Builds TrophyFJ Build. (2 Viewers)
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- #43
Hey! Yes I still ahve my 2002 race car.... in the garage waiting for me to work on it ; )
- Thread starter
- #44
Long time no update..... well.... Unfortunately the shop that was building trophyFJ ....is going thru some serious "issues", the result is after meeting with their management and coming to a fair equitable resolution and I will be picking the truck up. Unfortunately it's far from finished. Very little progress for how long it's been there (part of some of the issues they were having)
The whole thing is very disappointing to say the least. I will be taking it to a new shop where I will hopefully take my vision to completion. Wish me luck !!!
Not the way I'd thought I'd be leaving the shop.....but everything happens for a reason!
Yeah I was worried! ....and it was very tricky to get it on there....Luckily they had 2 fork lifts, glad it went smooth... I can't imagine how it's going be to get it off....
Strapped in, locked in (I hope) and ready to move on..... It's sits very high up on the trailer so it's a bit top heavy....going take it slow on the way home. Million thanks to my best friend for loaning me his truck and trailer at the last min so I could go pick up my beast.
The whole thing is very disappointing to say the least. I will be taking it to a new shop where I will hopefully take my vision to completion. Wish me luck !!!
Not the way I'd thought I'd be leaving the shop.....but everything happens for a reason!
Yeah I was worried! ....and it was very tricky to get it on there....Luckily they had 2 fork lifts, glad it went smooth... I can't imagine how it's going be to get it off....
Strapped in, locked in (I hope) and ready to move on..... It's sits very high up on the trailer so it's a bit top heavy....going take it slow on the way home. Million thanks to my best friend for loaning me his truck and trailer at the last min so I could go pick up my beast.
For shops it's hard to make a profit on a big build. The balance between quality work and making money is hard to maintain on labor intensive projects.
NCFJ
Supporting Vendor
Sad to see this happen. Unfortunately it happens and the two posts above me pretty much sum it up. You can be the best builder around, but if you don't mind the pennies it will not last long. Some of the best builders and mechanics (I can't use the term "tech" with any serious tone) out there work for others because they love the work, not the paper work.
It takes a lot of $ per month to keep a shop open. Bigger shop, bigger bills. It becomes a vicious spiral of having to punch out so much work a month just to pay the overhead and if done right the owner is the last to be paid. A couple big jobs running at once and not minding the draws for the job etc and the shop can fast run through a lot of money.
I hope that you find a new roost for the project that carries it through.
Keep the faith!
It takes a lot of $ per month to keep a shop open. Bigger shop, bigger bills. It becomes a vicious spiral of having to punch out so much work a month just to pay the overhead and if done right the owner is the last to be paid. A couple big jobs running at once and not minding the draws for the job etc and the shop can fast run through a lot of money.
I hope that you find a new roost for the project that carries it through.
Keep the faith!
Tigerstripe40
SILVER Star
Hope it works out for you.
- Thread starter
- #49
Thanks guys,
Yes I know it happens, and usually the customer gets the s*** end of the stick. I'm lucky in this situation that they did not have "money problems" they had serious "partner" disagreements. Anyways I dont really want to get into the details, legally its not a good idea.
The result is that they had money to "settle" with me so that the situation did not have to escalate to lawyers or anything. We sat down and came to a equitable and fair resolution. Which I know can be rare in these cases so I am thankful for that.
That said they did waste 8 months of my time and leave me with less than half a truck with just about nothing actually completed.
Either way, things happen for a reason right?
In a way the upside is also that so much was not done yet. Giving me a chance to maybe wipe the slate clean and take a fresh look at things.
At the moment we are looking at all the pieces and seeing what makes the most sense as far as the front is concerned. The front diff and the CV's were concerning me since we were aiming at 19" travel from the A-Arm setup. I was not convinced it was going to hold up. SOLO Motorsports does have a "XLT" kit that get 19" but it uses a 930 inner cv and a D44 outer. So I know it's possible but there are a few issues with the A-arm setup they were working on. So at this point I'm evaluating all my options.......maybe I do the Solo kit? say fxxx it and go 2wd? Beams? lets see....nothing is off the table except straight axle.
The rear is straight forward. Unfortunately as part of the deal to take the truck I had to leave the 55" rear links behind. So I'll have to re-do that also.
I was seriously considering a motor swap(LS duh), but at this point its back to the original plan on leaving the motor alone for now. Just getting the suspension and chassis sorted seeing what I can squeeze out of the 4.0
One thing is for sure. I'm not giving up until I'm mowing down whoops at speed and posting shots of the truck taking flight.
TrophyFJ is will rise from the ashes...
Yes I know it happens, and usually the customer gets the s*** end of the stick. I'm lucky in this situation that they did not have "money problems" they had serious "partner" disagreements. Anyways I dont really want to get into the details, legally its not a good idea.
The result is that they had money to "settle" with me so that the situation did not have to escalate to lawyers or anything. We sat down and came to a equitable and fair resolution. Which I know can be rare in these cases so I am thankful for that.
That said they did waste 8 months of my time and leave me with less than half a truck with just about nothing actually completed.
Either way, things happen for a reason right?
In a way the upside is also that so much was not done yet. Giving me a chance to maybe wipe the slate clean and take a fresh look at things.
At the moment we are looking at all the pieces and seeing what makes the most sense as far as the front is concerned. The front diff and the CV's were concerning me since we were aiming at 19" travel from the A-Arm setup. I was not convinced it was going to hold up. SOLO Motorsports does have a "XLT" kit that get 19" but it uses a 930 inner cv and a D44 outer. So I know it's possible but there are a few issues with the A-arm setup they were working on. So at this point I'm evaluating all my options.......maybe I do the Solo kit? say fxxx it and go 2wd? Beams? lets see....nothing is off the table except straight axle.
The rear is straight forward. Unfortunately as part of the deal to take the truck I had to leave the 55" rear links behind. So I'll have to re-do that also.
I was seriously considering a motor swap(LS duh), but at this point its back to the original plan on leaving the motor alone for now. Just getting the suspension and chassis sorted seeing what I can squeeze out of the 4.0
One thing is for sure. I'm not giving up until I'm mowing down whoops at speed and posting shots of the truck taking flight.
TrophyFJ is will rise from the ashes...
Talk to Bebe on Pirate - the shop that did her IFS on her H3 did a work of art that's lasted for years. Perhaps you did talk to her? anyway, good luck - that utterly sucks but it could have been much, much worse.
link to about the middle of her build
H3 Long Travel Build - Page 30 - Pirate4x4.Com : 4x4 and Off-Road Forum
link to about the middle of her build
H3 Long Travel Build - Page 30 - Pirate4x4.Com : 4x4 and Off-Road Forum
Patineto
"Clueless" fourwheel rabbit
Unicat 55 EUROS per Man/Hour (5 years ago, who know now) regardless of the task (cleaning the floor, ordering parts, TIG welding, whatever) no wonder they can cost at least half a million and up..
The best way, take some classes, actually rent a space,buy some equipment and hopefully enough become skillful to fabricated yourself (If not is tons of apprentice that have the skills, just not the place to work, Growing up in Sur America I have seeing work that I don't even understand how it got done..
Compare to bicycles, cars are easy, low tolerance, plenty of wiggle room, thick tubes, no big deal..
Just go for it, Nothing is better than building something yourself even if is a little kattywompus.
- Thread starter
- #52
Actually, I own a TIG and a MIG etc...... I restored and built my vintage race car myself. Fixed the rust, did the bodywork, cut/bent and fabricated the intricate rollcage and even painted the car myself.....so while I know I can do alot of the fab myself.....I just dont have the time.
Besides my "day" job as a freelance camera operator I now own a small camera accessory business cinemilled.com (we make CNC camera stabilizer accessories)
So it used to be that I had no money and lots of time .....so I built my vintage race car myself.... now I have no time but more money....
I can spend hours in the garage or I can spend hours trying to make more money and keep my business alive..... basically my time is better spent chasing money.
So for the first time in my life I decided to have someone else build for me.
Plus there are aspects of this build that are indeed above my skills as a weekend fabricator....
Patineto
"Clueless" fourwheel rabbit
Hey as long as you have a passion and totally looks like you do have a few maybe is time to share your toys/builds with people that dedicate their lives to the craft..Actually, I own a TIG and a MIG etc...... I restored and built my vintage race car myself. Fixed the rust, did the bodywork, cut/bent and fabricated the intricate rollcage and even painted the car myself.....so while I know I can do alot of the fab myself.....I just dont have the time.
Besides my "day" job as a freelance camera operator I now own a small camera accessory business cinemilled.com (we make CNC camera stabilizer accessories)
So it used to be that I had no money and lots of time .....so I built my vintage race car myself.... now I have no time but more money....
I can spend hours in the garage or I can spend hours trying to make more money and keep my business alive..... basically my time is better spent chasing money.
So for the first time in my life I decided to have someone else build for me.
Plus there are aspects of this build that are indeed above my skills as a weekend fabricator....
Ps: you make some serious gear, now that I look I'm huck..
Ps II: I know a few people on the film/TV camera work (mostly motorcycle/sidecar/truck riggers and riders) and they do pretty well, union and/or freelance, very gifted fabrications, athletes in the majority..
That stinks it turned out this way. For a offroad shop of what stuff your looking for, I would look to southern california. I would also go ahead and do the LS motor now. It will cost you more money if you wait. No need to do a 6.0, a used 5.3 is much cheaper and very upgradable later. You don't have to build a monster LS for it, but I recommend at least putting one in. Then when you get more funds later, you can put some forced induction into it or something.
- Thread starter
- #55
Yes I am also a proud Local 600 union member - Classified as a camera operator. I specialize in Steadicam and underwater.
I do alright......but I have some stuntmen friends ..... now they make serious cash. They also risk their lives constantly and also get hurt constantly. They are basically getting paid to get hurt. It's amazing.......all in all it's a crazy business and I am blessed to be a part of it.
I do alright......but I have some stuntmen friends ..... now they make serious cash. They also risk their lives constantly and also get hurt constantly. They are basically getting paid to get hurt. It's amazing.......all in all it's a crazy business and I am blessed to be a part of it.
Tigerstripe40
SILVER Star
Seems that you've been bent on keeping this truck as close to Toyota as possible. (2nd gen tundra rear end, etc)
Why not do a stroker kit on the 4.0? you can get it to 4.66 liters. Yes, it will be more money than a LS3 (and I understand the appeal of the LS). But it stays mostly Toyota.
- Thread starter
- #57
Not really.....just made sense the 10.5" tundra rear is massive/strong and generally a good option and I got it for reasonable price.
Actually I had a engine sponsor all ready to go for an LS swap right around the time all the s*** went down with the shop. Now that I have re-grouped and looked at my finances again....I'm going to stick it out with the 4.0 for now.
If I do anything engine wise it will be a LS swap....anything else just doesnt make much sense..
cruisedeisel
Toyota's for life
The front swing arm mounts look a wee bit thin. Any plans to beef them up a bit?
- Thread starter
- #59
Current front suspension as a whole is being re-thought.
stay tuned.
stay tuned.
cruisedeisel
Toyota's for life
Dam
