The Dirt Squirrel v. 2.0 -- Even Dirtier

the_white_shadow · Nov 16, 2016

Sway bar is mounted. The bar flipped 180* didnt seem to help to match the angles of the bars so I went with what Scott said and mounted the lower arm on the passenger side to help combat the natural movement of the body when throttle is applied. The mount is further down on the axle tube but still uses a 16" end link like the drivers side.

My radiator came in yesterday as well. Its a Griffin 26x15.5x3 and has LS inlet/outlet. Its going to be tight but I think I can fit it up front. I have about 3/8" of an inch clearance from the bottom of the radiator to the link mounts on the truss. I may limit the uptravel just a tad to ensure they play nice together.

Ill probably lean it back some to keep it under the hood.

Also mocked up the Atlas. Apparently the mounting pattern of an Atlas isnt symmetrical. Since i flipped the adapter upside down the studs dont quite line up with the holes in the adapter so i took them out (had to do it anyways to get it at the drop i was after. So I have a couple options now. Take the ring off the front of the atlas and flip it 180 or use 5 out of the 6 mounting holes and waller one out some for the stud to go though the adapter. Oh and taking the studs out of the atlas sucked balls. Why couldnt they use hex heads on the studs. Using vice grips was awful.

Probable drop of the atlas.

The midship is going to be a cute little guy. I ordered up the carrier bearing from WOD. Once that comes in I can mock everything up. I plan on mounting it to the subframe tied in to/above the lower link mount.

Side view.

The rear mount should be easy enough to put together. I have a TMR mount to reuse and will mount it off the rear lower link crossmember.

the_white_shadow · Nov 18, 2016

Off the table as a roller. Now the tedious **** begins.

Skins on

stano · Nov 18, 2016

Gotta love em at full bump and sitting 8-10" off the ground.......low rider with 40's! Looking good!!!

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the_white_shadow · Nov 18, 2016

stano said:
Gotta love em at full bump and sitting 8-10" off the ground.......low rider with 40's! Looking good!!!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Yessir. It's right under 10" on 42s. She's gonna be low.

mcutler · Nov 18, 2016

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Looking sharp

Matt

easleycrawler · Nov 18, 2016

Nice. I've got a crush on this thing. Lol

JToyota2 · Nov 18, 2016

This thing is awesome. My Currie sway bar was the same way. I have zero prior experience with sway bars but i dont notice any ill effect from it.

the_white_shadow · Nov 28, 2016

Mas work done over the holiday week.

Mounted the radiator up front by moving the crossbar i had up some on the shock hoops. Went with a Griffin LS swap radiator. 26x5x3 w/ 1.25" tubes. Going to seee if i can fit a Volvo fan on it. Best part is that it should all fit under the hood.

Knocked out a bumper up front. Its .188 wall and will hold the fairlead for the winch and a lightbar for night wheeling.

Reused my old fuel cell and built some mounts to make it removable. Passenger side is the same. Should keep it nice and secure.There will be rubber underneath to help absorb some of the vibrations. Will also be below the bedrails from the profile view.

Then I popped the cab off to finish weld the roof bars and get a better fitment on the tubes going through the firewall. Those were tough to get tight when one side is pretty blind. As you can see i also welded in some corner cab gussets from Fishmouth Fabworks.

last two up front pices of tube tied into the shock hoops. Engine still looks like it can be removed from the top.

Doesnt look too bad naked.

Plan forward is to mockup the front two-piece driveshaft once my tubing comes in with the WOD carrier bearing mount. Then ill run the exhaust out the drivers side, then i will tear everything down for welding. I plan to still weld on the smaller stuff once thats done. Chassis will be semi-flat black rattle can for easy touch up.

Rokcrler · Nov 28, 2016

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I love this rig, definitely sexy undressed! That's the same cell I ran in my Mazda, I love the size

the_white_shadow · Nov 28, 2016

Thinking about adding one more supporting tube up front.

Red will go to the frame near the bottom of the shock hoop.
Green will go from bottom of the a-pillar to the tubes up top on the shock hoop.

Im leaning towards red. Which will be stronger more beneficial? None?

the_white_shadow · Nov 28, 2016

Re:

Rokcrler said:
I love this rig, definitely sexy undressed! That's the same cell I ran in my Mazda, I love the size

Thanks. Your cell came from a 70s fiberglass boat too? :rolf:

Mine did and it has been going strong for a few years after a few mods i made to it. (ie. Walbro pickups in each corner, full cap, fittings, etc.)

mcutler · Nov 28, 2016

Re: Re: The Dirt Squirrel v. 2.0 -- Even Dirtier

the_white_shadow said:
Thinking about adding one more supporting tube up front.

Red will go to the frame near the bottom of the shock hoop.
Green will go from bottom of the a-pillar to the tubes up top on the shock hoop.

Im leaning towards red. Which will be stronger more beneficial? None?

I would do the green if your not running door bars. With door bars, either would transfer load safely, imo.

Or both with an X intersection, as long as they don't interfere with steering articulated.

Matt

the_white_shadow · Nov 28, 2016

Re: Re: The Dirt Squirrel v. 2.0 -- Even Dirtier

mcutler said:
I would do the green if your not running door bars. With door bars, either would transfer load safely, imo.

Or both with an X intersection, as long as they don't interfere with steering articulated.

Matt

Im honestly up in the air on door bars. I dont really feel like having to crawl over them everytime i get out on the trail. Plus my Pops rides shotgun with me most of the time and he has a bad knee. I do see their purpose though. If i do run the, they will be run with factory door skins.

mcutler · Nov 28, 2016

Re: Re: Re: The Dirt Squirrel v. 2.0 -- Even Dirtier

the_white_shadow said:
Im honestly up in the air on door bars. I dont really feel like having to crawl over them everytime i get out on the trail. Plus my Pops rides shotgun with me most of the time and he has a bad knee. I do see their purpose though. If i do run the, they will be run with factory door skins.

I don't see a problem with it 95% of the time.

That was my intention in the beginning as well. That's why I engineered the support through the center of the cab/ console area to give the chassis a back bone that anchors the A and B pillars together. Truthfully, I'm no engineer, so, in case I decided to race, a door bar is required. So I purchased these- to hinge the door bar. A bit pricey, and there are cheaper options.

"Back bone support "

I would consider doing a door support that follows the profile of the seat, that was going to be all I would do in the beginning. They look pretty slick too.

Matt

the_white_shadow · Nov 28, 2016

Kinda what I'm thinking about. It's a tight squeeze but doable. Dad may have to stay in and not get out as often. I'll cut the door down to match and bolt on some skins. I feel like this is a safer solution.

mcutler · Nov 28, 2016

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Looks good

Matt

the_white_shadow · Nov 28, 2016

Thanks Matt.

I have seen the X you put between the seats but think im going that exact route. I am going to add some 1.5" tube to connect the down tubes in the interior to the down tubes on the B pillar X between the seats. This will serve as my center console area for shifters, switches, cup holders, etc. Definitely not as strong as your X but will serve a purpose still.

mcutler · Nov 28, 2016

Re: Re: The Dirt Squirrel v. 2.0 -- Even Dirtier

the_white_shadow said:
Thanks Matt.

I have seen X you put between the seats bit think im going that ecact route. I am going to add some 1.5" tube to connect the down tubes in the interior to the down tubes on the B pillar X between the seats. This will serve as my center console area for shifters, switches, cup holders, etc. Definitely not as strong as your X but will serve a purpose still.

Should be more than enough. Your truck is coming along!

Matt

the_white_shadow · Nov 29, 2016

In addition to the door bar above, i also added some additional tubes to tie the A-pillars down to the frame.

Another shot of the door bar. I tried to push it out some for additional room inside the cab and to clear the seats. I will french the bars into the half doors if they hit anything.

Only a few more exterior tubes for the chassis. Im going to leave off the door bar down tubes so i can still have decent access to the interior for the floors. Ill be using 1.5" on the interior center console area between the seats.