My 40 Dodge Truck Build - Maybe a 41 LOL

[MercuryMac]

I'm also voting with Bama on this one. Blue on blue.

 

[Couper]

Thanks Gene & Mac. I have a friend with photo shop but I have to check to see if I have a good picture for him to mess with. Keep you Guys posted.

 

[Couper]

I believe I asked before but I'm second guessing myself and thought I'd ask again. I fabbed up these headlight / shock mounts that will bolt just behind the frame horns but in front of the grill shell when mounted. The shock mount is tight to the mounting plate / frame.....no real leverage although the headlight section comes up and goes forward. The headlight mounting bar is 1.250 sold round stock. There's a mounting pad that has 3 - 3/8 mounting holes.

My concern is going thru the frame tubing 2"x4" 3/16 wall and crushing it some, maybe making for a crush / loosening attachment after driving some, also ripping a patch out.

On the inside I want to lose the nuts on the inside frame rail because it will interfere with the grill shell. Thinking button head allen on the inside and some acorn or nylon insert nuts on the outside.

Do you think the frame wall will be ok as is? Maybe set up a anti crush tube?

Whatda you guys think?

 

[zzrodder]

Since the frame isn't painted, I'd weld threaded bungs in the frame, no thru bolts to squish the frame. What I really want to know is how you bent those skookum chunks of solid bar
The positioning of the lights look spot on...[cl[cl

 

[Couper]

So the bungs would be on the outside of the frame rail? Or would they go thru and weld on both sides like a threaded tube? I'm gona search bungs.

I bent them utilizing my welding table and a block of Aluminum with the radius I was after. I drilled out one of the clamp holes in the table out to 1.25 and anchored the end in the hole. Started with 4' pieces of stock for leverage. Used the angle finder to match the angles..... It was fairly easy.

Thanks for the comment on the headlight position!

See pics

 

[MercuryMac]

Yep, the lights have to go there.

 

[Old Iron]

[cl[cl[cl

 

[bob w]

Heck of a shop you got there. Do you have a magnetic drill motor? High quality work you are doing.

 

[Couper]

Thanks Bob... I don't own one but we have one at my job that I can borrow. Enlarging the 5/8 table hole to 1 1/4 I did with my hand drill, the welding table top was drilled at the shop on a CNC Mill. My shop is not that big... 25 x 25 with low ceilings but I make the best of it.

 

[zzrodder]

Just put them on the outside, they will surely be capable of holding the weight of the lights

 

[Couper]

Just put them on the outside, they will surely be capable of holding the weight of the lights

And the stress of the shock mounts as well ZZ? Most of the bungs I'm seeing have a lip and look like they will stick up maybe an 1/8 or so... Am I looking at the right stuff.? Thanks ZZ

 

[gene49]

If you intend to bolt the shock mount to the outside of the 3/16" thick tubing, you either need to open up the holes on the back side so you can run the lock nut in to the back side of the outer wall (I believe that single wall 3/16" thick steel would support the shock function). The back side would just have larger holes. You may have to remove the grille should you ever need access to the nuts.

If you are bolting through both sides of the tubing, in order to keep the tubing from crushing, you are going to need some sort of spacer over the bolts with a heavy duty washer under the nut. I believe that if you just pass the bolts through the tubing for the shock/light mount, the shock function will keep pulling the inside tubing inward and the bolts will always be loose. The nut, washer, and spacers might create clearance issues with the grille.

I don't know how you would put a bung on the inside of the tubing without cutting a piece out of the inside (or outside) wall, but that would work just like the nut against the inside of the tubing wall. that would not interfere with the grille clearance.

Another option might be a threaded insert from the back side of the tubing, but I don't know how that would effect the clearance of the grille shell.

Since the frame is unfinished at this point, another option might be to cut a part of of the outer wall, then drill your holes through a 1/4" plate with the nuts or bungs welded on the inside that match up with mounting bracket for the shock/light holder, and weld the 1/4" piece onto the outside of the frame rail tubing. If that 1/4" plate reached both the top and the bottom of the side of the tubing, it would support the shock action easily enough. To me, this would be the best option, after enlarging the holes in the back side and running the nuts up against the outer wall of the tubing.

The headlight will likely not be the issue, but the shocks will cause a load on the setup.

 

[Couper]

If you intend to bolt the shock mount to the outside of the 3/16" thick tubing, you either need to open up the holes on the back side so you can run the lock nut in to the back side of the outer wall (I believe that single wall 3/16" thick steel would support the shock function). The back side would just have larger holes. You may have to remove the grille should you ever need access to the nuts.

If you are bolting through both sides of the tubing, in order to keep the tubing from crushing, you are going to need some sort of spacer over the bolts with a heavy duty washer under the nut. I believe that if you just pass the bolts through the tubing for the shock/light mount, the shock function will keep pulling the inside tubing inward and the bolts will always be loose. The nut, washer, and spacers might create clearance issues with the grille.

I don't know how you would put a bung on the inside of the tubing without cutting a piece out of the inside (or outside) wall, but that would work just like the nut against the inside of the tubing wall. that would not interfere with the grille clearance.

Another option might be a threaded insert from the back side of the tubing, but I don't know how that would effect the clearance of the grille shell.

Since the frame is unfinished at this point, another option might be to cut a part of of the outer wall, then drill your holes through a 1/4" plate with the nuts or bungs welded on the inside that match up with mounting bracket for the shock/light holder, and weld the 1/4" piece onto the outside of the frame rail tubing. If that 1/4" plate reached both the top and the bottom of the side of the tubing, it would support the shock action easily enough. To me, this would be the best option, after enlarging the holes in the back side and running the nuts up against the outer wall of the tubing.

The headlight will likely not be the issue, but the shocks will cause a load on the setup.

Hi Gene,

Thanks for your ideas. The holes are more to the top and bottom of the tube than the center so I guess that will help some. I've included a picture of the bolt holes.

The issue at the inside of the frame is the interference with the lower grill bar section. The lower section on the driver side is loose to allow the grill to slide onto the frame horns which are narrower at the front. Any inside nuts / washers will interfere with the flat edge at the end of the bars. I'll be making a brace to secure that once the grill is in place. I may slide the grill shell back on to take another look.

I could cut into the side of the tube and slide a piece of 1/4" flat as an anti
crush web, or I could also cut a slit into the top or bottom and slide a piece of 1/4" plate inside the tube against the outside wall, then weld up the slot. That would still require the larger holes on the inside of the frame to tighten the nuts
Then I'd have 3/16 plus 1/4.

Couple pics of the bolt holes and that lower grill section also a shot of how far the shock mount sticks out 1 3/4" so not much leverage

 

[Couper]

Haven't done anything on that shock / headlight mount yet.... too busy recouping from the surgery but did get out there last couple days to do some imagineering and measuring. Felt good, the ole noggin is kicking back up.

Couple things.... I ordered some fuel line...32' ss braided PTFE, fittings, filter, regulator, bunch of fittings, jaw blocks for the vise to tighten the fuel AN8 fittings ect. I almost had a bowel movement.....$1200.00 90 degree fitting I need from the fuel cell was AN to ORB.... 109.00 Gee Wiz

The fuel cell I have is an Aeromotive Stealth 340 https://aeromotiveinc.com/product/340-stealth-fuel-cell-20-gallon/ And the guy at the factory where I purchased the Cell months ago, and the supplies today said that the pump my be too high capacity for me. Said that a lot of fuel will be returning to the cell and that might cause the pump to go prematurely. So we'll see, I'll run it and if trouble have to switch it out. They don't make anything smaller but the are available. He mentioned a 200 liter per minute pump.

I also ordered the torque converter which I may have mentioned....Hughes 22-25L https://www.summitracing.com/parts/hup-22-25l I ordered it directly from Hughes cause the guy helped me size it....same price as summit.

Tomorrow I have to order wires & a coil from hothead.

 

[Couper]

Battery Box

Built a rear mounted battery box today. I'll be accessed by lifting the hinged oak bed floor insert section up.

 

[dutch]

nice! you may need one with a go-handle...

 

[DozerII]

Looks great coup. [P[P

 

[Old Iron]

I like it

 

[Couper]

nice! you may need one with a go-handle...

Thanks! Would that be a lifting handle on the battery dutch? If so yes...I set this in with 2 vise grips. Actually that's not the battery I'm going to use. It's 6 5/8 wide and the standard group 24 is 6 13/16 so she'll fit snug.

 

[Couper]

Thanks Dozer & OI!