The Bullaculla 3 link SAS build (pic heavy)

Priorities
I'll paint the stock rear axle silver to match the front
I'll probably get a 9.5" diamond with disks once I save some more pennies.

 

haha, yea if you paint them the same color nobody will be able to tell

I faced a similar quandary (wheels/bead locks vs rear axle). Ended up going with the rear axle. Well, I had no choice anyway because I needed a 1ton rear axle to match the front. But the 14bolt was cheaper than bead locks

 

done yet?

 

Being a self employed machinist is awesome

 

Good job Iven!

 

Cutting metric threads on a mini manual lathe, with no gearbox and no threading dial is not fun...
But still came out pretty nice

$13 M12x1.25 mm Self-Locking Nylon Insert Hex Lock Nuts, Pack of 6

M12x1.25 thread on 1/2" cr/mo steel for the twin sticks. Threads are for the shift knobs.

Sick Rock Solid Toys delrin shift knobs! Thanks @awsumdc!

 

Daaaaaamn......so cherry!!!

 

I trimmed the RST knobs down a bit for more room. When shifting out of park, it was hitting the HI/LO stick. I didn't want them all splayed out to avoid contact, so I just made them more narrow.

4hi

4lo

2lo

Sticks are very solid. Hardly any wiggle. Now just needs some paint!

 

Done with the twin sticks and center console is back together.

The shafts are drilled for the setscrews at the ends, that's why they are sunken in so far. They all got a dab of loctite.



Once the truck is running, I'll have my custom upholstery buddy make me a nice leather boot for the twin sticks.

Now I can sit in my truck and make driving sounds again

 

Nicely done

What's that ATRAC button for in the dash?

 

One disappointing thing about doing SAS. No more working atrac. But I suppose it makes up for that.

Atrac worked amazing this past weekend for us.

 

Yeah, atrac really works great. Sad to see it go.

 

So this worked out better than I had hoped.
On the front of the hubs on the Diamond axle, there are ears probably for mounting brakes in a different configuration. And they are machined flat on in the inside.

So I was thinking of using them to bolt on plates to double shear my steering links since the links are under the steering arms.



Made some cardboard templates of what I thought would work.

Arts and crafts time! BTW, these are used USPS boxes

Took measurements off the cardboard templates, and made a CAD drawing. Sent the files over to my good friend Peter at Precision Machine and Tooling in pearl city industrial, and he cut them out for me on his waterjet the next day.



Still need to drill the hole for the draglink. The lower portion is where I will try and mount my HA ram instead of the usual clamp on the tie rod. My links are a little too close together for that, and I'm not a fan of welding on tabs to the tie rod. Maybe... maybe not...



The came out better than I expected, and I will end up trimming excess and sniping the corners. Might not be as strong as welding arms to the knuckle, but way better than just single shear. Very happy with it.

 

Okay, so I won't be mounting the ram to the steering arm since there would be no way to full protect the shaft without the skid plate being in the way. Ram will be mounted normally to the tie rod and fully protected by a skid plate. Thanks to @1uzrnr for pointing it out.

 

Do you really need hydro assist for 37's? I thought it was 40's and up typically

 

I run hydro assist on 35s. The difference is night and day. So I think it's highly recommended and reduces stress on other stuff.

 

When I was still IFS I have been hung up a few times where I had a real hard time turning the wheel on 33s. Like to the point where I thought I was at full lock but wasn't. And I have been told the toyota steering box is weaker than the stock rack and pinion.

 

Well if it makes you feel any better my friend has been wheeling his 80 series on 40's with the stock steering box for 4 years and drives great haha I wheeled his and didn't think it was hard at all but maybe its a different steering box

 

I haz skinny arms