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Varg In Jeep's Clothing

Discussion in 'Builds and Fabricators Forum' started by ITLKSEZ, Aug 20, 2015.

  1. Feb 18, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
    Joined:
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    6,656
    Pull up a chair... :rofl:
    It's not out of the realm of possibilities, but highly unlikely. At rest, I have 4" of uptravel until the links hit the hood, and 5" of uptravel before the axle hits the bare frame. I'll be running heavy, all-rubber bump stops. They'll get installed the next time I have my axle out. (Can't fit the drill in there till then.)

    Compressing the bumpstops to less than 1" would require some huge forces. I understand that articulation will allow the link to travel farther than it would through perpendicular travel, but having the swaybar in function should keep that at a minimum. I'm building this thing to use and abuse, so even if it does hit, it won't be too big of a deal. The hood already looks like it was driven over.

    If I plan on a big trail weekend, I'll pull the links for flex and it won't be an issue.

    I remember being asked this before... we'll see if I still have the same reasoning. :D
    I'm not a big fan of coilovers on anything but a racer for a few reasons.

    1) My biggest gripe is how they push until they are maxed out. That aspect is desirable on a racer where you want an airborne tire to offer resistance throughout a long distance of travel for a soft landing and control. I know that can be minimized with coil tuning (see #3), but still, it's an issue. When you are in an off-camber situation off road, the jeep will lean. It loads the downhill side and unloads the uphill side.

    A traditional coil will unload to a point, then begin to enter its negative spring rate where it's actually using the weight of the axle to pull the jeep back to the ground. It could very easily be the difference of a fun day or vehicle recovery. I've been careful to build this suspension with as much negative spring rate as positive, front and rear.

    2) The most important lesson I've learned over my wheeling life is the importance of equal, or near-equal performance from the front/rear suspension. Nothing feels as unpredictable on a trail as a rig with one end that is way-softer than the other end. Equality is the name of the game. If you run a super-flexy front suspension combined with a standard leaf sprung rear, the front will do all the work and the body will follow the rear, making for a very uncomfortable, unstable ride.

    3) Price. This thing is getting built on zero budget. Coilovers are a "go big or go home" type of purchase. Any less than top of the line and you'll regret it. I'd have double the $ into one shock than I have into this whole build so far.

    4) is a bit weak, but it's important to me. I feel like it's a bit of an easy way out. I want this to handle like a car on the road, and just throwing coilovers in there would be sacrificing some road manners just to make it easier to build. I'm not out to build the wildest rock crawling monster I can. I just want my wife to be able to get in it, turn the key, and get to work safely without dealing with any quirks or compromises. On the weekend, take the family out on trails that other rigs on 32s would struggle on.

    Thanks for the interest.
     
    Last edited: Feb 18, 2019
    tymbom, Danefraz, 73 cj5 and 3 others like this.
  2. Feb 18, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
    Joined:
    Aug 13, 2015
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    Sure! Copyright that. :)
    It's not that different from stock, just above the frame, rather than below.
     
  3. Feb 18, 2019
    Norcal69

    Norcal69 Out of the box thinker 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Northern California
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    Lots of race cars are set up this same way.
     
    ITLKSEZ likes this.
  4. Feb 18, 2019
    73 cj5

    73 cj5 Not ready for the junkyard yet

    Clinton, Mississippi
    Joined:
    Jan 10, 2014
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    2,137
    See I was imagining the pedals would be close to vertical and the pads offset to the arm like a go kart.
     
  5. Feb 18, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
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    Yes. Sort of. Working on them now.
     
  6. Feb 18, 2019
    Norcal69

    Norcal69 Out of the box thinker 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Northern California
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  7. Feb 18, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
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    Think cherry is strong enough? :lol:

    [​IMG]
     
  8. Feb 18, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
    Joined:
    Aug 13, 2015
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    I had to quit for the day, but here's where I'm at.

    I used those wooden templates to make CAD templates from, then used them again as jigs to form and tack the pieces together. If you saw in my hippo build, I used the same technique to build the receiver hitch male/female pieces.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Corners will get fully welded and smoothed out.
     
    Last edited: Feb 18, 2019
    Danefraz, Bowbender, 47v6 and 3 others like this.
  9. Feb 19, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
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  10. Feb 19, 2019
    montanacj

    montanacj Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2012
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    794
    Nice job on that it looks good. You can’t even tell it’s welded because the grinding and sanding is top notch.
     
  11. Feb 19, 2019
    Focker

    Focker That's a terrible idea...What time? Staff Member

    WA
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    7,540
    X2
     
  12. Feb 19, 2019
    cadwelder

    cadwelder Member

    Milton KY
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    Jun 2, 2011
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    For much of my adult life I worked as a fabricator. One of the things I'd tell the young guys learning the trade was that there's an art to grinding (sanding, too). For example: controlling the direction of the striations. ITLKSEZ, you have mastered the art.
    (y) :bow:
     
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  13. Feb 19, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
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    Thanks guys.
    Woodworking tools make the best metalworking tools. :D
     
    Bowbender likes this.
  14. Feb 19, 2019
    fhoehle

    fhoehle Sponsor

    Harford Township, PA
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    Apr 11, 2012
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    If I could like the pedal fab twice I would!
     
  15. Feb 19, 2019
    Bowbender

    Bowbender I'm workin' on it!

    Northern Minn.
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    Nov 14, 2014
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    Very clever! (y) I do think hickory would have been a better choice for strength.;)
     
  16. Feb 19, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
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    I have some Bolivian Rosewood left over from our flooring. :sneak:
     
    Danefraz likes this.
  17. Feb 19, 2019
    Bowbender

    Bowbender I'm workin' on it!

    Northern Minn.
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    That would be purdy! :D
     
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  18. Feb 21, 2019
    ITLKSEZ

    ITLKSEZ Hope for the best, prepare for the worst

    Liberty Lake, WA
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    Pedal box is mostly done. Still needs zerk fittings and the clutch cable bracket welded underneath, but the flywheel and pressure plate aren't in, so I don't know where to mount it yet.

    But, I'm not happy with it and I'm going to cut it apart.

    [​IMG]

    (Everything looks crooked for some reason, but I promise it's not.)

    I was trying my best to line up the pedals with the original locations, and it occurred to me this morning, the original locations sucked. They were only where they were to split the steering column. My column will be much higher, so there's no reason to have the pedals so far apart. I'm not left with enough room for my boot to fit between the brake pedal and the transmission for a gas pedal. It needs to move over at least an inch. I might just take the horizontal section out completely.

    The clutch pedal doesn't leave much room for my foot to fit in for the dimmer, but there's not much I can do about that. I might have to mount the dimmer a little lower.

    I cut the cool little threaded bracket out of another pedal assembly I had here for the brake light switch, and I welded that to the inside of the box with a corresponding actuator arm to the pedal.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    Buildflycrash, 47v6, Fly Navy and 4 others like this.
  19. Feb 21, 2019
    62CheepJeep

    62CheepJeep Member

    Spartanburg SC
    Joined:
    Sep 10, 2018
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    313
    When can I place my order for pedals, I would like to have the accelerator pedal moved to a more comfortable position as well. seems everything is to close to the center of the vehicle. (y)
     
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  20. Feb 21, 2019
    47v6

    47v6 junk wrecker! 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    USA
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    When I did mine, I used a YJ assembly, so things were in a normal position. That left NO room for a floor mounted dimmer. I also cut aport the whole floor and made it a bit wider, but still can't easily wear my clodhopper boots when i drive it. There really isn't much room for this stuff in a flat fender. Roll cages mounted traditionally also eat up space. Its tough to make it all work.
     
    ITLKSEZ likes this.
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