dealership without shipping charges?
 
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