The Victim Build Thread -- Featuring frame replacement

[claydo]

Woohoo......making some racket!

[TIMMAY!!!]

Haha the exhaust is stock up to the cat, from the cat-back it's a Dynomax Super Turbo Kit. Truck is running and driving now, still a whole ton of work to do though!

[TIMMAY!!!]

Believe it or not, this project did not end in a dead end. It has taken a lot longer than expected (and it's still not done), but I guess that's to be expected, isn't it?

I have almost 200 pictures detailing the project so far, all of which can be viewed in my Photobucket, HERE. A lot of the pictures are self explanatory, some are confusing, and most don't make any sense at all to you or I, but if you have any questions please let me know.

Where my frame rotted out, or, Where you should check your frame

I think it's prudent to reiterate just how bad the old frame is. It was toast 5 years ago, at least. Some of the especially rotted areas which other owners should keep an eye on include:

1) behind the front leaf spring hangers

Perhaps the most dangerous rust because it puts the truck at risk of breaking in half. :icon_eek: Which would be bad.




2) entire rear half of the frame. :icon_angel:

Really, the rear half of the frame (cab back) seems like it's from a truck that's a decade older than the front half. I'm talking about frame rails, not the suspension mounts, which are **** front and rear (see point 3).



3) behind upper control arm mounts.

There are drain passages to keep water from being trapped on top of the mounts. The drain passages would work very well if we lived in a world with no dirt, but because they are tiny passages, even small grained sand can clog up the passages. Once clogged, the top of the control arm mount and adjacent frame become a great science experiment.



4) lower control arm bumpstop mounts.

On my old frame, the bottoms of the bumpstop mounts were completely gone. One of the bumpstops was gone; the other was pushed up inside what was left of its mount. Even on my new frame, which is 98.7% rust free, the driver's side bumpstop mount was rusted out. Here is a picture of the new frame's bumpstop mount rust. I cut out the bad portion and welded in a new piece (details to follow).



5) transmission crossmember. Mine was quite rusty but I think still structurally sound. I definitely want a new one though.

[TIMMAY!!!]

The bushings and ball joints were replaced in the upper control arms, along with new crossbar bolts and nuts.

The upper control arms utilize threaded ball joints. I was unable to unthread the upper control arm ball joints. I cranked so hard I was worried about bending the arms. I even put the ball joint in a vice and put a pry bar through the crossbar holes. It felt like I was going to pull the whole bench out of the wall. I ended up pressing them out with a tool from Autozone. I don't know if this damaged the threads in the control arm, but the new Moog ball joints threaded in just fine.

Ball Joints

Removing ball joint from upper control arm using Autozone ball joint press



Ball joint removed



Control arm threads



New ball joint threaded in



Upper Control Arm Bushings

The upper control arms use pressed in bushings. First, I burned out the rubber of the old bushing. You MUST use a vapor respirator if you do this. Later, I found it was easier and quicker to use a drill to drill a bunch of holes through the bushing until it can be pried out.

I was then left with the outer metal shell. I removed these using a myriad of cold chisels and screwdrivers, a pickle fork, and a mini sledge. I would have used an air hammer, but at this point in the project, I did not have access to a compressor. I did have an air hammer, but I can't blow hard enough for it to be of any use.

To install the new bushing, I bought a special control arm bushing install tool, which is basically a heavy duty c-clamp with a forked end so a bushing can be installed with the control arm crossbar in place.



After a little whacking...



One bushing removed




Special control arm bushing tool



Notice the piece of round stock between the two sides. THIS IS IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!!!

[I][B]When you're installing the new bushings, you must put something between the two sides of the control arm. If you do not, the two sides will bend. This piece of round stock is ~0.72" and worked perfectly. You don't have to use round stock but you must use something.

[TIMMAY!!!]

Continued...

All pressed in



Good to go. I have the crossbar nuts tightened down in this picture, but when I install them in the truck, they will be loose. This is important because rubber bushings work by deflection and must be "undeflected" at suspension ride height. That is, with the weight of the truck on them, they are "at rest". Also, the arm on the right was put through electrolytic rust removal, the arm on the left has not completed electrolysis yet.


[/B][/I]

[TIMMAY!!!]

As I mentioned, the new frame had one spot of bad rust on the lower control arm bumpstop mount. In fact, the whole bottom of the mount was no good. I recently bought a welder and this was a great way to practice.

This is what the old bumpstop mount looked like from above (I can't find a picture from below, dammit!). See the rust hole. I cut out the entire bottom of the mount.



Edit: You can see what the mount looked like in this video. Skip to 40 seconds in (or watch the whole thing )

http://youtu.be/fk1HmeAQE0M?list=UUe...Ki7qiurYT3Bllg


Cardboard cut to approximate the size of the new piece.



Used cardboard to trace and cut a section of my old frame out



Good enough



Tacked in place



I didn't take any pictures of my welds. I'm a noob so they weren't pretty...but I am confident they are strong enough. Once I get my new bumpstops I will drill a hole in the mount for it.

[TIMMAY!!!]

Front Driveshaft Overhaul

I do not want to have to remove the front driveshaft for a long long time, so I figured I'd replace all the universal joints.



I used an Autozone-rented ball joint/u joint press to press the old ball joints out.



Forward u-joint (@ front differential) Spicer Life part # 5-788X (non-greasable)



The rear u-joints sit on either side of a CV joint. It's a bit of a pain to remove the whole assembly, but if you know how to remove a u-joint, you'll be able to do it no problem. Many of you will probably be able to do it a lot quicker than I. One thing to note: the CV joint is indeed rebuildable, and the MOOG part # is 617[/SIZE][/COLOR][/COLOR][/SIZE]. It includes the ball and seal and spring, but no socket. You can get one at Rockauto for about $25, but for the life of me I can't see how you could manage to destroy that joint. Mine seems to be in fine condition and I don't think it will ever fail, so I just greased it up.



Transfer case side of the CV joint (lower ball) and driveshaft side of the CV joint (upper socket)



Rear u-joints (@ transfer case/CV joint) Spicer part # 5-1310-1X (greasable).



I greased up the two greasable u-joints as well as the slip joint which has a zerk fitting. It's good to go, sans paint.

[TIMMAY!!!]

[/SIZE]
Rear Axle Seal/Bearing Replacement (using repair-style bearing)[/COLOR]

FYI the front axle job is essentially the same. Following this guide for the front axle should net you the same result. Only difference I'm aware of is that there is no repair style bearing for the front axle...it's bearing & seal separate.

The rear axle seals on this 8 1/4" axle were shot. They sprayed gear oil all over the inside of the brake drums. It's a pretty easy job to replace them, relative to some cars. I used Timken's repair style bearing/seal, part # TRP1559TV. This style of bearing is meant for use on worn axle shafts. Basically, the seal and roller bearing are located on "fresh, clean" shaft rather than the "worn, dirty" part of the shaft that the old seal and bearing were located on. Finally, some of you need to get your mind out of the gutter...

You will need a slide hammer for this job. Slide hammers can be rented at Autozone-be sure to get the axle bearing attachment kit with it. It's also a good idea to rent a bearing drift kit for installing the new bearing, unless you have gigantic sockets. Those are the only special tools you will need.

You do not need to remove any of the brake components (except the drum) to do this job! However, if you've got gunk all over the brake parts, it's a good idea to do a full brake job anyways.





Remove the drums and differential cover. Drain the fluid. Rotate the driveshaft so you can access the pinion shaft lock bolt, which should be a 5/16" bolt. Remove the bolt, and slide the pinion shaft out.



With the pinion shaft removed, you can push the axles IN. Do so to remove the axle retainers, which are thick light copper colored c clips in the picture below. It will pretty much fall out when the axle is pushed far enough in. Be careful not to rotate the axles too much because the pinion/side gears can fall out. You can put them back, but why make more work?



At this point you can just pull the axle shafts out either side.



Pry the old axle seal out. A pry bar or the claw part of a hammer works well for this. Then use a slide hammer to remove the old bearing.



Clean inside the housing. Look down inside the axle tube. Mine was pristine, but if yours has got a lot of gunk in it, you may want to clean it out.



It's a good idea to lubricate the bearing with gear oil before install, especially if there is no grease on it (the Timken comes packed with grease) Use a big socket or the bearing drift kit to install the new bearing. It will protrude slightly from the housing. This is normal. Just whale on the drift until you're sure the bearing is as seated as it will go.



Clean up and lubricate the axle shafts, then reinstall. Installation is the reverse of removal: Push axle shafts in, install retaining clips (which may be a little more difficult to reinstall because the repair bearing makes the axle sit EVER so slightly more outboard), pull axles out to seat the retaining clip, reinstall pinion shaft, reinstall pinion locknut, reinstall differential cover (use new sealant), fill with fresh fluid. DONE. QED.

[benny]

Looking good, titbug. And anybody can be a good welder with a grinder and a can of paint.

[TIMMAY!!!]

Bumpstops

Let's start easy. The upper bumpstops for the upper control arm are the bullet style bumpstops found on many Dodges (and other makes, I believe). They are readily available through Rockauto.com and other parts suppliers. I ordered Energy Suspension polyurethane ones , Energy Suspension part # 9.9103. They bolt right into the existing hole and are a perfect fit. I don't think the material of the upper bumpstops really matter so much, just so long as they are there.

Okay, now the hard part. Lower control arm bumpstops. No one makes them anymore. I ordered a bumpstop from Energy Suspension to test it (part # 9.9101), but these polyurethane ones are WAY too hard. No good at all for this application. After scouring the internet, I found these from Belltech (part # 4923):

http://www.belltech.com/products/bel...top-kit-1.html

This is where I bought them:

Belltech Bump Stop Kit 4923 | eBay


They are 2" tall, which is a little taller than the stock bumpstops (I don't have the dimensions of the OEM stops in front of me but I'll update this post with that information), and made of a soft foam material. I guess they're a direct fit for many Chevy/GMC/Cadillac trucks with torsion bar front suspension. I'm guessing (hoping) that they'll be fine on my Dakota, but I'm not really to concerned.

The lower bumpstops extend beyond the bumpstop mount slightly, but I'm not too concerned with this. I don't believe it will affect performance at all. If you're worried about them looking like they COULD be factory, you may not want to use these. The discerning eye could tell that they're not supposed to be there.

I installed them by simply drilling a hole in the bumpstop mount and installing the upper nylon locknut. I kind of eye-balled where I wanted them by moving the lower control arm up and down and lining up the bumpstop and contact "pad" on the control arm. Not very scientific...but hey, what do you expect from a guy who bought a rotted out 1993 Dakota? :icon_drool:






Notice in this picture that the bumpstop hits pretty damn square on the LCA contact pad. This is good enough. For me.