Build Project Topless

[RUSH55]

Bender? You gettin' a bender?

 

[RHINO]

just borrowing one.

 

[JackA]

Nice project. Gimme a holla when you're out working on it and I'll stop by and give ya a hand.

 

[RHINO]

sweet jack

 

[RHINO]

here goes the neighborhood......

 

[RHINO]

tying the cage legs into the sliders, they are welded to the body. i havent decided if i'm going to tie it all into the frame, still looking and designing it in my head.

 

[RUSH55]

Damn! Looking good, dude! Did you already cap the sheetmetal in the rear upper quarters?

 

[RUSH55]

I had also been thinking about the tying the cage into the frame thing too. I think where you have it tied into the sliders is good because that's thick steel with it's mass spread out over a pretty large area and all of the floor board cross-members tied into that. It may be better to just beef the underside of the body as necessarry as opposed to tying into the frame. On the other hand, tube buggies and such have therir cages tied into the frame and seem to be fine. If going that route though, you might think of ways to allow for some flex, because you know it will, and if it's tied in solid, stuff will start cracking.

 

[Gumby]

Tie the sliders into the frame.

 

[RHINO]

thanks rush, i have not capped the corners yet, i still have tube to run back there.

gumby,, i am doing a few cross members to the floor with big plates like the unibody race cars do. i was thinking to keep frame and body separate for flex, keep in mind my rig is solid and rust free so the body mounts and floor are strong.

i have seen cages tied into frames solid and with mounts for flex. since i am keeping the body mounts what do ya think?

 

[RUSH55]

I would do some kind of a rubber mount sytem or rotational mount(s)/joints to allow for the flex - if you tie into the frame. In all reality, as long as the floor and crossmembers are sufficient, don't see why you MUST to tie into the frame. Worst case scenario, you swerve to miss an elk and go off a cliff, a cage tied into the body would do at least as well as the original cab. Guess you could always try welding it to the frame and see what happens.(?)

 

[RHINO]

well, the main cage tube work is done. lots of little things to finish up including the door skins that will go back on the rig, and figure out how i want to finish the tailgate area.

 

[uglyoinker]

I dig it. I'm probably gonna cut the roof on my pig soon as well.

 

[RUSH55]

Dude, that is the shiznit!

 

[scrapdaddy]

Man, that just made the truck look fast! I'd like to learn to bend tube someday. Good job.

 

[JackA]

Looks good dude. If you have some free time later today, after Mom day stuff, I'll cruise by to see it in person.

 

[RUSH55]

Are you planning on cutting up your back doors or making some skins to fill the gap between your back door-jambs and your new B-pillars?

 

[RHINO]

thanks guys, yeah i'm gonna cut the doors so i have just the skins, and then put them on the rig and cut out the opening for getting in an out, i'll have skin on the bottom half of the opening under the bent bars.

 

[RHINO]

ok, got the skins on and working on all the little things, then a quick spray in tan.

 

[PabloCruise]

Hmmm... That has a very strange appeal to it!