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Ford Semi Crawler Hauler Build

outdoorexplorationgear

outdoorexplorationgear

Active member
Joined
Sep 14, 2020
Member Number
2870
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39
Click image for larger version Name: 20200303_162515.jpg Views: 0 Size: 280.9 KB ID: 135466
Current details of the rig. 1985 Ford lt9000
Engine: Big Cam 3 Cummins 350hp, (the good one with high flow coolant),
Transmission: rto14613 13 speed with overdrive
Rear suspension and axles: 46,000lbs rated Hendrickson walking beam leaf spring suspension (the back destroyer!!)
Top speed: 55mph at 2100 rps
Wheelbase: front axle to rear axle 191"

over all its pretty clean with just under 300k miles, and no blowby. Last weekend i picked up a cutoff axle assembly from a 1999 freightliner, to get air ride, 3.58 gears, and a little bit longer frame. I also grabbed both 150 gallon fuel tanks to get rid of the ankle breaker step tanks, and to keep from having to buy fuel in California.

The plan...
stretch wheelbase to 220"
convert to single rear axle with air ride
300 gallon fuel capacity
peterbilt steps/battery box or something similar
60" sleeper
10' bed

by my calculations i should be able to stick my bronco on the bed or the buggy. and not have to take a trailer. Or... i can haul the gooseneck for longer trips like koh, with a couple rigs, or with the crawler hauler camper setup on the gooseneck. Keeping it short should make it easeier to get around in town, making trips to Denver, St. George etc easier.

hoping to be done with the rear axle conversion by thanksgiving. I want to be driving this to koh next year. Ill upload more pics after my phone gets charged up again. Let me know if youre interested in this build concept and want to see more!
 
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So this was the truck i got the rear cut off from, getting loaded up and heading back home. The place i picked them up at was out in the middle of no where surrounded by fields of weed and corn. Lol.

its a 1999 Freightliner Classic

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After i caged the brakes, the next task was getting one of the drums freed up. That meant removing the tire and wheel and smacking it around with a sledgehammer until it pinged just right. Oddly enough, only the rear most axle had a parking brake. Once that was done i let it roll off the trailer with a chain attached so it wouldbt go to far. In hindsight i should have winched it down, that thing was moving! Once the chain tightened it pulled the trailer jack off the block in the front and tugged it backwards about 4 ft before it came to a stop. No damage to the trailer, live and learn.

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Thanks for the love guys, ill do my best to keep the progress steady. Lots of little stuff to do. Its good to see some familiar faces from pirate in here. Angryblack and 87manche ! I was BF over there.
 
I'm absolutely in to see more! Some of my earliest memories are riding with my old man in the LT9000 dump truck he drove at work, been infatuated with the Louisville trucks ever since.
 
montrose818 said:
how much did you pay for it if you dont mind? sweet truck, id love to have one.
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i picked this up for $3000 a couple years ago. when i bought it, it ran, but the transmission had been partially swapped, so it didnt drive, until i put the drive shaft back in and the shifter back together. i still need to redo the air lines on the shifter. they leak. i was a little worried about buying it that way. but i figured itd be worth that in parts alone. in my opinion not to shabby for a 14 liter cummins with jake brakes and a decent 13 speed.
 
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Got the shop cleared out and the truck in. (Note to self, saving money by building 20 wide was dumb)

Prepped the frame for slice and dice. Airlines and electrical marked and moved out of the way. Driveshaft removed, batteries removed. Swarm of hibernating hornets hiding between the batteries defeated.

I do have a dilemma to figure out. The yellow truck driveshaft is 1810 series ujoints on the transmission and axle. The new axles are a smaller 1760? Series ujoint. Im going to need a driveshaft with a carrier bearing if im not mistaken. So i think my plan is to source one from a salvage yard that is 1810, and then put an 1810 yoke on the axle to use my current driveshaft with new ujoints.
 
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Pics for the last post, and a better pic of the freightliner cutoff. It came with this neat between the rails battery box too. Not sure if im going to use that for batteries or not. Nice to have though, would be a great spot to keep chains and straps though.

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87manche said:
a factory made solution to hold big heavy batteries?

you'd be a fool not to use that to hold big ass batteries.
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Itll get used one way or another. Ill either put batteries in this, or in some peterbilt steps. I like the idea of using the peterbilt steps for the batteries because it will keep them closer to the starter, and im putting them in anyways. Makes it easier to get in and out.

If i used the freightliner battery box it would have to go behind where the future sleeper is going to sit which means about 10ft from the starter. Definitely doable, but if im going to do the peterbilt steps eventually anyways, whats the point.
 
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My stopping point for the day. Old tandems cut off and pulled out with the excursion. New tandems brought in and stripped down to be cut to match the truck. Thats gonna happen in the morning when im fresh. After spending all day fighting huge bolts and stuck brakes im beat.

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Are you pulling the front axle from the new addition? Single it long? If you don't mind me asking, what did you give for the Freightliner rears? My 99 is singled, and I want to go back to twin screw.
 
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maveric said:
Are you pulling the front axle from the new addition? Single it long? If you don't mind me asking, what did you give for the Freightliner rears? My 99 is singled, and I want to go back to twin screw.
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Yes im ditching the front axle, so itll stay long. Im into the cutoff about $1500.
 
I thought I read somewhere that you were supposed to keep the front axle when ditching a rear? Something about the rear not being designed for 100% use? Probably internet bs :laughing:
 
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I made my cuts overlap a smidge so that i could grind to fit. The one with a gap is because the frame isnt lined up yet. I got them close enough to get a wheelbase measurement. Looks like 250" is the magic number. This will give me 12ft of frame after the sleeper.

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maveric said:
Are you pulling the front axle from the new addition? Single it long? If you don't mind me asking, what did you give for the Freightliner rears? My 99 is singled, and I want to go back to twin screw.
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is your single rear axle offset to the drivers side?
 
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I got the framerails sitting flush and straight, the cuts are beveled. Im going to have to di some work on the gaps still to make everything uniform, but i dont want to do that until i can double check all my measurements with my son tonight.

I did get my frameliners ordered, im told they will be done tomorrow. They will be 3/8" and 58" long. My plan is to put the frameliners in and then weld it. That way the weld has a backing. That does mean that the frame liner will be welded to the frame. Im not really seeing an issue with that though for this application. The frameliners will also be bolted to the frame for extra strength.

Bonus, my tire irons also came in today, so i van start working on swapping tires next week.

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maveric said:
I am not sure. My truck has a flat bed on it, and I haven't been under there for a while. I thought it was a factory single, but the tag in the glove box stated that it was a twin. I will try to look when I get home.
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if it is centered let me know. also i need to pick your brain about rv registration and costs. garfield county is outrageous if its over 16k pounds
 
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I pulled the truck out to remove the front axle. I strapped the axle under the frame to lift it off the ground, then rolled the truck out dropped the axle and then pulled the axle with the tractor from under the frame. I think this wheel base will work nicely.

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