Want Pics and Few questions

[BDSeff1fitty]

so last night i was looking at this guys samurai that was street legal. had a tube chassis 37's and 3 linked. really nice, so now in the middle of my build im wondering if i want to go with this route. so can some of yal post some fj40's with a mild tube chassis and cage that still keeps the fj40 look.

also how is keeping leaf sprung in the front and a 3 or 4 link in the rear? now say i went with a 3 link in the front, will 4x4 labs cross over steering (already have it) still work? dont see why it wouldn't but just double checking.

also if you could post some cost so i can get a rough idea if this is not possible for me to do. i will only be running 35's also (already bought em)

so heres my wants for my rig tell me if you think just finish the rebuild or go to a more buggy style.

1) street legal
2) wont be in mud, i wanna learn to be a more skilled driver climbing rocks, etc
3) using stock 2f, stock tranny, stock t-case (t-case eventually will be upgraded, once the build is done and i have more money to spend)

i have about $3000 to spend now (which i no is not alot, once i get another job all the money will go towards it) but if i dont have to buy body work (have about $1200 in panels and pieces i need) it might be worth it. give me your thoughts and suggestions. thanks.

 

[EWheeler]

If it is going to be a trail rig, why are you going to spend $1200 on replacement sheet metal? With the work you have been doing to your truck I would assume you have some fabrication skills, why not just buy some sheet and make the panels yourself?

 

[BDSeff1fitty]

If it is going to be a trail rig, why are you going to spend $1200 on replacement sheet metal? With the work you have been doing to your truck I would assume you have some fabrication skills, why not just buy some sheet and make the panels yourself?

im learning as i go. i haven't done much really, just disassemble and fix a small spot of rust on the rear of the frame. i learned how to bend pipe and notch last year, still not great at it but if i had the time and patience i definitely could build basic stuff but the tube chassis part i would want build just cuz i dont wanna screw it up. maybe find a local guy who will work after hours and help me with design and fabrication.

if i do a tube chassis it will be more dedicated off road. if i do new panels and make it all perfect it will be on road more, but i have my DD for that. if i dump all the money into panels i will be pissed if i go hit a rock and dent the hell out of it.

heres a thought i have had occasionally, tube chassis the rear still but bring in the rear bed sides to a triangular shape and build a roll cage to follow those lines. it would be different but keep the stock fj40 looks.

the more i think of it this is what i really want to do, but is 3k enough?

 

[adamsclarke]

If you are really cheap, then 3k will link it up...but if you get good joints .25 wall DOM for the lowers, weld in bungs, tabs and mounts....you'll have a min of 1500 injust the stuff for the links andmounts. Coils are cheap, coilovers are more...so your 3k runs out real quick.

Your high steer will work well, just design your track bar accordingly to keep the bumpsteer down.

 

[BDSeff1fitty]

thats what i was afraid of. i don't wanna build it crappy, if im gonna do it its gonna be done right. im gonna talk to a few places monday and get some suggestions or ideas from them

 

[adamsclarke]

If you want to spend less money, just link the rear with some generic 4 link brackets from ruffstuff or balistic etc and get some nice OME springs for the front. A really nice set of shocks like bilsteins will make your ride 100x better.

The riffstuff brackets and similar will give you some adjustabilty woth the uppers...because figuring out your geometry won;t be dead on with your first time.

Coilovers are nice and links are dead sexy, but leafs are cheap, work well and 90% of the wheeling most of us do they will wrk fine. I ran leaf springs on my old crawler, limited the uptravel and had a blast. I'd rather carry a tire in the air that drop the extra $$$$ for coilovers.

FYI, my next build will be linked and coilovered...so take what I say with a grain f salt

 

[bustanutley]

Your priorities are screwed up, linked suspension is the last place I would spend money. Strong parts (aahem after market t-case, big axles), lockers and tires all take priority over suspension. A properly setup leaf sprung truck works extremely well and is exponentially cheaper. Just linking a truck doesn't make it work well, you have to really understand suspension design, a poor setup will preform like poo. Spend your 3g somewhere else.

 

[BDSeff1fitty]

Your priorities are screwed up, linked suspension is the last place I would spend money. Strong parts (aahem after market t-case, big axles), lockers and tires all take priority over suspension. A properly setup leaf sprung truck works extremely well and is exponentially cheaper. Just linking a truck doesn't make it work well, you have to really understand suspension design, a poor setup will preform like poo. Spend your 3g somewhere else.

if i was to do a linked suspension this was going to be a rock crawler, if leafs it will be doing more mild stuff with a stock wheel base, but if i can't afford to do it right i wont be doing it.

a shop 10 minutes north of me i heard has an icon fj40 out front so today after my test im headed up there to check it out and talk some ideas with the guys.

what do you you guys think about when i cut out my quarter panels getting new panels and bringing them in so the rear is narrower? this is just an idea mainly for looks and being different. i have not seen any 40's with this done so i thought it might be cool to do.

 

[adamsclarke]

You mean dove tail the rear? Been done quite a bit and works well with extra clearance...especially when running full width axles. Keeps the body out of the way of the rocks. Downside if you ever want to run a top, it'll have to be custom. If the tub is trashed and rusted back there...it'll be the same amount of work if you wanted to dovetail it or replace the bad panels

 

[BDSeff1fitty]

ya i think dovetail is the right word. kinda like what they did to the bronco on monster garage if you ever watched that show. you wouldn't happen to have any photo's of a 40 with it done would you? i found one thread but the guy never finished it.

i talked to a shop today, they want $1800-$2000 just in labor for a 3-link in the rear. the guy didn't seem interested in doing it any ways so i bet he just threw a high dollar out there so i wouldn't want him to do it. no one ever takes a teenager seriously

 

[adamsclarke]

Labor sounds right if you pay someone to do it for you. Since you are young....learn to wheel well first, the learn to fab well....that way when you ar e ready to need to dovetail and link it, you can do it your self.
Last time I check, a buddy in our club payed at least 6k for a SAS on his bronco, and I know the 44 he had was cheap...so that show's you labor can get $$$.

Honestly, dovetailing a rig that you want to DD and have fun with is a waste. you'll be able to 90% of teh trails you want to do with a full bodies rig....and that small percentage of huge obstacles you'd need for a narrowed rig...it wouldn;t be worth it.

I sold my 1 ton crawler on 40s just because it wasn;t worth it to me anymore. If I wanted a specific rig for just those tough trails, i'd build a buggy.

 

[BDSeff1fitty]

Labor sounds right if you pay someone to do it for you. Since you are young....learn to wheel well first, the learn to fab well....that way when you ar e ready to need to dovetail and link it, you can do it your self.
Last time I check, a buddy in our club payed at least 6k for a SAS on his bronco, and I know the 44 he had was cheap...so that show's you labor can get $$$.

Honestly, dovetailing a rig that you want to DD and have fun with is a waste. you'll be able to 90% of teh trails you want to do with a full bodies rig....and that small percentage of huge obstacles you'd need for a narrowed rig...it wouldn;t be worth it.

I sold my 1 ton crawler on 40s just because it wasn;t worth it to me anymore. If I wanted a specific rig for just those tough trails, i'd build a buggy.

the main reasons for these ideas are just to make it a little different. im doing a full re-build so i figured get major things done now, and easier things done later. linking it i guess is out of the question right now. dove tailing wouldn't cost any more money. decision making sucks. ill stick with SOA for now and see how i like it once the rig is done. and think about dovetailing it some more and hopefully have a decision by the time i get the body back on