Search results

Just welding on the rear bumper tonight. I don't think its coming off.

I needed a break from TIG welding for a night..... I made some 10 gauge tie in plates for the rear bumper/crossmember made and got them tack welded into place. I decide to have the fuel fuel tank skidplate made out of house. I just couldn't really bend 1/4" thick 5052-H32 aluminum...

I'll have to give it a try.

Just more practice over here.... I think things are getting better, but still not there yet... I am going to try some 1/16 filler instead of 3/32nd. I think that will help out a little bit with the puddle getting too cool too fast when trying to work corners. I can functionally make a...

I got the chip board from Blick Art Supplies. I recommend the .06 thick version. It seems to be the best combination of thickness vs workability. If you buy like $40 bucks or something they ship free and you will have enough for lots of projects.

More Aluminum TIG practice today... Clean gloves. Clean rags. Acetone bottle. Clean stainless brushes dedicated to aluminum use. Clean tungsten grinding. Clean Clean Clean. I tried a lot of different settings. I think I am getting ok results, but I still get the odd black spec floating in...

Time to learn a new skill.... I finally pushed the AC switch on my TIG welder for the 1st time. The last time I did some aluminum AC TIG welding was probably 20 years ago for about 15 minutes.... This project is about learning new things and developing my skills as a fabricator. There are a...

Just a bit, trying to get back in the groove... This is the rear bumper transition flange. The gas tank skidplate will bolt to the bottom of this flange. It will use the same 10mm clip nuts that the belly skidplate is going to use to keep parts/tools common. Some other misc things...

Good tip, thank you.

I like those days I get to make big visual changes..... Today I got the rear bumper tacked into place and was able to remove the 'extra' 18" of frame I didn't need any longer. This made a MASSIVE visual difference to the feel of the vehicle as a whole. It also made the shop feel a few feet...

Just a wee bit... Working on the rear bumper prep and getting ready for the frame cut. The bumper will be the same design as the front with the tapered/pocketed ends along with the JATE rings for recovery. I believe I will also add a mounting plate for a pintle hitch. If I don't do it now it...

Today was just one of those days where I just stood back and looked, measured, and farted around with some different ideas... This is going to be the final rearward position of the bumper. The frame is going to be bobbed about 18" or so. I will need to drop the bumper about 2.5" I believe. I...

I might need a picture with that....

Digital building again... I am thinking I am going to do something like this for the back end.... This is just a rough model, but should be a good place to get a discussion started. The rear bumper will be similar to the front made from the same 2x3 box tubing, tapered ends, and I will add...

I've not really found the need very much over the years for the type of stuff I do. A quality front winch seems to work well enough to get me out of any dumb situation I get myself into generally. Some day I do want to play around with a mid mounted winch system, but that would probably have to...

Front end fab is finished for now, time to move onto the rear end of the car. Here is the rear end as it sits right now. There is WAY too much frame sticking out past the rear axle if you ask me. I plan on bobbing off about 18-20" total I believe. I realistically only need enough frame to...

3.5 brackets today! I was able to finish off the sides plates on the drivers side to match the work done yesterday. The top cap for the passenger side was also finished. I made both but ran out of time to finish up everything. It's hard to see, but the top bracket has a gentle 'swoop'...

I am building this thing two brackets at a time.... These are the side plates that tie the bumper and winch mount into the frame. They are 10 gauge cold roll plate like the rest of the brackets. I really like this thickness of material. It seems like a good compromise for overall strength...

I do most sheet cutting with a variable speed jig saw and good Bosch metal cutting blades. Edges are cleaned up with on a big disc sander and with a file. If they have inside corners I use a grinder with a flap wheel.

Two less brackets to make now.... Pretty simple, but kinda took forever. Tip. Sometimes taking a little extra time to lay out the brackets lets you eliminate some cutting. I still want a plasma table and a few robot helpers....