Rod's 84 BabyBajaF100

[AussieRod]

The door locking went in without a hitch, the new radio and speakers sound great, and now I can wind up my window without swearing and having to pull it up at the same time.
LH door view:

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Radio holder fitted up:

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Not sure how the doors are in US trucks, but these, while rust free thank god, are really flimsy. If I got hit in the side in a traffic accident, I will be a goner. Emailed John at Autofab too, about the lead time for all the fiberglass... hopfully I can order that next week. Once it arrives, I will tackle the bodywork and get her looking spiffy, then, its on to the suspension and 4WD conversion. Oh, and get this, I cant buy new wheels for it here anymore. Any wheel in 5 on 5.5" has to be specially made up.
I will have to keep my eyes open on Ebay and Craigs to see what I can find. Cheers.

[AussieRod]

On another note, my brother and I were driving past my "test" track yesterday, and he commented that it was a pity we couldnt try it (being 2WD and all). I looked over and smiled and did a hard right and powered away down this rough potholed track at high speed. It is roughly 2 miles of undulating washed away hard pack with dips, a couple of jumps and a culvert along with some deep waterlogged areas. A quarter of a mile from the end, I decided not to risk getting stuck in a very wet, soft area and turned back, at even higher speed. In 3rd gear at peak revs with 4.10 gears, the speedo was just over 100 km/h (about 65 m/p/h) I ripped across a blind rise, the RH side a foot off the ground, down a long straight section thru a narrow corridor of brush and up and over the 2 jumps, thru the culvert dragging the hitch bar on exit and back to the main road. At the main road, we stopped. My brother just looked at me and let out the breath he was holding. I was absolutely amazed, as the fastest I had ever gone down that trail was 75 mph in a 360 AMC powered race prepped FSJ with by pass shocks all round and TTB front end, and I am no slouch in the dirt. The F100 only has stock ride height, Monroe GT Magnum shocks on all corners (from PO) and all stock suspension, springs, factory rear sway bar, etc. It rode the rough trail extremely well, even over the jumps getting 3 ft of air over each one and landing without bottoming out and at no time did it feel like it wanted to get out of control. I attribute the front end control a little to the light alloy headed six in the front and the increase in wheelbase over a Bronco, not overloading the front suspension, but I cant wait to try again with the full on long travel race suspension installed and a V8 engine and auto! How I wish I had this thing down in Baja! It definately needs power steering, though

[yikes]

Haha! Right on Rod! You need to get a Go Pro for those little adventures. Just point it toward the passenger.

[AussieRod]

This evening coming home from work, I noticed the rear end didnt seem to want to track right, and was bouncing more than usual. A close inspection found this:

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Shackle bushings are stuffed, bolts have worn into spring eyes too:

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Chassis hangers have been overtightened and are now useless, I will have to replace them:

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[AussieRod]

Front spring bushes and hangers are toast, too:

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At some time in the past, the springs have been re-done, with 2 extra leaves. The problem being the sharp front edge of the new second leaf has cut into the radius of the spring eye, so the main leaves are also RS.
Looks like my fiberglass is going to have to wait now, I will have to fast forward the suspension rebuild.

On a brighter note, check out how the aussie steering is positioned compared to the beam pivots:

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Less bump steer here

[yikes]

Wow! Less is right. That's awesome. Here's one for right hand drive!

[SteveG]

Someone needs to build a dual steering box, crossover steering for the TTB!

[AussieRod]

Someone needs to build a dual steering box, crossover steering for the TTB!

One could build an idler arm to replicate the steering box on the pass side, then reverse the linkage. That would do it.

Finally caught up with my local authorised vehicle engineer today and gained some info on approved modifications. Some of it isnt good, but most I can get around by being creative. Here is some of the rules pertaining to what I plan to do with the F100:

Maximum legal lift: 3" (75mm) from factory ride height.
Max legal tyre dia: 33".
Max legal track increase: 2" (50mm).
Max legal wheel width increase (from widest factory wheel): 1" (25mm).
Max legal wheel dia increase: 1" (25mm) over largest factory wheel diameter.
No solid suspension bushes (heim joints, monoballs, etc).
DEFINATELY NO heim joints in steering or suspension, regardless that they are usually stronger than a normal tierod end.
Welded steering components must be full pen welded and have a Xray or other NDT certificate to prove integrity.
Any suspension components modified by welding, etc. must be engineer approved and a sample submitted for destructive testing to prove suitability.
Roll over protection for road use vehicles is strictly regulated and MUST conform to the registration body's requirements, which varies state by state.
Coil-overs with heim ends are a NO-NO! (Same goes for shocks)
Yadda yadda yadda, it goes on and on. I wish I was living in the US, as I wouldnt need to worry so much about all this shit. The cops are getting smarter too, now they have a data base to work with to verify any measurements at a roadside check. Its SO hard here to do even half the things you guys can do
BUT, I will endevour to persevere.
EDIT.
We have roadworthy inspections, required when buying or selling..... I need to comply to transfer the truck over to me, THEN I can go to town. Keep in mind, this rules are the LEGAL parameters, it doesnt mean I have to follow them, just need to deal with the cops when I have a road side check and they look too closely

[hobbyturnedobsession]

Pack your wife and bags and move out here Rod!!!!!!!!!

[philofab]

Register it in the US?

[ChaseTruck754]

Damn - I guess I will quit bitching about our smog nazis - at least we don't have to deal with that BS - yet...

[SteveG]

Someone needs to build a dual steering box, crossover steering for the TTB!

One could build an idler arm to replicate the steering box on the pass side, then reverse the linkage. That would do it.

The double gear box was a joke. A single swinger/idler and long tie rods is the way to go....

[AussieRod]

Pack your wife and bags and move out here Rod!!!!!!!!!

WHAT???? bring her with me?

[hobbyturnedobsession]

Ok ok ok I was being nice. Get your a$$ out here and build a truck!

[AussieRod]

Someone needs to build a dual steering box, crossover steering for the TTB!

One could build an idler arm to replicate the steering box on the pass side, then reverse the linkage. That would do it.

The double gear box was a joke. A single swinger/idler and long tie rods is the way to go....

I know. The funny thing is, all the single swingers I have seen are going the wrong way. They should swing WITH the pitman arm, left to right, not up and down. As the swinger travels, the pivot point will rise and fall, thus changing the angle AND height of the tierod pivot end relative to the knuckle and CREATING bumpsteer, the very thing it is supposed to eliminate, unlike the pitman arm side, which does not rise or fall, it follows the knuckle as it turns, the pivot height staying constant. I know many fabbers build them this way, but if you want the steering swinger to work with the existing steering box, shouldnt the swinger follow the movement of the pitman arm, not work in a completely different arc? Just my 2 cents, feel free to convince me otherwise.

[AussieRod]

Ok ok ok I was being nice. Get your a$$ out here and build a truck!

Thats been on my mind a lot since I got back. The only reason I said that is because while she is a good woman, when it comes to this kind of hobby, she would be a real killjoy. If it isnt what SHE likes or wants, she wants no part of it, nor could I spend any money on it unless I could justify it. Running through Baja at any speed would be terrifying to her, so thats out.

[AussieRod]

Haha! Right on Rod! You need to get a Go Pro for those little adventures. Just point it toward the passenger.

Workin' on it!

[AussieRod]

Register it in the US?

I think BUILD one in the US is a better idea

[hobbyturnedobsession]

Then come on out Rod!!! We could use another fellow like yourself out here!

[AussieRod]

Today (Saturday) I decided to modify the hitch. After removing the heavy-ass factory bumper it was plain to see why the thing dragged at any opportunity. It took some effort with the rattle gun and WD40 and lots of swearing to get all 6 bolts off and land the thing on the ground. I then cut off the mounting brackets and removed the drop plates. I re-installed the mounts and clamped the new riser plates on then tacked the hitch tube back into place 5" higher than before:

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Note the difference in height with the old drop plate clamped on for comparison:

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When I was satisfied it cleared everything, I welded it up on the truck, then removed it to finish the welding. I'm not fussed about painting it too good right now, as it will get sandblasted with the back and front bumpers once I make them up. The finished result:

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My little MIG welder, sitting in its outdoor trolley

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This thing is fantastic, I can weld body panels perfectly or 5/8" plate without a problem. It was the only welder I could buy in the 250 amp class that could do 40% duty cycle @ 250A. All the others were 15% or less. I cut out my bumper mounts on the cutting table at work yesterday... next weeks lunch times will be spent bending up the tubes I want and I will fit and weld them up at home.