Budget Buggy

Yay!Gurrr

Yay!Gurrr

Better Faster Stronger
Moderator
Joined
Mar 17, 2005
Location
N. N. Raleigh, NC
Everyone seems convinced I'm building a buggy....

I'm not..... I'm collecting parts... I'll start building when I get enough shit...

Here's a brief overview of my plans at this point.. (all subject to change)

* First, most important budget = $6k or less
That in it self will dictate many parts that get used or not used in most cases. I'll start a price listing when I get more junk, I don't have any slush money left for this year, so this will be a very slow going project but hopefully following basic outline will keep it focused over time...
* 2500#
* 36" tire size
* trail only
* 2 seater
* Linked
* air shocks

Here's how I'm gonna do it:
beg barrow and steel...
Toy axles stock 4.10s upgrades where possible. (have)
W56 trans (have)
Toy cases/doubled-Tcase (have 1 w/ 4.7s)
4cyl engine (2.0L-2.5L) TBD
No rear steer
Creative design and parts selection (all out)

Any/All parts reasonably possibly will be purchased used/ebay etc..

I'm off to a slow start, the seats aren't even mine :flipoff2:

20081123-Layout-Planning 018.jpg
 
Needs more triangulation.:flipoff2:

The $6K budget should make things interesting. Good luck.:beer:
 
Should be a cool build. I like to see people thinkin outside the box.
 
you need more cowbell.:flipoff2:



It this the start of a build thread?
 
doubt it.. I have a lot of things to collect, before any 'building' begins.. This will just be pics of all the parts in a pile for at least a year... Ill still be wheeling the jeep in the mean time..
 
i am digging the 4 x 4 crossmembers though, thatll help with the chassis / dolly / drivetrain flex and vibration issues.


seriously though mike, can't wait to see it come together, let me know if you need a hand with anything, i'll be glad to to ride out.

I know its going to take a while so, we need to meet up and go wheeling sometime, the jeep is pretty much all together, waiting on my new wheel centers to arrive, and NEED to do the cage.

-> hijack off<-
 
Mac5005 said:
i am digging the 4 x 4 crossmembers though, thatll help with the chassis / dolly / drivetrain flex and vibration issues.
Click to expand...

Hey looks like he went all out on those. They look pressure treated!

Hey Yager when you get to the building phase let me know if you need any sheet steel or aluminum. Good luck with the parts collecting.

<><Fish
 
damn...there's my seats...dont leave your shop door open folks...he's sneaky...

j/k ... good luck with your quest for parts...
 
I think 6k is a reasonable budget, basically this is a "F-Toy" type build...

I am expecting to have about that in my truck when done, the only diff will be a truck/fenders/cab vs a full on buggy chassis.
 
Forgot to add pic of the axles... Stock Toys, 4.10s

20081128 001.jpg

Need to find some Lunch Box lockers. Don't really want a spool/welded...


I have a ton of pics from last weekend, with the seats in various positions. Attempting to try some different configurations.

Right Hand driver w/ passenger seat in some different spots.
While it showed some advantages overall prolly not a good layout got general purpose rig... Sorta goal is for anyone to easily drive this with out needing to 'learn' anything.

Normal Left drive, with some various seat positions. high, low, forward, above t-case, rear of t-case, etc..

It all boils down to extra width vs extra height.

To which I won't know the answer until I do some full scale mock up with axles foe links etc. Regardless I'm still in the typical 48'-52" width range. Heights ~76" possibly less depending on seat lay back etc..


Anyway, I have some ideas for some cheep, rear disks upgrades, the standard methods (gm caliper etc) are all fine, but I'm investigating some other methods, using lower cost and lighter weight rotors etc.
 
Go with LC front rotors with ifs caliper in front. Then buy a set of brackets for the rear (toywelder on pirate) for 89.00 and use your old rotors and cal. in the rear. Works great.
 
Lets call this the high/stagger seating.
It is higher on the list as it is still narrow(er) but allows for some elbow room.. Much of this BS will sort itself out when I can find an engine or at least a dummy block to better see how the exhaust & cooling systems might fall into place..

20081123-High-Stagger-Layout014.jpg
 
* First, most important budget = $6k or less
That in it self will dictate many parts that get used or not used in most cases. I'll start a price listing when I get more junk, I don't have any slush money left for this year, so this will be a very slow going project but hopefully following basic outline will keep it focused over time...
* 2500#
* 36" tire size
* trail only
* 2 seater
* Linked
* air shocks

Sounds like this zuke buggy I remember from a few years back.. :flipoff2:
 
What advantage does the staggered seating give you? Narrower overall cabin width? Sounds like this will be a cool project to watch.

I've kind of had a similar but ultralight weight buggy idea floating around in my head for a while now. Basically a budget build starting with a Samurai hacked down to the bare essentials with aftermarket axle shafts and a max tire size of 34". My Sami may turn into this over the years as it gets beaten.
 
well its all theory at this point, still on paper and some mock up pics.. I'd be surprised if someone hasn't already tried it..
Basically when you slide 2 seats together, you tend to be knocking elbows with the passenger. You can either move the seats apart or yell at your passenger :)
In the driveway mockup session, even a 6" stagger allowed for a lot more elbow room.
It also will allow for space to be used for..... fuel/bat/??? dono yet..
We also tried several other layouts, not sure how much BS you want to see or hear, I snapped pics of every layout we tried just to reference later on.. some would be cool to see implemented in a comp buggy but just not piratical for a general purpose rig. I can post a few in a bit with a brief desc. of what I was thinking...
All going back to my plan. Small/compact and light weight. This will help with the compact part and less materialsl = less weight....


Here is a pic of my old zuke based buggy that Rich is referring to. Sami drivetrain, toy axles, 35" MTRs, leaf/leaf very light...

While not probably worthy by todays buggy standards I learned a lot building it that I've carried into every project since. Buy me a :beer: and I can tell you all about the pros/cons of doing a project like that one..



20030522-05.jpg
 
I had a few minutes, so I actually made up a spreadsheet with what I've spent so far. I will make a separate section in a bit, with some budget item projections.

Buggy Project - Initial Budget $6,000.00

Purchases
toyota axles F/R 1985 + spare rotor/caliper/wheel hub -$300.00
w56 trans+ tcase w/ 4.7gears -$480.00
mico line lock + tcase flange -$20.00
drive shaft – two piece -$20.00
extra top shift tcase -$50.00
extra forward shift tcase -$25.00
shaved narrow rear housing + 3 spare shafts + lug nuts -$20.00

Sold/Resold Items






Remaining Budget $5,085.00
 
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