Project 'Rock': A documentary of my buildup...
12-05-2010, 08:54 PM
#32
Fiberglass repair
So today, before starting to fab up my custom steel bedrails, I chose to go ahead and fix a few small cracks that occurred in the glass during shipping. It is so hard to ship these panels due to risk of damage in transit, that many carriers won't even ship them.
Some might say that I could have went through the heck of trying to get reimbursed, but I didn't think the trouble was worth it.
A few small cracks, but it just made it a little more tough because they were on the most curved edge of the panels. It honestly was a really PITA spot to work in. God, I hate fiberglass resin on everything! LOL.
Keep the GOOP hand cleaner handy!!
Here's a few pics of the repair (before I sanded and blended).
I may go to the garage later tonight and mount the taillights and sand the fiberglass repair. Will post more pics if I do
Some might say that I could have went through the heck of trying to get reimbursed, but I didn't think the trouble was worth it.
A few small cracks, but it just made it a little more tough because they were on the most curved edge of the panels. It honestly was a really PITA spot to work in. God, I hate fiberglass resin on everything! LOL.
Keep the GOOP hand cleaner handy!!Here's a few pics of the repair (before I sanded and blended).
I may go to the garage later tonight and mount the taillights and sand the fiberglass repair. Will post more pics if I do
12-06-2010, 02:20 AM
#33
Couldn't sleep, so did a little work!
Couldn't get to sleep (probably all the sudafed I've been taking for this sinus crap), so I ventured to the garage to do a few little tasks on the truck bed.
1. Mounted the taillights. Due to the thickness of the fiberglass, you can't use the 2 little black plastic plugs that the pegs on the outer edge of the taillight housings plug into. So instead, I unscrewed the plugs and added 2 screws to the back side of the housing. You have to reach into the fenderwell to tighten them, but with these big old fenders, it's a piece of cake. This little mod also allowed me to have a little extra adjustment in the alignment of the lights.
2. Sanded the fiberglass crack repairs I did earlier today. Made sure the body lines and panel edges aligned perfectly. Had one air bubble I found when sanding so filled it with epoxy, and will primer the areas tomorrow. Keep in mind I have alot of leeway as far as finish perfection seeing that the entire truck will be sprayed with 1/8" thick Line-X. No need to worry about a swirl mark or scratch here or there!! Yay!!
On to the pics...
1. Mounted the taillights. Due to the thickness of the fiberglass, you can't use the 2 little black plastic plugs that the pegs on the outer edge of the taillight housings plug into. So instead, I unscrewed the plugs and added 2 screws to the back side of the housing. You have to reach into the fenderwell to tighten them, but with these big old fenders, it's a piece of cake. This little mod also allowed me to have a little extra adjustment in the alignment of the lights.
2. Sanded the fiberglass crack repairs I did earlier today. Made sure the body lines and panel edges aligned perfectly. Had one air bubble I found when sanding so filled it with epoxy, and will primer the areas tomorrow. Keep in mind I have alot of leeway as far as finish perfection seeing that the entire truck will be sprayed with 1/8" thick Line-X. No need to worry about a swirl mark or scratch here or there!! Yay!!
On to the pics...
12-06-2010, 08:54 AM
#34
Need some helpful opinions from the crowd!!
First of all thank you all for following along with my build. Noah (my 4 year old) loves to check every morning to see the number of views noted on our post and it's already way more than we expected! He loves reading your opinions and comments! He thinks it's so cool that someone in Australia could even be reading about 'Rock'!
So on another note, I need your help! I am nearing the wheel/tire ordering stage and need opinions: 17" or 18" rims, and 12.5 or 13.5" wide tires. As far as rims...18s would be nice to have just a touch less sidewall height and squish for when driving around town, etc, and would also leave a touch of extra room incase I upgraded brakes down the road, BUT, tire choices are less in a 37x12.5x18, and 5 tires+rims in 18" will eat up about $500 more than the same in 17". So, let the thoughts fly. Oh, and BTW, no, please don't suggest 37x20s. This truck is going to be off road, with aired-down tires. Oh, yeah, and I don't like the look. Nothing bigger than 18s.
Sub-question: 12.5" or 13.5" tires... The truck is going to get alot of mixed use, so it's difficult to choose. 12.5" will leave me a touch more fender edge clearance (which is one of my big goals), but I'm finding alot of newer tires, especially if you go the 18" rim route, are only available in 37x13.5. Again, let the thoughts roll...
Thanks again guys!
So on another note, I need your help! I am nearing the wheel/tire ordering stage and need opinions: 17" or 18" rims, and 12.5 or 13.5" wide tires. As far as rims...18s would be nice to have just a touch less sidewall height and squish for when driving around town, etc, and would also leave a touch of extra room incase I upgraded brakes down the road, BUT, tire choices are less in a 37x12.5x18, and 5 tires+rims in 18" will eat up about $500 more than the same in 17". So, let the thoughts fly. Oh, and BTW, no, please don't suggest 37x20s. This truck is going to be off road, with aired-down tires. Oh, yeah, and I don't like the look. Nothing bigger than 18s.
Sub-question: 12.5" or 13.5" tires... The truck is going to get alot of mixed use, so it's difficult to choose. 12.5" will leave me a touch more fender edge clearance (which is one of my big goals), but I'm finding alot of newer tires, especially if you go the 18" rim route, are only available in 37x13.5. Again, let the thoughts roll...
Thanks again guys!
12-06-2010, 10:27 AM
#35
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Nice build! I've been following for a couple of days now. BFgoodrich makes a 37/12.5/18 in the mud KM2. D load range, which will work as long as you don't tow for a living. Judging by the build, I'm guessing that's not the truck's intended purpose.
With a linex truck, black seems the way to go for me. Something like the American Racing ATX Mojave comes to mind, unless you want beadlocks for airing down. That's my pick, but I could spend your money all day long!
With a linex truck, black seems the way to go for me. Something like the American Racing ATX Mojave comes to mind, unless you want beadlocks for airing down. That's my pick, but I could spend your money all day long!
12-06-2010, 03:31 PM
#36
DTR's Volcano Monitor, Toilet Smuggler, Taser tester, Meteorite enumerator, Quill counter, Match hoarder, Panic Dance Choreographer, Bet losing shrew murderer
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I dont even have the energy to wash my truck. Dont know how you keep going.
12-07-2010, 01:37 AM
#37
Nice build! I've been following for a couple of days now. BFgoodrich makes a 37/12.5/18 in the mud KM2. D load range, which will work as long as you don't tow for a living. Judging by the build, I'm guessing that's not the truck's intended purpose. With a linex truck, black seems the way to go for me. Something like the American Racing ATX Mojave comes to mind, unless you want beadlocks for airing down. That's my pick, but I could spend your money all day long!
With a linex truck, black seems the way to go for me. Something like the American Racing ATX Mojave comes to mind, unless you want beadlocks for airing down. That's my pick, but I could spend your money all day long!
12-08-2010, 07:33 PM
#38
Bedrail fabrication
Have to run to work, so no time for details, but here's a few pics of the steel bedrails / framing of the bed that I'm building to have strong anchor points and also to reinforce and protect the bed. This way it can be used and abused without risk of major damage!
12-08-2010, 11:26 PM
#39
Registered User
I enjoyed reading about your build. You've got some great ideas and progress. I have a couple of thoughts from years playing with my crawler/prerunner and some other trucks:
With the amount you are looking to push the tires out to fill those fenders you really should consider the Dynatrac hubs and ball joints. The 37" tires hanging out 4" more than stock are going to put a heck of a load on the poorly designed unit bearings, and the ball joints will be next.
As for wheels and tires, the 37x12.5R17 are generally more available than anything in a 18". If you plan on upgrading the brakes I don't know that there are any options for these trucks that will fit with a 18", more likely a 20" would be required for a significant improvement. I would definately keep an E rated tire, fortunately they are common these days. I run a 35x12.5R17 D rated on my Bronco that weighs in at 5500 lb, they have great traction and wear well. Your truck will be 2000 lb heavier than mine, so I think the D would be insufficient. As for beadlocks, I have never lost a bead while wheeling, everything from fast desert at 70 mph to crawling aired down to 14 psi. I'm not saying that beadlocks aren't great, but I wouldn't spend the money on beadlocks until after I actually lost a bead. Most people just don't push their trucks hard enough to need them. I haven't done any crawling in my Dodge, but with all that weight I can't imagine getting below 20 psi. That should be enough pressure to keep them seated. If you are stuck on the beadlocks I'd look at the walker evans in a 17x8.5 http://www.walkerevansracing.com/wheels.beadlock.17 , they are available with as little as 3.75" backspacing. I would stick with a 12.5" wide tire and a maximum wheel width of 9". The wider the wheel the easier the tire comes off the bead.
My experience with fiberglass on a truck that is driven hard has not been good. Each time it has cracked at the fasteners. I found that using the Dzus Fasteners didn't stop the problem. The best thing I came across was a machined spacer about 1" diameter with a #12 hole in the middle. Sandwiching the fiberglass between the spacer and a thin rubber washer kept it to a minimum. I would think this would be especially important on the lower rear fender supports. Most of the trucks I see around Phoenix with fiberglass have some visible cracks after a few months. I'd run them non linexed for a few months to make sure they are not cracking. If they are still good then spend the money. I would suck to pay for the material only to have them crack months later.
Mitch
With the amount you are looking to push the tires out to fill those fenders you really should consider the Dynatrac hubs and ball joints. The 37" tires hanging out 4" more than stock are going to put a heck of a load on the poorly designed unit bearings, and the ball joints will be next.
As for wheels and tires, the 37x12.5R17 are generally more available than anything in a 18". If you plan on upgrading the brakes I don't know that there are any options for these trucks that will fit with a 18", more likely a 20" would be required for a significant improvement. I would definately keep an E rated tire, fortunately they are common these days. I run a 35x12.5R17 D rated on my Bronco that weighs in at 5500 lb, they have great traction and wear well. Your truck will be 2000 lb heavier than mine, so I think the D would be insufficient. As for beadlocks, I have never lost a bead while wheeling, everything from fast desert at 70 mph to crawling aired down to 14 psi. I'm not saying that beadlocks aren't great, but I wouldn't spend the money on beadlocks until after I actually lost a bead. Most people just don't push their trucks hard enough to need them. I haven't done any crawling in my Dodge, but with all that weight I can't imagine getting below 20 psi. That should be enough pressure to keep them seated. If you are stuck on the beadlocks I'd look at the walker evans in a 17x8.5 http://www.walkerevansracing.com/wheels.beadlock.17 , they are available with as little as 3.75" backspacing. I would stick with a 12.5" wide tire and a maximum wheel width of 9". The wider the wheel the easier the tire comes off the bead.
My experience with fiberglass on a truck that is driven hard has not been good. Each time it has cracked at the fasteners. I found that using the Dzus Fasteners didn't stop the problem. The best thing I came across was a machined spacer about 1" diameter with a #12 hole in the middle. Sandwiching the fiberglass between the spacer and a thin rubber washer kept it to a minimum. I would think this would be especially important on the lower rear fender supports. Most of the trucks I see around Phoenix with fiberglass have some visible cracks after a few months. I'd run them non linexed for a few months to make sure they are not cracking. If they are still good then spend the money. I would suck to pay for the material only to have them crack months later.
Mitch
12-09-2010, 10:39 AM
#40
Thanks for the tips Mitch! As far as the hub and ball joint issue, I wholeheartedly agree. In fact, I mentioned those exact concerns in my first post. They will promptly be upgraded as soon as the major external fab is done. Definitely will not be wheeled hard at all until those are done.
As far as beadlocks, I had actually looked at those Walker Evans. The Staun's internal beadlocks had recently intrigued me as well. The ease of balancing with them combined with the ability to choose from basically any wheel design are nice perks. Still researching but I agree with your recommendations and may do exactly as you said and run without them for a while.
I did pretty much exactly as you described with the fender mounts - a specialty stainless washer/sleeve insert. I rubber bushed both sides as well. I also epoxy coated the holes I drilled in the glass to help prevent chafing.
I appreciate all of your comments! Please keep them coming. I need help from the crowd so as not to forget the little details along they way!
As far as beadlocks, I had actually looked at those Walker Evans. The Staun's internal beadlocks had recently intrigued me as well. The ease of balancing with them combined with the ability to choose from basically any wheel design are nice perks. Still researching but I agree with your recommendations and may do exactly as you said and run without them for a while.
I did pretty much exactly as you described with the fender mounts - a specialty stainless washer/sleeve insert. I rubber bushed both sides as well. I also epoxy coated the holes I drilled in the glass to help prevent chafing.
I appreciate all of your comments! Please keep them coming. I need help from the crowd so as not to forget the little details along they way!
12-09-2010, 08:06 PM
#41
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I love this thread, you are doing great looking work!
12-15-2010, 10:33 PM
#42
Another update - bedrail fab
Sorry for the lack of update the last week or so. Christmas shopping out of town and my crazy work schedule took a couple of my days. Also had a terrible ear infection. Can't remember ever having one. FYI, they suck.
As far as the project, I finally got back to the bedrail / bed reinforcement fabrication. Close to finished with the design. I'll probably try to finish welding it all in the next few days.
In the meantime, I am putting together a large reverse electrolysis tank to de-chrome darn well anything I choose, adding a few side marker lights to the side mirrors (kinda like on the new fords - which I think was a good idea on their part), and starting fabrication on a custom stainless steel grille. Still plenty to do...I just have to switch it up from time to time so I don't get bored just spending days cutting metal, for instance
Here's a few pics from today...I just realized these pics don't show the corner contour detail very well, so will add better ones tomorrow. My back hurts...I'm stopping for tonight
As far as the project, I finally got back to the bedrail / bed reinforcement fabrication. Close to finished with the design. I'll probably try to finish welding it all in the next few days.
In the meantime, I am putting together a large reverse electrolysis tank to de-chrome darn well anything I choose, adding a few side marker lights to the side mirrors (kinda like on the new fords - which I think was a good idea on their part), and starting fabrication on a custom stainless steel grille. Still plenty to do...I just have to switch it up from time to time so I don't get bored just spending days cutting metal, for instance
Here's a few pics from today...I just realized these pics don't show the corner contour detail very well, so will add better ones tomorrow. My back hurts...I'm stopping for tonight
12-15-2010, 10:48 PM
#43
Better bedrail pics
OK, I couldn't leave well enough alone, so I snapped a few better pics...here they are...
Also note that I'm not finished with contouring those 90 degree corners right over the taillights. Those will be curved to match the contour of the bedsides tomorrow.
Also note that I'm not finished with contouring those 90 degree corners right over the taillights. Those will be curved to match the contour of the bedsides tomorrow.
Great work and thanks for sharing ur project.