sm420 crossmember (1 Viewer)

[jjhancock]

I searched, but came up with little...

I've got an 81 fj40 with an sm420 mated to the stock 4sp t-case using the 5" AA adapter. I don't really have a crossmember or a skid plate right now. I'm looking for ideas and especially pics of custom crossmember / skid plate setups on an sm420 that anyone has put together with success. Thanks in advance for pics and ideas

 

[Poser]

Lighting is poor, but you get the idea....


Your adapter *should* have a two bolt lug on the bottom for something similar...

 

[Cruiserdrew]

Steve-What is the fluid transfer tube for on the rear of the Atlas transfer case?

 

[Poser]

Steve-What is the fluid transfer tube for on the rear of the Atlas transfer case?

It is a sight gauge for your oil level, as these can be mounted at many different angles. You put in your two quarts of oil, and mark the tube(I put a zip tie around the tube) so that you know your 'full' mark....



Good luck!


-Steve

 

[HawkDriver]

That's some fine fabbin there Steve. Looks real nice, the rest of it looks real expensive .

 

[HawkDriver]

It is a sight gauge for your oil level, as these can be mounted at many different angles. You put in your two quarts of oil, and mark the tube(I put a zip tie around the tube) so that you know your 'full' mark....



Good luck!


-Steve

So you only need 2 quarts no matter the angle? Interesting.

 

[LC_Hamma]

Git that 356-T6 piece of sh*t outta hea! We talkin' Cruzah tcases dude! You can get the propeller type mount, that bolts to the back of the tcase, right off the AA shelf. Or, your adaptor housing has threaded holes in the base, like Steven's, & you could fab up something similar, but a little more stout. I chose to keep the propeller shaft to maximize groung clearance. I'm runnin' a plate adaptor in my 40 & the AA adaptor in my 55. Keep those long ass bolts in the AA adaptor torqued down, cuz they will back out. Propellor style for reference:

 

[Poser]

Git that 356-T6 piece of sh*t outta hea! We talkin' Cruzah tcases dude! You can get the propeller type mount, that bolts to the back of the tcase, right off the AA shelf. Or, your adaptor housing has threaded holes in the base, like Steven's, & you could fab up something similar, but a little more stout. I chose to keep the propeller shaft to maximize groung clearance. I'm runnin' a plate adaptor in my 40 & the AA adaptor in my 55. Keep those long ass bolts in the AA adaptor torqued down, cuz they will back out. Propellor style for reference:

First-


It is Stephen.....





Second-


If the 1.5" diameter .120 wall is not up to your fine standards, then I do know what I should have made it with. However, it does seem to be doing just fine over the last five months of abuse that I have been treating it to. Further, it is only a supplement to the four Toyota mounts on the engine/flywheel housing. There are not threaded holes in the aluminum adapter, but through holes.



And finally-


Perhaps you missed the fact that he was using the larger adapter, that should provide him with the ability to fabricate a crossmember that would not need to be bolted to the tcase, negating the stud/bolt/AA " Propellor " style mount debate/debacle.


Have a great day, hammer.


-Steve

 

[Shipwreck]

This is a really poor picture, but I fabbed a combination skid plate and cross member out of 1 1/4 in tube. At the red arrow is a transmission mount that supports the AA sm420 adapter. The cage provides great protection for the transfer case, e-brake and transmission. I've been high centered and supported the weight of the entire truck on this and have had no damage to the drivetrain.

 

[Poser]

Looks plenty strong their shipwreck. Have any more pictures from other angles? This is exactly what he was looking for. I do not have a picture of my skid plate, but it is not incorperated into the drivetrain mount anyhow.





-Steve

 

[Shipwreck]

No other pictures on the 'puter, but I'll see what I can do this week. My setup is a little diffferent now. I've replaced the AA adapter with a toy box, but was able to use this same skid plate / cage with just a slight modification.

 

[jjhancock]

Thanks for all the help and especially the pics. I was poking around underneath my truck last night and I don't think I have a place to actually bolt a crossmember to my tranny or t-case. I've got a crossmember of sorts, but it won't act much as a skid plate the way it's setup right now. Needless to say I'd like to get something on there that's gonna keep my drivetrain from being torn off before I go to moab in October. I'm going to snap a pic or two tonight of the way my setup is currently configured and see what suggestions you guys have for me then. I'll post those later tonight. Thanks again everybody.

 

[2badfjs]

hey justin,
check around on the price of DOM tube. prolly like 1 1/4" or 1 1/2" dia. .120 wall thickness. measure frame to frame,multiply that by 3 or 4. and we can build a cage like skid and x-member.
there are some good ideas coming out of the thread.
keep em coming!!!!!!

 

[2badfjs]

shipwreck,,,,,,,
did you use DOM? or just your basic tubing?

 

[bonzai]

Hey shipwreck that is a sweet combo
Original thinking

 

[woody]

Personally, I hate the AA mount propellor.....and really, on Poser's, there "should" be a center poly bushing as well to allow things to move indepentantly of the frame....the way that's installed, frame twist could effect the solid center mount. (my frame twists quite a bit, but that depends on cage design too...Steve's is likely solid to the frame, where mine isn't..the solid center would work in his case then)

treerootCO created what I believe is the BEST of all worlds for a mount using the stock t-case....hit the ih8mud.com home page, read his Orion writeup, and pull ideas from there....

 

[2badfjs]

thanx woody,
i'm there!

 

[Poser]

Steve's is likely solid to the frame, where mine isn't..the solid center would work in his case then)

Six points...



Mike did a great job with that support on his Orion.