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- #101
Hey everyone. Things have been kind of crazy recently so I haven’t made time to post anything for a bit. Hope everyone is well and staying safe through all of this. I was hoping this quarantine time would allow me to get some extra time in on the cruiser but unfortunately it hasn’t worked out that way. Ha. I’ll try and start where I left off.
I had been on and off working on the swing out for the rear bumper. I had the tube bent how I wanted where the tire would be mounted. Now I needed to make everything to hold the tire. I made some templates out of cardboard and took them to my buddy to be transferred to metal. He cut them out on the CNC and had them ready for me within a couple days.
I welded the large plate on the inside of the round tube first.
Next I had to hold the tire up to get it positioned where I wanted and make a mark for my next piece. My dad has this old air lift that I used a lot on this build. Comes in so handy since I’m mostly by myself doing all of this. Had to do a little rigging with a jack stand and a ratchet strap but was able to make it work pretty well.
Once I had where I wanted the center of the tire to be I welded on a large round tube to space the tire properly away from the vehicle. This tube holds the plate that the tire mounts on. I installed 3 wheel studs to bolt the tire down.
Once I had stuff tacked in place good and the tire was hanging on it I realized that it was going to need more reinforcement. The 1/4 inch plate that I welded in first was just not enough to keep the tire from shaking. I cut some gussets out of scrap metal to see if they would work. They were perfect. Made everything nice and rigid.
Next on the list was some bracing at the bottom where the round tube meets the 2x3 tubing. I tried letting things cool in between welds but still managed to warp the 2x3 tubing somehow. Not bad enough for me to cut stuff apart and fix it though. Ha.
I wish I would have known that the cb antenna mount was part of the package when I bought this bumper. Not a huge deal but I really don’t like the location. Puts the antenna right in the middle of the taillight. I cut it off and moved it.
I had been on and off working on the swing out for the rear bumper. I had the tube bent how I wanted where the tire would be mounted. Now I needed to make everything to hold the tire. I made some templates out of cardboard and took them to my buddy to be transferred to metal. He cut them out on the CNC and had them ready for me within a couple days.
I welded the large plate on the inside of the round tube first.
Next I had to hold the tire up to get it positioned where I wanted and make a mark for my next piece. My dad has this old air lift that I used a lot on this build. Comes in so handy since I’m mostly by myself doing all of this. Had to do a little rigging with a jack stand and a ratchet strap but was able to make it work pretty well.
Once I had where I wanted the center of the tire to be I welded on a large round tube to space the tire properly away from the vehicle. This tube holds the plate that the tire mounts on. I installed 3 wheel studs to bolt the tire down.
Once I had stuff tacked in place good and the tire was hanging on it I realized that it was going to need more reinforcement. The 1/4 inch plate that I welded in first was just not enough to keep the tire from shaking. I cut some gussets out of scrap metal to see if they would work. They were perfect. Made everything nice and rigid.
Next on the list was some bracing at the bottom where the round tube meets the 2x3 tubing. I tried letting things cool in between welds but still managed to warp the 2x3 tubing somehow. Not bad enough for me to cut stuff apart and fix it though. Ha.
I wish I would have known that the cb antenna mount was part of the package when I bought this bumper. Not a huge deal but I really don’t like the location. Puts the antenna right in the middle of the taillight. I cut it off and moved it.