I've been immersing myself in so much baja beetle fabrication and restoration for the past 3 years and I've got to say this is probably the most meticulous and expertly crafted design and fabrication I have seen. The craftsmanship is flawless and I am so impressed by what you have created. Thanks for being an inspiration for my own beetle. My beetle is a super and really not designed for baja, but I am thoroughly enjoying watching these videos.
I just ran across this video by accident. New subscriber. That is some impressive engineering and fabrication!! I've never seen anything quite like it! I love baha bugs. Wish I could duplicate that suspension! Absolutely amazing!
Damn, I wish we were neighbors. Among you, all the cool shtuff you build, and your dog, I'd be hanging out a lot. CONGRATS on the suspension. Seriously cool. Looking forward to the rear suspension.
Came out so good! I am sure seeing it painted felt like a big step forward as well. One thing I would suggest, which I saw some other people mentioning, is to reinforce the tabs that go from the arm-spindle. That and certainly shorten up the limit straps. Good job!
Great project & great work, Doug! Tip on shock/spring relationship (dating back to your earlier studies & tests): springs contribute force as a function of position/displacement; dampers contribute force as a function of velocity (rate of change of position/displacement). We can neglect friction & gas charge, at least early on. Apply these rules to the R/C model study and it will all make sense. Rock On!
Dude that thing is perfect! My coworker and I just built a long travel kit for a his Tacoma. We based all the measurements off my kit and changed where the uniballs were and how they pivot, as well as using an extended travel fox coilover so he could keep 4wd. We took out trucks out and tested it and the only thing that broke is his axle. We flew through whoops, small jumps, up hills(where his axle snapped). I'm not sure if we would build another one. We have all the plasma cutter files we made saved, but man it took a ton of time to design them and test fitting, change design, test over and over. Then welding and "Unwelding". Took us about 3 weeks working on it after work and weekends. It's done and we are both really happy with how it came out.
I really appreciate your attention to detail and how your brain works. Keep up the legendary work look forward to watching the next video for the rear.
I think this is a brilliant video. But I do have one question, is there any bump steer when it comes to the suspension being compressed while being turned one way or the other?
There's a little bit of bump at lock, as the rack slides over it changes the elevation a little of the steering arm. So this makes the steering twitch a little.
The A arms are not going to take a jump with these 1/4” plate mount tabs. We do a similar A arm but not have extended plate tabs . We bore a 1.25 hole and weld a tube to connect the uniball . Rock solid No disrespect or hate , love the channel . Just trying to pass along helpful info I have learned during my 30 years of Pro Fab Look up DTFtacoma for build info , and ideas. On suspension connections , NEVER USE ALL THREADED BOLTS , You need a solid shank all the way thru , threads should start after passing thru both points and first washer
Hey man Kevin here from Australia. You've certainly done yourself proud on the front suspension. I look forward to seeing how the rear pans out. As always stay safe and stay well. ✌ Peace.
Hi Doug, where I can get the suspension sizes to build one like yours ! Am a begginner on welding and is a perfect project to me , My aunt has 1970 bug but is just the metal and I want to build a baja bug, am a truck driver so I just have like 3 days a week to this project, in this moment am getting my lunch and watching ur channel U can help with that ! Saludos! Eres muy buen maestro!
There is some details in my shared folder under Wratchet. drive.google.com/drive/folders/1i0qTcN-1BB5_Lu6umgi9OrvRJKr-0vz3 Or if you can wait a little, or just start with the chassis for now. When Wratchet is up and rolling I'm going to put out a spec sheet that will have a ridiculous amount of information on Wratchet. Gracias por las palabras amables. Ten un buen almuerzo.
@@DougBugBuilder i'm folowing your build, you are like a teacher to me, i'm learning so much. I hope i willy start a new buggy în the future. Thanks man
On a set up like this are the bump stops more like a second damper vs a travel limiter? I am a chassis nerd and this stuff is awesome. I wish I could build stuff like this for a job. I have been a mechanic for over 20 years and I'm sooooo tired of fixing people's crap, I just want to build. Your tie rod bar could be shortened by a 1/4 in and shimmed twords the back of the car by 1/4 in . My rule of thumb is just that, there might be some flex when this thing is in motion so a 1/8 in may make contact. If I can fit my thumb in the gap I'm happy.
I'd say the bumps on this chassis are dual purpose. Because they are 4" and not mounted all the way out they contact with about 6" of travel left. So I'll be able to keep the actual shocks a little looser and then let the bumps slow things down before actually bottoming out. I don't want to shorten the steering arms because the Ackerman will get worse. But I might move them back a little at the rack to avoid contact with the boot. Thanks for the ideas and comment!
Awesome job . But the bottom a arm and top a arm pivots on the chassis look in line . Isn’t the top a arm supposed to be further out so you gain negative chamber as the suspension compresses? I’m building my front a arms now would appreciate any advice
In most applications you will see the upper arm shorter, like you said. Stability wise that's good as the camber will work to your advantage both full compression and droop. But for me it has two limiting factors. One is that my buggy is not very wide. So at full compression I already have issues with the tires hitting the fiberglass front end. Having the tires lean in at compression would make that worse. Then at full droop my limiting factor is the steering heim binding at the spindle. Again having the tire lean in at droop makes that worse. So it limits my droop. So I designed the front so as it travels up and down I don't have much change in camber. Which is why the upper arm is only a little shorter than the bottom. If you haven't seen this video I go over some of the geometry of this front end. th-cam.com/video/73qUJBAgd8o/w-d-xo.html Hope my explanation makes sense, good luck with your build.
Doug Bug yeah I watched that video but skipped through it and probably missed the part where you said that. Thanks for taking the time on the reply. You do a really good job and I like your video on Ackerman as well! Hopefully I will have my next video up on the weekend
Perfeito !!😎👏👏👏Estou te acompanhando pelo seu canal e espero , um dia , chegar a seu nível. Muito bom seus projetos . Tenho um Baja e pretendo usar um pouco de seu projeto nele. Apesar de certas limitações , vou me esforçar para fazer o máximo do que você fezl. Um abraço aqui do Brasil.😎👍👍👍
Obrigado amigo, agradeço o bom comentário. Tento explicar muito do que faço para ajudar pessoas como você com suas construções. Boa sorte com o projeto. E um high five da América. 😁👍
very good desing ,incredibly fantastic ,i have a question doug about the bumstop and the shock in the same point of the lower arm wonder if thats going to create a problem, too much stress for the lower arm ?
That is a concern, in a better world I would have put it in contact with the upper arm. But that just would have had the bumpstop sticking way up through the one piece front end. So I compromised some performance for aesthetics. I'll see how it holds up when I hit the dirt. But the front end is pretty light. Thanks for the comment. 👍
@@DougBugBuilder haha nice! ill shoot you an email. I have been slammed this week and keep loading up. spent the day with boosted boiz / Pfi and their buggy then picked up another project from the garage idiots. BUSY DAY!
Im not a really smart person when it comes to fabricating your own parts for cars and really anything. I cant find a good suspension do you have any good ideas where to find one? Or could I inquire with you on building one and I purchasing it from you?
That is a lot of travel! I haven't watched all your vids, but did you ever say what your steering axis camber and caster numbers are? How much does the track width vary from full droop to max width? (horizontal tire scrub). Will it be power or manual steering? Because of the parallel a-arms, and what looks like very little caster, and not much camber inclination either, you will probably see inverted or 'anti' ackerman, plus a lot of steering scrub and a lot of horizontal scrub. But like you said, it won't be real critical on the bug.
Whew.... That's a lot of questions. 😉 The angle or inclination is 10 degrees, the caster is 8 degrees. The track width changes about 8" at full droop, about 4" at full compression. (I'm guessing but that's pretty accurate) It will be manual steering at first, I'll switch to power if it needs it. But it steers really easy. The Ackerman is a little inverted, but not much. I redid the steering arms at one point on the spindles to get the best Ackerman as possible. But it is still a little inverted. There is a lot of horizontal scrub if the suspension is dropping a lot. At mid travel the horizontal scrub isn't to bad. The scrub radius is about 1" behind the pivot point. This is why it turns so easily. And I'd like to add it has zero bump steer. (I'm proud of that) 😁 It has some shortcomings, but It's the best system I've built yet.
@@DougBugBuilder It's good, but parallel arms are not ideal. They result in excessive, or at least unnecessary, horizontal scrub, plus causes the outside wheel to lean out (positive camber) in corners from body roll. When the outside wheel flops out, the car is no longer cornering on the tire tread, but on the sidewall/tread transition. Watch vids of desert race cars and sand buggies, and you will see most of them have this bad camber control. That's because most people, including big name professional builders, think getting the a-arms as long and as parallel as possible is the best thing. It's not, because there is a lot of body roll with long, soft offroad travel. A better design is to make the upright taller, or lower the upper arm frame mount, so the arms are not parallel. The upper arm should slope down toward the center of the car. It's also better if the upper arm is shorter, approx 75% as long as the lower. Now when the susp cycles, the wheel will move in an 'S' curve. This dramatically reduces horizontal scrub. In addition, body roll will pull the top of the wheel inward, keeping the wheel in negative camber when cornering, which keeps cornering forces on the tread of the tire. Try it on the wood susp model you made in one of your earlier videos. Watch what happens when you simulate body roll with parallel arms versus no other change but a taller upright. Below is a link to a vid of a trophy truck by the Brenthel brothers. In my opinion they are among the smartest builders. Starting at 8:20 you get a good look. Notice how tall the upright is, and the angle of the upper arm. Also take note of what they say about bump steer when cornering - they are the only ones I know of, and maybe the only ones in all of pro offroad fab who understand this issue. I discovered it years ago modelling dez truck suspension in solidworks, but until I saw the brenthel vid, I figured I would just keep quiet.. th-cam.com/video/oMubVjguqJw/w-d-xo.html&t
Dunno how to send pics on here but it's going be slow work in progress. Got mud tires couple weeks ago. Re supported a rotting frame and made a new wishbone mounting bar that was rusted in half. Just did that this weekend. Eventually a roll over tube body and cut off the tracker body and modify for a better suspension maybe.
Wow that's pretty narrow for that much travel need something like that for the trails here. What's to come for the back? Another u joint setup or a regular cv joint?
The rear will be H arm and U joints with inboard brakes. Seems like the most fun yet cost effective build. And it will be wider, I went to narrow on the front.
That looks amazing! You did an excellent job .Great vids! . I have a question for a project im doing maybe you can help with. What size uniballs are those and what size are the bolts that go thru them. I have an old winnebago that im building a suspension for to lower it alot. I want to be able to raise it back up to stock height though so thats about 15 inches of suspension travel. I have an engine in the middle of the suspension so cant make the a arms as long as yours. Its dually dodge truck spindles but i think with double shear bolts like you got there i wouldnt need 1 inch bolts running thru. Also how much can it steer ? how much angle will those uniballs let it turn?
These are 1" uniballs. They have high misalingment spacers in them that allow 9/16" bolts to go through them. The spindles will turn 30 degrees in either direction. So 60 degrees lock to lock.
Excellent work, it really high-lights the importance of design work and how it lets you get the most out of everything. The computer is a powerful tool.... What will be powering this sled? I'd like to make a single seater with a sport bike engine...
Well said! This will start with an Ecotec engine. But I think it will upgrade to an LS at some point. I think they call those CrossKarts. I've seen some, they're awesome! Good Luck.
Don't get me wrong because I've loved watching this ever since I found your channel and went back and watched your whole catalog, but why did you do the dog leg on the leading edge of the upper A arm? It just seems like extra weight and a potential hinge spot?
That's a great question. If I went straight back the leading portion of the upper arm would contact the front bumper where it turns back. Yet I wanted as wide as possible where it connects with the chassis. So after the bumper it kicks out to reach further up the front of the chassis.
@@DougBugBuilder That's certainly not the way it looks to me. Granted it would pinch down severely against the dogleg on the rear side of the upper leg, and I can understand your thinking in that, but I don't think the upper arm deals with the fore and aft loads the lower A arm does.
@@lunkydog Well there's two doglegs. One back by the chassis is to clear the bumper like I stated. The one towards the front (might be the one you're talking about) doglegs because it runs parallel to the rear part of the arm that kicks back to clear the shock absorber. You might be right that I made it to beefy. Hard to determine sometimes where it needs strength and where it doesn't.
@@DougBugBuilder Nothing but respect from me. I was hooked from the time I saw you working out the bump steer. Kudos on your effort and your transaxle selection.
Excelente!! Estoy configurando mí suspensión delantera y as sido mi profesor gracia por la información Pero tengo un problema ya tengo la configuración perfecta con las llantas alineadas al subir y baja pero cuado giro toda la dirección a la derecha o a la izquierda y subo y bajo se pierde la dirección ¿q puedo hacer?
¿Su geometría de dirección se alinea con la geometría de su suspensión? Su dirección debe viajar cerca de los mismos planos de rotación que los brazos de control superior e inferior. Y asegúrese de que su Ackerman también sea correcto. (O al menos cerca)
@@DougBugBuilder claro!! La geometría de la dirección es perfecta con la geometría de la suspensión pero en Línea recta, ¿al hacer un giro hacia la derecha o izquierda y la la ves suspender se pierde la geometría de dirección dando un golpe de dirección hacia adentro ? Esa es mi pregunta quisiera saber si también te paso o cómo te quedó
@@fanquez2618 No, eso no debería pasar. ¿La suspensión se atasca cuando giras? Si gira las ruedas con la inclinación máxima y levanta un poco la suspensión, lo más probable es que los brazos se le caigan demasiado.
Looking great!! Those arms look beefy as hell but the tabs to the spindle look like a weak point, plans to box them to the arm? Same goes for the frame tabs
No plans as of now. I did box the tabs at the chassis. At least as much as I could before interfering with the arms. I guess I'll see how it goes once I get it up and running, but I feel like the'll be strong enough.
Doug Bug It is a bit hard to explain, but let’s say 0 degrees is with the steering centered and the front tires pointed straight forward. How many degrees do you get when you turn the wheel one direction until it locks, and vice versa?
@@duskin10101 Got it, it gets 30 degrees in either direction. So 60 degrees total, but 30 degrees either way from center. I wouldn't build this way for a drift car, but on the street and trails this is plenty good.
You keep speaking of bumpsteer by doing a visual check but you really want to use a laser attached to the hub facing out and set up a board or cardboard to project it onto. Then cycle the suspension and watch your laser line to truely check bump steer
Cancle that comment. I just seen one of your older videos and liytlerly just answered all my questions! Such a great job explaining everything for newbies!
In that front end setup you're probably looking at $2,500 in parts. The shock absorbers are a big chunk of it. But all the heims, uniballs, steel, springs, hubs keeps adding up and up. 😉
Specifically these, www.kartek.com/parts/fk-rod-ends-34-right-hand-thread-34-hole-kmx12-nylon-coated-heim-joints.html Just means I can adjust their length in and out.
nice stuff here thank you for all these vids and another thank you for helping me with getting going with Bend Tech! If you have an email I'd like to send you my Bend Tech Pro sand rail project in which your tutorials filled in the blanks and got me going on it
This setup can be called A Arm or J Arm. The lower arm is an A but the upper arm is more of a J. The only thing it can't be called is "Double A Arm". But me personally I just call it A Arm.
You should go ahead and enter in a Race,,,dont know what class you'd be in tho..its not VW powered,,,I thnk Class 5 requires a VW engine. just a thought.. Great work!! A+
![[#2024MAMA] ROSÉ (로제), Bruno Mars - APT. | Mnet 241122 방송](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/dgGqD28J6aQ/mqdefault.jpg)
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I've been immersing myself in so much baja beetle fabrication and restoration for the past 3 years and I've got to say this is probably the most meticulous and expertly crafted design and fabrication I have seen. The craftsmanship is flawless and I am so impressed by what you have created. Thanks for being an inspiration for my own beetle. My beetle is a super and really not designed for baja, but I am thoroughly enjoying watching these videos.
Thanks buddy! I appreciate the kind words.
Have fun with your beetle. 👍
I just ran across this video by accident. New subscriber. That is some impressive engineering and fabrication!! I've never seen anything quite like it! I love baha bugs. Wish I could duplicate that suspension! Absolutely amazing!
Thanks for the kind words, and welcome to the team. 😉
Damn, I wish we were neighbors. Among you, all the cool shtuff you build, and your dog, I'd be hanging out a lot. CONGRATS on the suspension. Seriously cool. Looking forward to the rear suspension.
Thanks, if you were my neighbor I could put you to work. 😊
Never mind. Found it. Heims Joint.
Love your work man, very inspiring. I feel more intelligent now after watching your build.
Thanks buddy! Glad you liked the videos.
Your fabrication skills are amazing! Just found this channel this morning.
Awesome! Thank you!
Came out so good! I am sure seeing it painted felt like a big step forward as well. One thing I would suggest, which I saw some other people mentioning, is to reinforce the tabs that go from the arm-spindle. That and certainly shorten up the limit straps. Good job!
Thanks guys! Appreciate the tips and support!
Still as previous videos you’ve done an excellent job.
Thanks!
These videos are great 👍. Living the dream.
Thanks Buddy!
The level of rigger here is just astonishing. Amazing work.
Thanks!
That's it ,master ,beautiful work 👍👏👏💯💯
Thanks Buddy! 👍
So many things to think about love the work and tests you do to prove a point awesome
Thanks!
Everything looks good, really thought out, 22 inches is still awesome, 0 bump steer
Thanks Mike!
absolutely awesome work Doug keep making the videos. i dig them.
Thanks Buddy!
Fantastic work. That is one stout front end!
Thanks!
Bump Stops are a game changer. Nice to be able to adjust the shock valving to fine tune it later.
Yeah, hoping they will cushion the blows.
Great project & great work, Doug! Tip on shock/spring relationship (dating back to your earlier studies & tests): springs contribute force as a function of position/displacement; dampers contribute force as a function of velocity (rate of change of position/displacement). We can neglect friction & gas charge, at least early on. Apply these rules to the R/C model study and it will all make sense. Rock On!
That's a good explanation of the differences between springs and shock absorbers.
Thanks. 👍
Dude that thing is perfect!
My coworker and I just built a long travel kit for a his Tacoma. We based all the measurements off my kit and changed where the uniballs were and how they pivot, as well as using an extended travel fox coilover so he could keep 4wd. We took out trucks out and tested it and the only thing that broke is his axle. We flew through whoops, small jumps, up hills(where his axle snapped). I'm not sure if we would build another one. We have all the plasma cutter files we made saved, but man it took a ton of time to design them and test fitting, change design, test over and over. Then welding and "Unwelding". Took us about 3 weeks working on it after work and weekends. It's done and we are both really happy with how it came out.
Nice work on that project, sounds great! I can appreciate the work you put into it. 👍
So stoked I just found your channel!! Going to help so much to build a bug the right way with no cheap crap
I hope the videos help with your build.
Thanks for the comment.
Using an off the shelf unit bearing is a great choice. We use the F350 Unit bearings a lot!
Yeah, these are a bit heavy. But hopefully they'll be plenty strong.
I use d40 Nissan navara, 6 stud and 40 bucks
How does this channel only have 13k subs?!
I'm sure it's growth is slow because it's so specific. Or I'm to serious, or ugly?
Who knows. 😂
I really appreciate your attention to detail and how your brain works. Keep up the legendary work look forward to watching the next video for the rear.
Some great building ideas helping me a lot with my builds !!
Fantastic, I'm glad the videos are helping!
Thanks for letting me know. 👍
I think this is a brilliant video. But I do have one question, is there any bump steer when it comes to the suspension being compressed while being turned one way or the other?
There's a little bit of bump at lock, as the rack slides over it changes the elevation a little of the steering arm. So this makes the steering twitch a little.
The A arms are not going to take a jump with these 1/4” plate mount tabs. We do a similar A arm but not have extended plate tabs . We bore a 1.25 hole and weld a tube to connect the uniball . Rock solid
No disrespect or hate , love the channel . Just trying to pass along helpful info I have learned during my 30 years of Pro Fab
Look up DTFtacoma for build info , and ideas.
On suspension connections , NEVER USE ALL THREADED BOLTS , You need a solid shank all the way thru , threads should start after passing thru both points and first washer
Thanks for the info, I'll keep an eye on them.
Hey man Kevin here from Australia. You've certainly done yourself proud on the front suspension. I look forward to seeing how the rear pans out.
As always stay safe and stay well.
✌ Peace.
Thanks Kevin, you too.
Great work and amazingly explained
Thanks!
Hi Doug, where I can get the suspension sizes to build one like yours !
Am a begginner on welding and is a perfect project to me , My aunt has 1970 bug but is just the metal and I want to build a baja bug, am a truck driver so I just have like 3 days a week to this project, in this moment am getting my lunch and watching ur channel
U can help with that !
Saludos!
Eres muy buen maestro!
There is some details in my shared folder under Wratchet. drive.google.com/drive/folders/1i0qTcN-1BB5_Lu6umgi9OrvRJKr-0vz3
Or if you can wait a little, or just start with the chassis for now. When Wratchet is up and rolling I'm going to put out a spec sheet that will have a ridiculous amount of information on Wratchet.
Gracias por las palabras amables. Ten un buen almuerzo.
My Man, I haven’t seen Wratchet in a little while and didn’t realize how much progress you’ve made. It’s looking really amazing, congrats!
Thanks, its no Rascal..... 😉
Your awsome man, keep this channel going.
Thanks! I have no plans of stopping. 😉
I love your videos I can’t wait to show you what I’m building with all the knowledge I’ve learned from you!
Thanks buddy!
I can't wait to see what you build.
looks solid. cheers
Thanks Buddy!
Super, i like the precision of builds, you are a specialist.
Congrat '
Thanks Buddy!
@@DougBugBuilder i'm folowing your build, you are like a teacher to me, i'm learning so much.
I hope i willy start a new buggy în the future.
Thanks man
Looking great and the only thing like it on youtube!
Thanks! I'm trying to keep it high performance but also somewhat unique. 👍
Thanks for sharing.
DUUDE!!! 99,9999% PERFECT!!! GOOD JOB!!
lol Thanks buddy!
Very nice work.
Thanks!
Beautiful Doug!
Thanks!
great job. question: don't you need anther pads for ball mechanisms?
On a set up like this are the bump stops more like a second damper vs a travel limiter? I am a chassis nerd and this stuff is awesome. I wish I could build stuff like this for a job. I have been a mechanic for over 20 years and I'm sooooo tired of fixing people's crap, I just want to build.
Your tie rod bar could be shortened by a 1/4 in and shimmed twords the back of the car by 1/4 in . My rule of thumb is just that, there might be some flex when this thing is in motion so a 1/8 in may make contact. If I can fit my thumb in the gap I'm happy.
I'd say the bumps on this chassis are dual purpose. Because they are 4" and not mounted all the way out they contact with about 6" of travel left. So I'll be able to keep the actual shocks a little looser and then let the bumps slow things down before actually bottoming out.
I don't want to shorten the steering arms because the Ackerman will get worse. But I might move them back a little at the rack to avoid contact with the boot.
Thanks for the ideas and comment!
Awesome job . But the bottom a arm and top a arm pivots on the chassis look in line . Isn’t the top a arm supposed to be further out so you gain negative chamber as the suspension compresses? I’m building my front a arms now would appreciate any advice
In most applications you will see the upper arm shorter, like you said. Stability wise that's good as the camber will work to your advantage both full compression and droop. But for me it has two limiting factors. One is that my buggy is not very wide. So at full compression I already have issues with the tires hitting the fiberglass front end. Having the tires lean in at compression would make that worse.
Then at full droop my limiting factor is the steering heim binding at the spindle. Again having the tire lean in at droop makes that worse. So it limits my droop.
So I designed the front so as it travels up and down I don't have much change in camber. Which is why the upper arm is only a little shorter than the bottom.
If you haven't seen this video I go over some of the geometry of this front end.
th-cam.com/video/73qUJBAgd8o/w-d-xo.html
Hope my explanation makes sense, good luck with your build.
Doug Bug yeah I watched that video but skipped through it and probably missed the part where you said that. Thanks for taking the time on the reply. You do a really good job and I like your video on Ackerman as well! Hopefully I will have my next video up on the weekend
Things sweet! Nice job
Thanks!
Top 10 original subscriber here! Nice work!
You're one the original 10, that's impressive! Thanks for sticking around so long! 👍
You should patent this design and sell it for off-road race buggies... That is some amazing work!!
Thanks!
Impressive! Nice work!
Thanks!
Perfeito !!😎👏👏👏Estou te acompanhando pelo seu canal e espero , um dia , chegar a seu nível. Muito bom seus projetos . Tenho um Baja e pretendo usar um pouco de seu projeto nele. Apesar de certas limitações , vou me esforçar para fazer o máximo do que você fezl. Um abraço aqui do Brasil.😎👍👍👍
Obrigado amigo, agradeço o bom comentário. Tento explicar muito do que faço para ajudar pessoas como você com suas construções. Boa sorte com o projeto. E um high five da América. 😁👍
very good desing ,incredibly fantastic ,i have a question doug about the bumstop and the shock in the same point of the lower arm wonder if thats going to create a problem, too much stress for the lower arm ?
That is a concern, in a better world I would have put it in contact with the upper arm. But that just would have had the bumpstop sticking way up through the one piece front end. So I compromised some performance for aesthetics. I'll see how it holds up when I hit the dirt. But the front end is pretty light.
Thanks for the comment. 👍
No views!!!! Whats up with that haha! suspension looking good!
You might have been the first!
@@DougBugBuilder haha nice! ill shoot you an email. I have been slammed this week and keep loading up. spent the day with boosted boiz / Pfi and their buggy then picked up another project from the garage idiots. BUSY DAY!
Doug, it's all a bit tight on the extremes, but nothing to moan about.
Well maybe the wheels...
One dent in the rim and it all stops rotating...
It's a little snug, I got a little ambitious on the design. If I ever get aftermarket wheels I think a 4.5" backspacing would be perfect.
I would be interested in having you build me a chassis like this built full size width. ?
Sorry, barely have time to build my own. 😉
Im not a really smart person when it comes to fabricating your own parts for cars and really anything. I cant find a good suspension do you have any good ideas where to find one? Or could I inquire with you on building one and I purchasing it from you?
That is a lot of travel! I haven't watched all your vids, but did you ever say what your steering axis camber and caster numbers are? How much does the track width vary from full droop to max width? (horizontal tire scrub). Will it be power or manual steering? Because of the parallel a-arms, and what looks like very little caster, and not much camber inclination either, you will probably see inverted or 'anti' ackerman, plus a lot of steering scrub and a lot of horizontal scrub. But like you said, it won't be real critical on the bug.
Whew.... That's a lot of questions. 😉
The angle or inclination is 10 degrees, the caster is 8 degrees.
The track width changes about 8" at full droop, about 4" at full compression. (I'm guessing but that's pretty accurate)
It will be manual steering at first, I'll switch to power if it needs it. But it steers really easy.
The Ackerman is a little inverted, but not much. I redid the steering arms at one point on the spindles to get the best Ackerman as possible. But it is still a little inverted.
There is a lot of horizontal scrub if the suspension is dropping a lot. At mid travel the horizontal scrub isn't to bad.
The scrub radius is about 1" behind the pivot point. This is why it turns so easily.
And I'd like to add it has zero bump steer. (I'm proud of that) 😁
It has some shortcomings, but It's the best system I've built yet.
@@DougBugBuilder It's good, but parallel arms are not ideal. They result in excessive, or at least unnecessary, horizontal scrub, plus causes the outside wheel to lean out (positive camber) in corners from body roll. When the outside wheel flops out, the car is no longer cornering on the tire tread, but on the sidewall/tread transition. Watch vids of desert race cars and sand buggies, and you will see most of them have this bad camber control. That's because most people, including big name professional builders, think getting the a-arms as long and as parallel as possible is the best thing. It's not, because there is a lot of body roll with long, soft offroad travel.
A better design is to make the upright taller, or lower the upper arm frame mount, so the arms are not parallel. The upper arm should slope down toward the center of the car. It's also better if the upper arm is shorter, approx 75% as long as the lower. Now when the susp cycles, the wheel will move in an 'S' curve. This dramatically reduces horizontal scrub. In addition, body roll will pull the top of the wheel inward, keeping the wheel in negative camber when cornering, which keeps cornering forces on the tread of the tire. Try it on the wood susp model you made in one of your earlier videos. Watch what happens when you simulate body roll with parallel arms versus no other change but a taller upright.
Below is a link to a vid of a trophy truck by the Brenthel brothers. In my opinion they are among the smartest builders. Starting at 8:20 you get a good look. Notice how tall the upright is, and the angle of the upper arm. Also take note of what they say about bump steer when cornering - they are the only ones I know of, and maybe the only ones in all of pro offroad fab who understand this issue. I discovered it years ago modelling dez truck suspension in solidworks, but until I saw the brenthel vid, I figured I would just keep quiet..
th-cam.com/video/oMubVjguqJw/w-d-xo.html&t
Definitely done a amazing job and always very informative. Envy ya I’d love to build something like this. I have 95geo tracker I’m playing with.
I'd love to see a Baja Tracker. 👌
Thanks for the kind words. 👍
Dunno how to send pics on here but it's going be slow work in progress. Got mud tires couple weeks ago. Re supported a rotting frame and made a new wishbone mounting bar that was rusted in half. Just did that this weekend. Eventually a roll over tube body and cut off the tracker body and modify for a better suspension maybe.
Wow that's pretty narrow for that much travel need something like that for the trails here. What's to come for the back? Another u joint setup or a regular cv joint?
The rear will be H arm and U joints with inboard brakes. Seems like the most fun yet cost effective build. And it will be wider, I went to narrow on the front.
Awesome work and detail. I have a trike I'm building that could use some of your technical skills. How can I reach you Doug?
You can email me at dougbugbuilder@gmail.com, I'll help you if I can.
That looks amazing! You did an excellent job .Great vids! . I have a question for a project im doing maybe you can help with. What size uniballs are those and what size are the bolts that go thru them. I have an old winnebago that im building a suspension for to lower it alot. I want to be able to raise it back up to stock height though so thats about 15 inches of suspension travel. I have an engine in the middle of the suspension so cant make the a arms as long as yours. Its dually dodge truck spindles but i think with double shear bolts like you got there i wouldnt need 1 inch bolts running thru. Also how much can it steer ? how much angle will those uniballs let it turn?
These are 1" uniballs. They have high misalingment spacers in them that allow 9/16" bolts to go through them. The spindles will turn 30 degrees in either direction. So 60 degrees lock to lock.
Nice job man
Thanks buddy!
lamao when you asked Alexa your math, my Alexa chimed in. great vid as usual'
Ha, that's funny!
Excellent work, it really high-lights the importance of design work and how it lets you get the most out of everything. The computer is a powerful tool.... What will be powering this sled? I'd like to make a single seater with a sport bike engine...
Well said! This will start with an Ecotec engine. But I think it will upgrade to an LS at some point.
I think they call those CrossKarts. I've seen some, they're awesome! Good Luck.
@@DougBugBuilder YES, the CrossKart is such a neat machine, they are running them on all surfaces in Finland !!
Don't get me wrong because I've loved watching this ever since I found your channel and went back and watched your whole catalog, but why did you do the dog leg on the leading edge of the upper A arm? It just seems like extra weight and a potential hinge spot?
That's a great question. If I went straight back the leading portion of the upper arm would contact the front bumper where it turns back. Yet I wanted as wide as possible where it connects with the chassis. So after the bumper it kicks out to reach further up the front of the chassis.
@@DougBugBuilder That's certainly not the way it looks to me. Granted it would pinch down severely against the dogleg on the rear side of the upper leg, and I can understand your thinking in that, but I don't think the upper arm deals with the fore and aft loads the lower A arm does.
@@lunkydog Well there's two doglegs. One back by the chassis is to clear the bumper like I stated. The one towards the front (might be the one you're talking about) doglegs because it runs parallel to the rear part of the arm that kicks back to clear the shock absorber. You might be right that I made it to beefy. Hard to determine sometimes where it needs strength and where it doesn't.
@@DougBugBuilder Nothing but respect from me. I was hooked from the time I saw you working out the bump steer. Kudos on your effort and your transaxle selection.
Excelente!!
Estoy configurando mí suspensión delantera y as sido mi profesor gracia por la información
Pero tengo un problema ya tengo la configuración perfecta con las llantas alineadas al subir y baja pero cuado giro toda la dirección a la derecha o a la izquierda y subo y bajo se pierde la dirección ¿q puedo hacer?
O esto se da por defecto?? realmente no encontré solución quisiera saber cómo te quedó
¿Su geometría de dirección se alinea con la geometría de su suspensión? Su dirección debe viajar cerca de los mismos planos de rotación que los brazos de control superior e inferior. Y asegúrese de que su Ackerman también sea correcto. (O al menos cerca)
@@DougBugBuilder claro!! La geometría de la dirección es perfecta con la geometría de la suspensión pero en Línea recta, ¿al hacer un giro hacia la derecha o izquierda y la la ves suspender se pierde la geometría de dirección dando un golpe de dirección hacia adentro ? Esa es mi pregunta quisiera saber si también te paso o cómo te quedó
@@DougBugBuilder y mi Ackerman es casi perfecto
@@fanquez2618 No, eso no debería pasar. ¿La suspensión se atasca cuando giras? Si gira las ruedas con la inclinación máxima y levanta un poco la suspensión, lo más probable es que los brazos se le caigan demasiado.
Looking great!! Those arms look beefy as hell but the tabs to the spindle look like a weak point, plans to box them to the arm? Same goes for the frame tabs
No plans as of now. I did box the tabs at the chassis. At least as much as I could before interfering with the arms. I guess I'll see how it goes once I get it up and running, but I feel like the'll be strong enough.
How many degrees of steering misalignment angle do you get with the uniballs mounted vertically like that? Thing’s looking great!
Do you mean how much difference between lock to lock between the front tires?
Doug Bug It is a bit hard to explain, but let’s say 0 degrees is with the steering centered and the front tires pointed straight forward. How many degrees do you get when you turn the wheel one direction until it locks, and vice versa?
@@duskin10101 Got it, it gets 30 degrees in either direction. So 60 degrees total, but 30 degrees either way from center.
I wouldn't build this way for a drift car, but on the street and trails this is plenty good.
@Doug Bug That is exactly the info I was looking for. Thank you for the quick and detailed response. Love the videos and keep up the great work!
Thanks Doug!!
You Bet!
hi, the steering angle looks very small! or will it be ok?
It's not bad, 30 degrees each way. Same as the other Baja. You might need to 3 point turn if it's tight. But overall it works out fine.
Hi! Your work is awesome! What caster angle did you do? How many degrees? Thanks!
The castor on this chassis is 7 degrees. I did that on the other chassis and it worked well.
You keep speaking of bumpsteer by doing a visual check but you really want to use a laser attached to the hub facing out and set up a board or cardboard to project it onto. Then cycle the suspension and watch your laser line to truely check bump steer
Not sure I need to be that accurate, but I appreciate the advice.
@@DougBugBuilder true.
Curious as to what your shock location is vs the length of the arm! Around a 60/40 setup?
It's more like 55/45, just a tic past halfway. I should have used 14" shocks. Luckily there isn't that much weight in the front.
What kind of steering gear box is that
It's made by SACO #64-1000
Are you going to be running any front brakes?
Cancle that comment. I just seen one of your older videos and liytlerly just answered all my questions! Such a great job explaining everything for newbies!
Thanks!
How much would it cost?... Cause my boy and I would like to build a Baja bug with long arm suspension front and rear...... I like the set up 👍
In that front end setup you're probably looking at $2,500 in parts. The shock absorbers are a big chunk of it. But all the heims, uniballs, steel, springs, hubs keeps adding up and up. 😉
@@DougBugBuilder is it street legal or is there a street legal kit for a Baja bug
hellova nice job! I like it!
Thank you!
Amazing Man!!
Thanks!
whats your width of your front end
77" outside edge of wheels at ride height.
What is an "adjustable hyme"? I can't find it on google.
Then look for adjustable heim or rose joint.
Specifically these, www.kartek.com/parts/fk-rod-ends-34-right-hand-thread-34-hole-kmx12-nylon-coated-heim-joints.html
Just means I can adjust their length in and out.
Rod end is now the most used term. All are adjustable (threaded)
nice stuff here thank you for all these vids and another thank you for helping me with getting going with Bend Tech! If you have an email I'd like to send you my Bend Tech Pro sand rail project in which your tutorials filled in the blanks and got me going on it
Sure thing, I'd love to see what you designed. Email them to me at dougbugbuilder@gmail.com
Thanks!
@@DougBugBuilder I sent it in an email and hoping it worked along with images of a few complete versions
isnt this actually a J arm suspension setup?
This setup can be called A Arm or J Arm. The lower arm is an A but the upper arm is more of a J. The only thing it can't be called is "Double A Arm".
But me personally I just call it A Arm.
Thanks for setting off my Alexa
You are welcome! Tell her I said hello. 🤣
Nice work bro. It's a beauty. But I think you might need some duct tape and spray paint to sneak this one by the class 11 inspectors. Lol
Yeah.... I don't think it would pass that inspection. 😉
You should go ahead and enter in a Race,,,dont know what class you'd be in tho..its not VW powered,,,I thnk Class 5 requires a VW engine. just a thought.. Great work!! A+
Thanks, I want to take Wratchet to Jump Champs when it's done.
Well Great!
So Perdy!!!
Thanks!
Hmm no caster must be great on turns
The caster is in the frame, it's 8 degrees. Meaning the front of the frame is raked up 8 degrees.
My Floor jack doesn't even have this much Travel 😁
You need a bigger floor jack! 😂
My alexa answered the question in my house lol
Oh yeah! That must have been hilarious! 🤣
Chou de bola
Dang alexa scared the crap out of me watching this she just started yelling the awnser to the math question you asked her.
Lol, didn't even think about that when I used her in the video.
@@DougBugBuilder yeah so much for watching tv quietly to not wake up my gf then Alexa screamed full blast scared the shit out of me
@@DougBugBuilder you should order something randomly during a video and see how many people get pissed when something shows up at their door
@@kpb711 I guess it would depend on what I order. lol
Sooo v8 swap???! 😂😂🤔
Nope, not yet. Still moving forward with Ecotec for now. 😒
Did you have to put a bolt through the bearing to hold it together, being a drive hub, just curious ?
That hub is meant for a 2WD Toyota 4Runner. So from the factory it has a large nut on the back of the axle that holds everything together.
Awesome nice build, I've been a fabricator for 35 years and that my friend is great work!