Building a custom cab ? The mHET

[kochevnik]

OK - thinking out loud here.

On top of the mostly manual idea, I like things that are going to easy (as in EBay easy to source). That's going to be a design standard as well.

Thinking over the fender idea, as long as the structure of the hood is such that the fenders don't flop or vibrate a lot, I would now agree that having them as part of the hood makes better sense -allows you to get at even more stuff that fenders on the frame. If need be I can just weld more supports to the hood. OK works for me.

I'm not thrilled with putting more stuff under the hood for the lift mechanism. So alternate idea - and keeping with my EBay 'standard' I found 30" RV scissors screw jacks 5000 to 7500 pounds lift for $20 to $50 each. Did I mention CHEAP is going to be an ongoing theme as well. Well it is.

So forget about the boat winch /gin pole idea, in it's place (or maybe one on each side) you weld a fitting with a bushing block or pin on the very front of the hood, another one on the second bumper and matching pieces on the top and bottom of the rv scissors jack.

To open the hood, pull out the modified scissors jack, fit it onto the tilted forward bumper, screw it all the way till the other end fits on the fitting on the front of the hood, then use the screw to open the hood. Come to think of it, 2 jacks would be a lot harder to do - so skip that.

This has some nice advantages I think. Cheap, easy, if you want to make it open fast, hook up your impact wrench and zoom it open or closed.

The specs say up to 7500 pounds, 30" extended. Nothing under the hood, easy to source.

I think that will work.

Don't think I don't appreciate all the advice - I do - but in the end if I am going to make sure this actually gets done on time and on budget, it's gotta work for me.

All ideas help me think so it's all good.

 

[Bighurt]

I'm just going to throw this out there, and you can take it or leave how you want. I personally and a lot of others here try to Mod or plan to Mod the trucks so they are better than the military made them. Take Soni's rig as the perfect example of what the military should have done as an M920A1.

With that in Mind I think a hydraulic linear actuator is your best bet. They make systems that have a manual hand pump in case of failure. After all you already have Hydraulic fluid on board you just have to source it differently.

And I'll end with a line I use when pitching jobs to clients. You do it right you do it once. Just ask that guy with the roof job I passed up...LOL

 

[kochevnik]

HAHA - well I hear ya, and if I had Soni's skills, money and time I'd be right there with you.

But a man's got to know his limitations ...

 

[Gunner0311]

Love crazy ides

I love your crazy idea!

The M1070 is awesome and I applaud your ambition, as this looks like a seriously
problematic undertaking....

 

[droopypete]

Have you thought about taking up golf?
After reading through your plan, I have a few comments you can do with what you will, first instead of welding all the panels, have a think about rivets, think aeroplane body, flat head or countersunk rivets,
and seeing as you are a tight arse you could even use pop rivets (land rover style), rivets have many benefits over welding, firstly they look great, perfectly at home on a MV, they are way strong, there is no heat distortion, you can easily replace a damaged peice with nothing more than a drill and a rivet gun (buy a quality pneumatic one for a job like this), it is quicker than welding/grinding/filling, you could even add external galvanised steel reinforcing (also land rover style)
get your self a guilotine and a folder and go nuts.

On the subject of the tilt front, why not make it out of aluminium? there I said it and I didn't burst into flames seriously, make it lighter and tilt it by hand, if you had a "dog leg" lever arm (see dodgy diagram below) that you could hook securely onto the top leading edge of the bonnet (hood) that extended in one direction down to the bottom of the grill and in another direction out front to a distance that gave you enough leverage to open it manually (it could also be telescopic) you could do it by hand.
Personaly I would do it with hydraulics, but this may suit your budget build a bit better.

Good luck and remember, keep your head down, your eye on the ball and don't forget to follow through
Peter.

 

[kochevnik]

In best chinese accent - HAHA you a funny funny guy



OK rivets.

Plus & Minus
1) Looks great, even better than welding
2) Time consuming but not difficult with right tools
3) Most likely still have to weld up a frame
4) cant do steel & AL together or you get galvanic corrosion
5) Have to buy a bunch more tools - sheet metal brake, quality rivet gun, etc
6) have tp figure out some way of making sure your holes are nice and aligned on both parts to be matched
7) Should get rid of a lot of the heat distortion probs from welding (this is the one I worry about the most)
8 ) Yes can replace panels, but then you are going to have a hard time drilling the holes on the replacement piece to match the holes you already have in the connecting piece.
9) have to drill a LOT of holes - and if you screw one up it's going to be pretty obvious


I have worked a bit with AL and AL blind rivets - not a fan. I built a bunch of custom electrconics boxes.

Steel rivets and steel I think I might like, but that means a lot heavier tools and more expensive tools. AL sheet is going tobe quite expensive - for the hood it might make sense, but for the cab, not so much.

There are two things that I think are going to be a problem with welding - the heat distortion and the look of the areas where one panel meets up with it's counterpart.

I definitely like the rivet look tho.

I'll have to think on it some.



PS - I dont see the diagram ...

 

[73m819]

Use a TIMPLATE for ALL holes, that way ALL holes are layed out the same

As far as heat goes, do a bit at a time, skip, then come back, also on THIN metal use a HEET SINK behind the weld like a copper buss bar

 

[plym49]

For raising the hood, a hydraulic setup will be best. That screw jack will get old real quick on a cold, rainy night when the truck is covered in road salt.

For drilling holes, punch them! I have a Roper-Whitney punch I bought when I was a teenager. One of the handiest tools you can imagine. There is not problem punching holes for rivets and it is easy to keep the holes in alignment.

My .02. As you were.

 

[BrainP]

if you havent found a solution yet for raising the hood, i see something everyday that would work great. all our large Cat loaders us electric linear actuators to raise their hoods, you can get them 12 or 24 volt, all they need is a momentary rocker switch. easy to find at a cat dealer or equipment scrap yard.