JJ/Heim Spacers

[Starboard M]

I was welding up some mounts for my trackbar that uses both heims and Johnny Joints, and was trying to use the joints as spacers to try and prevent the mount from getting to small and preventing me from getting the joint back into its place once the mount was fully welded.

The problem was that the joints are often pretty big, and expensive. I was not liking how some welding splatter was getting onto the joints, and I often couldnt get the tip of the welder where I needed it with the joints in place.



Soooo, would anyone be willing to make some spacers that one could bolt in place of a joint? Maybe make several different sizes, one for Johnny Joints, others for small and big RE joints, certain size heims, etc.

Make them 1/16'' bigger then the joint to help with getting the joints in and out.




I thought about taking the joints apart and using the ball, but I didnt want to get splatter on that either.

 

[stewie]

get yourself a piece of tube or CS pipe. it needs to be at least large enough to allow the bolt to pass through, but can be larger in diamiter. cut to be the same length as the joint your using. think similar to how we sleeve a bolt running through our frame rails. insert the "sleeve" into the workpiece to maintain the proper gap and prevent some warping. bolts are cheap and i would suggest using another bolt other than the one that will hold the joint on. it doesnt have to be grade 8 or anything, just something to hold the sleeve on. you can also apply anti splatter spray or nozzle dip to the threads of the sacraficial bolt to help prevent weld berries on the threads to facilitate ease of removal.

 

[JeepFreak21]

Yeah, I just make mine out of old tubing scraps. I generally have quite a bit of small round pieces. I bet, if people would actually buy them, Ruff Stuff would start making some, but I don't know if there would be enough of a demand.
Billy

 

[Starboard M]

I know I could have made them myself, but having the right tolerances would have been harder to do. Plus, I didnt really want to take the time to do it.


I cant imagine it would be all that hard to make with the right machine shop in large quantities. Wouldnt be all that expensive to make/sell either.

 

[Boostwerks.com]

I know I could have made them myself, but having the right tolerances would have been harder to do. Plus, I didnt really want to take the time to do it.


I cant imagine it would be all that hard to make with the right machine shop in large quantities. Wouldnt be all that expensive to make/sell either.

Not to sound like a dick, but are you really that lazy?

BTW, you can simply tack the brackets with the joints in place, remove the joint, and finish weld the bracket. If your that worried about spatter, you could give the joint a quick coat of PAM cooking spray (poor mans anti-spatter).

Hope that helps. :cheers:

 

[JeepFreak21]

If I don't feel like cutting them, I just get a big bag of washers from OSH and use 30 of them or whatever to get the right width.
Billy

 

[Starboard M]

Not to sound like a dick, but are you really that lazy?

BTW, you can simply tack the brackets with the joints in place, remove the joint, and finish weld the bracket. If your that worried about spatter, you could give the joint a quick coat of PAM cooking spray (poor mans anti-spatter).

Hope that helps. :cheers:

As a matter of fact, I really am pretty lazy. Hence why I dont wheel. Its a lot easier to sit in my chair then actually get out and do that whole wheeling thing.




Welding tends to warp things, which is why I wanted the spacer in the first place. The splatter was a concern, but I was mainly worried about how I could have gotten welder into a small place with a joint jammed into the same place.




I am done with the project for now, but I was mainly just trying to offer an idea for a product someone could make that would help people in their projects.

 

[Boostwerks.com]

As a matter of fact, I really am pretty lazy. Hence why I dont wheel. Its a lot easier to sit in my chair then actually get out and do that whole wheeling thing.




Welding tends to warp things, which is why I wanted the spacer in the first place. The splatter was a concern, but I was mainly worried about how I could have gotten welder into a small place with a joint jammed into the same place.




I am done with the project for now, but I was mainly just trying to offer an idea for a product someone could make that would help people in their projects.

If you tack it and weld it properlly you shouldn't have to worry about warpage. Tack in 4 corners, remove the joint and finish weld the outside of the flanges first before welding the inside. That easy. :thumbup:

 

[XJEEPER]

Obama economic stimulis money is needed to develop this project.

 

[Starboard M]

Obama economic stimulis money is needed to develop this project.

Looks like Ballistic Fab used some of the bailout money and made some!

http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=882892