Nicely done Greg! Great way to get more use out of existing tools.
CK5
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'72 K5 - Greg's @MightAsWellK5 Build
- Thread starter Greg72
- Start date
This is the build description. I will improve this later. (GB)
A1971Blazer
1/2 ton status
Now, you may need to change the name of the thread to
"'72 K5 - Greg's might as well flare-hole everything build"
Nice work......but I am pist off cause you have so much time to work on your stuff and I can't seem to get an extra minute.....to work on mine....
"'72 K5 - Greg's might as well flare-hole everything build"
Nice work......but I am pist off cause you have so much time to work on your stuff and I can't seem to get an extra minute.....to work on mine....
Yeah.... it's luxurious.
I can work as long as I want.... starting at around 8:30PM, after a full day of work and my daddy responsibilities in the early evening.
That typically means I get about 3.5 hours each night if I can stay awake until midnight.
It's not ideal, but it's the only time I've got available in my normal week.... Only 1400+ days left until Moab 2018!!!
-G
Brakeleen........always LOTS of that on hand when you need to clean a greasy old truck.
-G
Just DON'T decide to grind on an axle after just using a couple cans of that brakeleen with cardboard under the axle like someone I know.
Guess it was a good thing I just gave you those fire extinguishers.
Oops, did I just give it away as to who did this stupid move.
Just DON'T decide to grind on an axle after just using a couple cans of that brakeleen with cardboard under the axle like someone I know.
Guess it was a good thing I just gave you those fire extinguishers.
Oops, did I just give it away as to who did this stupid move.
I still find myself carrying out flaming buckets of blue shop towels from time to time.......
There is a "distinct" aroma that a smoldering blue paper towel gives off..... and when I'm welding (or grinding) and I start to smell that kind of sweet, but kind of burnt smell I know it's time to look around the shop to figure out where the fire is.
-G
I still find myself carrying out flaming buckets of blue shop towels from time to time.......
There is a "distinct" aroma that a smoldering blue paper towel gives off..... and when I'm welding (or grinding) and I start to smell that kind of sweet, but kind of burnt smell I know it's time to look around the shop to figure out where the fire is.
-G
Thing is and maybe a scary thing is I typically know exactly where the fire has happened and according to the smell know if I have a second or not. Only had one get scary once.
I am actually way more careful now but still usually have a fire extinguisher within a couple steps of me
I at one point didn't have a single extinguisher in the shop. Now there are 4 thanks to costco
I have gotten a little smarter over the years..... these days when I am doing a LOT of brakeleen or solvent-type work, I move the entire Homer bucket outside onto the driveway overnight to let the fumes evaporate-off in a nice open, safe area.
But, yes.... I really should buy one of those nice all-metal pails with the spring-loaded steel lid and do it 100% right. Who knows? Maybe I'll ask Santa for one this year.
-G
Greg, look on CL for one, those cans new aren't cheap and nothing wrong with a used one that might have a couple dents in it. Bought mine for $25 but new at the time was like $150ish.
EDIT: Damn these things went down in price since I bought mine years ago. http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/o...gclid=CJmcyobToMECFcRbfgodV4YAOw&gclsrc=aw.ds
EDIT: Damn these things went down in price since I bought mine years ago. http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/o...gclid=CJmcyobToMECFcRbfgodV4YAOw&gclsrc=aw.ds
Now I'm ready to flare the hell out of my floor supports, rockslider top plates and pretty much anything else that I can think of!
-G
Way to put the mind wondering to good use Greg.
...and if your lookin' for some rockslider top plates to practice on, I know of a set.
Way to put the mind wondering to good use Greg.
...and if your lookin' for some rockslider top plates to practice on, I know of a set.
Kurt,
If you're serious, I'd be happy to knock those out for ya! Obviously if you cut them to shape, and marked out the hole locations first that would save a bunch of time. Better yet, cut the holes ahead of time and we can do the flaring in just a few quick minutes!
I've got 3/4" and 1" small dies....maybe 1.5", 2" and 2.5"? It's a 5 piece set but I forget all the sizes.
Let me know.... Well get it done. You buy lunch.
-G
2014.10.14 - UPDATE! - ROCK SLIDER PROJECT IDEA BEGINS!!!
I didn't have time this weekend to work on the truck, but I did manage to get into the shop last night until about midnight.
There's an idea that has been percolating in my head for a long time, and lately the details of how to actually DO it were starting to come into focus more clearly.... so last night I started to put my ideas into metal.
Here's that 2-1/2" square tube on my hillbilly CNC machine getting some 2" through-holes drilled....
Since the hole goes all the way through both sides, I wanted to do everything I could to insure that the hole would be nice and straight and would come out the other side in the exact same position (both x and y axes).... so I used my digital level and shimmed the tube up on my toolbox to make sure that the drillbit was 100% perpendicular to the material.
I actually drilled a 1/4" pilot hole completely through both sides as a first step, and then switched to the annular cutter (which uses a 1/4" pilot bit for centering) to do the final cuts on each side.
The end results were pretty darned good considering what I was using for a "CNC"....
Here's a test fit (not in final position, which will be closer to the framerail) to show the basic idea for the part and the support tubes.
The real "magic" of this whole thing comes from the way the outer rockslider and support braces connect to this main support piece. Most rocksliders are welded solid everywhere and then bolted to the framerails. In this case, I intend to weld in 2" x. 120" wall sleeves to each of those hole positions to act kind of like stake pockets on a pickup truck. They will guide the outer rockslider assembly into position, and hold it firmly.
Here's the idea going together:
Obviously there needs to be some kind of mechanism to clamp those tubes to the receiver once they are at the correct distance. A long flat plate will be drilled with multiple bolt holes and welded to the 5 slider supports. Once the rocksliders are fully seated in those pockets. The plate will end up tight to the inner rocker structure and it can be torqued down and secured.
Red dots are the possible bolt locations....
Here's a final shot of the inner rocker structure installed back onto the truck with the B-pillar support now tying into it. (Disclaimer: This is not the final position. For illustration purposes only! Structure will be approximately 4" further back toward the framerail and will sit behind the inner rocker sheetmetal)
The question you are probably all asking is "why go to all that trouble just to mount the rockslider? Just weld it directly and be done". Well the answer is that with those 5 "stake pockets" as an index, I can ALSO build a bolt-on mount that will hold the factory outer rocker panels and allow me to slip them on and off just as easily as the rockslider itself!
There's a chance that I will like the look of the rockslider tubes so much that I decide to leave them installed 100% of the time, but if I want more of a "classic" look, I will have the option to simply put the outer rocker sheetmetal back in place and secure them with a few bolts. Pretty quick and easy.
-G
I didn't have time this weekend to work on the truck, but I did manage to get into the shop last night until about midnight.
There's an idea that has been percolating in my head for a long time, and lately the details of how to actually DO it were starting to come into focus more clearly.... so last night I started to put my ideas into metal.
Here's that 2-1/2" square tube on my hillbilly CNC machine getting some 2" through-holes drilled....
Since the hole goes all the way through both sides, I wanted to do everything I could to insure that the hole would be nice and straight and would come out the other side in the exact same position (both x and y axes).... so I used my digital level and shimmed the tube up on my toolbox to make sure that the drillbit was 100% perpendicular to the material.
I actually drilled a 1/4" pilot hole completely through both sides as a first step, and then switched to the annular cutter (which uses a 1/4" pilot bit for centering) to do the final cuts on each side.
The end results were pretty darned good considering what I was using for a "CNC"....
Here's a test fit (not in final position, which will be closer to the framerail) to show the basic idea for the part and the support tubes.
The real "magic" of this whole thing comes from the way the outer rockslider and support braces connect to this main support piece. Most rocksliders are welded solid everywhere and then bolted to the framerails. In this case, I intend to weld in 2" x. 120" wall sleeves to each of those hole positions to act kind of like stake pockets on a pickup truck. They will guide the outer rockslider assembly into position, and hold it firmly.
Here's the idea going together:
Obviously there needs to be some kind of mechanism to clamp those tubes to the receiver once they are at the correct distance. A long flat plate will be drilled with multiple bolt holes and welded to the 5 slider supports. Once the rocksliders are fully seated in those pockets. The plate will end up tight to the inner rocker structure and it can be torqued down and secured.
Red dots are the possible bolt locations....
Here's a final shot of the inner rocker structure installed back onto the truck with the B-pillar support now tying into it. (Disclaimer: This is not the final position. For illustration purposes only! Structure will be approximately 4" further back toward the framerail and will sit behind the inner rocker sheetmetal)
The question you are probably all asking is "why go to all that trouble just to mount the rockslider? Just weld it directly and be done". Well the answer is that with those 5 "stake pockets" as an index, I can ALSO build a bolt-on mount that will hold the factory outer rocker panels and allow me to slip them on and off just as easily as the rockslider itself!
There's a chance that I will like the look of the rockslider tubes so much that I decide to leave them installed 100% of the time, but if I want more of a "classic" look, I will have the option to simply put the outer rocker sheetmetal back in place and secure them with a few bolts. Pretty quick and easy.-G
So, if I understand it correctly, you'll have 5 horizontal stakes sticking out both sides that are permanent. You'll then bolt either your rock sliders or 'stock' outer rocker panels to that depending on what look you want. right?
What about the front section of the quarter panel? Will you make that and the outer rocker into 1 piece?
What about the front section of the quarter panel? Will you make that and the outer rocker into 1 piece?
Almost right. The "stakes" are part of the assembly that I attach... either a rockslider accessory or the outer rocker assembly. When I'm swapping between them, the truck would look like what you see in these photos.... just a blank 5-hole structure ready for whatever is going to get mounted.
Front fender section will not get cut. The bar will sort of "wrap" around from that forwardmost stake pocket to protect that small area and pick up anything that might be coming off the front tire so that it doesn't crush the fender.
Out back, the bedsides will be modified down low. Instead of the outer rocker stopping at the door striker area (with a vertical seam), I will combine the stock outer rocker with the lower part of the rear bedside... effectively creating a long, continuous horizontal seam for the rocker panel. This is how most modern vehicles look now anyway... and I think visually it might end up nicer than the way the factory did it with that vertical split...
-G
interesting
lol, that's all I got
lol, that's all I got
I'll take it.
I feel like a thread killer in my own build thread lately.
Lots of updates and photos and not much in the way of responses. -G
No thread killing here.
I looked at these photos initially and was horrified. But then I realized that was the bottom of the door and all was right in the universe again
I looked at these photos initially and was horrified. But then I realized that was the bottom of the door and all was right in the universe again
Ok, that sounds better than what I envisioned. I was imagining how easy it would be to drop the truck onto one of those stakes while wheeling and having it be bent just enough so that the slider wouldn't come off. Getting the stake back to straight will be a hell of a lot easier to do off the truck than on.
Any bending is likely to be more in the "outrigger" portion of the rockslider (outside of the mounting plate where it bolts to the inner structure) than inside those stake pocket tubes..... THAT would be a nightmare!!
As far as materials go... the 2" x .120" stake pockets will receive a 1.75" OD tube... and I can make that whatever wall thickness I want.... .120" wall, .250" wall...... .500" wall
I guess I could even start out with something on the more "conservative" side and if I ever bent it in real life, I could increase the wall thickness the next time I rebuilt them.....That's kind of the nice thing about this more complex rock slider / rocker panel setup. I can make revisions to the outer parts to make them stronger, or to change the looks of them without having to scrap the entire structural portion underneath the truck.
-G
