Front Suspension Compete

After a long night working in the shop I got the front end suspension completed. The first step was to build mounting points for the Fox 2.0 Air Shocks. I clamped on a piece of angle iron to find the angle and length the tubing needs to be to reach out to the shock.

 

I then cut and notched tubing to create a triangle support for the shocks and welded them in place parrellel to the frame rails.

 

 

After getting the basic triangles on I added an X-support, cutting and notching the tubes, between them to prevent them from being pushed and bent inside. I didnt place the X-support all the way to the point of the triangles to leave space for the shock mounting brackets.

 

 

I then welded on the univeral shock mounts from Poly performance with a mock up shock I made. I put them on the inside to get a more ideal angle for the shocks and make sure they would clear the tires when I put them on.







 

 

After that I bolted on the Fox 2.0 Air Shocks. Here is a picture of what the whole thing looks like currently.

 

 

 

 



Rear Suspension Completed

 Today I have completed the rear suspension. The Fox Air Shocks 2.0 with 12 inches of travel came in from Offroad Warehouse along with the shock mounting brackets from Poly Performance. In the two pictures below I have mounted the brackets to where the leaf springs used to go on the rear end and to a 3/16 inch thick plate on the back of the frame.

Here is what the back looked like after all four shock mounting brackets were mounted on.

I then took two of the Fox 2.0 Air Shocks and bolted them into the brackets with 1/2 inch bolts. The shocks came pre-charged so the back of the buggy currently supports its own weight now but there is still tuning of the shocks that needs to be done to improve the ride quality. Here's a picture with the shocks bolted in.

Front End Modification

Here is the Chevy 10 bolt front end I got, as shown in an earlier post. It needed some modifications done to it to accommodate the four link suspension and to lighten it up as the offroad buggy I am making is only going to be 2 wheel drive so the heavy 10 bolt differential won't be needed.  

The first thing I did was weld the front end to a jig made from some heavy steel tubing and angle iron and then cut out the differential. I made the jig first and welded it to the front end so when the differential fell away and the axle was in 2 pieces the alignment would not get messed up.

Then I took some thick steel tubing with a 3 inch inner diameter and placed it were the differential used to be and welded it to both sides of the axle.

After getting the front end back in one piece I made 8 brackets that will hold the four link suspension, 4 go on the front end and 4 on the frame. The brackets have 3/4 inch holes which will fit the four link rod ends I ordered from QS Components. (link on right side of page)

To mount the brackets I cut some thick rectangular steel tubing and 45 degree supports and welded them onto the axle in the locations specified by the SolidWorks model I made up for the front 4 link suspension. Then I welded the brackets I made onto the steel tubing at 30 degree angles.

New Suspension Parts

I have finally found the perfect shock, the Fox Racing 2.0 Non-Coilover Air Shock with 12 inches of travel. This "Air Shock" doesn't require a coilover spring but instead utilizes high pressure nitrogen that fills the shock and acts as a shock absorber. This type of shock is cheap, lightwieght, condensed, and tunable. A new shock from offroadwarehouse.com (link on the right) is just $211 for a total of around $850, a much lower cost than any new coilover shock you wil find. Also without the heavy coilover spring the Fox Air Shock provides a very lightwieght option that also takes up much less space as a normal coilover. Another benifit to these shocks is that they are very easy to tune, all you have to do is change the pressure of nitrogen inside the shock.

I also ordered some limit straps and bump stops for the suspension to protect the shock from being pulled apart when the buggy gets air and the rear and front end drop or getting smashed when the suspension bottoms out. The limit straps are Synergy Suspension and are very high quality, I definitely recommend them for only $25 each and can be ordered in just about any length you specify. The bump stops are from Daystar and just simple cone shaped ones with bolts integrated into them. They are very cheap, just $10 for a pair and perfectly functional. Both of these other parts I ordered from Poly Performance (link on right)

New Front End

I just purchased a new front end (well new to me) off of Portland Craigslist for a whopping $50. It came out of an old Chevy Blazer and is a 1/2 ton, 10 bolt. It's has disc brakes and a steering rod and damper that came with it. Yes, it is a little bit rusty but with some resurfacing to the rotors and some new calipers it should turn out to be a good, functional front end. Also since I am not going to make this buggy four wheel drive I am thinking of cutting out the differential and just weld a tube across where it used to be to allow for more clearance between the frame and axle and also to just lighten the front end.

What do you think about cutting out the differential, will it work? Leave a comment.

Shortened Frame

I recently cut down the front of the frame from 55 inches all the way down to 33 inches. The new modification still provides enough room for the engine to fit while being able to accomidate a wheelbase that will end up being 22 inches shorter than the original frame. A shorter wheelbase will help me reach my performance goals by giving the tube buggy better handling and just being lighter, shorter, and overall easier to maneuver. I also welded a solid plate on the front to provide mounting points for the four link suspension that I will be fabricating soon.

Rear Four Link Suspension Complete

I have finally completed the rear four link suspension. Before I started building it I designed what the dimensions of it were going to be in the SolidWorks program. I designed a system that would be relatively easy to build and yet provide me with enough movement for the 12 inches of travel I am going to have. Here is a picture of what the design I made up...

(Picture coming soon)

Next, I built up the brackets that the trailing arms were going to attach to using steel tabs I purchased from Poly Performance (link on the right) to speed up fabrication.

I then welded thick, strong steel bars on the back of the frame to provide mounting points for the brackets and also made mounting points on the chevy rear end to put the brackets on.

I then made the trailing arms out of 1 1/4 inch by .120 round tubing following the dimensions of the SolidWorks model and welded in the bungs from the four link rod end kit I bought from QS Components (link on the right) putting one left hand and one right hand bung onto either side to make for easy length adjustment.

Finally I screwed in the four link rod ends to the trailing arm and bolted the four into the brackets on the frame and rear end. Here's how it turned out.

Engine and Rear End Mounting

I just wanted to update everyone on how the build was coming so far, time has been limited lately but progress has been made. Since last time I got the transmission mounted to the Chevy 350 engine and started mounting it in the frame, Ive got the front mount made and now I just need to made a mount for the back of the engine. Here's a picture of the front mount, it's probably the simplest design there is but it works great, I just need to cut off the extra on the two ends now.

I also got a rear end out of an old 1980 chevy pickup and put a set of wheels and 34" tires on it. I then set it up behind the frame to take some measurements and I am now designing the 4-link suspension that I will use to attach it to the frame. There's more on the rear end and drivetrain under the "Drivetrain" tab near the top of the page.

I also started the engine up for the first time, it runs but will need some tuning to get it exactly how I want it, I'll post a video of it running soon.

Engine Update

Here's a quick update on how the Chevy 350 is coming, there's more detailed info on the "Engine" page on the top menu bar. After give the engine a good cleaning and taking a wire brush to all the remaining paint, I tapped up all the place's I didn't want paint to get along with putting the old valve covers on to protect the valves from overspray. Then, using Dupli-Color engine primer, I doused the engine with 3 coats of gray primer.

After letting the primer set up for around 15 minutes, I put on 3 coat's of Dupli-Color Chevy Orange engine enamel in 10 minute intervals. After the paint dries and is given time to properly cure (a couple days) it'll be time to start reassembling the engine and see how she runs.

New Engine Parts

Today I ordered and picked up some parts for the new engine. From craigslist I got a Edelbrock Performer intake manifold that is in next to new condition that I pick up for just $50 along with a Edelbrock 650cfm carburetor that was just rebuilt and also in very nice condition for $80. Both very good prices. I also ordered a new fuel pump, AC Delco spark plugs, and gaskets from Jeg's (Check the link on the right hand side of the page). Those parts along with the distributor I purchased for the other engine should get this Chevy 350 going good.

New update's of how the rest of the engine is coming along are up on the "Engine" page along the top bar. Let me know what do you think about this carb and intake? Leave a comment.