Mr. Green's Surgery

[dr.dirty]

Looking good Mike!

[daniel_buck]

The worry that I have is that the rub is at ride height. With flex, it will only get worse. It is probably better to try to change it now in my opinion. My options are somewhat limited unless I go to a very radical change.

Ah, right.

[Trailabite]

You could use wheel spacers and move your wheels out an 1" or so.

[dirtman13]

What offset do you go with. That's why I went with a deeper dish rim.

[Tumbleweed13]

The worry that I have is that the rub is at ride height. With flex, it will only get worse. It is probably better to try to change it now in my opinion. My options are somewhat limited unless I go to a very radical change.

You are correct. Change it now. I have this problem with my buggy. Turning sucks, especially in tight spots. It will drive you crazy very quickly.
:bonk:

[aw12345]

Mike, by the look of things the tire rubbing the frame will be more of an issue that rubbing the control arm. Did you make the trackbar yet? So you can see how things behave?

[Mike]

What offset do you go with. That's why I went with a deeper dish rim.

I have a 4" back space. It just barely touches, so moving the mounts a little should help if not solve the issue.

Mike, by the look of things the tire rubbing the frame will be more of an issue that rubbing the control arm. Did you make the trackbar yet? So you can see how things behave?

Must be an optical illusion for the frame, it is about 4" away from the tire in the photo. The knuckle is at the stop at this point.

I do need to get the track bar in place asap. For this check, I have centered the axle to the centerline of the Jeep and have all components at ride height. This should be a fair assessment without the track bar attached shouldn't it? Is there a better way to check?

[aw12345]

The axle moves sideways some, that's why you you make the trackbar and draglink the same length, moves back and forth a bit too. So you really want to flex it with everything in place

[Mike]

The axle moves sideways some, that's why you you make the trackbar and draglink the same length, moves back and forth a bit too. So you really want to flex it with everything in place

Got it. So, I am going to get the parts that I need to put these together before I change anything. I need to get the new front frame designed and tacked in to be able to test all the moving pieces, so I will work on that while I wait for the parts to arrive.

Also, it dawned on me that the makeshift tie rod I am using has a lot of play in it. So when I took all of the toe-out away from the position of the knuckles, the tire at the stop doesn't hit the LCA. It actually has a fair amount of clearance:


Regardless, it just goes to show that I can't trust the play in the rudimentary stuff that I am using. Time to get the right stuff.

[aw12345]

Trackbar first then start thinking about location of the coilovers, then finish frame since it will determine location of your steering box, which ties in with how high you can locate the tierod, how well it clears the trackbar. The real fun is beginning bud, this is the best part for sure. Butch did a nice job on the steering arms

[Mike]

Trackbar first then start thinking about location of the coilovers, then finish frame since it will determine location of your steering box, which ties in with how high you can locate the tierod, how well it clears the trackbar. The real fun is beginning bud, this is the best part for sure. Butch did a nice job on the steering arms

Wow! You are so inside my head right now.
I have been scratching my noggin' trying to figure out where to start on the front.

Based on your advice, I need to focus on the trackbar first. I think that I may have cut my frame too far back to be able to attach a frame mount.

Any chance of talking you into coming by sometime to take a look and guide me a bit?

[aw12345]

Wow! You are so inside my head right now.
I have been scratching my noggin' trying to figure out where to start on the front.

Based on your advice, I need to focus on the trackbar first. I think that I may have cut my frame too far back to be able to attach a frame mount.

Any chance of talking you into coming by sometime to take a look and guide me a bit?

I could do that, give me a good time in the evening. You are going to want to tack stuff together, just so you can flex, stuff and droop the axle to get all the clearances worked out.

I started with this, hokey as heck, but gave me a good idea what had to go where.

[Mike]

Thanks Art. These pics definitely help. Taking the weekend off and going to see my Mom in Georgia was a good thing. It cleared the loose ends out of my thoughts and I think that I have a better direction now.

Since I am going from the notched section of the 2.5" x 4" front frame into a 1/4" walled 2" x 3" tube, the match up will require some creativity. I think that I have it worked out though.

I am going to experiment with where the steering box will need to be in relation to the axle. That will determine the length of the extension of the frame in front of the grill. The pics really help on how to place the box and mount. Thanks!

[aw12345]

You're welcome buddy

[Mike]

Well I got new toys to work with in the last few days:


I am going to try to get some DOM for the steering on Friday or Saturday. I'd like to squeeze it in Friday so I can work all day Saturday, but it will depend on the work schedule.

I started modifying the frame to neck down to the 2"x3" tube that I will add to the front frame. The end shape that I had to start with looked like this:


I took some chunks out to allow the frame to be folded in to the new dimensions:


I am having some trouble with the extra curve in the bottom piece on this one, but I think I can get it cooperate tonight. The other side folded in nicely and fits to the new dimensions well: