My Buggy Build

1TONZR2 · May 24, 2013

Finally got a chance to work on the chassis some more today.

BTW, its hard to take pics in narrow shop that has stuff everywhere! LOL

Brian

1TONZR2 · May 24, 2013

oh ya, got the truss cut off the front axle.

the top link mount on the truss started to dent and was also cracking around the base that was partially welded to the cast leaf pad on the center section.

I still have to clean all the slag off and grind it smooth...just not looking forward to that!!

Brian

1TONZR2 · May 26, 2013

not much progress today, worked on mine and also a customers.....but progress is progress! :dblthumb:

Brian

CHASMAN9 · May 26, 2013

1TONZR2 said:
well, its stripped and now resides in my garage until it sells....

that is one long drivetrain......might consider selling off the doubler to get an atlas. I am gonna mess with the placement a little and see where the front axle is going to wind up before making a decision.
Brian
[/quote]

I think some of those dents should buff out and bag you some big bucks Brian... :dblthumb: laughing1

1TONZR2 · Jun 1, 2013

got my headers in.....

gonna be tight, but it should work. If anything, I might have to cut the flange off and add some pipe and maybe a V band clamp. Would be nice to have have all tight connections and no gaskets....

Managed to get the other shock hoop on and belt line tied in...

I decided I needed to set my seats and fuel cell in the chassis to see about where they would lay out and see how much head room I will have with the upper half of the chassis being the next thing to be bent up.

oh and the motor is not in the final position, it is just sitting there so it was out of our way in the shop. It will be centered or set over a little to the passenger side and will be moved forward a bit.

Brian

1TONZR2 · Jun 8, 2013

Got some work done last night, nice to see it is taking shape.

one side is actually cut and notched, just no pics of it set in place. I am leaving them a little long for now, so I can get a feel for where the seats will actually sit. I am hoping they wont have to sit any higher that what the pic shows. Just for a reference, the top of those seats are at the top of my head. I know I want some room for a helmet, plus a little extra. I am hoping I can trim it down some and maybe slope it down to in the front a little more.

Brian

wicked_sten · Jun 9, 2013

looking good! another friend bought the un-used plans here, did you have to deviate from the planned dimensions to make room for the LS and longer drivetrain? thanks

1TONZR2 · Jun 9, 2013

yes, I did have to change the plans a little bit. The lower belly tubing is about 6" longer (the 4l60e and 231/205 is LONG!) and the front frame rails have about 10" added to the length. The extra length is only on one side, not split between the bends. Got the dash bar notched and fitted this morning before putting a lift on a cherokee. I am up in the air about what to do with the brow tubing, instead of using what the plans call for (a straight tube) either going with the "angry brow" look or possibly something different. I just want it to look a little different than the plans.

Brian

1TONZR2 · Jun 15, 2013

made some good progress today. It is definitely taking shape now. I deviated from the plans a little for the brow bar, mainly to give it a different look than the plans.

Brian

1TONZR2 · Jun 24, 2013

Got a little bit done today. The pace seems to be slowing down a bit, due to making some changes to the plans.

B pillar braces and brow finished

couple of roof pieces..

I was going to bend the diagonal piece, but didnt like how it was turning out so I went with a straight piece to the bend.

Brian

cannondaletim · Jun 26, 2013

looking great. How many feet of tubing and what size are u using

1TONZR2 · Jun 27, 2013

1.75" .120 DOM and will end up around 200ft

zukiscott · Jun 27, 2013

FREAKIN AWESOME Brian :woot:

,,,,I just saw this thread ,,,,bout time you got to get buggyed up man :dblthumb:

1TONZR2 · Jun 27, 2013

Thanks dude, its been a long time coming!

1TONZR2 · Jun 29, 2013

Got the roof taken care of

pulled the drivetrain out, going to put my tires back on my axles and raise the chassis off the floor to full bump. Time to start working on the interior and mounting the suspension.

Brian

payne97 · Aug 18, 2013

Any updates

1TONZR2 · Aug 18, 2013

ya, got a little bit done. we have been slammed in our shop the last few weeks and doesnt appear to be slowing down..lol I got the ORI shock hoops and cross brace put in. The cross brace also acts as part of the fuel cell mount. I will be cutting a piece out on the torchmate for the top plate to hold the cell down. The lower supports for the fuel cell and the rear seat mounts are also done. Been ordering parts and waiting for them to show up as well.
My new pair of ORIs also showed up, so I now have all my shocks. Thanks Kelly!

Finally got my front axle cleaned up....I loath the grinder.........

The beginning of the fuel cell mount and the ORI mounts

Rear seat mounts

still need to load the torchmate up with some steel and cut some motor mounts and link tabs. It really wouldnt take long to get a roller....just need some time!

Brian

1TONZR2 · Oct 19, 2013

ya, it has been a little while since I have actually been able to work on it. The shop has been pretty busy lately, which is a good thing. I finally got some parts cut out on the torchmate, just took a little longer than expected, mainly because I had never ran it before and there was a little bit of a learning curve.....as you can see here....

got it dialed in a little better

started messing with link and motor placement and didnt like how the front frame rails were sitting in relation to the upper links....so

nothing like going backwards on a build!!!
motor mounted and upper links in place

205 mount

I was able to lower the chassis an inch or a little more and shrink the wheelbase down a little. belly ride height will be ~20-21" and the wheelbase is ~113"
I still need to cut some more brackets, shock mounts and rear link mounts out and then it will be on to mounting the front seats and interior. Still a long way to go, but I am now MAKING time to work on it.

Brian