TJ: Morgs' Build-up

[MR EXTREME JEEP]

I cant fit a trailor with a spare on. And I have the orfab carrier thats really high (no visibility) I guess the 38" tyre has something to do with that.
HAve you checked your rear shock clearance in relation to the lower coil bucket? Dont want to damage your Ranchos. You might find they bind a little. Solution for me was to trim of an inch or so of the back of the bucket.
Good work on the fab stuff btw.

[Oldboy]

Morgs,

Did you design the side protection in Autocad/Inventor?
If so, any chance of you sharing the drawing?

[Morgs]

CJ6np435 and Mr Extreme Jeep. I haven't checked if a trailer will definately fit. If it doesn't I'll be absolutely pissed and will of course blame it on the trailer coupling. I bought a tongue that comes out of the reciever and drops down. The tow ball sits on that and I expect that I will be able to lower the trailer on to the tow ball with a few centremeters to spare under the tyre. I had figured that worst case scenario I could open the swing out and sit the trailer on and then close the swing out. I'll check things and let you know.

I also haven't checked the rear shock clearance. I'm heading to Janowen this weekend for the first serious run since the build. When my head was under there while the vehicle was on the ground all looked good. Maybe I'll have to take a grinder just in case and hope that there is power nearby.

I'll post some pics when I get back of flex, clearance etc and anything I damage.


Oldboy:
The side protection was not designed with any programs, just a bit of alcohol and thoughts being bounced off a good mate. I'll get some measurements when I get home and post them. Essentially, the build process went as follows:
Noting the position of the holes in the chassis rail I cut the 6mm thick plate with a grinder. Then I cut and welded the end caps on to the longest peice of box section. I sat that under the sill and I measured the distance of the two peices of box section that are perdendicular to the chassis rail that are welded to the peices of plate. I first welded these to the longest section of box and then trimmed them until the sill protector sat the right distance under the sill. I then bent up the tubular step and welded that where it looked good. Finally, I welded the two box peices of pipe to the 6mm plate that was bolted to the chassis. If you are going to get it powder coated don't forget to leave breather holes drilled into each join. So long as the last bit of welding is to the plates where the side protection bolts to the chassis rail it is fairly simple to ensure everything sits square and proportionate.

[Shauny B]

yes, please do share the measurements morg i'll try to give it a go as well, and see how they turn out hopefully they will look something like yours after im done.

[Oldboy]

Thanks for the info Morgs!

They've turned out great for something done without the aid of CAD software.

[Morgs]

Something tells me I should have put the tow bar in before welding the spare wheel bracket to the swing out Looks like I will either be getting a tongue that drops lower or I will cut off and re-weld the bracket for the spare a little higher. I have 70mm clearance above the top of the tow ball until the base of the spare tyre so some may fit. I could also grab a new receiver that sits an inch further back without compromising strength. I really want to keep the rear spare as low as possible so I might drop around to a few places and check differing clearances before getting the grinder out. At the end of the day I only want to be able to tow a camper trailer to Jambo and am sure that I could find a trailer with the right coupling (i.e. with the release handle horizontal as opposed to vertical). The predominant use I expect of the receiver is to tow JK's out

In regards to the side protection I have drawn a few measurements on the photo of the passenger side step. Hope these help. I have also attached a photo of the drivers side step showing the angles coming from the flairs which I tried to line up with the step to make it look more custom then backyard. The main box section is 50 x 50. The box welded to that is 40 x 40 but of the same wall thickness (see first post). The different sizes were to get stronger welds for when I sit it on a rock someday.

Other things accomplished this weekend include wiring a switch to disconnect the negative (black wire behind fuse 4) of the door chime. I can now drive without doors with the flick of a switch or leave the keys in without the beeps. Also finally, wired up the 2 rear 55w reversing lights for reversing at night. Both switches were wired under the air con controls in the spaces available. Just two left available for lockers when I get around to paying off the last set of purchases.

[Morgs]

Mr Extreme Jeep - I really owe you one for the tip as to checking the rear shock clearance on the lower spring bucket. Just checked it and it is too close for comfort and I can see from driving it on road that it has just started to touch the shock (less than 1mm dent on each). I will defantely get the grinder onto that before Friday night. You just saved me $$$ on replacement shocks that would have been totalled with my first flex off road. Much appreciated.