Fully polished TuRD

Prepping for the wheeling season, welding on my air bump pads. Man this has been such a PITA ever since getting these, it seems there is no good place to put the pads on this axle with leafs. So here is version 2.0.
Pax side:
Took an leaf bracket I had laying around and cut it.

Then test fitted:

Waiting for the primer to dry, boogered in. Man I hate only having a 15amp breaker in the garage.

 

FML what dumbass built this thing...

 

Some guys use a hole saw and put the bumps through the frame or inside the frame.

 

That was me mostly making fun of myself, I have this stupid forward swing box steering in the way of everything on this side. I may cut that lip off the spring plate and build my bump pad mount off that now that I have been thinking about it for a day. I don't think I'll lose too much strength on the plate either.
Pic for reference of what I'm working with from a frame/bump mount perspective.

 

Impulse morning tool buy:

I'm done cutting parts on a cut off wheel with a grinder while they fall out of the vice. Now I just need to figure out what band saw will fit in there.

So the truck may be chilling on jackstands until my new toy arrives

 

I think one of the HF ones works and of course the Milwaukee

 

They have a list of Milwaukee ones that fit but it's like 20 part numbers. I'll make a spreadsheet and compare them all while at work when I really should be making a spreadsheet for my actual job LOL!!!

I don't buy anything from HF with a motor or moving parts. (Sips tea with pinky finger up, adjusts monocle)

 

I'd go for more quality on a saw blade. HF sawzall blades suck - and I have an extensive set of HF tools I use... I've got nothing but love haha

 

I know you’re busy looking down on the rest of us plebes, but I love the Bauer portaband that I got from HD. Pretty sure it works with one of the Swag tables too.

 

I will admit, I love the $30 Skil grinders from Amazon. Don't let my chaps at the polo club find out!!!

 

That's the one I was thinking of it's pretty much a direct knock off of the Milwaukee.

Any consumeable that cuts, grinds, or sands I don't buy from HF either.

 

I stopped using all of their stuff except Bauer 4.5" cut off wheels and grinding disks and their 1.5" Dremel cut off wheels - the cut off wheels are good'nuff and the grinding disks aren't something I use often. The dremel disks are as good if not better than the Dremel brand, but the rest of their stuff for dremels and flap disks are junké. Flap disks I've been getting from Benchmark whenever they have a free with shipping cost sale on 10 packs of assorted flap disks - probably spent $25 on flap disks in the past 4 years they last so long! I might be able to get better cut off wheels, but between one I bought at a metal supplier that was spendier and the red Bauer ones, haven't noticed a wide gap in performance vs. price yet.

 

I'm still using my prime day 2015 stash of benchmark abrasives I got. HF can't be any worse than DeWalt abrasives, God damn those are terrible!!

 

Thing of beauty right there. All I can think of is "No More Tears" but "No More Sparks" replacing the lyrics

 

Finally was able to get out in the garage and play with my new saw and work on this POS. I have a few trips in March so I need to get my shit together.

First things first, fix my gas tank mount that was ripping off the frame.

Added a filler piece then put a plate over it:

After that I fixed where I bent my frame at Harlan with some angle iron and patched up some rust holes on the pax side.

Then onto my hell project of building my driver's side air bump pad. I was seriously ready to cut the front suspension off today and move the whole axle forward, but cooler heads prevailed. This was my final.solution:
Leaf spring mount, cut in "half" and welded onto the spring plate

Next half welded on:

Then a plate over it, at this point my welder was being a cocksucker so it's kinda boogered on there, I may just say f it and run it lol


Just about my entire day was spent laying on my back, covered myself in rust dust, welding mere inches from the gas tank, covered in welding slag and what's left of my frame undercoating melting and falling on me. Doesn't look like much but I made like 3 revisions of that bump pad mount. That band saw is badass and its nice not shaking hands with death evreytime I need to cut some metal like it is with the grinder. Also it's a lot slower, but more precise which is what I was looking for.

I also saw my driver's side fender is caving in pretty bad, so I'll need to move my battery sooner than later.

 

Cool to see that saw and table already getting a workout!

 

Finished up my bump pads today

It left the garage finally

Threw a level on it for the hell of it, my driveway must be sloped or something.....


Spa day continued for the truck, I changed the tacse fluid, that 75w-140 I run is like snot, but clean with only the usual metal shavings in it. Refilled and it should be good to go for the season. I'm ready to wheel this upcoming weekend!!

 

I also ordered up a fail gear battery box and some bus bars to move my battery to the bed. Just need to find some reasonably priced cable.

 

While all copper is expensive, bigger spools of welding cable would be a good bet. Picked up and redid all my cabling with it. Finer strands, more flexible and meant to handle high amps all day long.