Pinnacle Campers
Chateau spotter
Good to see it finally coming together.
MG Metalworks Radius Arm/Coil Spring Axle Conversion for E-series Vans
- Thread starter mgmetalworks
- Start date
Good to see it finally coming together.
Jsweezy
Explorer
Looking Good!
mgmetalworks
Explorer
What an awesome feeling to get these pictures from customer Steve in Colorado... Van #4 on the road with my parts. 
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mgmetalworks
Explorer
Happy to help! Let's get this thing on the road!
bkbroiler00
Observer
What an awesome feeling to get these pictures from customer Steve in Colorado... Van #4 on the road with my parts.
Your kit looks great! Had it been around when I was looking, I would've consider it. Nonetheless, I'm happy with my UJOINT setup. Anyways, and I apologize to hijack your thread like this, I'm looking to install one of those smaller side windows on my van, and I can't find it anywhere. Any idea where your customer Steve got it? Feel free to PM me so as to keep this thread it's own thing. Thanks!
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mk216v
Der Chef der Fahrzeuge
What an awesome feeling to get these pictures from customer Steve in Colorado... Van #4 on the road with my parts.
:wings:
Silverhorse
Adventurer
AWESOME WORK! Please make a kit for my 2013- 3500 Duramax Express Van :ylsmoke:
dcguillory
Adventurer
100% Hijack! Too bad for you.
So I go to MG's website, not that there is much there tbh, and I look at the TED pedestal section for the second time. Hmm collaboration with Tu Design. Oh wait! Ha! Tu design is a one man operation. How do I know? Because Daniel Tu is the pastor of my home church and he had told me about designing these pedestals and finding some guy that made really nice motorcycle parts. Small world man.
Ok I'm done
So I go to MG's website, not that there is much there tbh, and I look at the TED pedestal section for the second time. Hmm collaboration with Tu Design. Oh wait! Ha! Tu design is a one man operation. How do I know? Because Daniel Tu is the pastor of my home church and he had told me about designing these pedestals and finding some guy that made really nice motorcycle parts. Small world man.
Ok I'm done
mgmetalworks
Explorer
Small world indeed! That TED thing was a very tough job. And in the middle of it, my first child was born. I like working on vans much better.
mk216v
Der Chef der Fahrzeuge
Haha, small world indeed!
Back to the original programming...WE NEED MOAR PICTARS!!!! :sombrero:
Ranchero
Wanderer
What an awesome feeling to get these pictures from customer Steve in Colorado... Van #4 on the road with my parts.
I have to say I'm super pleased with the quality of the parts I got from MG. His service and responsiveness is fantastic as well. I have a text string with MG that has about 40 texts - he has made it so much easier by replying to questions/issues really quickly - usually within minutes.
The only issue I had with the kit became a non-issue very quickly: I think this is the first 2wd to 4wd swap with the kit. I believe the first three were de-Quiglifications or de-Quadvan conversions. MG's radius arm brackets sit right where the stock tranny crossmember mounts. I let Michael know and within about an hour he had sent AutoCad templates of a modified tranny mount for me to print and cut out to confirm they would work to solve the issue. Within about 4-5 days I had a nicely built laser-cut and welded mount in my hands to solve the problem. This shouldn't be an issue in future conversions.
I've driven the van about 200 miles so far and it tracks straight and rides well. Even managed to get it stuck in 18" of snowplow slag already - then unstuck by locking the hubs and flicking that nifty lever into 4 High. No funny sounds or anything. I had all of MG's stuff on in a couple of easy days working mostly by myself. I should have 1000 miles on the van within the next two weeks. I'll report back.
mgmetalworks
Explorer
Thanks for the review Steve!
If I may....one clarification on the trans cross member. The 5.4L vans with the 4R75 trans will require a special mount for the trans cross member. None of the other engine/trans combos have this issue. The trans is just so much shorter than the E40D, 4R100 and 5R110...has to be done, no getting around it. I have the mount designed to be a bolt-on solution working in conjunction with Ujoint's 4R75 cross member. I think it's worth the extra expense to buy the Ujoint part. The stock cross member (in 5.4L vans) won't work in a 4x4 conversion as-is anyway. The fix is just a little extra work and a couple extra parts but nothing complicated. I didn't notice the interference when I converted my van because Quadvan's come with an extended tailhousing of their own design that pushes the cross member back out of the way. Like Steve said above though, a solution was quickly worked out and we were able to get his van on the road without any major hassles.
Clutch
<---Pass
uhgreed. like the low profile look of their tops even though it doesn't go full length of roof, but hate all the wasted space and small windows. i have never seen a gtrv in person either, but the whole low profile concept is great and something they should offer if demand was still there. apparently it must not be?? nothing new discontinuing the setup and moving on though. happens with all the vehicles i love. aftermarket support stops when the next new thing replaces it. excited to see what mr mg comes up with for a poptop though. whats taking so long anyway, lol
There was a guy on the Sportsmobile forum, that used a roof off a VW Eurovan camper.
http://www.sportsmobileforum.com/forums/f24/2000-4x4-ford-van-build-2362-3.html
86scotty
Cynic
Yep, Spurious from Denver and he builds some amazing stuff. Check out his cabinet build in his first (I think) white van. It's unbelievable.
I'll be joining the MG conversion club soon. My 06 axle is in the garage, Fox shocks here, coils here, NV271 here, modified tank here. I've got a few parts to round up and my kit from MG should be here this week. Can't wait!
I'll be joining the MG conversion club soon. My 06 axle is in the garage, Fox shocks here, coils here, NV271 here, modified tank here. I've got a few parts to round up and my kit from MG should be here this week. Can't wait!