'89 R3500 Crew Cab 2wd to 4wd conversion & beyond

[mrk5]

I would need some seat time before thinking about the Penrose stuff. I might consider the easiest trail. I wanted to run them with the K5 but never had the opportunity. But I need to get the new setup dialed in before trying that.

The truck drove good. Feels a little stiff in the rear but I still have 200 pounds of gear to load in. Plus if I fill the tank full, that's another 100 pounds.

Our efforts on the driveshaft angles seems to have paid off. I used to get a drivetrain noise between 45 and 55, but now I don't hear anything at any speed.

We focused on getting the pinion in line with the rear shaft section because I have a CV between the shafts. The key was to do that without messing up the angle of the first shaft. Here's some info I found useful.





What I ended up with is like figure 9.

Here's a side photo.

 

[ZooMad75]

I would need some seat time before thinking about the Penrose stuff. I might consider the easiest trail. I wanted to run them with the K5 but never had the opportunity. But I need to get the new setup dialed in before trying that.

The truck drove good. Feels a little stiff in the rear but I still have 200 pounds of gear to load in. Plus if I fill the tank full, that's another 100 pounds.

Our efforts on the driveshaft angles seems to have paid off. I used to get a drivetrain noise between 45 and 55, but now I don't hear anything at any speed.

We focused on getting the pinion in line with the rear shaft section because I have a CV between the shafts. The key was to do that without messing up the angle of the first shaft. Here's some info I found useful.

View attachment 383763

View attachment 383764

What I ended up with is like figure 9.

Here's a side photo.

View attachment 383765

Looks awesome. With the change in wheelbase you'll have to relearn how to wheel it again. Should be a fun learning curve.

 

[max 02]

Reminds me of a logger box but cooler! Well done Scott!

 

[mrk5]

Reminds me of a logger box but cooler! Well done Scott!

It was basically inspired by a cross between a M101 trailer and an H1 type bed.

Looks awesome. With the change in wheelbase you'll have to relearn how to wheel it again. Should be a fun learning curve.

It should be interesting.

 

[mrk5]

ARB is mounted, wired, and plumbed. Still need to get the air tank in, but I don't think that will happen until after the trip.



I'm using the hose clamps to hold the air manifold because I'm not 100% this is where I want it. I figure I will know for sure after this weekend.

Also installed the tailgate.



The latches didn't quite go to plan. The are spring loaded pins that insert into a hole. I need some ideas on how to enclose the hole.





It's a tight fit, but I'm sure water will still get in there. What could I do to keep the water out of the tube? Maybe just fill the tube with something up to the hole, like expanding foam? Thoughts?

 

[mrk5]

Also, I would kinda like to make a little cubby in the area below the ARB where I could stow the air hose and stuff.



I would just need to come up with a little door of some kind.

 

[Truckman4life]

Foam will just hold water and cause worse rust issues. Best thing is to probably just drill a drain hole at the bottom.

 

[max 02]

Could weld a tube in there for the latch, but it would ruin your paint job.

Drain hole would be easy.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Some of that expanding rubber stuff they use to stabilize foundations and sidewalks maybe?

I'd drill a drain hole below it, shoot some paint inside of it, and periodically lube it with oil or something to prevent rust issues.

 

[Truckman4life]

The other thought I just had, which I don't think you have enough room for, would be to make a sleeve with the i.d. of your striker and then drill out where your hole currently is and weld the sleeve in. Make the sleeve the exact length of the square tube it's going in. That way you basically create a dead-ended hole for the striker. Maybe 1/8" or thicker tube. Could even start with solid round bar and drill a hole in it the diameter and depth of the striker. My awesome paint skills!

 

[mrk5]

The other thought I just had, which I don't think you have enough room for, would be to make a sleeve with the i.d. of your striker and then drill out where your hole currently is and weld the sleeve in. Make the sleeve the exact length of the square tube it's going in. That way you basically create a dead-ended hole for the striker. Maybe 1/8" or thicker tube. Could even start with solid round bar and drill a hole in it the diameter and depth of the striker. My awesome paint skills!View attachment 383831

I do have some 3/4" round rod I could use to do that. I'm not too worried about the paint. Part of the reason I went with the color I did was to be able to spot paint with Rustoleum Khaki camo paint. I could tack the round rod in to keep the heat down. It wouldn't need to be super strong weld.

The only down side I can see is the hole might be too close to the inside of the tube wall. I might need to use square stock instead of round. Which I think we do have some.

I was going to use a striker place that has a hole for the latch, but it won't fit with the space I have.

 

[mrk5]

Some of that expanding rubber stuff they use to stabilize foundations and sidewalks maybe?

I'd drill a drain hole below it, shoot some paint inside of it, and periodically lube it with oil or something to prevent rust issues.

There is also some of that 3M cavity wax stuff I could spray in there.

I also have some spray lube from Amsoil that is supposed to work as a rust protectant as well. They advertise using it to spray under your vehicle to combat road salts in the winter. Down side is I might end up with that stuff running down the back bumper when it does get water inside.

 

[ktmoutfront]

My 30 second sketch. If it were me doing it.

 

[mrk5]

So basically add a piece with a hole in it for the latch?

 

[ktmoutfront]

No. A tube welded to the plate and capped off.

 

[mrk5]

No. A tube welded to the plate and capped off.

Ah, so kind of like a combination of what Luke suggested and what I thought you meant. That would probably work best because of my concern with the hole being so close to the edge of the tube. Thanks!

 

[Babaganoosh]

I like it! looks really good.

 

[mrk5]

I have a pan for hauling stuff in the bed. I'm not 100% it's the long term plan hence the use of D&T screws along the top.





You can see in the picture below the bottom is a little wavy without weight in it. It could stand to be screwed down but I don't want to add more fasteners until I'm sure what I want. I cut a chunk out of the mat I had in the original bed to cover this one with.



The dame thing really fought me, but it looks a lot better than I thought it was going to.

 

[doubletrouble]

Lookin good.

 

[Fastereddie]

I have a pan for hauling stuff in the bed. I'm not 100% it's the long term plan hence the use of D&T screws along the top.

View attachment 383855

View attachment 383856

You can see in the picture below the bottom is a little wavy without weight in it. It could stand to be screwed down but I don't want to add more fasteners until I'm sure what I want. I cut a chunk out of the mat I had in the original bed to cover this one with.

View attachment 383857

The dame thing really fought me, but it looks a lot better than I thought it was going to.

Looking awesome man. You need to pick your favorite cooler and figure out where you’re going to strap it down. (Priorities)