My '97 LX 450 Buildup...Comments/Suggestions Welcome!

[ravencr]

Ordered some parts to finish up the rear bumper from 4x4labs and MSC Industrial Supply. Luke at 4x4Labs was very helpful in figuring out what latch to buy for my custom setup, and he had the spindles in stock ready to ship.

MSC De-Sta-Co Stainless Latch

Heavy Duty Spindle Assemblies | 4×4 Labs

I'm planning to use 1-3/4" .188 wall DOM for the tube portion of the bumpers and the sliders...Not convinced of the 3/16" wall for the sliders, because I'm used to using 1/4", but is 1/4" overkill?

Chris

 

[lt1fire]

What are the dates of that? Is there wheeling at the outerbanks? I rode my bicycle from south to north once, but I wasn't aware of any offroading...beach riding?

Chris

You can ride the beach from corrolla all the way to the virginia state line. There are also other beaches that you can drive on. Not the most hard core 4x4 trip but just a relaxing one we like to take every year. We go to Harlan and Tellico (used to at least) for the more hard core stuff.

 

[Nay]

It is really interesting how the 2" body lift improved the rear quarter panel lines in relation to your top of the frame bumper idea.

That's a pretty slick result that keeps some stock junk potentially intact that you might otherwise want to hack.

The same benefit could occur to the front for mounting a winch on top of the frame rails. Interesting indeed...

Oh, and you need 40's now

 

[ravencr]

Front bumper is going to sit on top of the frame too. The problem up front is being able to suck it in as close as possible because of the hitch tube. We'll see how it turns out. There's a ton of benefits to a body lift. I have no idea why people knock them so much.

Chris

 

[Trapper50cal]

conventional wisdom is that they raise the center of gravity of the truck without providing and additional clearance to the frame rails/control arm mounting points/exhaust/etc....so in a trade-off situation, it doesn't really provide as much as it takes away from the overall wheel-ability. The one thing you do get is the ability to put on bigger tires which allows for a bit more differential clearance, etc. based on the size of said tires. It's just a judgement call on how it effects the COG.

 

[Nay]

Because of the hitch tube.

No winch? I just do front pulls off my tube bumper running the strap through the triangulated sections on both sides (around the stinger at the base of the bumper). It is plenty strong due to the triangulation - broke a strap in that setup on the last snow run at the pull limits of a 9K winch. The whole thing sits on top of the rails as well sans body lift.

What the body lift would do in my case is allow plenty of clearance for the winch plate to sit on top of the frame rails and still have clearance to the body while tucked in (going with a low profile winch like the Superwinch Rock95).

Look closely at the clearance points - you could do this easily with your 2" body lift and keep it tight.

 

[ravencr]

conventional wisdom is that they raise the center of gravity of the truck without providing and additional clearance to the frame rails/control arm mounting points/exhaust/etc....so in a trade-off situation, it doesn't really provide as much as it takes away from the overall wheel-ability. The one thing you do get is the ability to put on bigger tires which allows for a bit more differential clearance, etc. based on the size of said tires. It's just a judgement call on how it effects the COG.

in my experience, doing a body lift has a ton of benefits and virtually no negatives. For one, it allows you to mount bumpers substantially higher, which increases approach and departure angles substantially. Secondly, you can raise the entire exhaust above the frame rails allowing for a flatter higher clearance undercarriage. Third, after moving the exhaust, it allows a much higher mounted set of sliders affording a ton of side clearance. Fourth, you can do a drivetrain lift getting rid of the low hanging crossmember. Fifth, it allows for more fender tire clearance. Sixth, you have a lot more clearance above the frame for moving upper shock mounts up for longer travel shocks. So, to me, for the money invested on a body lift, it's the easiest and the only way you can achieve that. It's well worth it to me.

Chris

 

[ravencr]

No winch? I just do front pulls off my tube bumper running the strap through the triangulated sections on both sides (around the stinger at the base of the bumper). It is plenty strong due to the triangulation - broke a strap in that setup on the last snow run at the pull limits of a 9K winch. The whole thing sits on top of the rails as well sans body lift.

What the body lift would do in my case is allow plenty of clearance for the winch plate to sit on top of the frame rails and still have clearance to the body while tucked in (going with a low profile winch like the Superwinch Rock95).

Look closely at the clearance points - you could do this easily with your 2" body lift and keep it tight.

The bumper I'm planning for up front will be very similar to the rear, but instead of being notched down 1/2" it will sit right on top. I'm using a multiple-mount winch instead of a permanently mounted winch because I can make the bumpers way higher clearance.

Chris

 

[Nay]

The bumper I'm planning for up front will be very similar to the rear, but instead of being notched down 1/2" it will sit right on top. I'm using a multiple-mount winch instead of a permanently mounted winch because I can make the bumpers way higher clearance.

Chris

I'm considering a mult-mount which as well, I'll be interested to see how your setup turns out, although my inclination is to think you want that front hitch between the rails to be winching at any angle off of a hitch mount...

 

[ravencr]

Well, it's easy to use 1/4" 2x3" angle iron on the back side going to the frame to strengthen it. I did that in the rear and it worked out nicely.

Chris

 

[ravencr]

Well today I finished welding up the front bumper pieces(reciever tube, shackle hangers, and capped the ends). I also redid the exhaust routing to move it above the frame rails and give me a straight shot to the frame for my sliders. Tomorrow I'll probably weld the front bumper to the truck like I have in the rear so when the tuning arrives on wednesday we can finish them up. I'm also considering taking the flares off and experimenting with some wheel spacers.

Chris

 

[ravencr]

Here's a couple pics of what doing a body lift and moving the exhaust up does for clearance:

No more hanging up on the exhaust. I tried a big ledge this past weekend, and although it didn't hang me up, I definitely scraped the cats while trying to get up it. What ended up hanging me up was the the rear frame mount instead...

Chris

 

[CruiserJack]

"Holy clearance Batman!"

 

[ravencr]

Getting there...still wanting to do the drivetrain lift to get some extra clearance there too.

Chris

 

[ravencr]

Things are going slow, but got landtanks seat extensions installed and all the fender flares removed. Today I'll be installing a radio antannae and try to figure out the rear bumper.

Chris

 

[ravencr]

Sliders are getting mocked up as we speak...I'm thinking about incorporating tube fenders into the front and rear bumpers and sliders, as well...could be really cool and protect the body...my only concern is the additional width.

Chris

 

[gahi]

How much do you gain by pulling the sliders?

 

[ravencr]

Not sure what you mean?

Chris

 

[gahi]

Oh, I meant flares. Just wondering if the tube would stick out as far as the original flares?

 

[ravencr]

In my case I'm going to bring the tube out slightly wider than the stock flares which will be flush to the outer edge of my tires.

Chris