Builds Intro: Ugly Betty(so far)

[tmarx]

Thanks Dan.
It is pretty much a WIP and changes are frequent but I think we are close.

On tha passenger side gate we will use what we call a " bakkie(ldv) latch" which is spring loaded

and welded to the inside of the gate, in order to lock it into position behind the bracket that is bolted to the OEM "door stopper" holes in the pic. (the pic is somewhat confusing as the gate sits behind the bracket as opposed to in front of it, as it will be when bolted to the hinges)

That way the pax side gate is locked stationary and the driver side gate can be closed against it. Unfortunately the use of single hinges highlighted the need to replace the OEM hinge bushes & pins which meant a delay today. Hopefully I will have them back from the Eng shop tomorrow and when done I will shoot you all the pics you need.

 

[dancar]

Theo,

That gate is looking the business - I see that you have worked a slider for the fridge. Very neat indeed.

Dan

 

[crushers]

wicked idea...

 

[tmarx]

- I see that you have worked a slider for the fridge. Very neat indeed.

It is an African Outback fridge slide Dan African Outback

One of the reasons why we changed the initial latch system was the fact that the slide couldn't clear it and I didn't want to move the fridge over to the pax side in the truck. This way I only need to open 1 gate to slide the fridge out while the sparewheel can remain in place - very handy during quick stops

 

[tmarx]

I got my hinges back from Andre Engelbrecht Eng and once again he came through with flying colours

The new SS pins and bushes not only look great but they are easily removable and made a huge difference when it comes to lining up the gates.

Now that the doors line up properly we can finish the latching system and then it is off to the powder coaters.


My very patient "partner in crime"

You rock buddy and I really hope that one day we get to do those tube doors
and even fenders as a project.


For Dan:

TBC ...

 

[tmarx]

I have always believed that the drive in a topless 40 is better than with a hard top on and therefore I was in no particular rush to fix my roof’s gutter. I also always thought that a 40 without a decent roll cage was a serious danger in a rollover situation. When the upcoming J4 series "Legends" trip suddenly hit me I saw it as an opportunity to "kill 2 birds with one stone" - I could get a roll cage for safety and fit a bikini top so I could still make the most of the last bit of our summer, on the looming trip .

We considered importing Metaltech cages from the US but they were just too bulky, resulting in exorbitant import costs, so I had to go custom and local. The additional problem was finding someone who actually knew what they were doing when it came to cage building. Enter Cris Ingram from R&D Off-Road. I rang him up and from the onset I could sense how keen he was to do this. He had many years of experience in building and racing Challenge type vehicles(including building cages) which was an obvious plus factor. The problem was that we had nothing to use as a template and therefore had to basically start from scratch altogether. I had a few requirements e.g. no drilling or welding to the chassis etc and I wanted it to be removable even though it must still work with the hard top back on. Armed with some “stolen pics" from Metaltech et al, we started the long process. The pics tell the story ….

I am totally stoked with the the way it turned out ! Cris and his guys really came through on this one

 

[crushers]

THAT is a work of art!!
beautiful!!
<remember that steel hurts when you smack it with the side of your head.>

 

[tmarx]

Thanks Wayne, much appreciated !

<remember that steel hurts when you smack it with the side of your head.>

Funny you should say that when I knocked my head a sh#te shot tonight !



Anyhow I also needed some kind of packing system. The fridge was sorted with a African Outback slide that I mounted on a piece of plywood that was bolted to the tub using the multitude of OEM captive nuts intended for the rear seats of the LX model. That left me with quite a bit of space on the pax side. With the trip being 17 days away now , there is not enough time to build a drawer system and to be honest I need some more time to decide how I want my eventual drawers to be- no need to rush into something now. I decided to go with a simple solution for 4 ammo boxes ,largely because I happened to have some old angle-iron lying around ...

I had to switch the removable cross brace around in order to fit the stacked ammo boxes ..

A bit it may be but it will work fine untill I figure out exactly what I want.

 

[crushers]

nice looking ride, i really like it...

 

[KZRSOIZE]

Awesome rig mate !!!!! Any pictures of the finished tail gate ?

 

[tmarx]

Thanks ! I'm afraid not, the powdercoaters are taking their sweet time - hopefully tomorrow or Monday ..

But I have a 2.5K km trip this weekend to fetch a very nice surprise ...

 

[tmarx]

Going to a very wet Kalahari and back in less than 34 hrs was tough and demanding ...

.. but very much enjoyable and definately worth it ...



his dad

and now please say hello to Boris

I am sure that our late Max would approve, as Boris was already helping out in the garage today and thus we got quite a bit done....



If your African Outback slide has a slight rattle just add some rubber to the stopper blocks infront of the rear most bearings

Ammo boxes and fridge mounted and all straps etc can be easily reached...

Fini mounted and strapped behind the fridge

Problem lock sorted ...

We used the bottom ends of the new(longer) bonnet hinge bolts to mount the new VHF radio. This way we managed to use some usually wasted space and hopefully it being out of sight will help in other areas too ..

External speaker location

I also made a cheapo bracket for the mic ..

The antenna mouint as part of the new cage ..

As she looked today ...

 

[crushers]

damn...
<need to see this one in person>

 

[tmarx]

damn...
<need to see this one in person>

It would be a huge pleasure Wayne, not to mention that I would love to pick your brain (and skills) on an issue or two !
So when are you coming down to ZA ?

 

[crushers]

to be honest, you will be completed long before i can afford that trip
but
i would love to visit one day...

 

[tmarx]

Some update pics ...

(Note to self: Get some smaller fender washers)

The reason why I went for a dual gate setup

 

[crushers]

i would be jumping for Joy as well...

(but then she would just leave)

 

[KY Longhunter]

Love the color of your truck! Olive Grey Green?

 

[bsmith123]

Ugly Betty

I just jumped into the link on the last page--been a while since I looked but WOW!

Gonna have to go back through the whole thing again now---great job

x 2 on the color ---what is it?

Can you post it here or would you mind if I did?

https://forum.ih8mud.com/40-55-series-tech/379200-best-non-oem-colors-post-your-paint-job-pic.html

 

[tmarx]

Thanks guys much appreciated!

It is an OEM colour(although not for the 40 ser). Toyota 6H9 Olive Gray/ Grayish Olive. 1985 year IIRC



Should be test fitting the bikini(more like a G-string) top this afternoon as our trip is now just 1 week away - so time is becoming a real factor