Time for Cage and Dragable Bed

[bggrnchvy]

I built my truck in college as my principle vehicle. It had to get me to school 3 hours away and back once a month or so and it also had to be my sleeping quarters during wheeling events as well as wheel at these events. As she looked prior to BlazerFest 08:


I frequently look back at this picture and have to ask myself why I changed anything, sigh.

In any case, within 30 days of that photo I managed this:



Little bit of sheet metal wrinkledge and a broken window. All in all, not terrible. The issue is I saw this as the tip of the iceberg. I'm certain, and now convinced well over a year later that the truck was headed down a path that just a cab wasn't going to cut.

In pretty short order I made a decision and order 200ft of tubing (100ft of 1018 1-3/4 .120w HREW and 100ft of 1020 1-3/4 .120w DOM), LED tail lights and made arrangements to have Mr. Graham pickup my bed for Mildred.




Loaded up redneck camper style.

So with materials in hand and a bed gone I started redesigning the rear of the truck:




I bent up the two main halos for the cab.



Then began dropping down tubes and triangulating the main hoop.





Frame landings were done on plates to disperse load.



To manufacture the rear winch tray integral for the rearmost cross member and what would work as a bumper I pulled dimensions from my SolidWorks model and drew out the pieces to be cut with the plasma.





I had the shackles I designed and the end plates cut on PacificFab's CNC plasma table as a result of the holes and more so the arcs.



I bent the plates, dimpled the hole, cut and cleaned some 2" .250w 1020 DOM and welded them together.

[bggrnchvy]

For the new shackle flip hangers as well as fish plates I yet again pulled SolidWorks dimensions and sketched them out onto a sheet of steel plate.






Moving back to tubing, I dropped 2 tubes to the back as well as completed tubing out the passenger fender. The stinger and tube to it were later reworked.





I bent and notched all the roof bars and tacked them in too.



Bed side tubes were dropped to bolster the main down tubes and provide mounts for over the tires.



I framed in the driver bed corner and the filler neck recess.



The bed floor was cut and welded in with a rib on the underside to supplement the cross member for stiffness.



All the filler panels started to fall in place, bedsides and the few used for the tial and turn signals.





I made some gusseting plates and dimpled them. The boxed section had through tubes dropped in later.

[bggrnchvy]

The front stinger was reworked in 1-3/4" tube as well as swallowed up in angle and shortened for more clearance. The tubes running to it received a couple mild bends to break up the straight lines and tuck the tube in a little closer.



To fill the void over the tires I cut some thin sheet metal (18ga) to size and then drilled a large number of holes for dimpling. The pair show the benefit of the dimple to the stiffness of the sheet.






Sheeting in the bed did not come quickly as so many filler panels had to be cut, some bent and all meticulously welded in to prevent failure.





Notice the cutout for the fuel pump for easy service.



Driver boxed section near finished.








Access covers and mounting tabs for covers with welded nuts added.



Through tubes welded in.



Finally all wire wheeled and wiped down in prep for paint.



Painted and drying.



Tail lights wired with running lights on.



Brake lights. Yes turn signals come on with brake lights, Chevy only put one wire for power to momentary lights to each side.

[///RAGMC]

Im not much of an offroader but MAN THAT NICE!!

[Greg]

holy build man. that thing is gorgeous. its awesome to see how you did it.

[katkatcher#1]

i think i have read every write up on your truck things a BEAST....

[Sierra]

wow, that truck sure looks like it will take a beating now or do the beating. NICE

[noremac]

wow... thats all i can say... that thing is absolutely amazing!!! and i love solidworks too..

[Shaggy]

Wow, nice work and nice welding job!

This is an old post, got any updates to the truck or are you all done with new add ons?

[bggrnchvy]

Funny you ask.



The key players



Mocked up



Moving forwards.