I started a buggy build a month ago. I have approx 40 hrs build time in this one off frame based off of a pack rat design. I am using bus ball joint beam and torsion. Power steering from right side drive s-10 [mail trucks] -----nice to have connections! Tires are 38/11-15s on rear and 750/16s on front. Frame is just tacked together and eng and trans will hopefully go in tomarrow. Eng is duel 44s, 2278 with auto-stick adapted to bus trans.Will show more pics that show frame better after seeing whether these pics come thru or not! Mark

go with a car torsion much softer

I would rather have Sway-aways torsion bars, they work much better than car torsions, make sure you put in adjustable torsion keys also, you will not be disappionted with this setup. Just my 2-cents. By the way, nice looking frame!

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"Loud pipes saves lives"

Air bag it

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If your clutch ain't slippin,, you probably got it adjusted right!!!!!

i think you should look at how pipdop buildt his front end i.m.o. it looks better and would be stronger and will make your front shock mounts ezeyer to build

The trick to running bus torsion is to remove springplate--- cut a notch [.250] out of the spring plate where it would rest against stop---also remove the knot sticking up on stop----and replace plate one spline from orrigonal position to gain height and tension. By relieving plates and stops you get a softer ride. Plus bus is 4 inches wider to start off with. I will look at pipdop's frontend. This will be the first bus beam that I have run. but this is my fifth buggy and first complete build----all end up with bus torsions except first one 15 years ago. Thanks for the comments.
Mark

we have tried every thing with a bus tortion its too heavy put in a car with 3by 3 trailing arms your just as wide as a bus with out all the weight we have turned down the tortion bars to car size that worked best if you must use bus stuff car is the best way to go

I run a full enclosed body with fiberglass hood and sides and steel rod doors with cloth cover to keep 4 year old comfortable. Needless to say mine are probably heavier than most --so the bus works great for me.---Thanks Mark

Man your gonna hafta build ot tough if the 4 year old is gonna drive! they have no fear

The buggy will be tough---but I dont think it can take his driving! Right now his driving still is full left and then full right and thats after telling him which way to turn! On the other hand when he is on his fourwheeler, his driving is dead on. He is a really cool kid and loves to ride buggies. He was sitting in his moms lap, till this year he sat between her legs and made it very uncomfortable for her.--the main reason for 4 seat build!!!!! Now instead of letting him stay at the bottom of a hill when I belt up and head up hills or bad sections, I can keep him belted in and safe!!! Got childs race trim seat coming for x-mas for him. Don't know how 2x2 belts will work for him thou.

Here are the latest pics of my 4 seat build.



The third pic is to finish welding cage and to install floor
pan. ---using 14gauge sheet metal ---it was free!

Will post more later.

Looks great!!

Thanks. I am now at 72 hrs in build. Now starts the small timely things--- pedals,cables,etc...

Looks awesome!

Better hurry up or you're gonna miss the last ride of the year !!

Jus' playin. Take your time. It'll be well worth it.

Larry

Did you say,,,,bus tranny hooked to an autostick? or do you mean an automatic bus trans? pics please

Yes it is an auto-stick adapted to a three rib bus trans with 5.42 gear and a six rib super diff. With the torque converter it gives an even lower gear. It also makes it easy to stop and go on the tricky spots!
Sorry about no pics of this set up. there used to be some of them in my saved file--- and I had it crash! I will try and scan the on pic I have, but it dosent show much.

Several around here run the stick o matics. I want one but haven't found one.

The Wild Kids

Please excuse my ignorance......but what is a stick-o-matic.How does it work?

A stick-o-matic or also called an autostick has a flex plate,torque convertor driving a clutch and pressure plate on a standard manual trans.
The convertor has fluid transfered from resevoir to convertor and back to res from a oil pump that is piggy backed with the standard eng oil pump. We take that pump off -install a regular high volume pump and make brackets for a remote power steer pump to drive the convertor and steering. The down fall is that the clutch is smaller and you cant get the extreme pressures as in the larger ones. I do have a friend in North Wilksboro,NC that cuts clutch plates down and rebuilds the clutch which makes them into 1700# plates. The stock are somewhere around 600#.
They are hard to find and parts are rare!

sounds kind of like an automatic four wheeler. Have to change gears, but no clutch lever. correct?

You can start it in gear with the clutch out and foot on break. When you go to change gears you have to push in clutch! The convertor will slip until a certain rpm.-some where around 12-1500rpms. We are working w/ a guy that build stall convertors for drag racing to change the lock up in ours.

Hear is a very early pic. we removed eng to service trans. This is the only pic I have of trans. I had to scan -so not so good quality. I am off work this week for the holidays and am going in one day to work on buggy when boss calls and opens door! He is wanting to work on his buggy also.It to is an auto-stick that I built.

[quote='The Wild Kids']Several around here run the stick o matics. I want one but haven't found one.

The Wild Kids[/quote]

Those trannies survive in a buggy, w/o the gear reduction of CD?? Are they reliable at all? Are they modified a ton? Do you have to stay w/ a small motor and a short rear tire?? Do you know what the gearing is like? Do you still use the breaker contact in the shifter, like a beetle? What do they do about CV's? Just run type1 on inners, or a

[quote='buggy66']You can start it in gear with the clutch out and foot on break. When you go to change gears you have to push in clutch! The convertor will slip until a certain rpm.-some where around 12-1500rpms. We are working w/ a guy that build stall convertors for drag racing to change the lock up in ours.[/quote]

So how do you launch it? Let the clutch out, and buggy will pretty much sit there, maybe creep like a stall converter in a reg. car, while converter is below stall p

Hey kybuggy I will try and help answer your questions---there are a few!
Ive been running mine for almost four years -I started with a 1679 and p78 buckshots-- I then got a set of 36 swamppers a year and half ago. At the first of the year I built a 2276---ran it three trips and pulled it out to build this four seater! I am adapted to a bus trans so I use bus axles and cvs. The bus trans is not altered except for diff!-which is from six rib. The shifter in a bug used a servo to pull clutch in. We use standard clutch petals and cables. You can put the auto-stick in your frame without adapting to bus, but you are reduced to 3.?? gearing. There is some power loss but the change was worth it!!!!!!!!! The tires I have on new buggy are 38boggers. they will work great for my auot-stick.If you want to see a power loss install a locker[lockright] !!

Several around here that have them all are running 2276 motors. If you want to take off with it just nail the throttle and its gone. We rode yesterday at the creek and Slim hit most of the hills and is running a 6rid with the autostik and a fresh 2276 with no problems at all in climbing.

Hope you and the family have a Merry Christmas, Tyler says HI too.

The Wild Kids