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Grumpy
Guest
Okay, so I'm officially 14 days behind schedule (partly due to being sick for 2 1/2 weeks, everything ended up being pushed back), but what did you expect, this is me afterall...I'll bet some of you figured I'd never get going.....and to complicate matters I'm pretty much back to work now, with no real free weekdays to work on this, it's crunch time.....will I be able to put this together in time for Rausch Creek?? Stay tuned to find out.......until then here's what I got done tonight......(day1), the donor truck and a before pic from God bless, Paragon in '05......
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SuziCrazy
Guest
Nice looking donor truck!
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Grumpy
Guest
Yeah, pretty happy with that find......so just got my new t-case mounts delivered to my door from Trail Gear...(what a surprise as a week ago when I called to check on them they were still back ordered), and I'm heading outside to pressure wash the exposed frame (gotta wash off the Pennsylvania dirt sometime, might as well be before the new body goes on!), and then stuff it back in the garage so I can rip the front axle out tonight.
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Dirk
Guest
Perfect timing with the warm weather arriving.... git'r'done
Farm Boy
Bought the Farm
That's almost being early for you :flipoff:
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Grumpy
Guest
Well going over the calender it looks like I have 5 half days and 5 full days free not counting free weekdays due to a slow start this spring...(which would work out great for getting this done). Tonight I managed to clean up the frame and motor, rip out the front axle and start cutting useless brackets off the frame. Take a look at the axle pic.....can you tell it's time for me to get a high steer setup??? (Ran out of money so that will have to wait). Next on the list is strip and prep the front axle for the new YJ's........and start some stripping of the donor truck.....
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Grumpy
Guest
So I picked up some steel today along with some cut-off discs and started fabing some brackets and such, dug the front YJ's outta the back shed and started figuring where everything would sit/line up.......hope to have the axle bolted back in place and everything reconnected, (brakelines, shocks, steering link and the driveshaft that will have to be lengthened...again!!!), by the end of the coming weekend. I have to make a trip out to Carlsbad to check out Justin's PS setup so I can duplicate it on mine, would like to have that done BEFORE the front clip goes on.....
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Grumpy
Guest
Running a little behind schedule, the front d-shaft is now 1.5" too short, so I'll start with a fresh one off the donor truck and lengthen it accordingly, (the existing one on my truck had been lengthened once already and is a PITA to redo), the steering linkage will not line up due to shorter spring perches and I'm missing some shackle bushings so I can't install the front shackles. (originally I had planned a shackle reversal, that will have to wait till I start with the donor truck's frame, too much other shit to do). What I did accomplish today went quite smoothly, there was no flying objects in the garage (tools or otherwise) or repeated obscenities being shouted out.....so it was a good day. Power steering set-up is next, got the parts, compliments of the Zooklounge parts department, just need to figure out how it will fit on the frame and get to it...With a rain day surely coming this first week back to work for me, I'll be able to possibly have the truck moving again under it's own power, steering and all by the weekend.
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Dirk
Guest
Good progress.
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Grumpy
Guest
So bushings are ordered, nuts and bolts were purchased and into the garage I went...my front shocks are bolted in and too short, I have no fasteners to attach the Szabo Special highsteer arm, and I need new front brake pads.....the driveshaft I never got to tonight, it's an hour job start to finish so I'll hopefully get it done tomorrow....bushings come in Wed, then it's figure out how long I need the shackles, cut 'em, drill 'em and bolt 'em in place.....with any luck I can flex the sucker out before the weekend and figure out a length for some new shocks....good news did come out of tonight's activities....no more tire lugs catching on the leafs at full crank!! (for those of you who have wheeled with me you'll know what I mean when you hear that sound!!)
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Grumpy
Guest
Picked up the fasteners for the high steer arm this morning, bolted it down when I got home. Chopped up the existing front d-shaft and extended it, bolted that back in place. got done what I wanted to tonite. Hopefully picking up the shackle bushings tomorrow and getting that part done so I can move it out of the garage and flex it to measure for shocks.....then next is the PS set-up. Weekend task, along with starting to prep the donor truck as I plan on moving the body onto the old frame Easter weekend. Talk about cutting things close.....unless I find some more time somehow I will not be able to have it done the way I hoped in time for RC......but wheelable...which is the only thing that matters at this stage...
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Grumpy
Guest
So after a night off for some research and story swapping with Justin I got back at it tonight. Installed the frame bushings, did some measurements and drilled the second hole in the shackles, bolted them in place, opened up the garage door and drove out to the berm at the end of the street....flexed it out and measured for shocks....then it was play time.....lots of boulders in the pit near my house so off I went to goof off....
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Grumpy
Guest
Good call....but not what I had envisioned.....once you see the finished product you'll know why I'm doing it....besides, I'm planning on completing the buggy for the insain stuff. Today I'll be picking up the front brake pads, throwing them in there, (was a little scary with next to no brakes last night) and ordering up some front shocks. If the rain stays away long enough, I'll get to stripping some of the donor truck.
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Grumpy
Guest
It was in the plans, just not enough time to dick around setting it up....(the PS inner frame rail carries 5 or 6 lines and I didn't want to frig around there right now). I'm keeping the donor truck's frame and reworking it with the shackle reversal, stripping it...Por15ing it.....then moving the body and drivetrain back onto it.....summer project. What I'm doing now is bare minimum to get me wheeling again with the upgrades I've been putting off for years....
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Grumpy
Guest
So in less than 24 hours i'll be setting up camp at Rausch Creek. The truck is anything but finished, at least what I set out to finish anyways. The power steering that I swore up and down last fall that was gonna be in the truck before my next trip south never made it in...and the cage will have to wait as well......as of right now I don't even have the cromolys in.....:banghead: I may get that done before I leave tomorrow, if not I'm bringing them and will put them in down there.....for now here's a teaser complete with for the most part, finished boatsides, (I want to cut out some initials and holes for the Hi-Lift in each side). The winch got mounted after the photo and I have a few other odds and ends to do before I leave. I'll follow up and fill in the blanks since my last post when I get back, but for now it's time to rock the shit outta Rausch Creek!!!
Nicely done Steve, boat sides look great!