I am stripping the 64 Fairlane for media blast, rust repair, and then finally paint. The media blaster has a rotisserie, but I need to load the bare shell with no suspension, gl***, or doors onto my trailer. Who has built a simple and cheap dolly to do this and what did you use? I have a plan but I know with all the experience on this board y'all can help me from making a stupid mistake my first time. My plan: A 2x2 square tube frame with four risers (2 at the firewall and 2 to the front leaf spring mounts), connect them as a square with two cross members to look like a box with an x inside. 4 casters My Questions: Is 2x2 Overkill for a empty shell? What size casters? Will have to roll up my ramps to the car hauler? Where and how do i connect them to the body of a 62-65 Fairlane? Pictures are always appreciated if anyone has built one.
Use the front mount of the rear spring for one set of attach points. The riser could fit into the bracket and a bolt p***ed through the bracket and riser would secure it. I don't have as simple a suggestion for the front as I don't recall the details of the Fairlane unibody in that area. As a last resort though, a 'pad' on the front riser could be either "C" clamped, bolted or tack welded (as suggested in above post). With rear risers anchored in the spring brackets, it won't take much to keep the front in place. As for wheels/casters, the larger the better. They can always be resold at a swap meet. I buy 'em every time I find them. 2x2 is only overkill if the wall thickness is greater than 1/8". Ray
You could use the front of the rear spring mounts and use the steering box and pitman arm mounts at the front.
I can't help you with specific mounting points but here is dollie I built for my 40 project. It has worked well for fabrication, and transportation. The body has been transported several times n the car trailer and was mounted on the dollie for painting . It may be over built but I wanted the body to be well supported and and not flex when being rotated. The wheel are from Harbor Freight and have been working well. They do get a little flat spotted after the body sits in one place for awhile but a little effort to push them off the flat spot they are fine.
Guys thanks for all the help. I will post pictures when I am done. I think I like the idea of the adjustable one in the video, that away I can put the A on it when i get the Fairlane done.
I made a similar dolly to post #6 for my 46 Olds allowing the use of a rotisserie attachments at bumper mounting points for a unibody. I would use the front rear leaf spring hangers as suggested and then the inner lower control arm pivot points for unformity. Work out a datum line just below sills and go from there with 2 x parallel main bars and 2 x outriggers with vertical stands. The further apart the wheels the better the stability. I used 2"x2" RHS with 4 x casters, 2x fixed and 2 x free without issue. Outriggers as suggested can be a slip fit to allow flexibility and use on a different body / ch***is.. Follow the KISS principle, minimise costs, build it strong and safe. Make sure your welds penetrate for strength and buy suitably rated casters for the weight.
Alright I decided that I want to try to build one like in the video above, due the easy of storage when not in use. I made some changes that I believe will make it stronger and a little better. Please comment on the design and let me know if I am missing anything or making any mistakes. Isometric View by texag09 posted Apr 9, 2015 at 1:53 PM Plan Vies by texag09 posted Apr 9, 2015 at 1:52 PM Exploded View by texag09 posted Apr 9, 2015 at 1:52 PM
If you are asking me (Sam) about the 40 dollie I used adobe illustrator. I no longer have the PC with that wonderful program on it. I hope to find an older version of the program that can be bought outright. I understand that you now have to lease / pay an annual membership fee to use the program. Thanks for the complement on the design. It has been working well and I enjoyed combining the different layers to make the drawing. What program are using for your universal dollie? Sam
It is Sketchup was a Google program but i believe they have spun it off. There is a free version and a "pro" version. I use the free due to cost and it does 90% of what I need. I think with paid version you can do more than just screen shots like above plus you can add movement. http://www.sketchup.com/?gclid=CjwK...hpDhvxvS5Phd0Zhv_MGTBWZlPHGoE51c0vBoCwYbw_wcB
Looks ok to me, I'd make the wheels bigger, and their mounting member longer to suit. and the best damn casters I could find. Some times it's a ***** to get casters to change direction & there will be 2 on each corner
Oh yes, I do have sketch up loaded on my shop PC maybe I should spend some time trying to learn how to use now that I no longer have Adobe Illustrator.
Just found out that you can print from the free version and its a little cleaner. Here are some new drawings on what I plan on doing. I found some 5" 1000# casters for $30 each to use.
Excellent ideas above, just some random thoughts, if you have a tractor dealer near by they are delivered on metal frames and are usually free for the asking. The frames are usually rectangular with mounting points for the tractor. I've seen lots of old riding lawn mowers free for parts, the wheels would make great rollers and even have steering linkage, your mileage may vary. Ed
That's a great idea, Ive got a couple old dead riding lawnmowers and plan on making a body dolly. Thanks!
If someone wants super cheap, when I got my 46 body and frame home it had no front or rear suspension. So I picked up in the industrial park a very heavy shipping pallet and strapped four of those Harbor Freight wheel dollys underneath it. I used rachet straps to hold the wheel dollys to the pallet. Surprisingly, it stayed on there very well because I centered it on the car, and I put some more rachet straps to hold the body to the pallet.. I had it on there for a few years and moved it all over the place, until I finally borrowed a real body dolly from my Son. Not saying this is for everyone, but it worked great for me, and a 46 Tudor and frame is not light. Don
I would recommend using the largest diameter casters you can, make them easier to roll and steer, also the larger usually have a heavier load capacity to them. Also a good idea to try to get the casters located wider for more stability as well.
Graduated from Texas A&m College of Architecture with a construction degree, so I took some cl***es but have never done it as a profession. I however work with the drawings everyday and occasionally draw up field changes, usually by hand. I would like to spend some more time honing my skills with it, but the software is so expensive, and my company wont give licenses to the field hands.
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