Wouldn't it be easier to tack on a few inches of frame rail at the end
than some of the other options...heck I know for a fact Tom doesent use
that last few inches of frame for anything useful like a bumper....
Aaron Wyse wrote:
>
> I was ready to offer up one of mine till I saw the reminder of Christine
> being a long bed.. all of mine are short beds.
> I wish I had one to offer you.
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Terrible Tom"
> <silvereightynine@aol.com>
> To: <dakota-truck-moderator@bent.twistedbits.net>
> Sent: Saturday, August 01, 2009 3:35 PM
> Subject: Re: DML: Christine is off the road indefinitely.
>
>
>>
>> jon@dakota-truck.net wrote:
>>
>>> Sorry to hear that Tom!! :-( On the plus side, the engine looks
>>> nice. :-) Do the GenI and GenII use the same frame? If you can find
>>> a rollover somewhere, that might be perfect. (Granted, an 8' bed
>>> frame will be basically as old as yours so condition might not be much
>>> better, but who knows...) You'd probably have better luck finding a
>>> nice frame if you could use a GenII club cab, but it looks like they
>>> are 131" vs the long bed's 124". I suppose you could use a club cab
>>> frame (if you didn't mind the longer wheelbase) and build a 7" wide
>>> toolbox running the width of the truck to fit in the gap between the
>>> bed and the cab. (And/or run a set of exhaust stacks up through that
>>> area?) :-) Another idea might be a custom roll bar which would tie
>>> into the frame right there, the legs for the hoop could come right up
>>> between the bed and cab, then the rear legs could bolt into the bed.
>>> You might need to adjust the cab mounts and would probably need a
>>> longer driveshaft (or grab the club cab's 2 piece) but it might be
>>> doable?
>>>
>>> I notice that the GenIII long bed is also 124". Any chance the
>>> GenII body can be shoehorned onto the GenIII frame? I don't see long
>>> bed Daks very often, but I will keep an eye out
>>> for you.
>>>
>>>
>>
>> Interesting thoughts Jon. I had thought about using a club cab
>> frame, and finding a creative way to fill teh gap. Trouble is I'm not
>> sure just where that extra space goes. The overall length of the
>> trucks may actually be pretty close. It might just be that the rear
>> axle is located in a different place. I'll have to check the FMS to
>> see what the specs are.
>>
>> I have searched around on car-parts.com and even though I input the
>> 124 inch frame option - the salvage yards I called that listed them in
>> stock, all said they were club cab trucks. Finding an intact 124 inch
>> (reg cab 8 foot box) frame is going to be a challenge.
>>
>>
>> On that same note I'm going to ask those on the list to keep an eye
>> out for a suitable donor truck for me. Basically 124 inch wheel base,
>> 4x4. Engine/tranny options don't matter. Location is also not an issue
>> at this point. I'll drive where ever I need to.
>>
>> I've located a few places that do custom frames, and I'm going to
>> start looking into what that might involve.
>>
>> --
>> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> "Man is the only kind of varmint [who] sets his own trap, baits it,
>> then steps in it"
>> -John Steinbeck
>> -----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>>
>
>
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