Long time follower first time commenting. I've spent 14 years building a long travel tube chassis baja bug and drove it for the first time today, I cried. I'm running an Ecotec behind a Mendeola. I have regrets about this and was so relieved to see the Honda and 5-speed. It pays to research and more importantly sometimes take advice. I have purchased a Honda also and will be collecting parts to do an Ecotec Honda swap. Can't wait for the next video and thanks for letting me watch. Happy Holidays to you
Thanks for commenting, and congratulations on the first drive. That's a big accomplishment! Don't sweat the regrets, no matter what you do you'll eventually wish you did something different. 😂 Hopefully the Honda is a powerhouse for you (and me)!!!
first off you are doing incredible work! your project rivals that of a ballers high buck build. the one thing i would say is there's times to build in a weak link. i ran that style of axle shaft for years in a forced induction corvair making the same ponies as the honda j series. the axles are strong but the transaxle is now the weak link cvs can be replaced in the field. push your clutch in before contacting the ground and shift gears smooth and don.t slam the skinny peddle with the cutting brakes. "transaxle engineering" is the name of the company jeff fields is the man to talk with when it comes time to repair, upgrade, or you need another opinion from a pro on anything sand rail related. if you haven't thought of a shifter yet look into "the cable shifter". your work is inspirational keep on keeping on!
Interesting to think of the CVs as a weak link. I never thought of it that way. I spent big money on this transaxle so it would be up to the task. But I guess between the engine and tires somethings gunna give. Thanks for the first hand experience, tips, and contact. I'll look into it. And appreciate the kind words too.
I built a long travel sandrail, and had a pair of 200mm cv axle made for $250. Way cheaper to do it the cv way time and money. You build is great.love the channel
Look into rcvs.. but I feel like your justified in your reasonings for using them! And I also wanna applaud your ingenuity and parts useage!!! I'm assuming the Toyota hub is the same splinecount as the jeep stub?
Hmm, never even thought about using that to cut this. Mine isn't big enough, but that would certainly be a straight cut. I might pick one up, thanks for the tip. 👍
I would take those to a driveline shop and have them straightened and balanced. cost maybe $60 each. The tube is not as straight as you think and will cause vibration. I worked at Drivelines inc long ago and we built these for Team McPherson racing, Baldwin Racing, And a few others. Great work for a home garage, but take them to be straightened and balanced on the machine and save some later issues.
Good stuff. I would be concerned with the yoke that does not have much of a slip fit. I would assume the 1/2 shoulder on the other end of the axle would be much stronger. In my mind you have a lap joint on one end and a butt joint on the other. Please don't take.this the wrong way. I like your work a lot. Good stuff keep it coming.
You're absolutely correct. The butt joint will be weaker then the lap joint for sure. On Mauler I did this with a 1.75" tube. But on Wratchet I went with 2.5" for more weld area. But I guess I'll see how it holds. Admittedly I try a lot of weird stuff on these builds. Thanks for the comment.
Hey a cool little tip when you weld something that you have to turn make a ground clamp extender I use them a lot on drive shafts and 4 link rods all it is is the same wire as the ground but with the outer casing cut off then Braid it and when you’re done just wrap it around what ever you’re welding and then clamp the ground to the wire and when you spin the piece you’re welding it will just spine if you have a email I can send you a pic
Damn dude all of your videos are great! You've got me dreaming of building my own baja project. Do you know if there is a cv axle shaft that works the 4runner hubs? Or what I should google to try and find myself?
I haven't found any CV stubs that will fit those yet. Aside from the stock shafts, but those are not that beefy. If/when I do I think I myself will switch to CVs.
Looks good but at 21:27 that shaft looks like it has a lot of up and down looks like it could be not straight I don’t know if it was just how it was caught on video or what
I was afraid people would see that. I noticed it when I was editing. Good catch though. When I pressed in the U Joints I knew I'd be taking it apart so I didn't put in any of the clips. Didn't bother to really center them either. So the U Joints aren't totally centered in the yokes. So when you spin it they are a little off center.
Could you have used a tractor PTO shaft as it’s two u joints that are sleeved all the way through. They are designed to take heavy loads and high speeds
PTO shafts are either going to be rounded off square cold roll or octagon shaped cold roll. On some applications they will also use round cold roll with a keyway. They are not meant for high speed applications. That's why when you seen one in action they are dancing all over the place. Most driveshafts for cars are built to a 2-4 thousands max tolerance. Also, hope you backed that spline shaft out at least an 1/8 before welding it or it will come back to bite you one day. I say this because I was employed for over 13 years at 3 different driveshaft companies here in Texas making many types of shafts for everything from cars to airplanes to giant printing presses and even carwashes for semi's.
I don't think you can have slip splines on a CV setup outside of the slip spline in the center of the CV joint. Unless I'm misunderstanding your question.
@@DougBugBuilder No I don't think you misunderstood my question. What I'm trying to figure out is how to accommodate the change in distance between the transaxle and hub throughout the range of motion of the Trailing arm suspension with a cv axle setup. Unless I find a flanged yolk that fits my transaxle and splines that fit my hub. This is going to be used in a street or MAYBE a track application, so there isn't a ton of travel, maybe 8 to 10 inches from full droop to the max height, but I think I wanna stick with CV axles only because ill have a good amount of torque, and minimal damage during failure. Thanks for all the times you've helped me in the past👍
Strong Hand Tools, Magnetic V-Pads amzn.to/397Rqu8 I've had those for about a year now. I don't know how I lived without them. They are useful for so many things!
You really need to find room for a little secondhand metal lathe mate. NOT getting quick and perfect 90' ends on round items is near as damn it impossible on even the cheapest of these. Even if you only use it once in a blue moon it'll pay for itself in saved time. If you bodge on a secondary reduction pulley set or add a VFD to lower the RPM right down they're also pretty useful as a quick and dirty rotary welding table, or a way to uniformly polish/sand cylindrical metal parts. They're one of those tools you wouldn't think you'd use enough to warrant owning.......... Until you get one ! :)
I've been casually looking at used lathes. I'll have one at some point. I have a small hobby one in the basement, so I'm aware of what they can do. But like you're implying I need one that can work on larger parts for the Baja. Let me know if you find one for me. 😉
@@DougBugBuilder wouldn't do you much good if I found you one around my neck of the woods mate. I'm in the UK. We use a minimum of single phase 240v on mains electric over here, so anything I found you would be on a serious go slow over in your workshop. :D
Great Vid love the builds and build quality, in the UK will call the shafts slightly differently. we got the Main shaft or Torque tube, (this is between engine and gearbox) spins at engine speed Propshaft (this is between gearbox and differential) spin engine speed after gearbox ratio driveshaft (this is between the differential and hub/wheels) spins after the diff ratio and is the wheel speed Fun fact the R35 uses all three of these. also this is a grat vid on explaining UJ ua-cam.com/video/gmV4qwLfOMY/v-deo.html Have fun :)
Good job explaining everything, good that you took us up stairs to show the 90 , really like the voice over
Thanks Mike, good to hear from you. Hope you are doing well.
Your hands, your gloves, ain't nobody's business but yours. Enjoying the build.
True that! 😉
finally someone on youtube knows the correct way to setup a UJ's properly 👏 deffinetly be watching more of your videos
Thanks buddy!
Long time follower first time commenting. I've spent 14 years building a long travel tube chassis baja bug and drove it for the first time today, I cried. I'm running an Ecotec behind a Mendeola. I have regrets about this and was so relieved to see the Honda and 5-speed. It pays to research and more importantly sometimes take advice. I have purchased a Honda also and will be collecting parts to do an Ecotec Honda swap. Can't wait for the next video and thanks for letting me watch. Happy Holidays to you
Thanks for commenting, and congratulations on the first drive. That's a big accomplishment! Don't sweat the regrets, no matter what you do you'll eventually wish you did something different. 😂
Hopefully the Honda is a powerhouse for you (and me)!!!
first off you are doing incredible work! your project rivals that of a ballers high buck build. the one thing i would say is there's times to build in a weak link. i ran that style of axle shaft for years in a forced induction corvair making the same ponies as the honda j series. the axles are strong but the transaxle is now the weak link cvs can be replaced in the field. push your clutch in before contacting the ground and shift gears smooth and don.t slam the skinny peddle with the cutting brakes. "transaxle engineering" is the name of the company jeff fields is the man to talk with when it comes time to repair, upgrade, or you need another opinion from a pro on anything sand rail related. if you haven't thought of a shifter yet look into "the cable shifter".
your work is inspirational keep on keeping on!
Interesting to think of the CVs as a weak link. I never thought of it that way. I spent big money on this transaxle so it would be up to the task. But I guess between the engine and tires somethings gunna give.
Thanks for the first hand experience, tips, and contact. I'll look into it.
And appreciate the kind words too.
The welding is every inspirational
Thanks Mike!
You continue to amaze me and teach me.
Thanks!
Appreciate the comment.
Thanks for the videos. Gave me the motivation to do my own a-arms. Just got back from a 6 day desert camping trip.
Thanks guy! I hope the A Arm project goes well!
I built a long travel sandrail, and had a pair of 200mm cv axle made for $250. Way cheaper to do it the cv way time and money. You build is great.love the channel
Hmmm, maybe I need to look again at prices.
Thanks for the comment and info.
Look into rcvs.. but I feel like your justified in your reasonings for using them! And I also wanna applaud your ingenuity and parts useage!!! I'm assuming the Toyota hub is the same splinecount as the jeep stub?
You need to buy a plumbers pipe cutter Doug. Keep up the good content!
Hmm, never even thought about using that to cut this. Mine isn't big enough, but that would certainly be a straight cut. I might pick one up, thanks for the tip. 👍
Greetings. That was super. Keep up the beautiful work. 👍👍👌👌
Thanks buddy!
Thanks again for another good video. Love your work.
Thanks!
Love it! So crazy! I never knew knew ujoints could handle this abuse. I just never paid attention
We'll see if Wratchet can break em. 😉
thank you!! Just keep doing this videos, great job!!
Thanks! Appreciate the support!
👏👏👏👏👏👍👍💯💯💯💯beautiful work 🙋🙌
Thanks! ✌👍🙌🙌👍
I would take those to a driveline shop and have them straightened and balanced. cost maybe $60 each. The tube is not as straight as you think and will cause vibration. I worked at Drivelines inc long ago and we built these for Team McPherson racing, Baldwin Racing, And a few others. Great work for a home garage, but take them to be straightened and balanced on the machine and save some later issues.
I'll consider that, thanks for the first hand experience suggestion. 👍
Good stuff. I would be concerned with the yoke that does not have much of a slip fit. I would assume the 1/2 shoulder on the other end of the axle would be much stronger. In my mind you have a lap joint on one end and a butt joint on the other.
Please don't take.this the wrong way. I like your work a lot.
Good stuff keep it coming.
You're absolutely correct. The butt joint will be weaker then the lap joint for sure. On Mauler I did this with a 1.75" tube. But on Wratchet I went with 2.5" for more weld area. But I guess I'll see how it holds. Admittedly I try a lot of weird stuff on these builds.
Thanks for the comment.
Hey a cool little tip when you weld something that you have to turn make a ground clamp extender I use them a lot on drive shafts and 4 link rods all it is is the same wire as the ground but with the outer casing cut off then Braid it and when you’re done just wrap it around what ever you’re welding and then clamp the ground to the wire and when you spin the piece you’re welding it will just spine if you have a email I can send you a pic
That's a great idea!
Send me a picture, dougbugbuilder@gmail.com
Thanks.
@@DougBugBuilder just sent you some
Damn dude all of your videos are great! You've got me dreaming of building my own baja project. Do you know if there is a cv axle shaft that works the 4runner hubs? Or what I should google to try and find myself?
I haven't found any CV stubs that will fit those yet. Aside from the stock shafts, but those are not that beefy. If/when I do I think I myself will switch to CVs.
nice work!
Thanks buddy!
Looks good but at 21:27 that shaft looks like it has a lot of up and down looks like it could be not straight I don’t know if it was just how it was caught on video or what
I was afraid people would see that. I noticed it when I was editing. Good catch though. When I pressed in the U Joints I knew I'd be taking it apart so I didn't put in any of the clips. Didn't bother to really center them either. So the U Joints aren't totally centered in the yokes. So when you spin it they are a little off center.
@@DougBugBuilder yes I build drive shafts for jeeps
Could you have used a tractor PTO shaft as it’s two u joints that are sleeved all the way through. They are designed to take heavy loads and high speeds
I'm not sure, It'd depend on how the splines are on the shaft. But you might be able too.
It’s still a brilliant project. Really enjoying it ! Keep the videos coming
PTO shafts are either going to be rounded off square cold roll or octagon shaped cold roll. On some applications they will also use round cold roll with a keyway. They are not meant for high speed applications. That's why when you seen one in action they are dancing all over the place. Most driveshafts for cars are built to a 2-4 thousands max tolerance. Also, hope you backed that spline shaft out at least an 1/8 before welding it or it will come back to bite you one day. I say this because I was employed for over 13 years at 3 different driveshaft companies here in Texas making many types of shafts for everything from cars to airplanes to giant printing presses and even carwashes for semi's.
@@mwreyf1 I know they rotate at 540rpm and 1000rpm, with heavy loads on them, what speed with the cars shafts be doing ?
I have a low Bug in the project, but I don't know which steering rack to put on it, do you think an empi is enough? has a-arms
I would recommend you look at Saco. Their racks are priced well for their quality.
Do you have any recommendations on a slip spline cv axles setups for 2001 Boxster 5 speed transaxle and spindles? Trying to workout a setup.
I don't think you can have slip splines on a CV setup outside of the slip spline in the center of the CV joint. Unless I'm misunderstanding your question.
@@DougBugBuilder No I don't think you misunderstood my question. What I'm trying to figure out is how to accommodate the change in distance between the transaxle and hub throughout the range of motion of the Trailing arm suspension with a cv axle setup. Unless I find a flanged yolk that fits my transaxle and splines that fit my hub. This is going to be used in a street or MAYBE a track application, so there isn't a ton of travel, maybe 8 to 10 inches from full droop to the max height, but I think I wanna stick with CV axles only because ill have a good amount of torque, and minimal damage during failure. Thanks for all the times you've helped me in the past👍
what's the name of the magnetic holders you used to hold the pipe?
Strong Hand Tools, Magnetic V-Pads amzn.to/397Rqu8
I've had those for about a year now. I don't know how I lived without them. They are useful for so many things!
Ah got it thanks!!
Is that a mendeola gearbox?
It's a Weddle, HV25.
Drop that knowledge on em!
Ka-Boom!!!
You really need to find room for a little secondhand metal lathe mate. NOT getting quick and perfect 90' ends on round items is near as damn it impossible on even the cheapest of these. Even if you only use it once in a blue moon it'll pay for itself in saved time. If you bodge on a secondary reduction pulley set or add a VFD to lower the RPM right down they're also pretty useful as a quick and dirty rotary welding table, or a way to uniformly polish/sand cylindrical metal parts.
They're one of those tools you wouldn't think you'd use enough to warrant owning.......... Until you get one ! :)
I've been casually looking at used lathes. I'll have one at some point. I have a small hobby one in the basement, so I'm aware of what they can do. But like you're implying I need one that can work on larger parts for the Baja.
Let me know if you find one for me. 😉
@@DougBugBuilder wouldn't do you much good if I found you one around my neck of the woods mate. I'm in the UK. We use a minimum of single phase 240v on mains electric over here, so anything I found you would be on a serious go slow over in your workshop. :D
Why dont you use car alxe
I can get more angle with these.
Great Vid love the builds and build quality,
in the UK will call the shafts slightly differently. we got the
Main shaft or Torque tube, (this is between engine and gearbox) spins at engine speed
Propshaft (this is between gearbox and differential) spin engine speed after gearbox ratio
driveshaft (this is between the differential and hub/wheels) spins after the diff ratio and is the wheel speed
Fun fact the R35 uses all three of these.
also this is a grat vid on explaining UJ
ua-cam.com/video/gmV4qwLfOMY/v-deo.html
Have fun :)
So in your part of the world this would be a driveshaft! That's interesting.
Thanks for sharing and for the comment.