87 K5 Build...Hmmm, whats that Ryoken up to? stay tuned...

[ryoken]

thanks...

piece by piece

I was deadset on going thru the dash.. Rene ran his thru the dash... I was also deadset on making the a-pillar tubes go over the door... I think it just looks a lot cleaner, than a full hoop around the roof-line with the a-pillars welded to that... But it certainly would have been easier, those A tubes where quite tricky...

basically i'm doing a TON of jumping around right now... I'm gonna finish all the cage runs that are up by the roof, tack it, lower it and weld it.. than do the floor, cage flanges, etc... and finish up with lower cage stuff and console...

 

[brian wafer]

real nice job,done the roll bar true the dash last winter ,happy the way it came out. watch out for the side vents they are wide and need a lot off room too get out.driver side is tricky

 

[Chevy305]

i just know this cage is gonna be awsome

 

[Fabrimacator21]

thanks...

piece by piece

I was deadset on going thru the dash.. Rene ran his thru the dash... I was also deadset on making the a-pillar tubes go over the door... I think it just looks a lot cleaner, than a full hoop around the roof-line with the a-pillars welded to that... But it certainly would have been easier, those A tubes where quite tricky...

basically i'm doing a TON of jumping around right now... I'm gonna finish all the cage runs that are up by the roof, tack it, lower it and weld it.. than do the floor, cage flanges, etc... and finish up with lower cage stuff and console...

Nice....


I'm liking it.

Always better to take your time and do it EXACTLY how you want it.

 

[lectric80]

real nice job,done the roll bar true the dash last winter ,happy the way it came out. watch out for the side vents they are wide and need a lot off room too get out.driver side is tricky

If you are talking about the AC vents, then you must not have noticed that he ditched all the HVAC stuff, as well as all the vents. He is using a Summit heater instead of any of the stock stuff.

Looking good as always Paul.

 

[BGKYK5]

Is there anything else (besides AC stuff) under the dash that gets in the way of running tubes through there. Does it clear the glove box when closed, etc?

I like the idea of running through the dash, but it sounds like a lot more work.

Are you gonna have access to weld it all up?

 

[ryoken]

Thanks guys...

like I said, I'm stubborn...

as for the vents, etc, as mentioned it's all gutted so it's a non issue for me... the tube does fit to the side of the glovebox.... well, at least my breaker panel, which was critical.... also, the giant floor vent on the passenger side is getting closed up permanently soon...

as for welding... all the "standard" welding, top of the a-posts, etc shouldn't be bad, as I should be able to drop the cage enough for final welding...

the difficult ones are going to be the 1.5" one all the way up in the dash (gonna sit about an inch below the factory "bendable wire retainers" that you find up in there), and the 2 console ones that tie into that one towards the middle.. the cage will be in it's final position at that point, so they may be tight.. might have to take Rene's suggestion and get some flux core and ditch the gas shield on the gun... I'm foreseeing slag in the crotch!

actually, in that one pic you can see the tentative spot to the left of the glovebox where the console tubes will go thru the dash... still have some final trimming to do in those areas when I fit it all up.... to the left of the ashtray, over to the bezel is completly cut out, as I'm doing some pretty extensive sheetmetal reworks there for the console...

 

[ryoken]

oh, and on the driverside, the factory e-brake more than likely has to be ditched for anyone... wasn't an issue for me as I'm going with a cable lever in the console...

 

[jt512]

I really like how your cage is coming along, I cant wait to see how the crossbar "inside" the dash turns out. I have been thinking about the doing mine the in the same location, so it will be a great help to see how yours comes out. I must say your truck is incredible and the amount of custom fab work you have put in is incredible .

Although I do sort of blame you (among others) for the fact that my build has turned into a complete teardown and frame off rebuild. I'm just glad I didn't see your build a while back when I was considering rebuilding my 85 rustbucket, at least I started off with a almost rust free truck.

Keep up the awsome work, you have given me and I'm sure so many others tons of great, new ideas for our rigs. Now, if I can only pull off some of my ideas as well as you have pulled off your's I'll be happy!

 

[original balzer]

Cage is gunna be awesome if thats where it will ride. Nice and high and tight. thats the problem most cages have is they are not close enough to the roof and sides and kinda stick out into the pass compartment.

As usual Im lovin your work, If i lived in the area and owned a boat Im sure I would want you working on it after seeing your attntion to detail.
Your an inspiration for sure.

 

[ryoken]

Glad you guys are digging it so far, lot-o-hours to pound still..

That is about where that tube will be.. with the whole tape gig, it's not quite in position in the pic, but close.. it's pretty damn tight, maybe an inch to 2 in most places... 1/2" in certain tight areas... I actually had to refrain in that regard a little, don't wanna screw myself down the road with padding, etc...

The one thing I was very concerned with on those A-tubes was maintaining a nice even gap up the A-post and across the top door edge... I think that combined with the bend at the visor area will make it look nice when done, padded, etc.... Thats where that pic/tape gig is a little deceiving, that front a-post gap is uneven there...


and just for the record...

I'll be using freakin 3 tube sizes in the cage....

2" on all the main stuff... 1.75 on the 2 cross cab ones for the seats.... and 1.5 on the console and up in the dash...


actually, you could say 4, cuz I"m also gonna do grabhandles up in those A-tube corners... I have some solid 1" stuff kicking around I may use for those... take a rosebud to em and bend em in a vise or something....

well, at least I'll have all 3 tube size dies in the end...

 

[BGKYK5]

oh, and on the driverside, the factory e-brake more than likely has to be ditched for anyone... wasn't an issue for me as I'm going with a cable lever in the console...

Hood release too I assume....

Keep it up we are all dying for more pics!

 

[ryoken]

actually I can run the hood release.. that tube is about 2" off that sidewall.. had to keep it off somewhat for the flanges..

e-brake, not a chance in he!!... this is what I'm looking to run, hooked up to Jesse's driveline kit...

one of the hardest parts I figure is gonna be the 1.5 A to A tube, over in the area over the column, behind the speedo and tach.... thats gonna be tight...

Tho I've got a family gig sunday, and work is trying put me in a pine box this week, I hope to get a productive day in sat...

 

[jonrpick]

I see you're thinking along the same lines as me when it comes to connecting the center console to the dash. I'm planning a modern-style console that angles up where it meets the dash, and that'll house the touchscreen for the Car PC / stereo.

Although I won't be adding a cage anytime soon (if ever), nice work on integrating it through the dash.

 

[American84K5]

Anymore work done!?

 

[ryoken]

yeah, a fair amount... need to get batteries for the camera...

the cage is about 1/2 done.... all the upper stuff is cut and fit... now it's all back out to prep the ceiling, pillars, etc for some primer/paint.. once all thats primed, the cage goes back in, the top pieces get welded... then I start on the floor... once the cage flanges are done, I do the lower 1/2 of the cage.. should have a pretty extensive update after the weekend...

here's a couple I had on the comp from last week... just shows the windshield bar, etc... I've since done the 2 upper, center tubes for the overhead console... and am working on the x-bracing of the B-hoop now...

need to get an order in with Kert for some tabs and cage flanges...

 

[ryoken]

her's a couple others I had... showing one of the console tubes... I'm actually VERY pleased with how it's coming together.. The 2 center console ones sit parallel to the ones over at the doors, just a bit higher.. came out perfect...

I know the ceiling could use some triangulation.. Gonna probably add some of Kerts gussetts.. lacking there, I'm trying to make up for it in the B-hoop x-over stuff and the tube on the sides of the seats, etc...

 

[73k5blazer]

I so wish I would have done this with mine. I started with the smittybilt front cage section and fabed the rear section myself, thinking they'd be able to hug the contours better than me doing first time bending. Boy was that wrong. Thier cage doesn't even try to hug the countours, for the most part it's ok, there's so much room side to side in the front areas a few inches gone isn't an issue, where it is an issue is the top crossbar, with the seats installed, if your any taller than me (5'8"), or you have long legs or something, if you need to put the seat back any furthur than I have it, your head is gonna hit that bar on every bump it's so low. Of course you ca tighted up the 4-point belts and keep you from rising, but for on-road driving, that's fairly restrictive.

I will have to cut that bar out and fab in a new one. It's a concussion waiting to happen.
Your's looks really nice all hugged up to the countours....nice work.

 

[ryoken]

Yeah, you bring a couple interesting things I've thought about..

1 - was the fact I'm running 2" which exacerbates the space issue in it's own right...

2 - thats one of the reasons I'm basically running the 4 tubes straight back from the windshield to the B-hoop... any triangulation on the over head is a potential head knocker..

the 2 console tubes are 11" apart.. that leaves 16" from the console tube to the door tube...


here's some more crappy shots...

so far it's tucked in nicely... I Also have what I think is going to be a sick door tube idea...


need to get a couple new dies tho.... also need to fill/patch the visor mount holes and dome light this week before the tube goes back in..

 

[73k5blazer]

Note to self, wire brushes can double as spacer blocks!

Yeah, the smitty-bilt cage is 2" as well. No wonder you had trouble to source DOM, hardly anyone carries it in 2".
Lookin real nice though! Alot of work, isn't it!