Biodiesel Piggie #2 Buildup (was Sad Sad day...)

[dieselcruiserhead]

Anyway, it also only took more than a month but finally done with that rear bumper more or less. I have some things to add to it, but the main core part of it is done luckily..


Next part was doing the rear of the slider sides.. I went back to my friends shop and used their plasma again.. I was being made fun of for the sloppy cutting but I actually left a lot of room on purpose as I wanted it to match the body closely, and wanted the precision of the grinder to determine that rather than a quick cut with the plasma..

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

from here I started grinding. When it was on the bench the grinder actually gave the piece of steel a nice ring to it, like it was a tuning fork. I probably moved the steel back and forth off the body with the grinder a half dozen times to make sure it lined up...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Next I had to trace onto the other piece before I could weld the strap on around the corners...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Then I traced onto the other piece so the curves would match...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Then I used 2" wide 1/4" strap to round the corners, similar how I did it last time on the first pig also.. Here is the link... http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?p=2606867#post2606867

I used a combo of the 3lb hammer which worked awesome and actually the highlift to keep it cinched up...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Then here it is all welded up. You can see the tacking I used to place it...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

next came fun grinding time, and right about here I dropped the camera and it finally died so this is the best of the grinding shots I have of this side at least... Probably well over a full hour of total grinding for this whole bumper...

Later that night, I got as far as the second pic which will make sense in an a little bit when you see the completed pic. The second pic is one I took about a week later with a new camera... You can see how grinding sort of mimicked the original lines of the 2x4 steel...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Goal was to get as much done on the bumper, then pull it off and do the rest with the bumper off.. So I started working on driver's side... You can see how I would grind lower on one side so that the srap would wrap around and come to 90degrees vertical to meet the actual rear bumper....

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

after same thing as passenger side (weld on strap, grind down), started mounting up to rear bumper. I placed on jack stands, used angle finder to mimic the angle on the passenger side (5 degrees in this case), and started welding up. Welded, cut, used hammer to knock to correct angle as seen...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Then in the front, I used some 2" 1/4" square tubing I had lying around.. Welded to the plates I made when I drilled the rear section of the frame... Tacked then welded in hard, as best as I could get with the bumper still on the truck...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Then I started bracing/gusseting the corner as I did the other side. I had these 1/2" thick pieces that were scrap at the welding shop that were 90 degrees. You can see the line where I planned to cut... You can also see some of the filler pieces and the rear slider welded to the bumper..

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Next, pulled off the bumper, here is how it appeared...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

Here is some trimming I did right before camera ran out of juice

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

So here is final product, basically how it turned out.. You can guess I welded in more 2" wide 1/4" thick strap and ground to have it match the 1/2" gussets, all trimmed and smooth

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

More of the angling. The top of it will be underneath the pig body so not too visible...

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

and that's it, finished product. I definitely took my time again, sort of like a slow careful carpenter but am super psyched with how it turned out

 

[NW-sickboy]

looking good dre!

 

[pr0ject42]

I really dig the bumper man, good job.

Are you using flux-core wire or are you running gas in your welder? I need many more hours of practice making yard-art before my welds will look anything like yours. Props dood!

 

[dieselcruiserhead]

yes they are getting better luckily.. I am close to already 1/2 through a 30 lb roll with this truck/welder alone! Anyway, it is not flux but regular .035" with 75/25 shielding gas. The machine looks big but it is only a hair more powerful than the millermatic 175, Miller's weakest 220V machine.. I am actually planning on switching to .030" wire for the next roll... As soon as I get a chance I'll post up pics with it on the truck... Andre

 

[PabloCruise]

Wow!

I love this thread. I am only on page 14!