With the two racer chassis home, it was time to get after the disassembly process. The old Blue racer was trashed and what few good parts were left needed yanked, and the rest disposed of.
After removal of the rollcage and rear quarters:
The cage and front clip:
Here's the rollcage. Too bad it's made from Schedule 40 pipe. It's a front hoop, bent to clear the windshield. A main hoop. Two stringers to tie the front and rear together on the top. Two door bars. The driver's side bends outwards slightly for comfort. A crossbar runs below the driver's back. Two kickers run rearward in a "V" to a piece of diamond plate that bolted to the bed. The four main hoop/front cage legs end in some 3x3x1/4" angle. Four additional kickers run from these four main legs off at an angle to engage the frame. Previously they were welded to the frame (aftermath photos below). I'm going to terminate them in some 1/4" plate and then U-bolt them around the frame.
This shows the "kicker" bars coming off of the front corner legs. These go and are welded to the front body mount. I'm going to replace this with a big piece of plate that'll have a bolt through the body mount and some triangular gussets for more strength.
This is what happens when you weld a rollcage to the frame, and then I come by with
a buzz-box AC welder and some cutting rod to get it out! This is the driver's side
front body mount:
Passenger side body mount:
The weld spot behind the "step" - I cut the bed in two to help facilitate this
process.. what a pain in the rear. You might notice the large gouges in the
frame..:
Another shot of the 'cage:
What was left of the old racer "Old Blue." A few days later I cut the frame in half into a left and right side to make it easier to cart around. The next morning I found a friend's Scout had a bent frame. d'oh. I do have a nice jig for making front bumpers now, made from the front of the frame of Old Blue.
With the Blue racer dismantled and the "work" spot in front of the garage/shop cleared up, I could move the new racer around front. Here's the Travelall full width rear Dana 44 with some stock 235/75R15 tires bolted to it.
Just a shot of the family fleet in the back yard.. my two Chevy Luvs, my stepdad's '69 GMC, his Brat..
Finish the roll - a shot of my '77 with the modified ski-rack mounted to it.
-Tom
Racer Pages
Copyright 1999, Tom Mandera, TMComputers