My 69' Scout 800 Project

[Elijah G]

Very nice work and progress.

[Binderman]

Sweet build!! Nice fab work!! Cool shop!!

Its good to see another 800 being built in the NTB area!! All the other members like the creature comforts of their SII's.

They might as well drive a J**p.

Stir,stir.......

Hope to see it at the next Roundup!!

Later...........

[db1115]

Thanks for the encouragement guys...it seems like a daunting task sometimes. The more I do...the more I see I need to do. But we (the family and I) hope to bring our scout out to some of the NTB and HCB events in the future.

I plan on constructing a new front bumper this weekend using a used Smittybilt jeep bumper I picked up. Should have some pics of it soon after.

[db1115]

Ive been working on building the front bumper. It is definetely taking longer than I expected...I think Im just too picky.

I am building it out of a 4" roller from a haybaler, a 3" jeep bumper, some 10ga diamond plate, and a couple of 1" thick shackle mounts.

This is what I have so far, though it is only tacked together and still a long way from complete. Hopefully I will get alot further on it this weekend.

[db1115]

Here are a few pics of more work on the bumper. I still have alot of welding and dress up to do with the grinder...but the only fabrication left to do is build the grille guard and the shackle mounts.

[db1115]

The front bumper is finished except for cleanup and paint. On to the back bumper and winch now.

[Gary Billings]

Originally Posted by db1115

The front bumper is finished except for cleanup and paint. On to the back bumper and winch now.

Holy cow, everything IS bigger in Texas!

Lookin' good!

-Gary

[db1115]

Originally Posted by Gary Billings

Holy cow, everything IS bigger in Texas!

Lookin' good!

-Gary

Hahahaha...thanks Gary...I did probably "over do it" a little. But it turned out looking like I wanted.

Funny thing (well...it wasnt so funny at the time) the middle 4" pipe, on this bumper, is the same pipe I had as the bumper originally. It was originally a roller out of an old Ford round baler. I dont know exactly what steel it is made of, but it welds good and is awefully stout. In 1984, I had and accident in this scout where I T-boned a brand new Lincoln. Nobody was hurt at all, thank god. But that pipe took all of the impact, totaled the Lincoln (and I mean totaled...the Lincoln had to be removed by a wrecker and was replaced by insurance). The bumper came out of the wreck with no scatches, dents, and only a light paint scuffing. The Scout itself was untouched.

[Garner]

As for your steering box bracket, will it crack? There are a lot of variables, including driving style and tire size, but the idea isn't that they are vertical welds, but that they are hot welds 2-3xs thicker than what you're welding to. It creates a stress riser along the bead and the thicker angle iron. Stitching is the conventionally preferred method, rather than a continuous bead. I've seen lots of cracks along thicker plates like this on a number of rigs (true, no Scouts, but I've yet to see one in person done this way and wheeled hard). A really good welder would also probably mention something about a heat affected area.

Either way, I don't mean to pick, but just to emphasize that this is one of those things you should inspect at regular intervals once you get your rig up and going.

[db1115]

Originally Posted by Garner

As for your steering box bracket, will it crack? There are a lot of variables, including driving style and tire size, but the idea isn't that they are vertical welds, but that they are hot welds 2-3xs thicker than what you're welding to. It creates a stress riser along the bead and the thicker angle iron. Stitching is the conventionally preferred method, rather than a continuous bead. I've seen lots of cracks along thicker plates like this on a number of rigs (true, no Scouts, but I've yet to see one in person done this way and wheeled hard). A really good welder would also probably mention something about a heat affected area.

Either way, I don't mean to pick, but just to emphasize that this is one of those things you should inspect at regular intervals once you get your rig up and going.

Thanks for your input Garner. That is good advice and I am always glad for someone to help. I wish more people would post up opinions or questions about this project like you have.

Will it crack? I dont know for sure. My professional opinoin is no. But I didnt put my PE stamp on the design either. This is a subject I went over and over, in my head, before I decided to go this way. I dont disagree with anything you mention and all was considered. The horizontal weld across the bottom was stiched, but I wanted the look of a continuous weld on the sides. If the continuous weld was all the way around the "boxed" frame, I would be more concerned with it cracking. I'll definitely keep an eye on it. I might also add that the original "bracing" plate, that IH welded in place for the original steering box, was not removed and is under the angle iron I installed. This should further strengthen this area. But again, if it breaks, I'll fix it.