Stopping is Important, but This Update Can't Steer You Wrong!

Wow, can you believe it has been nearly 3 months since I last updated?  I am very sorry for that.  Rest assured, things have been happening.  From attending SEMA to Randy getting married (another huge congratulations to him and his new wife), and then reaching Thanksgiving and Christmas and all the crazy things that happen at this time of year, the months have just flown by.

I was very excited when I got visual Christmas presents from Randy. He sent pictures of the latest work, he has been working on steering.

Have you ever bought or built a steering setup from scratch?  I never imagined the amount of calculations and details to put together a steering setup.

Do you want power steering? Hydraulic assist? Complete hydraulic?
Where will the steering box go? (I didn't have to work on this one).
What about your steering wheel? Shape? Size? Depth? Cover? Markings? Horn Button? Quick disconnect?
Do you want the entire wheel to have some adjustable features? Tilt? Telescoping?

These are just some of the questions I had to figure out in the past weeks and get answers to Randy at Extreme Overkill Fabrication so he could move forward.
After they all were answered, parts were ordered.

The original steering wheel from the 1985 4Runner was not going to work, but I wanted to keep with the original look as much as possible.  So I wanted a 3-spoke wheel with a medium depth, but not a deep dish.

Next was size and texture.  Have you ever actually thought about how big your steering wheel is?  Me either.
After a ton of online reading, thinking about how I grip the steering wheel, and actually measuring both my vehicles at home, I had more of an idea.
I selected a Grant Steering Wheel that will work well for the build and budget.  The cover is a fairly thick wrap for my big hands; but not too thick, so even small handed drivers will be able to control the wheel. I also opted for the center stripe (yellow of course).  This is usually a racing feature, but will be a huge help for knowing when the tires are aimed straight down the trail.

Finally, I considered the attachment.  Keeping in mind my build goal to allow many people to drive The Spike, I wanted a tilt wheel with quick disconnect to allow easier entry and exit from the buggy.

Pair all that with the hydraulic assist we have planed, and we had something to go on. Randy ordered  all the required mounting hardware and steering shaft.

Check out these pictures as Randy has assembled a great setup to keep the tires going where the driver points them.  Thanks Randy for the awesome work.

 

If you look close in this picture, you can see the new exhaust manifold and down tubes and how tight it was to fit between the engine and the frame.

Here is the steering box mounted to the frame rail.

 A huge thank you goes out again to Randy at Extreme Overkill Fabrication.  I know you have been busy with the shop and other things in life this winter, but you are still pushing forward and I appreciate it.


Follow my build on C4x4 Online Magazine, www.c4x4.com/Projects/Spike/Spike.html

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Field Trip!

 It's time for a field trip! 

I need to say a HUGE thank you to Joe Devine of Devine Diesel & Offroad (www.devinediesel.com) for use of the monster lift in the shop this past week.  When you need to hold the chassis level, and yet flex the rig out to check for clearances, that takes a lot of space and Joe allowed us to use that space.  Thanks Joe!


So Randy loaded up The Spike and headed for the home of Devine Diesel and Offroad this week in order to some clearance and flex testing.  The goal?  First was to set the final height of the chassis where it will clear the tires and full movement of the suspension. Second, to verify clearances of all components below the frame when the suspension was moved through it's axis.

Keep in mind, these tests are not to articulate the vehicle to it's maximum, but to verify clearances.  The articulation was all completed while the chassis and frame were kept level and stable. Here are the pictures.

First, The Spike was put on dollies to allow side-to-side movement to center the chassis as needed.  Then the monster lift was used to raise the chassis and position it in the desired height.

Now with things positioned where we think they will be finished, we replace the shock braces with the coil-overs and get to flexing.  Check it out.

 

 

 

 

After the day in the Devine shop was completed, it was back on the trailer and back to Randy's shop.  Thanks again Joe for the help and facility.

More build to come, so I appreciate any comments and feedback.  God Bless you all.


Follow my build on C4x4 Online Magazine, www.c4x4.com/Projects/Spike/Spike.html
Be sure to like and follow my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ProjecttheSpike/

#ExtremeOverkillFabrication #EOF #DevineDiesel #MayhemMetalWorks #DakotaDigital #VHX1023 #RenoOffRoad #ROR #BFGKrawlers #BFG #RedLabel #RacelineBeadlock #Powdercoat #DevineDeisel #ProjecttheSpike #UCORA #UnitedChristianOffRoadAlliance #OffRoadSolutions #DakotaDigital #LowRangeOffRoad #C4x4 #RADesignProducts #PRPSeats #ExtremeOverkillFab #YukonGear #RandysRingandPinion #FormulaToy #FormulaToy4Seat #Formula4 #HendrixMotorsports #HendrixChassis #Hendrix

When the build seems to slow to a Crawl, pun intended

Okay, I know, it was a bad joke, but hey, Randy from Extreme Overkill Fabrication has been working a lot on this rig.  So much in fact, that he has been a bit behind in the updates. 
No worries, getting done is the priority number 1.

So let's take a look at some of the progress.  When we last heard about the build, the rear add-on cross member was being located and set in place.  Well, now that the frame is help together, the old factory cross member can be removed and the frame can be appropriately notched to clear the King coil-overs.

 The next step is to position and tack in the coil-over mount and cut the notch.  Then a little clean up and the notch design is complete.  It will be cleaned up more before paint.

A quick placement of the wheels and tires before the replacement IFS hubs are installed shows just how much the extra space is needed.  Without the IFS hubs, the wheels rub on the brake caliper and are extremely close to the shock.

Can you tell the difference?  The photo above is without the IFS hubs, the photo below is with the IFS hubs. 

There are also bars in place of the shocks to see height, but you can celebrate with me, The Spike is resting on it's own tires and wheels and fully supporting itself.  The steel shock place holders are simply to keep the expensive parts protected and see the height before we buy the springs to go on the coil-overs.

Here is a quick shot of the front torn back apart when the IFS hubs were installed.

So that's it for now.  Keep checking back to read all the updates and if you have any products you want to see added to this rig, I am always looking for sponsorship and new products.  A huge shout out to all my existing project partners, you guys make this build possible!

Follow my build on C4x4 Online Magazine, www.c4x4.com/Projects/Spike/Spike.html
Be sure to like and follow my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ProjecttheSpike/

#ExtremeOverkillFabrication #EOF #MayhemMetalWorks #DakotaDigital #VHX1023 #RenoOffRoad #ROR #BFGKrawlers #BFG #RedLabel #RacelineBeadlock #Powdercoat #DevineDeisel #ProjecttheSpike #UCORA #UnitedChristianOffRoadAlliance #OffRoadSolutions #DakotaDigital #LowRangeOffRoad #C4x4 #RADesignProducts #PRPSeats #ExtremeOverkillFab #YukonGear #RandysRingandPinion #FormulaToy #FormulaToy4Seat #Formula4 #HendrixMotorsports #HendrixChassis #Hendrix

Rear Cross Member Setup

Summer is upon us with the longest day of the year just a few days away.  Today, it's my birthday!  No, seriously. So what better than to get an update on the build. 

Randy at Extreme Overkill has been putting together the suspension and building the mounts for those beautiful coil over shocks that are on hand.  Here are some shots of the rear cross member replacement.

Out with the old

Where'd WHO go?!?

Measure twice, cut once.  Except in this case, cut it twice!  You will need 2.

Check out these awesome shock brackets Randy sourced!  Awesome! And strong!

Tacked and ready

Follow my build on C4x4 Online Magazine, www.c4x4.com/Projects/Spike/Spike.html
Be sure to like and follow my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ProjecttheSpike/

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Progress, and Tons more pictures!

This update is going to be a little more picture heavy and text light.  Extreme Overkill Fabrication has been busy on everything from the frame down, and a bit above the rails as well.

• The suspension links are tack welded and installed.
• The front coil mounts are tacked in.
• The new rear cross member and rear coil-over mount notch are in progress and being designed.
• The front and rear axle armor is all trimmed to fit. 
• He is building weight support rods to take the place of the coil-over. This is so The Spike can be cycled on the lift to check clearances, determine if all mounts are correct, and get the chassis lift height finalized.

 

 

 

Also in the near future, mounting the steering box. I picked up the Low Range Off-Road frame bracket for the steering box, but with no instructions, we need to do some research to get it right.

 

 

 

 

 

On the parts list, the front hubs have arrived and upgraded set of brake rotors are also in hand. We are still needing calipers, if anyone wants to sponsor a good set of those. 

Follow my build on C4x4 Online Magazine, www.c4x4.com/Projects/Spike/Spike.html

Be sure to like and follow my Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ProjecttheSpike/

#ExtremeOverkillFabrication #EOF #MayhemMetalWorks #DakotaDigital #VHX1023 #RenoOffRoad #ROR #BFGKrawlers #BFG #RedLabel #RacelineBeadlock #Powdercoat #DevineDeisel #ProjecttheSpike #UCORA #UnitedChristianOffRoadAlliance #OffRoadSolutions #DakotaDigital #LowRangeOffRoad #C4x4 #RADesignProducts #PRPSeats #ExtremeOverkillFab #YukonGear #RandysRingandPinion #FormulaToy #FormulaToy4Seat #Formula4 #HendrixMotorsports #HendrixChassis #Hendrix