- Thread starter
- #81
Over The Knuckle. So the Tie Rod is on top instead of under the steering arm on the knuckle
My '64 FJ40 Build - Cave Cricket
- Thread starter Ramination
- Start date
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- Thread starter
- #82
I'm not going to lie to you and say that it's been a busy month and I haven't had time to work on the FJ because it HAS been busy and I DIDN'T have time...but I did work on the FJ anyways. My daily coffee intake has more than doubled, as with Redbull. 
I've figured out what to do with the steering but am waiting until Memorial Day to order as I anticipate that Ruffstuff will have some sort of 10-20% off sale. Here's to hoping!
In the meantime I've worked on the body. I had to build a bridge over the driveshaft which is something I'd expected to have to do when I built it originally but it was one of those things where the slate was so clean I had to make a move knowing that I'd have to come back and redo it. But it's what you have to do sometimes. Anyways, it wasn't that bad. May plate it, may not...kind of waiting to see how sturdy the tub is once its all together and welded.
I also final welded all of the rear 4-link sometime back a few weeks ago. That was exciting!
I know in the pic the pinion is way off center, I actually aligned it today which was more difficult than I'd expected. 
And I started on my tub in the rear. Laid a framework which I actually don't have a single picture of, but I do have a pic with some sheetmetal set in place!!!
I just looked back through the thread for the first time in a while and it was crazy for me to see the pics from back when I first set the tub on the frame. Feels like forever ago, and wow it was so basic! There has been a few times this last week where I had to squeeze into a tight spot or a weird position to make a weld where I clearly realize that I am making progress because it is getting hard to work on! 
I've figured out what to do with the steering but am waiting until Memorial Day to order as I anticipate that Ruffstuff will have some sort of 10-20% off sale. Here's to hoping!
In the meantime I've worked on the body. I had to build a bridge over the driveshaft which is something I'd expected to have to do when I built it originally but it was one of those things where the slate was so clean I had to make a move knowing that I'd have to come back and redo it. But it's what you have to do sometimes. Anyways, it wasn't that bad. May plate it, may not...kind of waiting to see how sturdy the tub is once its all together and welded.
I also final welded all of the rear 4-link sometime back a few weeks ago. That was exciting!
I know in the pic the pinion is way off center, I actually aligned it today which was more difficult than I'd expected.
And I started on my tub in the rear. Laid a framework which I actually don't have a single picture of, but I do have a pic with some sheetmetal set in place!!!
I just looked back through the thread for the first time in a while and it was crazy for me to see the pics from back when I first set the tub on the frame. Feels like forever ago, and wow it was so basic! There has been a few times this last week where I had to squeeze into a tight spot or a weird position to make a weld where I clearly realize that I am making progress because it is getting hard to work on!
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- Thread starter
- #83
Now that I have the motor and front axle in place I can drop the front frame rail down to make room for the grill. It's of course complicated because the grill, steering box and panhard bar all want to occupy the same space. The panhard bar and steering tie rods want the frame high, grill wants it low and the steering box can basically do either given the proper pitman arm.
I really struggled for a while figuring out how to get the steering box in there and what exactly to do about the lack of available space. There was about a day where I was so stuck on this that I had decided to leave the frame rails as they were and give the grill a heavy nip and tuck, but after sleeping on it I remembered that it is important to me to keep the grill in tact since it's a staple of the FJ40 look and even more important since there isn't much 40 left on this one. Plus, hacking up the grill would only solve one of the two problems.
And so I've settled on dropping the front part of the rail about 3" just ahead of where the steering arms will sit.
In order for all of this to work I will need a flat pitman arm, but the steering box should tuck up into the frame pretty well. Hopefully it's enough to keep it safe. Because the front axle is pushed so far forward I really have no choice but to put the steering box in front of the grill. Kind of looks silly, but without going full hydro it's really all I've got. Should be able to fit a winch in with it no problem, and still a very good approach angle. Pictures of this tomorrow, maybe.
Anyways, back to the chop chop.
I chopped it at a 45 degree angle, then took the section I cut off and notched it. Since the rail is 4" tall and I wanted to drop 3" I took an inch out of it and fitted back up.
Since I acknowledge the fact that I HATE welding upside down and am quite terrible at it I am just not going to do it. I will weld the bottoms later once I flip over the chassis.
All that just to keep the cosmetics of the grill.
I can TOTALLY see why guys go buggy. 
In the end I'm 95% happy with how it turned out. Took about 10 hours plus a trip to the store for more MIG wire, now on spool #3.
I really struggled for a while figuring out how to get the steering box in there and what exactly to do about the lack of available space. There was about a day where I was so stuck on this that I had decided to leave the frame rails as they were and give the grill a heavy nip and tuck, but after sleeping on it I remembered that it is important to me to keep the grill in tact since it's a staple of the FJ40 look and even more important since there isn't much 40 left on this one. Plus, hacking up the grill would only solve one of the two problems.
And so I've settled on dropping the front part of the rail about 3" just ahead of where the steering arms will sit.
In order for all of this to work I will need a flat pitman arm, but the steering box should tuck up into the frame pretty well. Hopefully it's enough to keep it safe. Because the front axle is pushed so far forward I really have no choice but to put the steering box in front of the grill. Kind of looks silly, but without going full hydro it's really all I've got. Should be able to fit a winch in with it no problem, and still a very good approach angle. Pictures of this tomorrow, maybe.
Anyways, back to the chop chop.
I chopped it at a 45 degree angle, then took the section I cut off and notched it. Since the rail is 4" tall and I wanted to drop 3" I took an inch out of it and fitted back up.
Since I acknowledge the fact that I HATE welding upside down and am quite terrible at it I am just not going to do it. I will weld the bottoms later once I flip over the chassis.
All that just to keep the cosmetics of the grill.
I can TOTALLY see why guys go buggy. In the end I'm 95% happy with how it turned out. Took about 10 hours plus a trip to the store for more MIG wire, now on spool #3.
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- Thread starter
- #84
I didn't make a lot of progress today but did snap a couple more pictures.
I did some jackstand flexing on the front suspension and everything is looking SWEET, except the panhard bar. Now granted, the axle end is SUPER rough (just a single tab tacked to axle tube), I am...or should I say the panhard is in a tight spot. As it sits now the angle will be damn close to the steering linkage once I get a flat pitman arm, but the problem is that it is too close for comfort with the upper link mount. With the setup now I can't just move it forward to clear the upper link mount because it'll interfere with the tie-rod. Hell, a properly robust mount for the panhard would probably hit the tie-rod during a full lock turn.
My two solutions at the moment are to relocate the panhard to behind the axle or rebuild the upper link mount. Relocating the panhard to the back seems like an obvious choice, but I question if it would limit the downtravel due to contact with the upper link. I am also concerned that the only place I'd have to mount it to the axle would be the passenger side lower link mount and that seems like A LOT of stress on that part/area. The ONLY downside the rebuilding the upper link mount to clear the panhard as-is would be that it would be a days worth of fab work and I would likely lose my adjust-ability of having three link mounting points on the axle for playing with anti-dive. But, I could make that work, it'd just be a pain.
The flex testing looks good for clearance on the new frame drop.
The pic is at about 7" of uptravel. I'd planned on limiting to six, but just may go with 7 unless something else pops up because there is still plenty of clearance around everything at that position.
Some clearancing will be required with 7" of uptravel.
I'm super happy with how that worked out considering when I designed and built the suspension I didn't know exactly how everything was going to sit. I was very worried the tire was going to be in the grill a couple inches, very relieved that is NOT the case!
These tires are 38" TSLs on H1 double beadlocks from TWF and I DO NOT plan to run this tire and wheel setup on the FJ, but I have them so am using them for clearance checks here and there. I do plan on keeping the wheels and picking up a set of nicer/newer tires for them but intend to run 17 inch wheels with more backspacing to narrow it up as the primary setup.
I ended the weekend with a little more cosmetic work. Pretty pleased with the condition of the grill-its mint compared to the rest of the body. For some reason though the previous owner hacked a hole through the middle so I chopped that out and patched in a new piece. A year ago I had no idea how to do something like this, six months ago I was hesitant to tackle it but tonight I had time for one more TINY task before closing up shop for the weekend and so I picked this and knocked it out in 20 minutes.
I did some jackstand flexing on the front suspension and everything is looking SWEET, except the panhard bar. Now granted, the axle end is SUPER rough (just a single tab tacked to axle tube), I am...or should I say the panhard is in a tight spot. As it sits now the angle will be damn close to the steering linkage once I get a flat pitman arm, but the problem is that it is too close for comfort with the upper link mount. With the setup now I can't just move it forward to clear the upper link mount because it'll interfere with the tie-rod. Hell, a properly robust mount for the panhard would probably hit the tie-rod during a full lock turn.
My two solutions at the moment are to relocate the panhard to behind the axle or rebuild the upper link mount. Relocating the panhard to the back seems like an obvious choice, but I question if it would limit the downtravel due to contact with the upper link. I am also concerned that the only place I'd have to mount it to the axle would be the passenger side lower link mount and that seems like A LOT of stress on that part/area. The ONLY downside the rebuilding the upper link mount to clear the panhard as-is would be that it would be a days worth of fab work and I would likely lose my adjust-ability of having three link mounting points on the axle for playing with anti-dive. But, I could make that work, it'd just be a pain.
The flex testing looks good for clearance on the new frame drop.
The pic is at about 7" of uptravel. I'd planned on limiting to six, but just may go with 7 unless something else pops up because there is still plenty of clearance around everything at that position.
Some clearancing will be required with 7" of uptravel.
I'm super happy with how that worked out considering when I designed and built the suspension I didn't know exactly how everything was going to sit. I was very worried the tire was going to be in the grill a couple inches, very relieved that is NOT the case!
These tires are 38" TSLs on H1 double beadlocks from TWF and I DO NOT plan to run this tire and wheel setup on the FJ, but I have them so am using them for clearance checks here and there. I do plan on keeping the wheels and picking up a set of nicer/newer tires for them but intend to run 17 inch wheels with more backspacing to narrow it up as the primary setup.
I ended the weekend with a little more cosmetic work. Pretty pleased with the condition of the grill-its mint compared to the rest of the body. For some reason though the previous owner hacked a hole through the middle so I chopped that out and patched in a new piece. A year ago I had no idea how to do something like this, six months ago I was hesitant to tackle it but tonight I had time for one more TINY task before closing up shop for the weekend and so I picked this and knocked it out in 20 minutes.
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- Thread starter
- #85
If anyone is willing to drop some pitman arm/steering box knowledge on me, I am ALL EARS!
Considering I have searched pretty hard to no avail tells me it must be more simple than I am making it to be, but how do I go about finding a pitman arm that will fit on my steering box?
The box is a Saginaw style, came from the '97 Ram discussed earlier in the thread. It has a 32 spline sector shaft (I think this is the right name for the splined shaft the pitman arm attaches to), the shaft is of course tapered starting at about 1 3/16" to about 1 1/4" at the largest. The shaft also has four key-like cuts to align the pitman arm.
Suggestions on where to look for a pitman arm that will fit and is about 7" center to center and flat or close to it would be great!!!
Considering I have searched pretty hard to no avail tells me it must be more simple than I am making it to be, but how do I go about finding a pitman arm that will fit on my steering box?
The box is a Saginaw style, came from the '97 Ram discussed earlier in the thread. It has a 32 spline sector shaft (I think this is the right name for the splined shaft the pitman arm attaches to), the shaft is of course tapered starting at about 1 3/16" to about 1 1/4" at the largest. The shaft also has four key-like cuts to align the pitman arm.
Suggestions on where to look for a pitman arm that will fit and is about 7" center to center and flat or close to it would be great!!!
Try borgeson, flaming river, or ebay for a pitman arm. Front axle placement looks pretty wicked cool. I like the frame drop down and the grill, glad you didn't chop up the grill. Linked front suspension is always tough and packaging is always very tight. Your front links seem a bit short to me. Do you have room for longer ones? Also, while you have the box out now is a good time to at least drill and tap some hydro assist ports-you probably already knew that though. Nice work man.
- Thread starter
- #87
Thanks!
The front links are on the shorter end of the spectrum, the upper is ~27" and that is as long as I could make it. The lowers are a couple inches longer than the upper. I could have made them even longer but I put the frame side mounts right where it breaks to go up to the motor. Had I pushed the mounts back the links would hit the frame on uptravel, and that wouldn't be good! Additionally, with longer lower links I would get into issues with the tires rubbing the links at full lock unless I onboard the frame side mounts which was not possible in this application.
The front links are on the shorter end of the spectrum, the upper is ~27" and that is as long as I could make it. The lowers are a couple inches longer than the upper. I could have made them even longer but I put the frame side mounts right where it breaks to go up to the motor. Had I pushed the mounts back the links would hit the frame on uptravel, and that wouldn't be good! Additionally, with longer lower links I would get into issues with the tires rubbing the links at full lock unless I onboard the frame side mounts which was not possible in this application.
- Thread starter
- #88
I made good progress on the steering system this past week. Spent way too much time figuring out that all power steering boxes have the same sector shaft size – some have different keys or none at all but the diameter and spline count is consistent. After finding that out things got a little easier searching for pitman arms that would fit my needs, but it was still time consuming. I need to go flat or close to it and after lots of testing determined that I need at least 6.75” from hole center to hole center. Anything less and I would max out the steering box prior to the axles reaching the steering stops. If I could find a pitman arm that didn’t have keyways (so I could clock it a couple degrees at center) then I could get away with 6.5”. Oh yea, and it needs to have enough meat to it to withstand being reamed out for the GM 1 ton drag link – I’ll be using the Ruffstuff bushing so it’s a 1 inch hole.
I started looking at Chevelle pitman arms, then moved on to Astro Van arms, then onto Bronco – all are flat (or close) but the Chevelle and Astro are a bit short, the Bronco is keyed 45 degrees off from what I need. I could file out the keys to make them into teeth, but that sounds like it sucks. I found WFO sells a pitman arm for Saginaw boxes that is undrilled on the draglink side so you can make it as long as needed – the problem is that due to the drag link hole size the max center to center length I’d feel comfortable with was about 6.5”. Crap! Then I found that Jeep Wagoneers used a flat pitman arm that measures about 7” center to center and has decent meat to it. Perfect! Part number J5352278 and you can get them brand new for $35. Not even worth searching boneyards for a used one at that price. That’ll be here in a couple days.
I finally maned up and took the drill to my knuckles.
The standard is tapered from the bottom up, then the tie rod and TREs go on the underside of the knuckle arm. The knuckles were drilled out to a straight 7/8”, then the insert is inserted and allows me to have the taper go from the top down. I can now mount the TREs on top of the knuckle. This gives more clearance under the tie rod which will be helpful offroad. Kind of a poor man’s high steer setup. Wouldn’t be necessary on a kingpin axle, but here we are. The other advantage is that it allows me to run the beefy tie rod without any clearance issues around the differential. If I tried to go standard under the knuckle with this big of a tie rod it would collide with the diff cover way before full lock in either direction. This would require a different setup or bending the tierod to clear. Eww! Since it is 4-5” higher now it is above the widest part of the diff and clears perfect, couldn’t have designed it any better! Take a look!
Full lock to passenger
Full lock to driver
And at full compression the steering should clear the frame drop perfect!
I'm very pleased with how the steering has come together, I was getting pretty frustrated with it there for a little bit. I still need to order hydro assist fittings and ram, but not worried about that part. Once the pitman arm is in and verified I will finalize steering box location and mount it to the frame. Bought some DOM to sleeve the bolts today. At this point I anticipate two through the frame rail and one mounted on top. Unfortunately it looks like there will be a little trimming on the grill around the steering box, but nothing major.
Still working around the panhard bar space issues, but I think see a solution!!! More later.
I started looking at Chevelle pitman arms, then moved on to Astro Van arms, then onto Bronco – all are flat (or close) but the Chevelle and Astro are a bit short, the Bronco is keyed 45 degrees off from what I need. I could file out the keys to make them into teeth, but that sounds like it sucks. I found WFO sells a pitman arm for Saginaw boxes that is undrilled on the draglink side so you can make it as long as needed – the problem is that due to the drag link hole size the max center to center length I’d feel comfortable with was about 6.5”. Crap! Then I found that Jeep Wagoneers used a flat pitman arm that measures about 7” center to center and has decent meat to it. Perfect! Part number J5352278 and you can get them brand new for $35. Not even worth searching boneyards for a used one at that price. That’ll be here in a couple days.
I finally maned up and took the drill to my knuckles.
The standard is tapered from the bottom up, then the tie rod and TREs go on the underside of the knuckle arm. The knuckles were drilled out to a straight 7/8”, then the insert is inserted and allows me to have the taper go from the top down. I can now mount the TREs on top of the knuckle. This gives more clearance under the tie rod which will be helpful offroad. Kind of a poor man’s high steer setup. Wouldn’t be necessary on a kingpin axle, but here we are. The other advantage is that it allows me to run the beefy tie rod without any clearance issues around the differential. If I tried to go standard under the knuckle with this big of a tie rod it would collide with the diff cover way before full lock in either direction. This would require a different setup or bending the tierod to clear. Eww! Since it is 4-5” higher now it is above the widest part of the diff and clears perfect, couldn’t have designed it any better! Take a look!
Full lock to passenger
Full lock to driver
And at full compression the steering should clear the frame drop perfect!
I'm very pleased with how the steering has come together, I was getting pretty frustrated with it there for a little bit. I still need to order hydro assist fittings and ram, but not worried about that part. Once the pitman arm is in and verified I will finalize steering box location and mount it to the frame. Bought some DOM to sleeve the bolts today. At this point I anticipate two through the frame rail and one mounted on top. Unfortunately it looks like there will be a little trimming on the grill around the steering box, but nothing major.
Still working around the panhard bar space issues, but I think see a solution!!! More later.
- Thread starter
- #89
Fixed up the grill a bit more
- Thread starter
- #90
Next time, I'm building a buggy. 
Worked A LOT on the panhard bar this weekend. Ended up having to move the panhard back on the frame a couple inches which was expected but really created some problems. If you've ever done this before you know what I ran into...if you haven't, it's a general lack of space. Quite a theme lately!
With the panhard bracket I had the mount would collide with the axle within 2" of uptravel. I made a new one which worked ok for about 4" of uptravel but still not enough. I made another which was even worse, then came back to gen 2 and modified it. By cutting off 3/8" from the tab I was able to get the uptravel clearance for 5.5" safely. I'm bummed I won't be able to get the whole 7" but there is literally not enough space to achieve it without major rework.
Bracket in the back is trimmed a little extra to match the trimming I did on the axle bumpstop. Everything is TIGHT, but this will be a little past full bump so we shouldn't have any clearance issues. That said, I've lost most of my link adjustability since this panhard bracket squeezes between the axle and steering so precisely at full bump.
Not shown is the notch I put in the frame rail to clear the top part of the panhard at full bump.
On the axle side I probably spent more time, but am SUPER happy with how it's come out so far.
It's been a tough balance of angle to match the draglink and...well space really. The pitman arm STILL has not arrived, but by mock up I think I've got a setup that works. Even if it doesn't, this is what we're going with because it's as close as I'm getting!
I'm redoing the axle side of the panhard, actually cutting the panhard to shorten it to match the draglink length and then putting a new bushing on it. Almost went with a heim but was able to find a narrow bushing that will work. I'm happy to have no squeaky heims in the suspension.
Anyways, here is how the mount looks so far. Ended up bending it to get the panhard to clear the upper link mount yet still keep the bolt perpendicular to travel. Bend is about 20 degrees.
The (bent) material that will attach to the axle is 3/8" thick. Being naive, I thought I could bend it in my press just as it sat.
After bending my "V" used to bend material in the press I scored the plate with the grinder and heated it up a little. Bent like butter that time. 
Will still be making some more bracing for the back that'll capture the axle like the paper copy but want to get the rest of the parts in first.
Thanks for looking!
Worked A LOT on the panhard bar this weekend. Ended up having to move the panhard back on the frame a couple inches which was expected but really created some problems. If you've ever done this before you know what I ran into...if you haven't, it's a general lack of space. Quite a theme lately!
With the panhard bracket I had the mount would collide with the axle within 2" of uptravel. I made a new one which worked ok for about 4" of uptravel but still not enough. I made another which was even worse, then came back to gen 2 and modified it. By cutting off 3/8" from the tab I was able to get the uptravel clearance for 5.5" safely. I'm bummed I won't be able to get the whole 7" but there is literally not enough space to achieve it without major rework.
Bracket in the back is trimmed a little extra to match the trimming I did on the axle bumpstop. Everything is TIGHT, but this will be a little past full bump so we shouldn't have any clearance issues. That said, I've lost most of my link adjustability since this panhard bracket squeezes between the axle and steering so precisely at full bump.
Not shown is the notch I put in the frame rail to clear the top part of the panhard at full bump.
On the axle side I probably spent more time, but am SUPER happy with how it's come out so far.
It's been a tough balance of angle to match the draglink and...well space really. The pitman arm STILL has not arrived, but by mock up I think I've got a setup that works. Even if it doesn't, this is what we're going with because it's as close as I'm getting!
I'm redoing the axle side of the panhard, actually cutting the panhard to shorten it to match the draglink length and then putting a new bushing on it. Almost went with a heim but was able to find a narrow bushing that will work. I'm happy to have no squeaky heims in the suspension.
Anyways, here is how the mount looks so far. Ended up bending it to get the panhard to clear the upper link mount yet still keep the bolt perpendicular to travel. Bend is about 20 degrees.
The (bent) material that will attach to the axle is 3/8" thick. Being naive, I thought I could bend it in my press just as it sat.
After bending my "V" used to bend material in the press I scored the plate with the grinder and heated it up a little. Bent like butter that time.
Will still be making some more bracing for the back that'll capture the axle like the paper copy but want to get the rest of the parts in first.
Thanks for looking!
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- Thread starter
- #91
More progress!
The Wagoneer pitman arm arrived today. As expected it measure almost 7" center to center and built/bent for an inch of drop. I'm not super stoked on how it necks down so much where the draglink attaches but I'm sure it'll be fine.
I did not expect the splines/key to be clocked. It appears that the keys are about one tooth to the passenger side. Fortunately, this worked out PERFECT for me. It actually would have been worse if it was keyed dead on center as I anticipated. More on this later.
Now that I have the pitman arm, time to work on box placement. Since the panhard bar is basically locked in due to the tight confine I have to work in it is up to the pitman arm to match the drag link to the panhard bar.
One, two, three and BOOM! That bottom one was a pain, but got all three lined up on the first try! Ha!
The box is angled to put the pitman arm flat. This ended up putting the draglink less than 1 degree off from the panhard bar. It's actually 0.84 degrees, and I can live with that. The draglink and pitman arm lengths will be within 1/16th of an inch. considering the circumstances under which I was bound I'm totally happy.
A quick lock to lock test determined that it's all good, still clears and achieves full travel. I got lucky though, because had I went with an arm less than 7" AND if the arm wasn't offset slightly at center I wouldn't have gotten full angle to the passenger side. Happy to end the night on that note.
The Wagoneer pitman arm arrived today. As expected it measure almost 7" center to center and built/bent for an inch of drop. I'm not super stoked on how it necks down so much where the draglink attaches but I'm sure it'll be fine.
I did not expect the splines/key to be clocked. It appears that the keys are about one tooth to the passenger side. Fortunately, this worked out PERFECT for me. It actually would have been worse if it was keyed dead on center as I anticipated. More on this later.
Now that I have the pitman arm, time to work on box placement. Since the panhard bar is basically locked in due to the tight confine I have to work in it is up to the pitman arm to match the drag link to the panhard bar.
One, two, three and BOOM! That bottom one was a pain, but got all three lined up on the first try! Ha!
The box is angled to put the pitman arm flat. This ended up putting the draglink less than 1 degree off from the panhard bar. It's actually 0.84 degrees, and I can live with that. The draglink and pitman arm lengths will be within 1/16th of an inch. considering the circumstances under which I was bound I'm totally happy.
A quick lock to lock test determined that it's all good, still clears and achieves full travel. I got lucky though, because had I went with an arm less than 7" AND if the arm wasn't offset slightly at center I wouldn't have gotten full angle to the passenger side. Happy to end the night on that note.
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- Thread starter
- #92
Here's where we are at:
Already flatspotted my new tires!!!
At mostly full bump:
And here is what I am thinking for fender trimming
Thoughts?
Already flatspotted my new tires!!!
At mostly full bump:
And here is what I am thinking for fender trimming
Thoughts?
Here's where we are at:
Already flatspotted my new tires!!!
At mostly full bump:
And here is what I am thinking for fender trimming
Thoughts?
Props for the hard work and out of the box building. This is one of my favorite builds on here. Keep it up.
Looks pretty good. The rear part on the wood looks like it has a curve in it rather than straight and looks like its a bit steeper angle than stock.
- Thread starter
- #95
You're correct, I wanted to match the cut/angle on the back to the one on the front.
- Thread starter
- #96
I never appreciated pictures like the one above until I was the one taking it, but NOW I totally get it. After a seven week wait, it was epic getting to open the boxes.
They're obviously KINGS, all four are 14" travel 2" body with low speed compression adjusters. Right now the springs are all 200/200, but I'm sure I'll have to swap at least the rears. We'll see next year!
I ordered them from Ben at Filthy motorsports simply because of all of the videos he has on Youtube. He also does free spring exchange for the proper rate once the rig is finished up.I wasted no time in getting them mounted up. I'd already done a bunch of math to figure angles and keep the rears inside the (future) fender wells so I was pretty confident in what I was doing.
The springs are too stiff still of course since it's not done. In the rear its only sitting on one spring for the time being.
No clearance issues with shock/frame - potential issue with shock/tire eventually depending on what tire/wheel combo I end up running throughout the years but I really didn't want to inboard the mount on the axle any more or the shock would go beyond 90 degrees to the axle at max flex. I read somewhere that its a big no-no for stability.
At ride height the shocks are all tipped in toward center about 10 degrees. The fronts lean back about 10 degrees I think, I'll have to remeasure and confirm. (EDIT: They lean back about 6 degrees at ride height). The rears are nearly vertical front to back.
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- Thread starter
- #97
While I was waiting for the shocks I started working on the brakes. Obviously the stock master cylinder was not going to be up to the task since it was tiny operated drum brakes and was not assisted. I will be using the brake booster and master of the Ram, fortunately it fits like it was made for this application. Well almost. I am putting it in the location of the old clutch master. The hole is off center about 1.5 inches from what I need, but workable.
Sweet!
The arm for the booster ALMOST lined up with the old clutch pedal, just a bit too long and slightly low.
I see an easy way to fix this. I grabbed a gusset and the old brake pedal from the Ram. I pressed the pin from the old brake pedal out, drilled a hole in the gusset and pressed the pin into the gusset.
It's perfect
Sweet!
The arm for the booster ALMOST lined up with the old clutch pedal, just a bit too long and slightly low.
I see an easy way to fix this. I grabbed a gusset and the old brake pedal from the Ram. I pressed the pin from the old brake pedal out, drilled a hole in the gusset and pressed the pin into the gusset.
It's perfect
- Thread starter
- #98
I finally figured out what I am doing with the fuel cell - I am NOT going to mount it behind the axle under the tub like I wanted because as I looked into it I couldn't find a fuel cell that would fit and not hang down to the ground without putting it up through the floor...which defeats the purpose. So I'll go normal behind the rear seat location.
BUT, since I am going to lose a little space to the fuel cell I am going to take advantage of the space under the tub. Inspired by the fuel cell skid I was planning on making I decided to turn it into storage space, accessable by trap door in the tub floor. I THINK it's going to be AWESOME!
Since I do not plan on sealing it off 100% I put a drain plug in the bottom corner so I can clean it out from time to time, and drain any water that it may take on while on the trail.
I think it'll be good for storing oil quarts, tow straps, etc.
We finished the weekend by finally getting the ol Ram out of the barn. What a task. My first two plans DID NOT work, by the time we finally got it out safety was priority three but in the end we didn't drop it, or roll it.
Tomorrow will be it's final ride.
BUT, since I am going to lose a little space to the fuel cell I am going to take advantage of the space under the tub. Inspired by the fuel cell skid I was planning on making I decided to turn it into storage space, accessable by trap door in the tub floor. I THINK it's going to be AWESOME!
Since I do not plan on sealing it off 100% I put a drain plug in the bottom corner so I can clean it out from time to time, and drain any water that it may take on while on the trail.
I think it'll be good for storing oil quarts, tow straps, etc.
We finished the weekend by finally getting the ol Ram out of the barn. What a task. My first two plans DID NOT work, by the time we finally got it out safety was priority three but in the end we didn't drop it, or roll it.
Tomorrow will be it's final ride.
- Thread starter
- #99
Oh yea, and for the first time in almost 1.5 years the FJ left the safety of the barn.
Looks good amazing transformation man.
