Got bored tonight so I started assembling the knuckles, brakes etc. Now a GQ caliper won't bolt up to an MQ/MK knuckle as they are spaced further out. I only have 1 MK/MQ caliper as this was all that came with the knuckles, so I'm either going to grind down the GQ calliper or try and find another one. Ive had a few blokes ask for either a cartoon of beer or $50 which I think is absolute bullshit for a calliper thats close to 30 years old. I've offered $20 or a six pack of beer which I think is fair. So far everything is lining up and looking good. I won't be doing the final assembly until late next week as I'm waiting on some GU locking tabs for the wheel bearings and some new black cups for the top and bottom of the knuckles. I think I'm going to get a shop to assemble the diff as I don't trust how I have done it. The backlash is very tight and I'm unsure if the pinion bearing preload is correct. I want to do it right the first time as a new ratio and a rebuild will cost around $1500 so $200 - $400 now is money well spent for piece of mind.
Solid Axle Swap!!!
- Thread starter dilmah
- Start date
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Bit of an update, since my last post I have assembled most of the hubs and sorted out the brakes. A few issues came up, the GQ callipers are not a direct bolt up to MK hubs. I had a MK caliper which bolted up fine but it was badly seized so i threw that out and grinded off some of the material. If you look at the photos the MK caliper is 17mm thick and the GQ is 22- 23mm thick, some work on the grinder had them bolted up nicely. I also had to cut 5mm off the brake bolts as they were too long and would foul on the brake disk.
Second issue was that the GQ seal retainers are not a direct bolt up to the MK knuckles, 3 of the holes line up but not the 4th. It may work with only 3 screws in but I'm not willing to take the chance so I have ordered a MK dust seal from Japan as they are not stocked in Australia. Arrival time is 3 weeks so its going to hold up my build until they arrive. Also picked up the diff centre from getting the locker and pinion installed this afternoon. Will bolt to the axle tomorrow and put the cv's in.
Second issue was that the GQ seal retainers are not a direct bolt up to the MK knuckles, 3 of the holes line up but not the 4th. It may work with only 3 screws in but I'm not willing to take the chance so I have ordered a MK dust seal from Japan as they are not stocked in Australia. Arrival time is 3 weeks so its going to hold up my build until they arrive. Also picked up the diff centre from getting the locker and pinion installed this afternoon. Will bolt to the axle tomorrow and put the cv's in.
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scottybobcat
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Looking good mate. How come you went with MQ diff and not GQ.
Nah its all GQ gear just MQ knuckles to get the tie rod in front of the diff. If I had of used the GQ knuckles then the tie rod would have fouled on the radius arms. The calmini ones are not designed for a rear tie rod
Sorted out the steering today, MQ knuckles drilled out to 3/4" using a 3/4" 3" long HT bolt and 3/4" heims. Tie rod is made up of NB25 heavy wall tube, just need to buy a welder to weld the bungs in. Im going to have to make my own bracket to fit the draglink but im gonna wait till I get the kit to do that. Still waiting on parts to finish assembling the hubs. Third member is bolted in and sealed up. I also cleaned and rebuilt the brakes aswell.
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4BYFOR
Member
Nice work mate
Well I bit the bullet and ordered the kit on Tuesday, I went with the remote res shocks and the sway bar kit aswell. With shipping and the current exchange rate I didnt get much change from $4700!!! I was hoping it would of been under $4K.
Calmini have said that it will be a 3 - 4 wait for the shocks as they are a special order and then another 2 - 3 weeks for shipping. If this is all true then I should get all the gear sometime in August. I can save time by cutting out all of the IFS junk but then will be without a ride if the delivery is delayed. Approx fitment time is 2 days if the axle is fully preped and the chassis ready. I am going to have to make a custom length panhard rod and draglink but that will be easy if I have the bar ready and the kit comes with a heim joint.
Calmini have said that it will be a 3 - 4 wait for the shocks as they are a special order and then another 2 - 3 weeks for shipping. If this is all true then I should get all the gear sometime in August. I can save time by cutting out all of the IFS junk but then will be without a ride if the delivery is delayed. Approx fitment time is 2 days if the axle is fully preped and the chassis ready. I am going to have to make a custom length panhard rod and draglink but that will be easy if I have the bar ready and the kit comes with a heim joint.
So I have assembled most of the front axle to sort out the tie rod length. After doing a bit of trig I worked out I have around 38 - 40 degrees of steering before the tie rod hits the front diff. Considering most rock crawlers have around 50 I'm pretty happy with that. Im going to get some thicker plate to make the Hi Steer bracket as 10mm is going to be too thin. My research has told me most billet arms are 17mm so Im gonna see if I can get some plate this thick or thicker.
Still waiting on the dust covers to come from Japan. Its been 3 weeks since they were ordered so Ill expect them either tomorrow or Monday. I have also bought a Unimig 190 so I can do some more of the fab stuff myself. Im gonna brace the front axle and knuckles before final assembly so Ill order the brace kit tonight form superior.
Still waiting on the dust covers to come from Japan. Its been 3 weeks since they were ordered so Ill expect them either tomorrow or Monday. I have also bought a Unimig 190 so I can do some more of the fab stuff myself. Im gonna brace the front axle and knuckles before final assembly so Ill order the brace kit tonight form superior.
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camo.b
Member
Good little workshop welder that unimig.she is taking shape!
Yeah still lots of small things to do. I need to brace the axle and knuckles, grease up the cv's and bearings, weld the bungs in for the heims, put a protector ring around the drain plug and i guess the axle needs a coat of paint
DeanosD22
Member
Can't wait to see the end result mate!
Cheers deano
Cheers deano
Havnt made much progress of late. Burnt the bungs in and made up a 17mm steering arm which bots to the top of the knuckle. I got the brace kit from superior this week so Ill burn the knuckle gussets in this weekend.
Im gonna start pulling the front end of the Nav apart this weekend. Hoping to get the diff out, tail shaft off and most of the hub assemblies, cv's done. Stay tuned for pics
Im gonna start pulling the front end of the Nav apart this weekend. Hoping to get the diff out, tail shaft off and most of the hub assemblies, cv's done. Stay tuned for pics
So, I made more progress today than I first thought. Got all of the IFS out and the tail shaft in around 5 - 6 hours. No real problems except for a few stubborn bolts. Ill pull the diff out in the next two days and that will be it for a while. I want to wait until I get the instructions so I know for sure what needs to be cut off the chassis
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Bit of a setback today, after re-reading an article on the outerlimits forum on flipping a GQ diff I realised I need to flip the third member 180 degrees. To do this I will have to cut the diff hat off and flip that and also cut 2 of the studs off and red rill/tap the housing to line all of the studs up. A bit of messing around but I guess it has to be done. Will post some pics in the coming days when I get around to doing it.
navaranewb
Member
Don't say that I was just about to buy a 3" lift kit from them, Altho I wouldn't mind going s.a.s
Did they give you tracking or something?
Did they give you tracking or something?
ShortyNavros
Member
Dilmah, are you going to sell your Calmini UCAs?
