Building my 66 CJ6 to look capable of things it will never do

Is there a law prohibiting them from being in the passenger area? I've seen them behind the back seat before, but I want to be road legal without hassle.

 

I like to cut out the angled rear hitch braces and also remove the plow attachment type rear bumper ...............in it's place a new bumper fabricated from 2x4x.250 wall rec. tube with a square receiver and tow hitches built in............due to the strength of the new bumper you can now attache it to the sides of the frame via some welded on plates. Some additional frame reinforcement going forward to the next cross member is also a good Idea. This bumper is also strong enough to do a swing away type spare tire carrier............Now you have enough space to at least get a stock variety 15 gallon fuel tank in between the frame rails with some decent ground clearance...........perhaps even a 20 gal might be had but the D-60 rear may be to large for that.

 

Tarry99 has the better idea. His way helps with several items at once.

 

on a 6 there is that whole space under the 6 section that could be used as a fuel cell ,I thought of going that way on mine most of the gas weight in the middle of the rig ,,,but I am now going to sink a tool box in there to carry my spare axles ,OBA and OBW stuff .

 

I've been toying with fuel tank designs in that area for mine. I think I'm going to do half that area as fuel tank and half as storage. I'm planning on the rear area in front of the rear bumper with a custom fuel tank confirmed to clear the rear Dana 60.

My rear bumper looks much like Tarry99's.


Sent from my iPhone

 

I'm ogling this bumper... Thinking one for front and rear. Then I can fab a mount for the winch to ride at either end...


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

My order from Barnes came in Friday. Now waiting on the backordered wrangler springs from Quadratec, and then the games can begin!

 

When looking for fuel tank ideas be sure to check out some marine catalogs also. There are many bizarre fuel tanks for the boat guys. I'm keeping mine under the driver seat. I don't smoke so it's all good!

 

Boyd Welding in Florida builds custom tanks to your specs. Great guy to work with.................. http://www.boydwelding.com/

 

Got some work done Sunday. Still no springs. I called Superlift and they had them in stock and then Quadratec told me another week or two I can get them straight from Superlift but have always done well with Quadratec, so I guess I'll wait. I tack welded my outboard brackets and hangers together yesterday, and then ground and cleaned up the frame where they will mount. Have to have the springs in order to ensure that I get the axles back where they need to be, particularly in the rear so it is centered in the wheel opening. I may move the front axle forward an inch or so. I clamped the mounts in place, and I'm chompin at the bit to get to weldin. As far as distances-I moved the rear hangers out the maximum amount I could to add as much stability as possible. That amounted to 2-1/4" from the outside of the frame, or 3-1/8" total per side out for spring centerlines. By the way, those are Ruffstuff small mounting pads and Barnes hangers. Quality stuff. In the front, I have to move 2" per side to get my centerlines from 27-1/2 to the 31-1/2 centers on the Chevy Dana 44. This amounts to 1-1/8 outside the frame. I'm in a holding pattern here until the springs come in....Guess I'll work on the boys IH.

 

Barnes who?

 

Barnes4wd.com

ruffstuffspecialties.com

Great builder parts sources!

 

You'll notice that the rear axle at rest is never in the center of the wheel opening..........it starts forward of the center and swings through as the shackles rotates rearward and the spring compress's.......I use sand bags here to load the suspension so there is no guessing.........in lieu of that you might be better to use the factory hanger dimensions off the old setup for measurements especially if your using a lifted spring of stock length that will appear shorter until compressed because of the arch.

 

Well, my springs arrived on Friday, so I had things to do over the weekend. Laid out the spacing on the spring hangers and then welded them all up permanently and welded them to the frame. I'm ending up with 31-1/2" front spring centers and 34" rear spring centers. I outboarded the rear a little more just for stability as this jeep will see more road miles than anything else. Got the rear springs temporarily mounted to the Dana 60 and finally got it rolled up in place. Now I'm waiting on spring bushings. Had I known the new springs didn't come with them I could have had them here weeks ago...I was 21" top of frame to floor in stock form, and with the 3-1/2" springs, relocated hangers, and 37" tires, its getting about as tall as I want it. I think I'm going to be around 30" top of frame, and that is still SUA. I also debated back and forth on spring shackle reversal, and when it came time to weld the hangers on, that is what we did. I read about nose-dive with braking as a negative, but since every other truck on the road has the shackles behind the axles, that's what we did as well. My decision was based largely on the ease of setting my pinion angle and caster since I am doing it all from scratch. I've seen a lot of shackle reversals result in bad pinion angles and excessive caster due to the tilting of the back of the spring down. I'll put the Chevy 44 back at stock angles I suspect. Gotta get my passenger side knuckle drilled and tapped, buy steering arms, get down to Joplin for some H-1 wheels and tires, and I'll have the front end finished up as well. On my mind now and not yet decided is the Saginaw steering setup, rollcage, and dual reservoir master cylinder....pics to come. Didn't have the camera at home over the weekend.

 

Got some pics taken last night. All my welding is with E6011 electrodes and a 196? vintage Lincoln stick welder I inherited from my grandpa. I envy those of you with a nice 220v wire feed, but this gets the job done-I just hate all the slag chipping and wire brushing to make them ready for paint. I have a Lincoln 140 wire feed, but it is a small 110 volt job and I wouldn't trust it for spring hanger welding, driveshafts, or anything critical to safety. It's great for thin metal. I'm told stick welding is always used where safety is critical-like steam pipes, bridges, ships, etc....

 

I ordered a 29" piece of 4" channel and a 29" piece of 3" channel this morning, and they are going to be crossmembers between both sets of rear spring hangers to eliminate any potential twisting force on the frame due to the outboarding of the hangers. The front is fully boxed, and no room for any cross members anyway. The front is offset a lot less as well, so the twisting moment is greatly reduced.

 

Got a little done over the weekend. Spring bushings came in so the springs are all hung. Got the 60 rear in place and ready to set the pinion angle. We also got the frame setting fairly level and back onto jackstands at approximate ride height. Started tearing down the front end so new axle joints, ball joints, and brakes can be installed, and the passenger side knuckle can be drilled and tapped for a steering arm. I still haven't found steering arms that I'm satisfied both with price and with the guarantee that they will clear H-1 Hummer wheels. If you know of some, please advise.









I'm satisfied that my shackle angles are going to work out. The rear has the frame weight on it now, and by the time the body, cage, and fuel tank are added, it should kick over center to make for a nice ride. Front is completely unloaded at this point.

 

I've looked through all the pictures on the Saginaw steering post, and I'm ready to accumulate some parts for that. Does anyone have part numbers for the following or make, model, year, or better yet, parts for sale?

Power steering pump mount for 225 V-6
Power steering pump
Power steering box with slowest ratio possible

I'm gonna put a new tilt column in and will use some u-joints to get to the box. I want to keep the front dump manifold if I can.

Thanks!