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Well, believe it or not, I actually got something done on the baby HEMTT. After numerous failed attempts, I finally worked up a set of t-case mounts that; support the t-case, fit in the space allowed and don't need to be assembled or disassembled like a chinese puzzle. Here's some pictures. Tomorrow the bed goes back on.
Like I said earlier, that is one fine welding job!
Not to be picky, but what grade are those cap screws? May be wrong, but they don't look fine thread to me. This application calls for fine thread grade 8, IMHO.
The washers must be grade 8 too, so they don't deform.
I dont want to sound like a know-it-all but a lot of the new medium duty truck's use coarse thread
bolts on major mountings like trannys and engine mounts I guess the new lock nuts are very strong.
Thanks guys for the kind words but when I stick weld ithe part ends up looking like a steel porcupine.
I'm not shy about giving the good guys credit; I can tack weld with the rest of them but when it comes to welds that I have to depend on, I go with the pros. I do their machining projects and they do my welding.
However; the design, press-brake & punch-press, and cutting and fitting work is mine.
The bolts so far are all grade 5s. But can be replaced with grade 8s if failures are detected. My personal experience has been that an 8 will snap where a 5 will deform but still hold. Which opens the age old debate: "Yeah, but it takes more to snap an 8 than it does to bend a 5". I will say in my defense that I'm using only US made fasteners throughout. Hardest lesson for me has been to go to bolts instead of hot riveting stuff together; but all the current military trucks I'm around are all bolted assemblies. Easier to replace a tweaked frame component and not have to scrap the truck.
Hello Mike,
Just like the full-sized HEMTTs, the gap between bed and cab will be taken up by the engine dog house, battery box, spare tire and it's hoist, air and fuel filters, and antenna base for comm and GPS. Space from bed to frame between bed mounts will have snubbers to support bed while allowing flex in rough terrain.
Looks great as usual Jones. I was really surprised at how small the bed looked on there, I had no idea the truck was that big. What kind of primer / paint is the orange stuff?
Yeah, it's funny how big or little an object looks depending on it's surroundings. The basic truck was a run-of-the-mill M35. The difference comes from the cab size and the 1600X20s on 5 ton axles and springs.
All new brackets and other assorted hardware are getting a healthy coat of red oxide primer before the final color goes on.
Jones - I have a question about the T-case mount, are those rubber or silicone dampeners? I was wondering about the difference, if any, on how they hold up over time.
I've gotta say that you have one of the most craziest projects I've seen in a while, but it is such a cool idea. I wish I had more time to do things like that, or I would be cutting up a deuce 4-door.
In keeping with my off the shelf replacement parts theory; the mounts are stock steel-reinforced rubber Dodge pick-up cab mounts. If they prove to be too light I'll machine myself replacements out of urethane but as a complete Dodge cab weighs more than the t-case I'm hoping they'll do the job. The HEMTT cab is quite a bit heavier than I first figured so I replaced the rubber with urethane while keeping the special, steel cup washers for alignment.