TNRabbit

FYI:
You might want to put rubber insulators wherever there is contact with the cage; with it wedged in it could rub a hole when you start adding flex/body movement...

Looks great! You have tackled a huge project; I don't think I've seen anything like it here on Yotatech in sheer scale of the project!

FOCUSHERE

that thing is sweet
what is the weight? so far lol

Rather Diesel

Honestly, I don't think I've added 250 lbs to the truck. The fiberglass top with glass weighed the same as the new top I cut up. The stock tailgate and glass had to weigh 75lbs more than my new back doors. I also trashed a bunch of parts needed for the auto trans, parking brake, rear proportioning valve and brackets, etc.

And yes, the Mercedes engine will look the same as that 22re. Every part of the truck was stripped to bare metal, primed with Rust Bullet and painted. It looks like a new truck underneath.

Thanks for all the input!

Roy

04 Rocko Taco

Coming along nice, I would just get swamped and bogged down in a project like this and lose my mind.

Rather Diesel

I gave up on the two back doors. They had an aluminum frame, and the steel skin was really thin. I made the doorway smaller and made a new door from steel. I also used a piano-hinge to help support my weight on the ladder.

I used the wider side for the two fuel cans. (Only one is shown) The fuel can mounts are not finished, just tacked in place. I haven't found a bargain on eBay for my rear window yet.

Rather Diesel

Here is a pic looking in the back door to the driver's side. I also ditched the hinged microwave support. I just wasn't happy with the end result. The microwave fits above the numbered plywood you see on the left. The fridge goes on the bottom. I can still sleep three if we share some of the foot room. This setup is incredibly strong now.

You can see some of the plywood used for seat-bases and seat-backs now too. The seat frames are 3/4" square steel tubing. These are then wrapped in 18 gauge sheet.

Rather Diesel

Passenger front-door looking back. The wire seat-back shown folds down to create a shelf when needed. The back will be padded of course.

Rather Diesel

Looking from back door to passenger side.

Rather Diesel

Driver's front door looking back.

Rather Diesel

You may notice that the folding seat-backs are gone as well. The folding method caused a tremendous loss in headroom when folded down. I'll show my alternative solution shortly.

Roy

suprathepeg

signing on.

Rather Diesel

It's hard to believe it's taken this long to get this far. I thought I'd be farther by now. What sucks, is having to fab and re-fab over and over. Some of the stuff that works on paper doesn't work at all in the truck.

Some advice to anyone anticipating a build:

1-Start collecting steel NOW! I have spent way more on materials than I had budgeted. Get in the habit of watching trash set by the curb. You will find scrap in those piles. Also, let all your friends and family you need steel. It's surprising what some folks will give you.

2-Invest in a bandsaw. If you are using a cut off tool, you will go thru lots of disks on a big job. If I had it to do over, I would have bought a saw. Cut-off disks on a grinder make a hell of a mess as well. You will have metal particles all over the garage.

3-Tack everything in place, even if you are positive that's where the part will permanently be located. You will get new ideas as you assemble the components, and it sucks to cut out good welds. It's much easier to cut the tack welds. Only apply quality welds when you MUST cover welding access to add a part that you can't remove later to weld under.

Hope this helps gived you some ideas, and save you folks some grief as well.

Roy

YotaJunky

Great looking project. Reminds me of the Winnebego conversions on the early 2WD Toys. I guess you wont need to be camping after it's done.

Troy

kenwoodrunner

awesome looking! very hard core! i can't wait to see the finished truck

lr9788

any updates?

Rather Diesel

I'll be shifting the focus of the build starting Saturday. I'm picking up my Mercedes OM617 turbo-diesel/auto trans in the morning, and will start documenting that swap. I'd like to squeeze an intercooler somewhere if I can.

I'm still waivering on how to finish the back off, not sure if I want an exo-cage on the back and framework inside for shoulder-belt mounts, or have an internal rollcage. Having the engine will give me time to ponder the best path on the back.

Having two big projects on the truck at the same time actually helps some. When you get tied up for parts or ideas, you can move to the other project for a while.

I'll keep you all posted.

Roy

mastacox

I would recommend going for an internal cage, to help preserve the looks on the outside of the truck, and it will help save weight compared to an external cage AND internal seatbelt framework. If you do it right you should be able to keep the cage from taking up too much room inside as well. Just make sure to wrap the tubes in foam to prevent injuries later...

mastacox

Are you going to do a window in the rear door? I would probably want one with one of those "RV fresnel lenses" to help rear visibility.

Rather Diesel

I have a rear window for the back door. It's a tinted slider though, so one of those magnifyers might not work well. I plan on using a rear facing camera and a flat screen monitor at the dash.

Roy

mastacox

Fine, be that way