Recent content by pappawheely

I'm learning a lot watching this scratch build from Mike Essa. Such a cool truck. I just wish I had a tenth of the skill Essa has. If you watch the other videos you will also see Brandon who I used to work with along with his brother Justin. Good people. Check it out. I'm going to be stealing...

More grinding and cleaning today. I got a lot done, but I still need to pull the door panels and side panels then scrub the interior. The good news is I can just spray everything down with the hose. All the electronics have been removed. I'm going to have to take a couple days off. The slice I...

The cargo area in the back of the truck had more widespread rust, but it was less severe. It was hot inside doing all that grinding. Here is my weapon of choice. If you are going to use a wire wheel, be sure to get the ones that are twisted or braided. The wheels with straight wires coming...

I love those trucks. Unfortunately, none of your photos are loading for me. :(

Some people may think I'm ruining a good Trooper, but that's not the case. This truck has had a hard life apparently. I pulled up more of the floor covering and sound deadening. WOW! In a few years this truck would have rusted from the inside out. The underside of the truck is spotless. The...

I ordered a TORQ locker for the front. I did research on all the "lunchbox" lockers. The TORQ wasn't the cheapest, but I think it's the best design. It doesn't use pins. Instead the two halves of the center section lock together. I thought it was also pretty cool that one of the owners of the...

Solved my axle u-joint issue today. Chromoly axles from East Coast Gear Supply Very nice quality! They weren't cheap, but I figure it's a good investment for a Dana 44 with 37's. Now I'm looking at a TORQ Locker by Torq-Masters. I have a posi in the rear 14 bolt, but the front is open. In...

Unfortunately the screws were imbedded in the dash and right next to the windshield gasket and the glass. I had to be careful with the vise grips even so I didn't hit the glass and crack it. *Update* I just found the same rust on the passenger side floor. I hate rust repair even though I've...

I got curious today and couldn't stop. I tore the entire dash and harness out today. I was talking the other day about not having rust issues here in AZ, but we have pack rats and heat. I discovered another regional issue that turns up around here. PO's (previous owners). There is a special...

Beginning phase two, tearing down the Trooper. Lot's of swearing involved. Not sure how Isuzu was able to form threads in the bolts without melting the butter that the bolt heads are made of. Had to grind some bolts off after the heads got rounded. The front clip is ready to come off except...

Incremental progress. Still having problems with the axle u-joints. I gave up and ordered new axles. The u-joints just don't fit those factory axles. Don't know why, don't know how, but that's the way it is. I roached 4 u-joints just to come to a dead end. Everyone was telling me I was wrong...

Nothing you don't need.

Today I fabricated a steering box brace for the back side of the frame. I left it long on one end so I can tie it into whatever x-member I make for the core support. Three fixed mounts and the fourth is floating. I was sure it would bind up after I welded it, but I pulled it off. I welded the...

Rear brakes are mounted. I still need to run new hard lines. This is all the crud that came out of the mounting holes on a brand new borgeson steering box when I chased the threads. Things like this are what takes time. It reminds me of doing race truck prep. You have to inspect everything...

Incremental progress. The caliper supplier says that's just a solid boss, I can grind for clearance. It's sad that when you ask a question, everyone goes into CYA mode instead of just answering the question. They immediately went into asking me the application and said I ordered the wrong part...