FWTV: Beckers Build Part 2 Video 3
Season: 2
Category
🚗
MotorTranscript
00:00 It's been a few days since we've been in Mike's shop, and as you can see, plenty of work has been done.
00:04 With the front end almost complete, these guys are able to move on to other parts of the project.
00:08 And there are plenty of things to do.
00:12 From fabricating a roll cage to designing a custom fuel cell, these guys are going to be plenty busy.
00:18 And that's where Tony Pellegrino of Genrite comes up with some answers.
00:22 So you want me to just build you a square box with two pillars?
00:27 What do you want on top? You want like a TJ style?
00:30 Yeah.
00:31 So what are you saying you're going to come down? Are you going to go to the bottom of this?
00:34 We were. We can come down to here more.
00:35 That's about 14.
00:38 But we need more because listen, you also, you've got to remember expansion.
00:42 So you've got to be...
00:43 That's right. There's no air volume in here right now.
00:45 I know. So we've got to allow for expansion on the top,
00:47 which means we've got to take the inlets down at least an inch from the top of the tank.
00:51 It's supposed to be 10%.
00:52 Okay. Not counting the sending unit either going in there.
00:56 But your sending units are sunk.
00:58 Well, that's because that's how we allow the air volume.
01:00 Exactly. So now...
01:02 So you're thinking about coming down 14.
01:04 Let's just go an inch down below that.
01:06 So you're going to drop down just a little bit.
01:08 If we make the tank that dimension, but we drop in an inch.
01:11 No, we have to add an inch to it. 15 inches. Give us an inch down.
01:15 Give us an inch down. So that'd be a 15.
01:17 So we'll just make a clean skin that comes down a little bit.
01:20 With the powwow over, Tony Pellegrino is off to his shop in Simi Valley
01:24 to start construction on the custom fuel cell.
01:27 The next step is to make the chassis and tub with the custom roll cage.
01:31 Flat, flat, plate there, flat plate there, flat plate there.
01:34 But what we have to do to do it the right way,
01:36 we don't want to twist on the aluminum body.
01:38 We want to leave the body where it's at.
01:39 We want to, then we would, we would have to make the plates,
01:42 bolt to the body first, then drop it down in whatever state they're in,
01:46 you know, here, we weld it in that state.
01:49 Like this gap here. Yeah.
01:50 That's the lead that gap. Yeah.
01:52 Because we don't want to stress the body.
01:54 And so steel plates for the roll cage need to be fabbed.
01:57 And that means it's time to break out the plasma cutter.
02:00 Fortunately, a lot of the plates have already been laser cut by AVH Technology in El Monte.
02:07 Since this is a rock buggy/CJ7, the roll cage is an extremely important part of the build.
02:15 You want a full plate? Yeah.
02:16 Full plate up here. You want a full plate like that?
02:18 Yeah. And then we'll leave this off in the, just washer this.
02:21 Other than an eighth inch piece of rubber, there's not going to be any body mounts.
02:25 The throttle down custom frame, the Aqualoo tub, and the roll cage will bolt together to become one complete unit,
02:30 therefore providing the maximum amount of rollover protection.
02:35 Any free and able hand who just stopped by to say hello is quickly pulled into the build.
02:41 The amount of work still ahead for these guys is huge.
02:44 But then again, these guys aren't about to call it quits.
02:48 Not just yet, anyway.
02:50 But there's still a ton of work ahead to get the cage completed.
02:53 Fortunately, there's at least one optimist in the bunch.
02:57 A happy club is a club for people unlike Dennis and Mike who are happy.
03:05 The only requirement is that you be happy 99% of the time.
03:09 And so, you know, that gives you about 10 minutes a day you can be unhappy.
03:15 See, Mike and Dennis are at least 50% of the time, at least.
03:18 So they'll never be in the happy club.
03:21 But it was started by Alberto and myself.
03:24 And soon to go nationwide, so.
03:28 To put the roll cage into perspective, nearly 100 feet of hardened steel tube will be measured, mandrel bent, and welded.
03:35 Then, for added strength, gussets are fabricated into each corner.
03:40 Just reinforcing from here out to the, this bar will reinforce the cowl to the front shock hoop.
03:46 And then we're going to bring some door bars through here, so all this will tag into some door bars.
03:50 So if you go on your side and the rocks won't come in your side of your doors.
03:54 A standard roll bar has four points of contact.
03:57 But for a build of this magnitude, the CJ will get eight.
04:01 Six on the body alone, and two snaking through the cowling into the front shock hoops,
04:06 leaving the driver completely protected by 1 3/4 inch diameter hardened steel tubes.
04:15 With roll cage fab work, there's a lot of parameters and tolerances to consider.
04:19 Custom Jeeps aren't custom unless they're fitted to the driver.
04:24 Although the guys kick it into high gear, any thought of getting this Jeep finished in time for Moab is looking pretty unlikely.
04:30 Especially if the roll cage doesn't get finished soon.
04:34 As the guys step back and reflect on their work, I bet I know what they're thinking.
04:37 Are we really going to get it done in time?
04:40 But at some point, you've got to let your guys go home.
04:46 And the nightly ritual around here is no one leaves until the shop floors are swept
04:51 and pallets of equipment along with a half a dozen rigs are shoehorned back inside.
04:59 Overall, it was a very productive day.
05:08 That's what it takes to close down Fort Boyd Ocular at night.
05:10 (laughing)