[atari4x4]

can i please have a few minutes alone with your cad drawings joe.... they never cease to amaze me

[Bucket]

Whoa! What program are you using to make those designs in? They're amazing!

[got_bar_work]

wats ur plans for the chassis mount or not that far yet
have u thought of using 3 bushes on the diff end to try and get more flex like the superflex arms for patrols

[redzook91]

those aren't cad drawings. they're pieces of artwork

pure talent right there...

[gman]

I've alway wondered how leading arms mounted to the top of the axle housing would go, you could acheive some lift while still have your leading arms pointing straight ahead, when you hit a large hole or bump and the suspention needs to compress, the leading arms geometry won't push the wheel forward to move up. taking a lot of stress away when hitting objects hard.
i guess the challenge is having enough room for the arm on full compression with the chassis, exhaust engine and other bits which may get in the way.

[Bucket]

Amazing how fast these pics made it into the banners :p

[joeblow]

got_bar_work wrote:

wats ur plans for the chassis mount or not that far yet
have u thought of using 3 bushes on the diff end to try and get more flex like the superflex arms for patrols

i've seen those arms and i don't really like thier design. one thing you have to try and do is make all your bushes work well together. with that arm the rear bush is doing most of the work, while the two front ones, mounted allmost virticaly from each other will being doing nothing more than trying to push out the centre sleeve of the bonded bush (assuming its a proper bonded bush). this will incur very early bush failure, not something you want on the front end. keeping the bushes on the same line, i.e horizontaly, means that the bushes will twist together, work together and give you a much longer life span.

but to answer your question, no i have not figured out the exact possition an if this arm system can work it should provide more flex than i will actually be putting on the design.

[joeblow]

gman wrote:

I've alway wondered how leading arms mounted to the top of the axle housing would go, you could acheive some lift while still have your leading arms pointing straight ahead, when you hit a large hole or bump and the suspention needs to compress, the leading arms geometry won't push the wheel forward to move up. taking a lot of stress away when hitting objects hard.
i guess the challenge is having enough room for the arm on full compression with the chassis, exhaust engine and other bits which may get in the way.

they are usualy mounted the way they are because of design limitations and space, but if they can be fitted on top, and in a horizontal 'nuetral' angle, there are plenty of benefits to be gained.

over the next few months i will be trying to put all the components on cad so i can finalise the idea without having to hack too much into a car. the main drama is organising the time so i can co-ordinate scan the components.

[royce]

I dont reckon that will work cause the arm becomes a big lever and the bushes are supporting the weight of the car

[dezook]

This may be a crazy radical idea but couldn't you run arms like those on the exterior of the chassis? I could be barking up the wrong tree with the idea.
Love your images too by the way.

[dano_mung]

Cortina rear four link set ups are like this from factory with the spring on the lower trailing arm.

But in saying that Royce you do make a good point.
The rear bush will wear prematurely because the weight of the vehicle will be levered against the bushes. rather than just holding the axle in place.

[joeblow]

the bushes supporting the weight of the front of the vehicle will not pose a huge problem.

to get the coils in-line with the chassis properly will entail cutting the towers away from each side and swapping them over. this is something i don't wan't to do and i'm sure an engineer will not want to see either. it can be done but will require a heap of fabbing skills, patience and time.

the yanks have an offset mount towards the rear of the diff centreline. this places a lot of rotational forces on the diff and the relevant components and places rotational forces on the bushes at all times, not just under power.

the system i am working on has the diff centrally located between two bonded bushes, the weight they have to support is equal for each other. rotational forces will come into play when the front is engaged and is no different to the rear when driving. bumpstop placement will be in-line with the diff centreline and not in the coil tower as per the current system. when the diff bottoms out the bumpstop will take the forces into the chassis and not the control arm. there should be no premature wear of any bush in particular, it should happen to all over time on an equal scale.

i have tried this before, but not with the bushes spaced evenly above the diff, and it did work well.

just to add. this is not the way it HAS to be done, but taking all other design considerations into account, as well as the potential for some serious hacking, i believe this will prove to be the better option.

[superduki]

gman wrote:

I've alway wondered how leading arms mounted to the top of the axle housing would go, you could acheive some lift while still have your leading arms pointing straight ahead, when you hit a large hole or bump and the suspention needs to compress, the leading arms geometry won't push the wheel forward to move up. taking a lot of stress away when hitting objects hard.
i guess the challenge is having enough room for the arm on full compression with the chassis, exhaust engine and other bits which may get in the way.

Probably not this relevant to a zook mate, but a bloke down here in Tassie used to run 8 inch coils in an 80 series with a homemade x link system and the radius arms flipped to sit on top of the diff. Obviously if your familiar with the x link system, the front radius arm mount needs to be cut from the diff, only leaving the rear mount on the housing, and allowing the centre pin of the x link to provide less strees on the radius arms.

This system works fine, but when you look at it in a crash perspective, if the diff was to hit something stationary (concrete culvert or something similar) If the centre pin on the x link breaks off, it only leaves the rear mount on the arm to support the diff (and obviously the panhard) This in turn doesnt really provide much strength, and there really isn't too much from stopping the diff rolling under the arms and spearing to the back of the car. (worse case scenario I know) but I guess its something an engineer would take into consideration!

In this blokes case he runs 38s, so thats alot of weight helping that diff to go walk-abouts! It made me cringe when I thought about it!

Cheers Superduki.

[joeblow]

diff number 2 for the yellow thing is underway. this is different as it will feature a normal panhard rod setup, as opposed to a-frame, and genuine radius arms. nothing wrong with it, just most (if not all) the setups i plan on doing will be panhard system. will get pics up as soon as its warm enought o go in the shed.......

[kenn]

Sounds like some one needs to cut a hole in your shed roof to let the smoke out yeah?

[joeblow]

yes i know......should hook up the heater........................

[dezook]

Can I put a red vitara in your shed???

[Built4thrashing]

just crank up the patio heater and start getting sleepy from the lack of oxygen.

[kenn]

Built4thrashing wrote:

just crank up the patio heater and start getting sleepy from the lack of oxygen.

I'd end up dead, I start getting sleepy as soon as I get out of bed.

[rob87]

Built4thrashing wrote:

just crank up the patio heater and start getting sleepy from the lack of oxygen.

yup done that lol... but the top of my shed is vented... hence the need for more heating... but when you got no more room in your shed a set of 2 500w lights work great for light and heat lol.... also this whole diff thing is making my head hurt... too many idea's!!! my brain wont stop now...
i have the coily sierra.. also now i have my missus 94 vit and now is mine!!!.... been in light crash but nothing too bad... but i have the go ahead to do what ever i want to that vit... doesn't have to be road legal.... brain is ticking!!! one day i will put some hilux diffs in my coily i think... over 30" muddies rubbing on the coily... anyways good work on everything mate.... have to go and change me undies... "creamed"

[joeblow]

well, i have just spent the past 5 days cleaning up after that shed flooded out during an awesome storm. water, mud.........not fun mopping up and re-oiling machines!





but......

[Zook_Fan]

going to go into production for transfer gears any time soon? i'll be a test mule

[Fatzook]

can you work Molly with that tooling? I hope so

[Joe]

That looks nice

[dezook]

I like, I like :0

[Fatzook]

Fatzook wrote:

can you work Molly with that tooling? I hope so

Joe?

[appsie]

i couldnt see it being a problem,should eat it up.

top work once again joe

[joeblow]

Fatzook wrote:

Fatzook wrote:

can you work Molly with that tooling? I hope so

Joe?

yep, molly is supplied in an anealed state so is quite easy to work with, then sent off for hardening.

[dezook]

Any more news on diffs? Drawings? Final slot filled? I wish I had your shed of toys

[joeblow]

dezook wrote:

Any more news on diffs? Drawings? Final slot filled? I wish I had your shed of toys

yes, the second diff is underway for my sierra. this one is being built using standard front arms with a panhard. doing this to get my bracketry right and see how ell things fit. once this is in the 'VIT' jig will be moving in.

some pics of 'mkII'.