rear bag mount ideas.. overkill?

[rtinniste]

So the rear bag mounts for my s10 swap have been really bugging me and i know I'm really over thinking this whole thing most likely. First time ever doing something like this. I'm trying to do this with stuff i can buy at my local metal yard since all I've been using is a sawzall, angle grinder, miller welder, and a cordless drill.

What do you guys think about this its really rough and took my maybe 2 minutes on paint, so hopefully this makes sense. I want to keep the setup simple bag over axle and maybe stiffen the frame up while I'm at it since these s10 frame are like a damn noodle. I still need to measure the frame make sure its even doable.
** the 4 link is only half installed I'm waiting till i drop my bed on before setting the lower links incase i need to play with wheelbase**

The grey would be 2x4 .188 wall box tube black would be prebent 1.5" .188 dom tube. I figure with the box tube i can use a 1.5" hole saw and cut thru both sides and weld the tube in and cap the ends.

Or any other recommendations? I plan on using a mustang gas tank behind the axle so space is somewhat limited and i want to keep everything flush with the top of the frame rail so i can "maximize" bed depth the most i can




blank copy if anyone has an idea


hopefully this all makes sense

[joedoh]

there is hardly any weight in the back, you dont need anything complicated. are you planning on a notch? remember you will need the tire size you plan on using to set the bag mount spacing accurately. yes ~3" between mounts, but you want to make sure the truck lays out as the last squish of air is pushed out of the bag or you will lose lift or worse, run higher pressure to get off the ground.

[rtinniste]

Originally Posted by joedoh

there is hardly any weight in the back, you dont need anything complicated. are you planning on a notch? remember you will need the tire size you plan on using to set the bag mount spacing accurately. yes ~3" between mounts, but you want to make sure the truck lays out as the last squish of air is pushed out of the bag or you will lose lift or worse, run higher pressure to get off the ground.

I think your right for some reason i was thinking having a 20 gal tank behind the axle would add alot more weight but 20 gallons of gas is only 120 lbs and the weight of the bed etc.

As for the notch I'm not sure yet i need to finalize body mounts and mounting the bed @ 4" off the frame my front fender is about a 1/2" off the ground on 27" tall tires. I plan on keeping close to that size. But I can't get tires until i get wheels since my wheels are mix matched between 14" on the rear and 15" fronts. And i need to mount the bed and rear fenders to make sure i can clear 15x8 reverse offset before i order my supremes.
And I need to see what the ride height will be but I really think i can get away without a notch since my running boards will be lower then the frame rail. Down the road yea it will be notched when i get tubular lowers and section my fenders and raise my running boards flush with the bottom of the frame. But budget doesn't allow for lowers yet.

The bag setup is a piece of cake I've been doing air ride installs for a couple years now but on lexus, infinti, acuras, bmws, etc. Same idea couple other steps I have to take with those.
I've just never had to do this much fab work or thinking alot of the work was machining threaded billet adapter collars for coilovers and machining control arms for bag adjustment

this is my other bagged money pit

[mr48chev]

You plan works for me but I'm wondering about the notch too. It seems that you would need a bit of a notch just to keep the axle from hitting the frame if you run it at a low stance even if you don't have plans to lay it out.

I think you idea on the structure of the support is fine as over kill trumps flimsy every day as long as it doesn't start looking like a railroad bridge under there. The upper links show that it is going to end up being a nice setup all around when you get done.

[joedoh]

well the reason I ask about a notch is it gives you a great place to put some simple upper brackets.

and be a little careful with your "de-noodling". I have learned that making strong PARTS makes things break at the weakest attachment. thats fancy talk for making something so stiff that the joints crack, frames are designed to deflect. We arent talking about full out race chassis that get new solid bushings every 1000 miles, we are talking about cars and trucks designed for use on imperfect roads, climbing crooked driveways, bumping curbs.

it would be a good idea to box in where your bag mounts will attach. otherwise look at the "system" and where forces are going to be applied. at the back of the frame the weight of the bed and everything in it will be pushing DOWN, and the road will be pushing UP through the suspension. your design looks like you will be strengthening against lateral and torsional forces. its tough to redesign in new strength but rest assured, your truck is already designed to carry 150% of its rated load and spring back.

[Coach529]

A lot of great info here so far.

[Cuttin up]

I thought the about the same things when I was considering what to do in the rear on mine. Since i have the same link setup, it sets right on the frame rail and if you were to run the bags over the axle, there really isn't alot of space if you want the rails to be same height as they are now. I found the notch was the better route for me to go as it frees up a lot of space for everything. The downside is that my bed floor has to be kinda shallow. The notch kit i got was also from thorbros and was very reasonable in price for what you get. They have a kit that mimics your paint drawing if you wanted that look.

[rtinniste]

Originally Posted by Cuttin up

I thought the about the same things when I was considering what to do in the rear on mine. Since i have the same link setup, it sets right on the frame rail and if you were to run the bags over the axle, there really isn't alot of space if you want the rails to be same height as they are now. I found the notch was the better route for me to go as it frees up a lot of space for everything. The downside is that my bed floor has to be kinda shallow. The notch kit i got was also from thorbros and was very reasonable in price for what you get. They have a kit that mimics your paint drawing if you wanted that look.

Yea I've been eye balling their notch that's the route i'd go if need be But Jason told me I shouldn't need to notch it his buddy builds a couple s10 AD's a year I guess. I honestly forgot they have the rear setup

[rtinniste]

Originally Posted by mr48chev

You plan works for me but I'm wondering about the notch too. It seems that you would need a bit of a notch just to keep the axle from hitting the frame if you run it at a low stance even if you don't have plans to lay it out.

I think you idea on the structure of the support is fine as over kill trumps flimsy every day as long as it doesn't start looking like a railroad bridge under there. The upper links show that it is going to end up being a nice setup all around when you get done.

I really think i can get away with no notch for this phase of the truck honestly the frame lays out pretty level with stock front lower control arms and the rear of my front fender has about a 1/2" before it hits the ground and my running boards mount lower then my frame. The end game is section the rear of the front fender an inch same with the front of the rear fender and bring the running boards up another inch. But I just cant afford $600 for tubular lowers at the moment I'm always watching for used but still haven't found anything.

That's what I'm thinking i just want to keep it simple and save space without adding a bridge and losing more bed depth. But i also want something that will hold up I've seen other stuff online that makes me cringe. I think I'm just over thinking it and spending to much time in the offroad fab forums where everything is ment to blitz 2 foot deep whoops at 60 mph and stay together. But thanks I'm hoping everything ends up good my first time doing a full on frame swap and first time ever bagging a truck haha cars are simple compared to this