Builds 73 series wheeler project (1 Viewer)

[Tapage]

1HD-T envy down here .. ( Tencha said .. )

 

[joekatana]

Found a few hours while in between things and decided to remove the inner fenders and cut the outer fenders in the front for some more clearance.

Still need to do the same in the rear and then I can start setting up the axles with the suspension.

 

[Mr Cimarron]

Did you cut the inner fender to keep the mounts or remove the whole thing?

 

[joekatana]

Did you cut the inner fender to keep the mounts or remove the whole thing?

Cut it out completely as the hoop to mount the ORI shock will need quite a bit of space plus this forces me to relocate the batteries to the rear which will help with the balance of the truck a bit . Did some measuring today and the plan is to add 6” at the rear and 4.5” to the front and hopefully I can retain the front fenders the way they look now. 10.5” is less then what I hoped to stretch the wheelbase but I hope this will make it still look front and rear like a 70 series and not like a truggy , nothing wrong with truggys but I kinda want to keep some factorish looks on it.

 

[joekatana]

Got some more done today , I was able to make the lower and upper links for the rear. Lower ones are 119.5 cm and the uppers are 112 cm so that should give plenty of travel. My Ruffstuff rear shock mount is pretty low so I need to set it on top of the frame instead of inserting it , looking for a way to deal with clearance issue now , hopefully tonight some bright idea will come and maybe just maybe I will remember it in the morning.

 

[cruisermatt]

Looks like you don’t have a lot of triangulation on the lowers you might get more roll steer then you want you should spend a bit of time on the calculator

 

[joekatana]

Looks like you don’t have a lot of triangulation on the lowers you might get more roll steer then you want you should spend a bit of time on the calculator

Looking at some pics of the Nitro Gear “Inigo” build my lower links appear to be in the same location and about the same lenght as theirs. They wheeled that truck quite a bit plus used it for a while as a daily driver. I am as far out on the axle as I can and I dont want to inboard them on the frame side. I cycled it up and down a few times and nothing seem to bind up , I am not entering koh with it so I think it will be ok.

 

[cruisermatt]

Why don’t you want to inboard them on the frame side? It looks like you can go at least 6-7” before you run into driveshaft issues on the right side.

 

[joekatana]

Why don’t you want to inboard them on the frame side? It looks like you can go at least 6-7” before you run into driveshaft issues on the right side.

More stress on the frame and so far the few linked 73's I actually have seen wheeling had them under the frame and they seemed to do fine, have you ever seen a 73 wheeling with the lowers inboard in person ?

 

[cruisermatt]

Well obviously you'd have to engineer it properly, a new crossmember would be ideal (and easy) but it doesn't sound like you want to do that.
And no, I've only seen a small handful of 70's and they're all stock. I don't see how that's relevant as vehicle dynamic principles are virtually universal.

Just a general 70 question since you're the expert,
Since your 73 is a 1991 does it have the better frame construction like an 80 does compared to a 60? Like if you compare an 80 frame to a 60 frame it is worlds better in terms of weld quality, bracket design, steel thickness, corrosion resistance even IMO, I wouldn't be surprised if the alloy of the steel changed. Do 70 series frames share the same characteristics 1990-up?

 

[joekatana]

Well obviously you'd have to engineer it properly, a new crossmember would be ideal (and easy) but it doesn't sound like you want to do that.
And no, I've only seen a small handful of 70's and they're all stock. I don't see how that's relevant as vehicle dynamic principles are virtually universal.

Just a general 70 question since you're the expert,
Since your 73 is a 1991 does it have the better frame construction like an 80 does compared to a 60? Like if you compare an 80 frame to a 60 frame it is worlds better in terms of weld quality, bracket design, steel thickness, corrosion resistance even IMO, I wouldn't be surprised if the alloy of the steel changed. Do 70 series frames share the same characteristics 1990-up?

I am just not trying to reinvent the wheel here and if I need to go hardcore wheeling then Ishould just build or buy a buggy. This will be an all rounder that I can do some crawling with.

All 70 series have a welded frame similar to that from the 80 series , they are pretty strong while still relatively light. Longer wheelbases do seem to be very prone for rust in the back section , I have already repaired several pu and troopie frames in the past 20 years.

 

[cruisermatt]

I get it I get it, just giving you a hard time. I'd hate to see you do a bunch of work and then want to change it. I know I've been there.
This is a forum after all.

 

[The Eradicator]

Nice to see progress being made again, Joe.

I put the frame side mounts in about the same spot and ended up with 1° of roll understeer. That being said, my rear axle is in the stock location. Moving it back will decrease triangulation a bit.

 

[SHREDwagon]

@joekatana - How well do you think the R151 will cope behind a HD-T? Have you seen this vid? 360 Gearboxes

 

[joekatana]

@joekatana - How well do you think the R151 will cope behind a HD-T? Have you seen this vid? 360 Gearboxes

I think it will be ok , it is a brand new 0 miles box and this cruiser will not get many miles per year plus anything over 70 mph will be dare devil stuff running on 37's or 40's.

I have seen many 70 series with R151's used for heavy duty hauling with over 500K on it without any real issues , yes a H151 would be a stronger choice but it has to stop somewhere, I could have used a 1HDTFT vs the 1HDT also . Most of what comes on this cruiser are parts that I have or parts that friends are selling and I stumble upon them. So far the only thing I had to order from a third party is the Ruffstuf kit.

I have 2 70 series Troopies in Europe and one has the H55 in it and the other the R151 both with a 1HZ, all my friends and family that have ever driven these cruisers pick the one with the R151 to drive because it just shifts smoother.

 

[SHREDwagon]

I think it will be ok

We travelled with a Swiss couple that drove the Panam for 2 years in a 79 with HZ-T who had no issues with their R151. So it is possible! Awesome build.

 

[joekatana]

The rear is done , I decided to move the lowers a little more to the center in the front and the rear shocks placement and frame notching took a few attempts to get enough clearance.

 

[cruisermatt]

See? Now that’s some triangulation.
What shock mounts are those? You’re going to put an upper brace on them, right? Might be better to just tie them into the cage.

 

[joekatana]

See? Now that’s some triangulation.
What shock mounts are those? You’re going to put an upper brace on them, right? Might be better to just tie them into the cage.

I only moved each side about 1 1/2 inch for the lowers so that was not that much , shocktowers are Ruffstuff and they will get a brace and be tied in to the cage. First got to tackle the transmission crossmember and then the front.

 

[cruisermatt]

It's enough that I noticed it before reading the caption. Anyways looks good. I like your upper link mount on the axle, it's simple but strong and effective. It's tricky to work with the offset diff.

Looks like you did a lot of sheetmetal cutting, can you post a zoomed out picture? For tire clearence or?