Basic Off-road Ball-Joint Beam rebuild PT 2 starts on p. 13

[Leatherneck]

Are the spot welds giving?

[Ol'fogasaurus]

No, they seemed to be OK. It was more like maybe the metal got too hot and warped a bit in places during spot welding. Almost all of the gaps were in the hat section; there weren't a lot of them, just enough to notice. The spot welds seemed to be bigger than I remembered and deeper also. I tried to lightly pry them but they seemed solid.

Over all the beam seems to be solid and in good shape.

I'm going to try something new making the doublers for the posts of the hook and posts. Good or bad I'll most the attempt and note the outcome.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

I got a chance to go after the crummy welds i hope someone else did... they didn't! Actually they weren't as bad as they looked but I have to see what is going on with the welder as I had to turn the gas up much higher than normal to get some desent welds. I do have couple spots that I may want to fix.

Part way through working on something else my old DeWalt 4 1/2" grinder died an agonizing death so it was off to the store for another. The new one, same brand, works great but I found that the discs used really make a difference with this one.

Started working on beefing up the shock towers but gave up as I think I was getting too tired and too cold plus the angle iron was fighting me. I had forgotten that there was an arc to the towers plus the welds and the formed bulge where the torsion tube goes through the tower assy so I had to trim the angle iron to get a decent fit before welding. No pix.

Lee

[Leatherneck]

Keep up the good work and info Lee.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

I finally got the shock tower stiffeners fitted but my welder is on the fritz. It goes in tomorrow to see if it is as simple as a new liner or something more expensive.

[dustymojave]

Looks good Lee.

Be sure to close off the tops of the gussets to keep out moisture and sand.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

My welder goes into the shop tomorrow. They think, w/o seeing it, that it might be as simple as replacing the liner. After 16 years of light to moderate use, the liner has not been replaced. Fingers crossed it is as simple as that.

I was thinking about being a bit silly about the covers for the tops of the triangles and make a curved/domed triangle using the ball out of a ball-joint, some soft rags and my 20 ton press. A hammer and the BJ could probably do it but it would be (OMG... I am going to say it...) "hit and miss". Probably won't but the idea sounds like fun.

I am going to try something different for the doublers for the 7/8" X 3" rods for the hook and pins. I have to check to see if I have the material for the hooks on hand otherwise I can't start on them until Monday.

Since I drive on the sand so slow I thought about going Art Deco and maybe put some metal streamers off the stiffeners flowing towards the rear; kind of like things they did in the 30s to make things look fast but I am afraid I'd get stuck by them when reaching in under the fender. Silly what one thinks of sometimes isn't it.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

Well, it looks like the beam build is in hold for a while. I took the welder in and, believe it ot not it acted up doing the same thing for them as it was doing for me. It has to be sent down to CA as some electrical doodles a taking a dump. They are trying to get the turnaround by Christmas but then we will be heading south.

Questions or advice will be looked at but the beam building is now on hold.

Lee

[Ol'fogasaurus]

I was out spending money on parts for my black buggy and while at the fastener store I got the idea that maybe I could just use a washer to make the doubler. What I found was a washer for 7/8 fastener that is 0.012 thick and has an outside diameter of 1 3/4 inches. I think there was room for easily up to 2" in diameter but this was the best the counter person could find near what I was asking for. I spent just over a dollar for 4 of them.

Since my welder is in the shop and since I am going snow birding, other than questions and input it won't be until April, next, before more work is done on the buggy other than the possibility of working on the seat mounting plate.

Lee

[Leatherneck]

Lee, remember while your out Snowbirding, please do the speed limit.. Bummer you have to wait that long to work on your buggy.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

When driving the MH especially with a dink attached I drive in the right lane and at the posted speed limit for trucks. In states where the speed limit is above 70 I am very aware of not blocking traffic but still keep to a reasonable towing speed. This last year when the hitch broke while we were driving and the dinks brakes locked (a designed safety thing required in the state i live in) I became even more aware of that. Lucky we were just getting onto the freeway and at a slow speed. Been the safety cables broke so I now use chains.

I and very aware of road rage found in some areas. We plan our roads, rest and over night stops ahead of time so we are in position to hit the off-ramps not moving over at the last minute.

We think this will be our last time Snowbirding so when we get back home the MH will be sold. We have been doing it since '89 so its time to stop.

Lee

[Leatherneck]

We live in the seasonal snowbird area, lot more being vocal about the driving of such. Just be careful out there, offense and defensive driving.

[Ol'fogasaurus]

We woke up this am to low 20's temps. I hate the 1800 mile drive to where we go then the same drive back but the time there is fun... most of the time anyway. I will be careful as I have been warned about some states having an eye out for Snowbirders.

You hear a lot about CA drivers but from what we have seen down there they, by-and-large, are pretty forgiving to out of staters especially MH's w/dinks. It is much easier to get around (asuming you have a GPS and trip checks) down there. Both the Seattle and Portland areas are getting much harder to drive in as the highways are limited to expansion and the population explosions there.

[bajaherbie]

My nephew took a teaching job at Gonzaga University... the got snow today.

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[Ol'fogasaurus]

My nephew took a teaching job at Gonzaga University... the got snow today.

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Yeah our neighbors are both "Zags". My wife is from Spokane too. They get a lot of nasty weather there.

It has been forecast that we were to have snow for about a week, it finally came in at about 9:30 last night. Woke up to 2 to 4 inches of wet sloppy snow. The kind where you walk on it or drive on it it turns to slushy ice. Very slick, very dangerous!