Rusty 87 build thread

[JDSquared]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

Thanks. I sure wish I had a completed skoolie right now, would be most handy.

Well mine of my family will crap in a bucket lol. They love everything about the bus except that. So even if it was ready I guess I'm evacuating alone.

[musigenesis]

This bit spans multiple crossmembers on the underside, and I'm putting 3/8" bolts down now for eventually attaching my gray tank.



I needed a way to fix these bolts so I can run nuts on from the underside, but I can't (or more accurately, won't ever again) weld the heads because they're Grade 5.

This resulted in the nastiest thing I've ever welded. The bit of bar I welded on to prevent turning and then the bit of nail on top prevents it from being pushed up, but I didn't snug it against the bolt enough and it could still turn, so I welded on another bit of nail to fix it. Just ugh, but I'm going to leave it because it's functional and I need to punish myself.



Had a big storm yesterday which knocked out my power (wont be back up until Sunday night, it seems). Right when the power went a bunch of sirens started up, and my street was filled with fire trucks:



House near me caught fire and one of the two brothers that lived there died on the second floor:

https://6abc.com/delaware-county-sto...re-in/6229618/

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by JDSquared

Well mine of my family will crap in a bucket lol. They love everything about the bus except that. So even if it was ready I guess I'm evacuating alone.

Ha, same with my family. My brother and his wife were excited about borrowing my skoolie to go camping, until I explained how a composting toilet works. "Oh. Ooh. No."

[kidharris]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

This bit spans multiple crossmembers on the underside, and I'm putting 3/8" bolts down now for eventually attaching my gray tank.

Attachment 45324

I needed a way to fix these bolts so I can run nuts on from the underside, but I can't (or more accurately, won't ever again) weld the heads because they're Grade 5.

This resulted in the nastiest thing I've ever welded. The bit of bar I welded on to prevent turning and then the bit of nail on top prevents it from being pushed up, but I didn't snug it against the bolt enough and it could still turn, so I welded on another bit of nail to fix it. Just ugh, but I'm going to leave it because it's functional and I need to punish myself.

Attachment 45325

weld 2 pieces of bar stock/strap or 1 piece with notch to prevent turning and epoxy (JB Weld) to hold the bolt down. How do you know where you want the bolts?

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by kidharris

weld 2 pieces of bar stock/strap or 1 piece with notch to prevent turning and epoxy (JB Weld) to hold the bolt down. How do you know where you want the bolts?

I'm going to use two bars on each bolt as you suggest. My gray tank is going up against the fuel tank cage on one side, so I know exactly where the supports on the other side (by the chair rail) are going to go. I would definitely prefer to install the tank first and then lay down the subfloor, but it is what it is.

[ol trunt]

I don't have any problem with "tack" welding a grade 5 bolt to the substrate. Just don't over do it. You can, as an alternative, run a bead of weld on the substrate along two faces of your bolt to keep it from spinning and even weld a "cap" over the bolt top to keep the bolt from lifting while you are assembling the nut.

I suppose another way to keep bolts in place would to be using a bolt with shoulder serrations (like a lug stud)--nah, tack the sucker.
Jack

[musigenesis]

Also disassembled the rear floor reinforcement.

[Native]

In preparation for .... painting ?

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by Native

In preparation for .... painting ?

Yeah. I wouldn't have decided that I don't want the bulkhead wall any more. If it hadn't worked out, I think I would have quit the entire project instead.

I am a little worried about how difficult it's going to be to reassemble. The weld boogering to bend the frames back square put a lot of strain on the connections between the frames and the bus wall/ceiling. It might take a lot of coercion. I was considering just leaving it in place but decided to proceed with my original plan.

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by ol trunt

I don't have any problem with "tack" welding a grade 5 bolt to the substrate. Just don't over do it. You can, as an alternative, run a bead of weld on the substrate along two faces of your bolt to keep it from spinning and even weld a "cap" over the bolt top to keep the bolt from lifting while you are assembling the nut.

I suppose another way to keep bolts in place would to be using a bolt with shoulder serrations (like a lug stud)--nah, tack the sucker.
Jack

I think I may just tack them and forget about it. I massively munged the bolt heads for my chassis clips, but they torqued down to the specced amount without snapping.

[banman]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

I think I may just tack them and forget about it. I massively munged the bolt heads for my chassis clips, but they torqued down to the specced amount without snapping.

If you put a solid tack on two sides of the bolt head it will neither turn or lift.

I still think you should experiment with welding the entire head of a grade 5 or 8 bolt to some plate scrap. put the plate in a vice and see how much torque it takes to break the bolt -- see if the bolt doesn't shear before the head/welds break. Most important, then decide if the welded bolt is still taking as much torque as you need? Especially where you're requiring tension over shear strength.

I've made my own nutplates, welding a grade 8 nut to a piece of flat stock. I wrecked the cadmium plating but I don't think I lost enough (if any) strength to matter...

[kidharris]

Originally Posted by banman

If you put a solid tack on two sides of the bolt head it will neither turn or lift.

I still think you should experiment with welding the entire head of a grade 5 or 8 bolt to some plate scrap. put the plate in a vice and see how much torque it takes to break the bolt -- see if the bolt doesn't shear before the head/welds break. Most important, then decide if the welded bolt is still taking as much torque as you need? Especially where you're requiring tension over shear strength.

I've made my own nutplates, welding a grade 8 nut to a piece of flat stock. I wrecked the cadmium plating but I don't think I lost enough (if any) strength to matter...

I would think that what the bolt is holding and how many bolts are doing the job would play into whether I welded, tacked, or not. Not all bolts are holding the body onto the frame.


Not getting the bolt too hot would also factor in. Over sizing the bolts is also an option if losing strength is the problem. Small holes drilled thru the heads are also an option. Stick a wire/rod thru the hole and weld it.


Is the problem not having someone else to hold the bolthead? Millions of bolts are installed every day without welding them in. Not all bolt heads have to be hidden, unless you are an Italian car designer.



Maybe you are a little obsessed with this.

[musigenesis]

[Native]

Lemme guess ... water tank rails?

[musigenesis]

Originally Posted by Native

Lemme guess ... water tank rails?

No, underbody brackets for the rails for my transit van seat and the pieces for my hack reinforcement of the back end. I was just taking pics of the notches I cut in the pieces to ID them. I have this habit of writing where a piece goes with a sharpie and then painting over that.

[musigenesis]

Said the heck with it and welded the heads. As usual, taking it down to bare metal made welding it a lot easier.



Focus, you



First go at welding a screw instead of a bolt.



Dowel goes down easier on a wood screw than on a bolt. Whodathunkit?





Couldn't find my bolt cutters, so I rigged a way of cutting the screws easily (if not necessarily safely).

[musigenesis]

[musigenesis]

These safety blocks are actually easier to deal with than paint tape.

[musigenesis]

I've always wondered what would happen if you painted wood with Rustoleum. I'm gonna find out since I just accidentally painted one of my plywood floor pieces with Rusto clean metal primer instead of Valspar wood primer/sealer. I was wondering why the paint suddenly felt so different.

[Jolly Roger bus 223]

Originally Posted by musigenesis

Said the heck with it and welded the heads. As usual, taking it down to bare metal made welding it a lot easier.

Attachment 45440

Focus, you

Attachment 45441

First go at welding a screw instead of a bolt.

Attachment 45442

Dowel goes down easier on a wood screw than on a bolt. Whodathunkit?

Attachment 45443

Attachment 45444

Couldn't find my bolt cutters, so I rigged a way of cutting the screws easily (if not necessarily safely).

Attachment 45445

i used to work with an older man that drove screws in like 8d nails and when you asked him about it he would say that the slots in the head is for taking them out not puttin them in?
i can understand that with a slotted/flat head screw cause i hate them.