Project 30 Be Low

[Mike Bradbury]

Well I am not supposed to broach the "for sale" threshold being that I am pink.

Although I am still trying to fund the build instead of just junking everything and you brought it up. Like I said ^^ if I find someone who wants a the whole thing I will go that route, but if not I am sure there is a way to figure something out.

[lolife99]

Originally Posted by Mike Bradbury

Well I am not supposed to broach the "for sale" threshold being that I am pink.

Although I am still trying to fund the build instead of just junking everything and you brought it up. Like I said ^^ if I find someone who wants a the whole thing I will go that route, but if not I am sure there is a way to figure something out.

I think it’s ok since I asked you.
I just hate to see you junk everything if no one wants the engine stuff.

[Mike Bradbury]

Just FYI, There are no AC brackets or compressor, just what you see.

[jumpsoffrock]

What exactly is wrong with the engine?

Man I almost cried when I saw your cab floor/rocker pictures.....christ....

[Mike Bradbury]

Originally Posted by jumpsoffrock

What exactly is wrong with the engine?

Man I almost cried when I saw your cab floor/rocker pictures.....christ....

Yeah the cab is in great condition, I am stoked that I scored on that part.

To answer your question about the engine, I think the better question is "what is right with the engine?" BBC components seem to be much sought after, however the 402 is not a great platform. Some really look for this engine and they work out fine, this one is going to need some work. Tranny is the same. I think there was a radiator core issue because there is coolant in the tranny, water in the oil and they had tried to put in some stop leak and gummed it all up. I guess it doesn't really matter in a complete rebuild because they solvent wash the whole thing anyway.

[Mike Bradbury]

I skipped the Good Guys show this weekend to get some needed progress done on the 30. I really want to get moving on this truck but there are so many aspects to this build that I have to go slow to make sure I do it all just right. Rear frame geometries are all dependent on the stance of the front X member and spindles. I don't want to make the back frame so the rear end is lower than the front.

My goal is to get the front lowered so I can match the rear end.

So this was good progress for me today. I was by myself and the engine hoist was on the beginning of the slope of my driveway and I was a bit nervous that it might start rolling down the hill. Turns out the lifting and moving the engine/trans was actually the easiest part of the day. Breaking 50 years of rust and grime loose was much more difficult.

[MellowYellow70]

Definitely a cool project

[botsdots]

Hey Mike!

Awesome to see you jump in to another project. Can't wait for all the little details you work into it.

Daniel

[zicc1835]

Im taking the ride too.......cool build

[Mike Bradbury]

So I was originally thinking that I was going to build my own cross member and possibly upper and lower control arms but as I was looking into the engineering and time to construct the components I was not saving much money and was way too long for my time line.

So now I am 90% sure it will be a porter built drop member and PB control arms. The reason I went with the drop member is to keep the spindles from too much camber when aired all the way down. I wanted the suspension geometry to be correct all the way through the travel arc. Using a OEM cross member there is no way to drop it as low as I want to go and not have excessive camber tilt.

My target is not to lay frame but to be 1" off the ground completely aired out.

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by Mike Bradbury

So I was originally thinking that I was going to build my own cross member and possibly upper and lower control arms but as I was looking into the engineering and time to construct the components I was not saving much money and was way too long for my time line.

So now I am 90% sure it will be a porter built drop member and PB control arms. The reason I went with the drop member is to keep the spindles from too much camber when aired all the way down. I wanted the suspension geometry to be correct all the way through the travel arc. Using a OEM cross member there is no way to drop it as low as I want to go and not have excessive camber tilt.

My target is not to lay frame but to be 1" off the ground completely aired out.

I don't have much exposure to the pre-Square HD truck chassis. What is the main frame rail height under the cab?

If it's the same as the Squares (6" height), a 1.5" x-member notch/pancake w/3" spindles put my frame rails & x-member gusset bars on the ground @ the same time when completely aired out (PB 1" forward lowers + modified stock uppers w/the stock GM steering placement). Ride height @ the rails is 4.5 -5" @ front cab mount (29.5F/31.5R).

I would of guessed the full PB set-up would put the rails on the ground before mine. What height tires ?

[Mike Bradbury]

One of my parameters for Nate was that it NOT lay frame. I do not want it on the ground. This will be a working truck AND a show truck. It is going to be a driver not a trailer queen. Laying frame is great for shows to make a statement but so catastrophically dangerous on the road, especially the freeway at 70 MPH. I have seen enough rods meet their end when a bag or a line ruptures and the frame contacts the pavement and the vehicle is completely out of control.

Completely aired out, I want it to be 1" off the ground. This is a 1 ton frame so it is big and beefy at 7.5" .187" wall thickness. I really wanted to build my own or modify original but I also hate the camber lean when aired out and dropping that low there will be some lean to it with the OEM member. My plan this weekend is to remove the coil springs and drop it as low as it can go and measure geometries to get a better idea if the drop member is the way to go. Additionally a drop member will allow me to drop as low as a want without pinching the ball joints or taxing articulation geometries. I will weld in a bump stop to make sure it stops above the ground and my plan is that the control arms will not be maxed out in either direction.

I appreciate fore thought and carefully planning with all the mechanics of custom vehicles. Having a impatient approach or "good enough" attitude looses the shine with me. Some guys are okay with that approach and that is fine because it is their ride. Typically the trucks that have a crowd gathered around at the shows are the ones that have that well thought out, well planned, well designed, well executed build characteristics that has people attracted to it.
My drive toward excellence is not for personal accolades but rather to build a really cool truck that is a challenge for me and also an inspiration for others.

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by Mike Bradbury

One of my parameters for Nate was that it NOT lay frame. I do not want it on the ground. This will be a working truck AND a show truck. It is going to be a driver not a trailer queen. Laying frame is great for shows to make a statement but so catastrophically dangerous on the road, especially the freeway at 70 MPH. I have seen enough rods meet their end when a bag or a line ruptures and the frame contacts the pavement and the vehicle is completely out of control.

Completely aired out, I want it to be 1" off the ground. This is a 1 ton frame so it is big and beefy at 7.5" .187" wall thickness. I really wanted to build my own or modify original but I also hate the camber lean when aired out and dropping that low there will be some lean to it with the OEM member. My plan this weekend is to remove the coil springs and drop it as low as it can go and measure geometries to get a better idea if the drop member is the way to go. Additionally a drop member will allow me to drop as low as a want without pinching the ball joints or taxing articulation geometries. I will weld in a bump stop to make sure it stops above the ground and my plan is that the control arms will not be maxed out in either direction.

I appreciate fore thought and carefully planning with all the mechanics of custom vehicles. Having a impatient approach or "good enough" attitude looses the shine with me. Some guys are okay with that approach and that is fine because it is their ride. Typically the trucks that have a crowd gathered around at the shows are the ones that have that well thought out, well planned, well designed, well executed build characteristics that has people attracted to it.
My drive toward excellence is not for personal accolades but rather to build a really cool truck that is a challenge for me and also an inspiration for others.

You definitely don't have to sell your logic to me. I've seen some scary stuff & would be considered a killjoy when it comes to erring on the side of caution. THE LAST THING I would want to happen is for someone to be hurt because my custom vehicle failed & was the cause of an accident.

My dually can be returned to it's OE configuration in just a couple of hours up front (coils & OE arms or the PB arms). It was built because of the same logic you're sharing. I knew one day it would be likely that I would no longer use air for the front. I have the stock arms but Mr. P makes those nifty coil spring seats for his arms so I can go that route as well if desired.

The rear will stay bagged/4-bar because of the improved ride quality empty or loaded. It has GM bump stops to stop travel @ 4". Ride height is @ ~3" clearance. They are adjustable for height as well.

If it loses a bag/line out back, the frame doesn't touch.
All lines are routed within the rails & routed away from heat.
The front lines to the bags has them routed within the rails & then through the center of the x-member away from heat.
Anywhere the bundled group are nearest to a heat source they're covered in DEI heat shielding as well.
Anywhere a single airline is near a metal edge, it is shielded in zip-tied rubber hose.
Anywhere a bundled group are near a metal edge, they were shielded in zip-tied rubber hose.

[D-n-Tyke]

Awesome to see you are making progress on her.

[Mike Bradbury]

Just in case anyone was wondering if an LS swap is going to lighten the truck any? I pulled out a 402 ci with a turbo 400 tranny and I am going to swap in a 6.0 LS (LQ9) with a 4L80E trans. The modern engine with the iron block is super heavy still. In the process of strapping, lifting, twisting, pulling, moving, adjusting, pulling some more, I forgot to close the nut on one of the quick links. Well you can see what happened. Glad I caught this before I navigated the cherry picker over the concrete floor four feet in the air.

[68bowtie]

Close call!

[Mike Bradbury]

So for my day job I am a facilities manager at a large local church which means I kind of have to have a working knowledge of all the systems on the campus in order to keep the facilities up and running.

There are two times in the year that churches get pretty busy, Christmas and Easter. Compounded on this we are in the middle of several renovations on the church campus. This summer we are planning to do a courtyard redevelopment project which will entail jackhammering up about 200 yards of concrete, designing and rerouting irrigation, electrical, and sewer lines for the new proposed space. Working with the city on permits and get a new grading plan for the courtyard, all while keeping the church up and running.

I have worked at this church for 28 years of my life and I have wanted to update this courtyard for the last two decades but financing a project of this scope takes some saving and a fair amount of donations. With 175,000 ft.² of building space under roof the campus sits on 10 acres and the courtyard itself is quite sizable.

I’ve been working the last week on a model for the congregation to get a practical look at the plans we have for this summer. a fair amount of this will be 3D modeled on the computer but getting a working idea of proposed ideas that we can move around on the board fairly easily prior to the computer part is beneficial and reduces the architect man hours.

I thought I would share a bit of what I do during the day with you guys since I haven’t had time to post progress on the truck.

[D-n-Tyke]

That is a very impressive model. Going to be cool for you to see it come to life after building the model first yourself.

[Mike Bradbury]

Thanks Dan, Most what the model is for is the sun and it’s trajectory across the sky. Knowing where to put trees and shade structures to be most effective could save thousands down the road.

[Mike Bradbury]

I started taking the 6.0 LS apart today. I bought the engine/transmission as a unit out of the same donor truck. The engine has 163,000 miles on it so before I install it, both are going to get complete rebuilds.

I have to say that from the initial tear down the engine still looks pretty good. There was no water in the oil, the plugs looked great, none of the gaskets look burned or leaking.