1976 Scout Traveler, Ultimate Expedition Build

[rube bonet]

With the front done, it was time to focus on the rear. I knew I wanted to get a new rear axle, wider to match the front and provide more stability. With the addition of the 6.0L, I also wanted something stronger. I had Currie build a custom 9 inch for the rear. It uses a 3.25 tube HD housing, with an ARB in the nodular iron third member, and 35 spline chromoly shafts. It seemed like a good compromise between strength and weight. And its pretty!

We were really happy with the axle....until I realized they had offset the pinion the WRONG direction (even after 3 emails verifying the direction of pinion offset), placing it 2" offset from the output of the tcase yoke. IT was irritating, to say the least, but Currie will get everything straightened out; a new housing and axle shafts are in the works.



I also wanted some longer springs, and more travel. The rear suspension needed to work well in a variety of terrains, still be stable at higher speeds on and off road, and still have a decent load capacity. I also like having an "off the shelf" part, so I started looking thru spring specs. It turned out a Deaver Tacoma prerunner pack would be a nearly perfect fit for our frame configuration. It was also made in a few different heights and spring rates, so I had my off the shelf solution. I had a local spring shop (Valley Spring) make me up the main leaves to those specs so I could get to work making the spring mounts. Valley will end up making me the rest of the custom spring pack(to F67 specs) after I get all of the weight in the Scout, it is just nice knowing I will have an easy source for replacement springs.

I also wanted to fit as large a fuel tank as I could, so I cut out the factory crossmember. The rear bumper and shackle mounts were all integrated into one mount.

Leaf spring mockup at full bump

 

[Itsavanman]

That is some pretty impressive fabrication work.. did you fabricate the aluminum stuff too?

 

[rube bonet]

That is some pretty impressive fabrication work.. did you fabricate the aluminum stuff too?

Thanks! The radiator is a Ron Davis, but the shroud and mounts I built. Working with aluminum is hard, something I am always trying to get better at.


.

 

[toymaster]

Great work, pretty sure you have this one on pirate4x4 too. One quick question what R&P ratio are you using? With a jeep 44 and a ford 9 are you able to exactly match the ratios?

 

[AeroNautiCal]

I love your criteria for the vehicle, and your design, fabrication, welding and attention to detail are truly outstanding.

You are creating a remarkable vehicle, and watching it develop is a real treat, thanks for sharing.

 

[rube bonet]

Great work, pretty sure you have this one on pirate4x4 too. One quick question what R&P ratio are you using? With a jeep 44 and a ford 9 are you able to exactly match the ratios?

Dana 44 ratio is 4.88, ford 9" is 4.86, it is as close as you can get. It is as close as Ford ever got either, as they always had dana front ends.

 

[rube bonet]

The rear suspension will have 12.5 travel, should be a good match to the front. I decided to outboard the shocks, makes them lot more effective than the factory configuration. I really like simple leaf suspensions like this, especially for this kind of usage. Between the simple poly bumps, bilsteins, and good leaves, there is pretty much no simpler, durable suspension. The Scout should ride good and handle well, especially on high speed fire roads. The outboard springs and shocks with the wider rear axle should help quite a bit with stability.:smiley_drive: I also left room for a bigger 2.5 shocks and air bumps...you always need room to upgrade!

Droop

Compression

Shackle and hanger

I still need to build the u bolt spring plates and finish the lower shock mounts, but I can't do that until I get the correct housing.
Lastly, the tire doesn't fit I knew that going into it, so it wasn't exactly a surprise, just one more job for the bodyshop to take care of before paint.

 

[VanIsle_Greg]

Coming along very nicely... love the tire and wheel combination. That rear axle is truly a thing of beauty.

 

[ReconH3]

Amazing build. Wish I had your fab skills.

 

[rube bonet]

Thanks Reconh3! I like your hummer. My last major project was restoring Soni Honeggers War Wagon ( http://www.4btswaps.com/forum/showthread.php?20761-Warwagon-MKV&highlight= ) . Your H3 reminds me of Soni's attention to military detail, really going out of the way to capture that feel.


The rear suspension is done, except for the actual leaves themselves. I will wait until I get the rest of the weight on the truck, then it will make a trip to the spring shop. Now, it is time to put some of that weight on!:sombrero:

The rear bumper needed to be strong, provide protection, and carry the tire and gas can holders. The fuel tank also needed to go back here, and we wanted as much fuel capacity as possible. The stock crossmember was junk, and was flimsy anyways from the factory, so I decided to chop it out. The rear bumper would become the crossmember, and that would allow me to increase the size of the gas tank and not sacrifice departure angle.


Rear bumper and gas tank skid mocked up. Bumper is 3 sections of 3/16 plate built around the shackle plate.

Corner guard has a support tube going forward to the frame, that will also help counteract the leverage of the tire swing outs. You can also see the d ring mount plate sticking through the bumper. I was really happy with the way this corner turned out. The scout is basically a big box with rounded corners, I wanted to keep that feel.

D ring mount finished

Tire swing out mocked up

Tire carrier

 

[VanIsle_Greg]

Holy crap that setup is nice.

 

[ReconH3]

Thanks Reconh3! I like your hummer. My last major project was restoring Soni Honeggers War Wagon ( http://www.4btswaps.com/forum/showthread.php?20761-Warwagon-MKV&highlight= ) . Your H3 reminds me of Soni's attention to military detail, really going out of the way to capture that feel.

Soni and I crossed paths way back in the Scorpion days. I was the guy that got him to look into Cummins engines as an option way back then.

Keep up the great work. Your project is outstanding.

 

[fasteddy47]

Tire Carrier :drool: My wife is starting to wonder if I am surfing porn.... I say I am.... Truck Porn honey...lol

 

[rube bonet]

Soni and I crossed paths way back in the Scorpion days. I was the guy that got him to look into Cummins engines as an option way back then.

Keep up the great work. Your project is outstanding.

Always a small world!

thanks for the encouragement everyone.

I am still mulling over options for water storage. I have mounted a variety of tanks before, not sure I have been completely happy with any of them. In the Expo Taco ( http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...coma—a-World-Class-Overland-Truck—is-for-sale ), I had mounted a 20 gallon plastic water tank in the bed, with a system of filters and valves and rv pump to control everything, witha heat exchanger for hot showers. It was a nice system, but took up quite a bit of bed room. On this project, the bed area needs to stay relatively empty, because of the variety of uses it will see. I was seriously considering sinking a tank into one of dead spaces between the inner fender and outer fender in the rear quarter. The problems this poses is that we need some way to keep the tank from freezing, and an easy way to clean it out. The other option is to find some nice portable containers to store water in. Any suggestions?

 

[Clutch]

Always a small world!

thanks for the encouragement everyone.

I am still mulling over options for water storage. I have mounted a variety of tanks before, not sure I have been completely happy with any of them. In the Expo Taco ( http://www.expeditionportal.com/for...coma—a-World-Class-Overland-Truck—is-for-sale ), I had mounted a 20 gallon plastic water tank in the bed, with a system of filters and valves and rv pump to control everything, witha heat exchanger for hot showers. It was a nice system, but took up quite a bit of bed room. On this project, the bed area needs to stay relatively empty, because of the variety of uses it will see. I was seriously considering sinking a tank into one of dead spaces between the inner fender and outer fender in the rear quarter. The problems this poses is that we need some way to keep the tank from freezing, and an easy way to clean it out. The other option is to find some nice portable containers to store water in. Any suggestions?

If you didn't already have the seat mount built, I would say a stainless tank under the front seats that also acts as the seat mounts, in the quarter panel seems like the best option with heating mats to keep them from freezing.

I use portable containers that total 25 gallons, nice thing that you can move them depending where I want the load, but they take up a lot of room. When I am running empty they are by the tailgate to smooth out my HD springs for daily duties, in camp mode I put them at the front of the bed, or on my moto trailer if I have the dirt bikes with us.

However, if I had tanks in the quarter panels that sure would be nice.