Howdy from the Pig City

[Coffee Freak]

Lexington NC here - the self-proclaimed Barbecue Capitol of the world.

Hey there. I found this site kinda by accident. I've been on K!llB!llet.com and on the other website that sounds like a pork product. This one seems more friendly especially since my build is far from a traditional Rat. I follow the mantra of "use whatcha got", so my project is a blend between vintage drivetrain stuff mixed with a late model import frame and axles and even a hacked up body tub that will eventually resemble a 32 Ford. THe picture is just mocked up so far.

This is my first foray into Rat Rods, but I'm a car guy (originally from Detroit). I built a Jeep Wrangler from the ground up with a Chevy powertrain and Scout axles.

I'm currently unemployed, so the project is on temporary hold.

So far, I have a T90 transmission and Dana 18 t-case out of a 1950's CJ2a and corresponding speedometer, Samurai axles, frame and tub with CJ rims.

 

[Gus]

Hello, welcome to RRR......This is the only web site u'll need right here..

 

[Sam_Fear]

Welcome to RRR!

 

[Old Iron]

Welcome to the site [cl
We're like a cult, we are all you'll need [ddd
Have fun on the site and when you start a build thread, post lots a pics

 

[sneakysnake]

Welcome to RRR, where cleaning the yard to build a rod is acceptable.

 

[Dirtyrat]

Welcome, looks like you have a good start there for sure... always cool to see something different!

 

[skull]

hi

welcome..........................................................................


nice start...

we like off the wall or different stuff here,


Later

 

[Toad]

Welcome from the big pond!

Toad

 

[Tim...Ok]

Welcome to RRR!! You guys with these two wheel drive jeep projects are killing me, my next project for sure..nice looking start to a project

 

[Coffee Freak]

Welcome to RRR!! You guys with these two wheel drive jeep projects are killing me, my next project for sure..nice looking start to a project

This one will be 4WD. Won't be real low, but I'm hoping to still have a good stance. I'm sticking with Samurai axles for now (because I have them), so horsepower will have to be kept in check, but I'm planning on running little tires up front and tall skinny's out back and adjusting the gear ratio in the rear axle to compensate.

It will probably never run off-road, but I may need to lock in the 4WD to drive it to it's back yard parking spot if the grassy hill is wet (the wife won't let it have space on the driveway!)

The plan in my head is that I'll cut up the tub, chop, section and re-weld so much that you won't be able to recognize what the original donor was.

 

[pcdimis]

Welcome..really good site here; I'm sure you will likeit.

 

[hankthebigdog]

WE ARE A FRIENDLY BUNCH, SO STICK AROUND. i WANT TO SEE WHAT THIS PROJECT TURNS INTO. iT SOUNDS COOL

 

[Coffee Freak]

If it turns out half as cool as it looks in my head, I'll be happy. I've always seemed to have one of two problems when building vehicles.

1) No time to build because of working too much, but plenty of money because of the work

2) No money to build it because of no work, but tons of time to sit and dream.

I'm on problem 2 currently. I've had a couple of lucky finds for parts and some freebies and horse-trades, but things are slow. With scrap prices being what they are, people don't hold onto stuff the way they used to. I'm content to build mine without performance parts, but even ragged out vintage stuff commands a premium price around here.

Used to, you could snag worn out rebuildable small block Chevy's for $50-100, but not anymore. Bare minimum seems to be $350. 14 years ago, I bought the motor that I put into my Jeep for $500 and it was a 60,000 mile 350 Tuned Port out of a 92 Firebird Formula - and it included the A/C compressor, harness and computer!

 

[striptnut]

Welcome from New Mexico ! And welcome to the site with no "Pork Product" attitude !

 

[von-zipper]

Welcome from Zipperville!

Zipper

 

[Coffee Freak]

Project update

Well, I have a little more vintage iron to add to the mix now. I've been looking over the Samurai tub and just really not happy at how square and un-vintage it is. So I've been scouring Craigslist and anything else I can find to see what's out there and in this area, the pickings are slim for my budget. The cheapest truck cabs I've found are running $850+. Since I'm a stay-at-home dad, my discretionary funds come in the form of cash or change that doesn't get taken out of pockets and goes through the laundry. If I find it, I can claim it for the rat rod cause.

Recently, I had to use some of my rat rod fund for other uses, leaving me with $50 left. I came across an ad for an old M38a1 tub (1950's military Jeep) that he was asking $100 for. The post was a month old, so I doubted he still had it, much less he would take half his asking price for it, but he was located in my same town, so I gave it a shot. He was hoping to sell it instead of taking it to the scrap yard, so he accepted my offer. My brother in law and I went to pick it up and it turns out, his neighbor (the guy he bought it from initially) went to school with my brother in law. Small towns are great!

So now, the big ticket items I'm lacking are the front suspension (probably going have to to order from Speedway or ez T bucket) and an engine/clutch/bellhousing. Then it's all the little things like a steering column, clutch and brake pedals, brakes, wiring, tires, driveshafts, radiator, lights, etc. It will be nice when the list of parts I have is longer then the list of parts I need.

 

[skull]

welcome

Welcome to RRR, where cleaning the yard to build a rod is acceptable.

or not cleaning the yard is also acceptable[ddd

yep, pics.

need to start a build thread now that ya have a starting point.

Later