Prepping for a SAS
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Postmaster
Joined: Jul 2003
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From: Pittsburgh
Prepping for a SAS
So i picked up my axle yesterday. It's still hooked to the front section of teh frame it came from, so everything is there. Radius arms, brackets, spring pad, dual shock mounts, springs, sway bar, steering, everything. It's even got a Trac-Loc and gears that match my rear end 
The only thing it doesn't have are lockouts, but i'm just going to swap everything off of my TTB from the rotor out onto the monotube 44.
I figure i'm going to extend teh radius arms about a foot so i can mount them to the flat part of the frame right under the doors on the 80-96 trucks. The arms are going to be heim jointed and hooked onto a custom crossmember to tie the frame rails together. Figure the redoing of the axle will be at thanksgiving, swap sometime around christmas since i get a month off.
So long as i have under $400 in the swap i'm making money. My TTB goes out of alignment so often and chews up tires badly enough that if i can make these two last a bit longer by going solid, it'll delay having to shell out 400 for two new tires. rather than fixing teh symptom i'm goign straight to the source.
Justin
The only thing it doesn't have are lockouts, but i'm just going to swap everything off of my TTB from the rotor out onto the monotube 44. I figure i'm going to extend teh radius arms about a foot so i can mount them to the flat part of the frame right under the doors on the 80-96 trucks. The arms are going to be heim jointed and hooked onto a custom crossmember to tie the frame rails together. Figure the redoing of the axle will be at thanksgiving, swap sometime around christmas since i get a month off.
So long as i have under $400 in the swap i'm making money. My TTB goes out of alignment so often and chews up tires badly enough that if i can make these two last a bit longer by going solid, it'll delay having to shell out 400 for two new tires. rather than fixing teh symptom i'm goign straight to the source.
Justin
Last edited by hoxiii; Sep 12, 2004 at 07:03 PM.
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Postmaster
Joined: Jul 2003
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From: Pittsburgh
Yep, i did the 4x4 conversion about 8 months ago and bought my tires about 6 months ago and managed to mess it up badly enough to need a SAS about 4 months ago. I did some measuring and my crossmember where the TTB pivots is tweaked hence why it won't keep alignment.
My best guess is when I blew a body mount it twisted teh frame badly enough to bend the axle pivot brackets.
I had two opposing tires off the ground, blew a body mount and the frame flexed so much it pulled my cat off of the downpipe, sucked the fanshroud shroud into the fan, made it so i couldn't open eitehr door, and once i got out and pulled the shroud out of teh fan i couldn't close the hood until I got onto flat ground.
Justin
My best guess is when I blew a body mount it twisted teh frame badly enough to bend the axle pivot brackets.
I had two opposing tires off the ground, blew a body mount and the frame flexed so much it pulled my cat off of the downpipe, sucked the fanshroud shroud into the fan, made it so i couldn't open eitehr door, and once i got out and pulled the shroud out of teh fan i couldn't close the hood until I got onto flat ground.
Justin
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Joined: Jun 2003
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From: Des Moines, Iowa
hey, let me know how the radius arm exentions go. i am trying to do something similar by getting those bent&twisted radius arm extentions and then getting heim joints on the ends. just go to figure out a bracket for the joint and since i don't have a welder i have to find someone to do it for me or let me use there's. good luck.
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Postmaster
Joined: Jul 2003
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From: Pittsburgh
something you could do for a bracket is start off by getting a piece of C channel to box the frame where you want the bracket to mount.
then get a piece of 2"(or however wide the frame is)x4"x atleast .25 wall steel box. then all you'd have to do is cut a notch so the box fits over both sides of the frame, through bolt it, cut a notch for the radius arm and joint to go in, and then drill a hole for the heim mount. No welds involved, just cutting/grinding.
that's my idea, should work but i'll see.
While i'm at it I'm also going to me moving the axle forward about 2" to help with approach angles and tire clearance. Figure i'll have about 6" of lift when I'm done so it oughta all fit nice. Might do the shackle flip at the same time, but that's only if it won't force me into a new driveshaft. I'm almost positive I'll need a new front one anyway, probably even one with more than 4" of travel, so that's where the big expense is going to be.
Justin
then get a piece of 2"(or however wide the frame is)x4"x atleast .25 wall steel box. then all you'd have to do is cut a notch so the box fits over both sides of the frame, through bolt it, cut a notch for the radius arm and joint to go in, and then drill a hole for the heim mount. No welds involved, just cutting/grinding.
that's my idea, should work but i'll see.
While i'm at it I'm also going to me moving the axle forward about 2" to help with approach angles and tire clearance. Figure i'll have about 6" of lift when I'm done so it oughta all fit nice. Might do the shackle flip at the same time, but that's only if it won't force me into a new driveshaft. I'm almost positive I'll need a new front one anyway, probably even one with more than 4" of travel, so that's where the big expense is going to be.
Justin
Last edited by hoxiii; Sep 26, 2004 at 11:33 PM.
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Joined: Jun 2003
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From: Des Moines, Iowa
it took me a minute to figure out what you were saying, but i think i got it. sounds like it should work, i might just give it a shot. thanks for the idea, not sure i would have ever thought of that.