Chassis Building Part 2

The framerails were built from 20-foot long sections of 2x4x.120-wall rectangular steel tubing, which we cut into smaller pieces. Each section was miter-cut and MIG-welded together and then gussetted with a 3/16-inch thick steel plate.

once the backbone of the chassis was essentially put together, we focused on mocking up the Ford 8.8-inch IRS centersection and knuckles, and then crafting control arms to link the two parts together.

The control arms pivot on 1-inch diameter spherical bearings, commonly referred to as "uniballs". When mounted in a vertical position, the uniball gives the control arm a nearly limitless range of motion, unlike a common balljoint which locks up at about 20 degrees of angle.

There are several ways we could have mounted the center section for the IRS using tubular mounts. But, Mike Kim loves to TIG weld and he loves to use the dimple die tool even more so we decided to use laser-cut sheetmetal to build a front and rear bulkhead for our mounting points. Not only would this be a lighter way to mount the center section, but we also designed upper A-arm mounts into the bulkheads as well. And you have to admit they look pretty cool.