Also, I drove it in to work today (12 miles) so it seems to be "fixed" for now.
CK5
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97 King Cab DS-Ton build - Rock Jock 60 and shaved 14
- Thread starter r3dd0g
- Start date
The test run went well, no major issues, no engine problems. We found some rocks down in a wash to play around in and test out the new ram and bodywork.
I bumped the rear bumper coming off a rock once, so that's a drastic improvement. I was quite used to slamming the old one down off every ledge.
I did manage to run the new light bar into a tree, but it survived with minor damage. I need to make a little tube bumper that sits below it to prevent that from happening.
I'm very pleased with all the upgrades, although the bigger ram didn't make as much of a difference as I thought it would.
I bumped the rear bumper coming off a rock once, so that's a drastic improvement. I was quite used to slamming the old one down off every ledge.
I did manage to run the new light bar into a tree, but it survived with minor damage. I need to make a little tube bumper that sits below it to prevent that from happening.
I'm very pleased with all the upgrades, although the bigger ram didn't make as much of a difference as I thought it would.
The S-10 is getting worked on again. The frame inspection showed multiple new cracks so I'm going to build a hybrid cage to help stiffen up the chassis (hopefully). I'm using 2"x.120 wall DOM and hiding as much of the tube as I can.
S-10 front end stripped off for tube work:
I'm using '67-70 chevy truck fuel grommets to pass the tube through the roof of the truck. I'm not going to worry about the holes in the floor for now, but if they become a problem I'll figure something out. The grommets aren't as tight as I'd like so I'll probably end up squirting some "Right Stuff" in there to seal them up when everything is done.
I'll have a tube going between these two near the floor and one at shoulder height for the harnesses. Those will be the only tubes inside the cab for now.
We got the two hardest tubes bent up last weekend, they will tie into the front shock hoops and be hidden by the front fenders for the most part.
I'm not a fan of exo cages, but there just isn't enough room in the S-10 to do it internally without losing the dash, lowering the seats (not good for Amber) and losing the back area for the dogs so I'm doing part of it inside, part outside.
That's where it stands as of now, I'm hoping to finish up the majority of the tube work this weekend. Only 3 weekends 'till I leave for KoH.
S-10 front end stripped off for tube work:
I'm using '67-70 chevy truck fuel grommets to pass the tube through the roof of the truck. I'm not going to worry about the holes in the floor for now, but if they become a problem I'll figure something out. The grommets aren't as tight as I'd like so I'll probably end up squirting some "Right Stuff" in there to seal them up when everything is done.
I'll have a tube going between these two near the floor and one at shoulder height for the harnesses. Those will be the only tubes inside the cab for now.
We got the two hardest tubes bent up last weekend, they will tie into the front shock hoops and be hidden by the front fenders for the most part.
I'm not a fan of exo cages, but there just isn't enough room in the S-10 to do it internally without losing the dash, lowering the seats (not good for Amber) and losing the back area for the dogs so I'm doing part of it inside, part outside.
That's where it stands as of now, I'm hoping to finish up the majority of the tube work this weekend. Only 3 weekends 'till I leave for KoH.
I like it!
Glad to see this thing come back, always loved this truck.
I actually like exo cages when done right. Looking forward to seeing how it turns out
Looks good so far!
Looks good.
We bent up a lot more tube this weekend. Good progress for sure, but I only have 2 weekends left till I'm heading to KoH...
First we tied the two tubes we bent up last week together with a tube over the windshield and one that ties into the tubes that go into the cab. Then we made the second tube that goes through the roof tacked everything together and made two tubes for inside the cab to tie the uprights together for harnesses.
We also made a couple tubes to tie the cage into the shock hoops on the front and built some cross braces for the roof..
That's where we ended on Saturday night. Today we didn't have as much time, but we still made some decent progress.
The first thing we tackled was pulling off the majority of the cage so I could finish welding/gusseting and painting prior to final install.
Then we worked on tying the rear suspension mount points into the cage. I added 2 additional tubes that go from the back of the rock slider to the rear bars of the roll bar right above the rear suspension. I also tied this point in to the top of the rear shock hoop. The only major tubes left to fabricate are the cross tubes that connect the rear suspension to the main hoop of the roll bar right at the opposite rear bar. We've got a 3 day weekend coming up next weekend, so we're hoping to get the cage finished up then.
First we tied the two tubes we bent up last week together with a tube over the windshield and one that ties into the tubes that go into the cab. Then we made the second tube that goes through the roof tacked everything together and made two tubes for inside the cab to tie the uprights together for harnesses.
We also made a couple tubes to tie the cage into the shock hoops on the front and built some cross braces for the roof..
That's where we ended on Saturday night. Today we didn't have as much time, but we still made some decent progress.
The first thing we tackled was pulling off the majority of the cage so I could finish welding/gusseting and painting prior to final install.
Then we worked on tying the rear suspension mount points into the cage. I added 2 additional tubes that go from the back of the rock slider to the rear bars of the roll bar right above the rear suspension. I also tied this point in to the top of the rear shock hoop. The only major tubes left to fabricate are the cross tubes that connect the rear suspension to the main hoop of the roll bar right at the opposite rear bar. We've got a 3 day weekend coming up next weekend, so we're hoping to get the cage finished up then.
Dogs still gonna fit?We bent up a lot more tube this weekend. Good progress for sure, but I only have 2 weekends left till I'm heading to KoH...
First we tied the two tubes we bent up last week together with a tube over the windshield and one that ties into the tubes that go into the cab. Then we made the second tube that goes through the roof tacked everything together and made two tubes for inside the cab to tie the uprights together for harnesses.
We also made a couple tubes to tie the cage into the shock hoops on the front and built some cross braces for the roof..
That's where we ended on Saturday night. Today we didn't have as much time, but we still made some decent progress.
The first thing we tackled was pulling off the majority of the cage so I could finish welding/gusseting and painting prior to final install.
Then we worked on tying the rear suspension mount points into the cage. I added 2 additional tubes that go from the back of the rock slider to the rear bars of the roll bar right above the rear suspension. I also tied this point in to the top of the rear shock hoop. The only major tubes left to fabricate are the cross tubes that connect the rear suspension to the main hoop of the roll bar right at the opposite rear bar. We've got a 3 day weekend coming up next weekend, so we're hoping to get the cage finished up then.
That's the current theory...
We made decent progress yesterday. All the tubes we had tacked together got fully welded and painted and the cage is back on the truck. We even finished up all the major tubes for the bed cage.
We still need to finish welding quite a few of the attachment points, make mounts for the hoop that goes through the cab to tie it into the frame, make a few more tubes attaching the cage/sliders to the frame, patch the frame and then figure out how to make the fenders and hood bolt back on... Good thing We've got two more days this weekend.
We still need to finish welding quite a few of the attachment points, make mounts for the hoop that goes through the cab to tie it into the frame, make a few more tubes attaching the cage/sliders to the frame, patch the frame and then figure out how to make the fenders and hood bolt back on... Good thing We've got two more days this weekend.
Another day in the shop and the cage is done for now. I finished up all the tie in points I wanted, painted everything and managed to get one of the fenders back on. It doesn't look like much progress, but we spent all day out there.
Tomorrow we need to get the other fender on and trim up the inner fenders so they fit, put the hood on, reinstall the seats and the 5 points, adjust the suspension and it should be just about ready for KoH.
Tomorrow we need to get the other fender on and trim up the inner fenders so they fit, put the hood on, reinstall the seats and the 5 points, adjust the suspension and it should be just about ready for KoH.
Amber had today off as a holiday, so I took a PTO day to get one more day to finish up the rig so it's ready for KoH. Today, everything went back together.
New 5 point harnesses, all mounted up and adjusted. No more falling up out of my seat on steep waterfalls!
We even managed to put most of our inner fenders back in!
We're super stoked about how it came out. We thought we were going to have to give something up to get this cage in here (dogs, doors, windshield washer, A/C, etc.) but everything went back in. We're still waiting on some roll cage pads, but other than that, the S-10 is ready!
New 5 point harnesses, all mounted up and adjusted. No more falling up out of my seat on steep waterfalls!
We even managed to put most of our inner fenders back in!
We're super stoked about how it came out. We thought we were going to have to give something up to get this cage in here (dogs, doors, windshield washer, A/C, etc.) but everything went back in. We're still waiting on some roll cage pads, but other than that, the S-10 is ready!
HAPPY TRUCK! She tail wagging, I can see it!
Dang, you guys killed it! Looks awesome!
The thing about exocages that bugs me is always the way the bars look on the sides of the truck. Since you shoved them through the sheetmetal instead, I think that this looks killer.
Seriously nice job.
Seriously nice job.
You can see by my sheetmetal that I like to get up close and personal with the rocks. Every time I thought about tubes on the outside of the truck I just thought about how bad I'd get hung up, so I just kept everything inside the body panels.
Looks really good!
