The mutilation of my '91 thus far. :-D

Howdy everybody. It's been a while since I've posted here but thought I'd stop by to show what I've been doing.

Last year I rear ended a chevy and pretty much totaled my truck. here's the thread with pictures

Now, I love this ford. And hence, was not nearly ready to part with it... So, the transformation begins.

Fist thing was to get rid of all that pesky body stuffs in front of the fire wall. I have pictures of this on a different hard drive and will post them if anyone is interested.

Luckily the frame was still straight and I only fragged the ac condenser and radiator. In my mind, it just meant I get to have on-board air and slap on a bigger radiator.

After that I needed to reevaluate the intake and battery location.

The intake is just a blue rubber couple to link the MAF to the TB. Then I cannibalized the stock air box to mount the cone filter to the MAF with the assistance of a PVC drainage pipe reducer.

For the battery I used two lengths of square tubing and notched both ends to accept a piece of flat bar with a hole and a nut welded inside. I welded these pieces into the notches and used pre-existing holes in the frame for the bolts.

More cannibalism was in store as I reused the stock battery tray sans a little material I cut away to clear the harmonic balancer and to lay flat against the frame.

Also, I had to relocate the clutch reservoir as it was in the way of the frame for the new fenders. A simple bracket was fabed up for this.

So here is where I'm at thus far. [WARNING, NAKED EXPLORER PICTURES]

Ultimately it will look a bit like a big rig with a doghouse covering the engine and a couple trailer style fenders (I want to go fenderless, but I guess there's a weight limit which is how hot rods get away with it).

The whole doghouse frame is designed to be easily removed to make it easier to work on the engine.

I still have to bend up some flat bar as a sort of indexing crossmember to keep the frame mounting bits from rotating independently.

Tomorrow I hope to mount up all the electricals and weld up the rest of the doghouse frame. It should be finished and skinned up in sheet this weekend.

~Rev

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

UPDATE
Only thing left to do is give it skin. This has been delayed since the shop that's doing it for me got a massive work order and hasn't been able to get to my sheet metal. Templates are made and all the wiring is finished though. I drove it to the store the other day with just the stock bumper, new front frame, and headlights... Yeah, got a lot of confused stares.

I'll post pictures as soon as it's finished though.

~rev

P.S. I like that there's been over a hundred views of this and no replies. That's the reaction I expected. lol

 

[99SportX]

What on earth are you doing? lol

What are the plans for bodywork? I am confused. 'Twisted Metal Black' inspired?

 

[GoneExploring]

I really like that intake set up does it work well and would this be a good idea for off road use?

 

[BrianDye]

Wow that things gonna be a monster....how'd it drive?

Im interested in seeing the final product and front end haha.
Are you gonna use the regular headlights, or something aftermarket like KC's/Hella's or something?

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

Some answers.

originally posted by 99SportX:
What on earth are you doing? lol

What are the plans for bodywork? I am confused. 'Twisted Metal Black' inspired?

This is the idea I've been going off. I sketched it out right after the wreck. It's the general idea (I realize I'm not much for drawing but that's all I've got to show ya) : I basiclly just wanted to put her back together. The plus side is I'll never have to trim the front fenders for tire clearance. hehe

originally posted by GoneExploring:
I really like that intake set up does it work well and would this be a good idea for off road use?

The set-up works great. I'd imagine it gives 'better throttle response' but honestly can't say since it's been so long since I ran it stock. The only problem is that I forgot about the valve cover breather hose (I think it's needed for smog) so I have to get a new MAF to manifold coupler that's longer so I can tie it in. Right now I just have a little breather filter on.

As far as off road, it depends on how many degrees down bubble you intend to go. Obviously you want your intake higher than the water, but I imagine some pantyhose will be fine for any serious splashes, so long as you keep the filter top side.

originally posted by BrianDye:
Wow that things gonna be a monster....how'd it drive?

Im interested in seeing the final product and front end haha.
Are you gonna use the regular headlights, or something aftermarket like KC's/Hella's or something?

It drives pretty much the same, looks a little weird from the driver's seat but responds just the same.

Here's some pictures to give you an idea until I get the sheet metal back.

That's all I've got for now. Any more questions are welcome.

~rev

 

[BrianDye]

Lmfao thats awesome!

 

[deamon3]

So , simply replacing the front end with the original parts would have looked far too good?

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

So , simply replacing the front end with the original parts would have looked far too good?

It would have been just as much work to replace all the inner fender structure and what not as it was to do it my way. Plus I've only had to buy an air filter, electric fan control/wiring harness, headlights and a few other bits and bobs; everything else I either had already, or found for free.

Besides, I like the way it's coming out. Definitely 'form follows function' which is a virtue in my book. Different strokes for different folks.

~rev

 

[deamon3]

The only way I might look good is if you paint the thing army green so it kinda looks rugged.

Other then that it looks like goofy's car

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

The only way I might look good is if you paint the thing army green so it kinda looks rugged.

Other then that it looks like goofy's car

Haha, strangely enough, that's exactly what I'm going to do. Whole thing will be olive drab and I'm planning on painting the front with an open mouth (kind of like the old fighter planes).

~rev

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

Mini Update

Still waiting on my sheet metal. I'm out in the shop today painting everything I've made so far.

~rev

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

Update:
It's been quite a while since I've updated this but the project is taking unexpectedly long. I've been waiting for the shop dude where my dad works to make stuff and they've been swamped for freaking ever! However, I do have the doghouse sides made and bolted on. All that's left is the turn signals and grille which is already mapped out for the cnc plasma; just waiting for the guy to have time to bend the radius. I'll update with pictures tomorrow.

~rev

 

[BigRondo]

Subscribing :biggthump

 

[Turdle]

Interesting for sure. Updated pictures please, some paint would be cool.

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

'teaser' pic

Well, I took one picture today before my camera's battery died. It's been on the charger for a bit and I'll take/post more later tonight but here's one since I said I would post today.

Complete with surface rust and cardboard template for the block-out panel.

I'm thinking that I'm going to fab up a couple wheel well plates out of some sort of plastic or maybe fiberglass. Though, all the wires will be out of sight when finished, so I dunno..

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

Pic Update

Sorry it took me so long to get these pictures up. Just got a new job so things are a bit hectic.


I flubbed on cutting to hood a little bit (cut a bit too much) but I think I'll be able to fill the gap with some 'C' channel molding.

The gap is a bit wide but if I can't fill it with molding, I'll just grab a pick'n'pull hood and re-do it. I am pretty happy with my job on flattening out the edge where the little channel thing is though.

I have to cut the front edge back a bit more but this was a sort of test to see if I could bring that ridge down. It'll be much cleaner when I'm done.

Here's a bit of a side shot to show what I'm doing at the rear of the side. The cardboard is just a template for the block-out plate I'm making.

Another shot from the side.

Here you can see the bracket I made to mount the electrics. I've got the power box, starter solenoid, and radiator fan control until mounted here.

Someone asked what it's like to drive, so here's the view. Still not quite used to it. lol

Definitely gonna need fenders, driving down my alley yielded A LOT of flying mud... straight up. heh

That's it for now. All that's left is hood pins, doghouse mounting pins, turn signals, grille, fenders, block-out plates, smog, and registration!

 

[BigRondo]

Looking good :biggthump

 

[damarble]

Weird...

I'm actually doing somthing in the same vein, only I want to keep my regular fenders and make a tilt hood. But I hacked off all that front fender and core support crap too.

 

[Corrupt_Reverend]

Weird...

I'm actually doing somthing in the same vein, only I want to keep my regular fenders and make a tilt hood. But I hacked off all that front fender and core support crap too.

Awesome! That's actually the ultimate plan for my 'sploder (tilt front clip). But I just need to get it back on the road so this is the intermediate stage. I'd love to see photos of your set-up when you're through. I'm curious about pivot points and clearance issues.

~rev