Fan shroud installed today. For just measuring the thing on-site and going off of photos, then fabricating it at home... it fit up pretty damn well.
As it is now, the blades sit about 7/8 of the way in at the top, 1/2 of the way in at the bottom. I'll see if I want to keep the protective "shroud" over the top of the fan...
Not pictured: Me playing around with the clutch pedal's lever ratios. Feels great now. Also installed some heater hoses.
With the axle done, only thing left for it, is to add some extra leaves to the pack. Chopped these down with a cut-off wheel, from some new springs that were the wrong size for a friend's build. The spring never exceeded 170 deg. C in the immediate area beside each cut - I figure this is fine?
Current plan is to paint the rest of the frame, then get the front axle in. Once the axle is in, the hydroboost and power steering lines will be run, brake lines run, wiring harnesses I built over winter will be installed, and then the old rear will be swapped with the new rear.
The rear will need to be lifted 6.5" to match the front axle, so the bus sits level. I know on MDT 4x4's they often just add lift block and call it a day. From what I've seen, often a lot more than 6.5 inches... I don't like that for axle wrap reasons though. I would also like air in the rear. I've toyed with the idea of a Freightliner Airliner setup, but that has poor articulation and its single thick spring mounts under the axle, not above like most springs... I've seen people mount them on top, and they eventually crack and fail. Don't want that.
What's the downside to smaller lift blocks, and just slapping some bags in the middle of the leafspring to give the rest of the lift, similar to those "airbag helper" kits? I would retain a (slightly under-sprung) leaf spring suspension if a bag gives out, which I see as a plus. If I dont do this, I would likely fab my own Kelderman-esque "two-stage air ride" that replaces the rear shackles, or just get a International 3800 rear leaf suspension from a bus at work, and save the air ride for later... Thoughts?