Kickin Indian 4X4 cheap-O build thread!

[kickinindian]

okay iv been a small poster on this thread and i have used some of the good advice and such you guys have posted on here.
when i first got it in the winter

where i am now

[kickinindian]

i have no clue why the pics wont show up they usally do

[PEZi]

fixed it for ya

[kickinindian]

thank ya kindly

[fastboatman29212]

I'm thinkin' you probably have a little tire rub with tight turns in parking lots etc., right? What size are your tires? I have 235/75 x15 all the way around. I had to pound away on the front inner wheel wells to eliminate 95% of my rub. I think 235/70 or 235/60 would work best.

[breadbox]

Looking great.

[kickinindian]

yea on the front iv been rolling bending and cutting stuff so most of it is eliminated but still yea damn parking lots... we should just park were we damn well please! but anyways they are 31x10.5 and the wheels are 15x8 i got the 4 tires balanced mounted etc. for 150 flat i think total of what i have done on this truck is around less than, $600 wheels and tires were, $320 then cap rotors vac lines etc., $40 speakers, $35 rattle can paint $40 and cherry bomb $45 and just other random stuff

[kickinindian]

im thinking i might paint it this color eventually
http://www.copelandhome.net/todd/truck2.jpg

[kickinindian]

okay the fenders are rubbin pretty bad and seein as i need another alignment to be done anyways how would i go abouts cranking the torsion bars up abit to get some lift?

[MetalFab]

Just grab a 19mm wrench and socket, or was it 17 socket and 19 wrench, I forget. Just give the same amount of turns on each side, easiest to measure out a 1/4 turn and count em. The allignment shop should be able to fix the whacky camber from cranking the torsions unless you go too high. 1-2 inches "should" be correction-able.

[kickinindian]

sounds good but one Question iv heard that cranking the torsion bars makes when you hits bumps alot harder? idk just something iv heard how is your ride compared to what it was stock? do you know which way the camber goes when you adjust it because i have alot of negative camber and if it makes it go positive i might fix my own alignment! kidding but just a thought...

[MetalFab]

Raising the truck will give you even more negative camber and will put strain on the angle of the balljoints causing them to wear faster, yet putting tires bigger than stock will cause everything to wear faster.. and ball joints/bushings/idler arms/drag links are not cheap. I have the larger sway away torsions in my rig and they turned the truck into a tank! I wanted the ride to stiffen up and got more than I asked for, however, cranking your torsion bars shouldn't effect your ride until you max out your suspension and keep cranking. Torsions don't twist much unless they are abused like mine were, and they aren't under extreme load like older vw style torsions. That said.. still be careful and put your rig on jack stands to the frame first to release tension in the suspension. This will also make it easier to tighten up the bolt. I'd also get under there and spray some penetration oil before hand. Custom upper control arms are the best way to go about correcting the camber and balljoint angle. They aren't cheap, but you can buy them alone from the entire suspension kit at 4x4parts.com.

[kickinindian]

crap okay was only thinking like .5 in of lift just to get the tires from rubbing for now, until i can get some dough in another month or so. i was hoping if i did that the camber would go positive but oh well thanks for the info.

off topic would anyone know if replacing the CV joint boot is just taking the brakes off and such or is it a little more difficult?

[MetalFab]

half an inch of lift won't effect you too much more. it'll just wear the tires alittle bit faster lol.

as for the cv boots... you have to unbolt the hub, pull the rotor internals--biggest pain there is the snap ring, pull the balljoint bolts, (4 on top 4 on bottom, no need to try to pull the bj's unless they're shot(requires only alittle more disassembling), the tierod, pull the boot, and the spindle assembly should then come right off leaving you with the cv. Keep a jack stand under the lower control arm but out of the way of pulling the lower bj bolts. I might have missed a step or two but thats the basics of it--one big pain in the butt! Goodluck.

Oh, and I'd buy both a chilton and haynes manual, best 30-40 bux ever spent.. And one usually covers more in depth what the other leaves out. I couldn't say which is better though, they both have their better points.

[MetalFab]

Oh, and I must say that painting that truck black is a night and day difference! Looks great!

[kickinindian]

yea hopefully its like a gunmetal silver color by august and im gonna tint the windows too.
ill keep you guys updated on the CV boots for peoples who are in my boat ill probably do the torsions soon then..