Lotrat's Budget Baja Build

Lotrat · Post by **Lotrat** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 11:16 am

perrib wrote:You can send it.

So I talked with my service guys and they told me the company hired a guy in AZ and that they haven't been out there in 6 months.

So much for free shipping. If you ever make a trip to San Diego, it's yours. Sorry, hope you weren't pining over my bent beam.

---------------------------

I finally found another beam. I had to pull it off a 1967 rolling pan, which is now no longer rolling. I'll tell you that fighting a VW on jackstands, in the mud, with no weight to it is no fun. I couldn't even get the lug nuts off the thing. It fell off the jackstands and on the 3rd fall, I left it in the mud until I was done having my way with it.

I was able to bend my steering column back into shape so I put it back in. I wasn't real thrilled to see that within 8 months, all the grease in the front bushings was gone. It was down to a black semi-gooey paste. I cleaned the bushing up and threw a ton of super grease on them this time. One of the 4 ball joint was also suspect, so I replaced it.

Total repair bill for the bent beam:
$50 for the beam
$12 for the case of beer to weld up my cut & turned beam.
$15 for a ball joint
$15 to press it in
$5 in super grease

I still need to get my front bumper brackets welded onto the new beam, but my welder is on a Christmas cruise.

Anybody use these front end supports? My guess is that they won't work with a tow bar.

PN 3842 probably would have saved my beam. All for $33 bucks...

fusername · Post by **fusername** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 11:22 am

I know a guy w/ a baywindow bus who put an extra zerk fitting in the middle of each beam, took it to a quicky lube place and had em fill the fitting, claiming it was factory. about a gallon and a half of grease later they were done, and i dont think that thing will ever run dry...

Lotrat · Post by **Lotrat** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 11:27 am

I heard that the grease won't get around the urethane bushings and what little does, won't get to the squeak. The grease finds a path out, but won't lube the whole arm. Mine didn't squeak, but they ran dry.

The tubes on the 1967 beam I got was empty, the torsions were rusty, and the needle bearings were shot. I've never seen a beam that bad. I don't think it ever saw a grease gun.

Joxracing · Post by **Joxracing** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 11:31 am

I know my beam did

Ol'fogasaurus · Post by **Ol'fogasaurus** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 12:07 pm

I use them on my blue buggy and will put them on my black buggy. They are used for compression loading mostly. They mount on the beam towards the end of the beam, just inboard of the shock mounts and are supposed to help support the beam if you hit something at an angle.

I would install them on a buggy with no qualms, but to support the beam but not for towing. They are just not strong enough by themselves. They used to make a plate, with tow points, that bolted or welded under the front cross-piece that the frame head also connects to. This was for a lifting type of tow bar, but I would suspect you could make one for regular flat towing also. I think someone on this forum just cut one off his buggy not too long ago.

If you have a Baja or glass (tub) buggy, I would be very shy of using a tow bar that connects to the beam as the supports for the beam/frame head has been removed to add the Baja nose. If you have come back and supported the fame head, that may be a different matter altogether.

Post by **david58** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 12:19 pm

fusername wrote:I know a guy w/ a baywindow bus who put an extra zerk fitting in the middle of each beam, took it to a quicky lube place and had em fill the fitting, claiming it was factory. about a gallon and a half of grease later they were done, and i dont think that thing will ever run dry...

I would hate to take that one apart.

Lotrat · Post by **Lotrat** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 12:30 pm

Ol'fogasaurus wrote:I use them on my blue buggy and will put them on my black buggy. They are used for compression loading mostly. They mount on the beam towards the end of the beam, just inboard of the shock mounts and are supposed to help support the beam if you hit something at an angle.

I would install them on a buggy with no qualms, but to support the beam but not for towing. They are just not strong enough by themselves. They used to make a plate, with tow points, that bolted or welded under the front cross-piece that the frame head also connects to. This was for a lifting type of tow bar, but I would suspect you could make one for regular flat towing also. I think someone on this forum just cut one off his buggy not too long ago.

If you have a Baja or glass (tub) buggy, I would be very shy of using a tow bar that connects to the beam as the supports for the beam/frame head has been removed to add the Baja nose. If you have come back and supported the fame head, that may be a different matter altogether.

No, I want to use them in addition to the stock frame head. The ends of the beam need more support. I was just going to add the lower set, but I think they bolt to the space on the beam where the standard tow bar connects.

Ol'fogasaurus · Post by **Ol'fogasaurus** » Mon Dec 22, 2008 12:47 pm

Sorry, I miss-understood (I reread your post and I did miss-read/understand what you were saying.) I am using them for almost the same reason. Once the VW body is trimmed back, the frame head loses a lot of support. The upper bars should help translate some of the upward loading back into the body. I would add a doubler behind where you connect into the body. Make either the doubler larger or smaller than the plate on the curved upper support (to help the body not to flex or fatigue and rip from loading). You also might think about connecting the two bars together. If it can be done (I haven’t looked yet. I may have master cylinders in the way, or at least access to them), I plan on doing that myself.

After I broke two steering boxes in one day, I figured out that some of those no-see-ums could do a lot of damage. I haven't installed the upper ones on my blue buggy yet, but they are in the works for the one I am building now.

Lotrat · Post by **Lotrat** » Mon Jan 12, 2009 10:36 pm

Has it been a little slow here lately? Anyways... MAJOR upgrades on the baja...

I installed a 3rd seat belt in the back seat. It's even a brand new one!

Installed a steal bar on the back side of the two fire wall mount bumper brackets to hold down the cargo.

Sun visors... also brand new.

Spare tire strap:

I lost my magnetic towing lights on my way home Thanksgiving, so I used what was left of the wire harness and hardwired my baja. Great tips in the T1 section on this. I even closed up the hole in my trunk with fiberglass and got the wipers to work on low...

I think I spent like $50 bucks. I better slow down on all the spending. Times are tough.

Class 11 streeter · Post by **Class 11 streeter** » Tue Jan 13, 2009 2:55 am

Nice job, looks great, keep up the great work, blah blah blah...........you know the drill.

Lotrat wrote:I lost my magnetic towing lights on my way home Thanksgiving

Fiberglass fenders?

Did you figure out what to do about reinforcing the beam?

Post by **Leatherneck** » Tue Jan 13, 2009 4:11 am

That baja has come along ways, blah,blah,blah. That is funny there class11.

And on a budget.

Lotrat · Post by **Lotrat** » Tue Jan 13, 2009 7:28 am

Class 11 streeter wrote:Nice job, looks great, keep up the great work, blah blah blah...........you know the drill.

Lotrat wrote:I lost my magnetic towing lights on my way home Thanksgiving
Fiberglass fenders?

Did you figure out what to do about reinforcing the beam?

Hey thanks for your kind words. I couldn't have done it without all the help from you guys. Those visors are tough to install yadda yadda yadda....

I bought the cheap Harbor Freight magnetic tow lights and I knew they were not gonna stay on. I would always find them hanging by the wires when I got to where I was going. I like the new setup better. The front turn signals light up now. They operate like brake lights too which is great when you're watching them for a RV backup camera. It's nice to know the lights are working. The extra visibility is a plus too. A baja being flat towed behind an RV can be hard to see at night.

I'm kinda screwed on the beam support. I flat tow, so I can't add anything at this point. If I ever get a trailer, the support pieces are the first things I'll be adding.

turbobaja · Post by **turbobaja** » Tue Jan 13, 2009 8:31 am

I've got a set of those beam supports welded onto my beam. I'll take a couple pics for ya. I'm not sure if it will clear the tow bar mounting area. Don't think so, but not sure. I planned on fabbing up a more sollid, less abbrasive way to mount the tow bar for flat towing. Or I'll use the tow bar for my trailer tongue when I get around to making a trailer for this thing. I don't know.

Oh, and good job with this baja, man. Doing it all with kids and a life on the side must be challenging. I lost track of the 'budget' thing long ago. You've done a really good job of keeping within a budget and haveing fun at the same time.

Karl

Lotrat · Post by **Lotrat** » Tue Jan 13, 2009 9:16 am

turbobaja wrote:...Oh, and good job with this baja, man. Doing it all with kids and a life on the side must be challenging. I lost track of the 'budget' thing long ago. You've done a really good job of keeping within a budget and haveing fun at the same time.

Karl

Thanks. It's what I wanted it to be. Functional, fun, and disposable... My tow bar fell over on it and put a huge chip and ding in the door. I didn't even bat an eye. We gave the kids the option on either going to Disney Land or to the desert during my Christmas vacation. They picked the desert. I think they're crazy, but we have a great time camping out there and just tooling around and when Mrs. Lotrat is happy I'm happy...

CopperBaja · Post by **CopperBaja** » Tue Jan 13, 2009 9:39 am

Should have hollered about the seatbelt....could have saved you a few bucks.

Sun visors....yeah....I need some too.