Lars's Tech Project part II: Body Dolly Fab
05-15-2006, 09:35 AM
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Lars's Tech Project part II: Body Dolly Fab
As noted in my last post, I've finally decided to take a little time and build a car for myself... Last time I posted up some pictures, I had the body off the frame and sitting on my lift. Now, it's time to build a good body dolly so I can move this turd around and work on it...
"blkblt" stopped over Sunday morning and shot these pics for me as I was finishing up the dolly. The dolly is all 2x2 mild steel tubing construction with some $9 swivel lock casters from Grainger. $105 cost for the steel and $2.80 for the hardware put total cost under $150. 4 hours of labor to cut it and weld it all together. The dolly was designed to provide enough support to the body so that the doors can be opened with no bracing and no body sag: I wanted to be able to hang/align the doors and get the body lines right while the car is on the dolly. The rear vertical uprights have alignment pins to assist in aligning the dolly to the body, and the forward vertical supports have provisions for bolting the body down to the dolly during trailer transport to the paint booth. Here are the pics:
Here's me finishing up the forward support. The forward and rear angle supports were welded in place after the body was on the dolly in order to assure correct alignment and height.
Dolly completed and beer is almost empty. Beer is a key tool for successful completion.
Look, ma - no door opening braces and the doors open!
Body is solid and rigid on the dolly.
Rear supports contact the rear body mounts to prevent body flex/bending
Single forward support picks up the nose reinforcement brace - just enough to keep the front clip pretty stiff.
"blkblt" stopped over Sunday morning and shot these pics for me as I was finishing up the dolly. The dolly is all 2x2 mild steel tubing construction with some $9 swivel lock casters from Grainger. $105 cost for the steel and $2.80 for the hardware put total cost under $150. 4 hours of labor to cut it and weld it all together. The dolly was designed to provide enough support to the body so that the doors can be opened with no bracing and no body sag: I wanted to be able to hang/align the doors and get the body lines right while the car is on the dolly. The rear vertical uprights have alignment pins to assist in aligning the dolly to the body, and the forward vertical supports have provisions for bolting the body down to the dolly during trailer transport to the paint booth. Here are the pics:
Here's me finishing up the forward support. The forward and rear angle supports were welded in place after the body was on the dolly in order to assure correct alignment and height.
Dolly completed and beer is almost empty. Beer is a key tool for successful completion.
Look, ma - no door opening braces and the doors open!
Body is solid and rigid on the dolly.
Rear supports contact the rear body mounts to prevent body flex/bending
Single forward support picks up the nose reinforcement brace - just enough to keep the front clip pretty stiff.
05-15-2006, 09:51 AM
#2
Melting Slicks
Hey Lars great work, you should patten that dolly.....
Do you think you could fashion me up a set of pontoons for my Vette here in Boston..... 15.3 inches of rain and still going.... 
I'll trade you for an IV setup, that way you will be able to move freely about with your "Beer" attached..... 
Do you think you could fashion me up a set of pontoons for my Vette here in Boston..... 15.3 inches of rain and still going.... I'll trade you for an IV setup, that way you will be able to move freely about with your "Beer" attached.....
05-15-2006, 09:58 AM
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Andy -
The pontoon thing is a great idea, but the marketing season for them is pretty short. Out here in Denver, my C2 snow plow attachments sell briskly through the winter months...
The pontoon thing is a great idea, but the marketing season for them is pretty short. Out here in Denver, my C2 snow plow attachments sell briskly through the winter months...
05-15-2006, 10:28 AM
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Burning Brakes
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Looks good Lars!
Fiberglass dust, body filler, resin sticking your fingers together, crusty boogers, wet sanding your fingerprints off, man that's some good stuff.
Fiberglass dust, body filler, resin sticking your fingers together, crusty boogers, wet sanding your fingerprints off, man that's some good stuff.
05-15-2006, 10:35 AM
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...the only part you forgot was grinding and cutting rust, getting the dust in your mouth so that your beer tastes like iron...
05-15-2006, 11:19 AM
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That is very similar... I guess the design solutions to a metal frame dolly are pretty limited by the body mount points. My supports are removable, too.... High speed cutoff wheel..!
05-15-2006, 01:20 PM
#8
Melting Slicks
Originally Posted by lars
...the only part you forgot was grinding and cutting rust, getting the dust in your mouth so that your beer tastes like iron...
The motto of the beer is: "The pale stale ale with the foam on the bottom".....
05-15-2006, 01:56 PM
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Gawd.... THAT would cause a distraction to getting any work done...!
