Above 1200 Sq/FT The Ole Barn Workshop by BigNuge

[BigNuge]

What are those hoses for? When I first saw them I wasn't sure if I was looking at a vehicle or the underside of a sink lol.

Haha....they are hoses for the heater core in the rear HVAC system.


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[BigNuge]

Thanks for the pics of the Solar panel install.

Anytime! I’ll share my experience with the system over the next year, I hope to offset my power usage completely!


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[BigNuge]

Chassis work today, getting close to getting the rear back in and rolling!












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[BigNuge]

Front end teardown just about finsihed. Things went awry, got crazy and pulled it all out. Major PITA, the gas wrench was very necessary.

Now I’m looking for knuckles. Going to try a set of those Freedom Off-road UCA’s, find a pair of knuckles, and get the frame all cleaned up and coated before re-assembling.








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[xtremek]

Looks like fun

 

[Mr. Roboto]

Just got caught up on all of your updates! The barn looks incredible, it was cool to see what you did with the XJ, and looking forward to see what you do with the Sequoia. It's definitely a nice platform. As long as you're not going down any tight trails or rock crawling, you'll be much happier I think. Do you have places you can wheel out by you?

Also... I really need to friggin learn how to weld. It's one major skill I am lacking. There is one small spot on the floor I need to repair on my XJ (unfortunately) so either I or someone else will need to patch it up for me. Want to stop it before it gets any bigger.

 

[BigNuge]

Just got caught up on all of your updates! The barn looks incredible, it was cool to see what you did with the XJ, and looking forward to see what you do with the Sequoia. It's definitely a nice platform. As long as you're not going down any tight trails or rock crawling, you'll be much happier I think. Do you have places you can wheel out by you?

Also... I really need to friggin learn how to weld. It's one major skill I am lacking. There is one small spot on the floor I need to repair on my XJ (unfortunately) so either I or someone else will need to patch it up for me. Want to stop it before it gets any bigger.

Grab up an entry level MIG, a spool of flux core wire (no need for gas), some scrap steel and burn away. You’re a methodical guy, you’d pick it up quick!

Looking forward to following your XJ! It was a fun rig, just wasn’t for me.


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[BigNuge]

Rear section of the chassis all cleaned up, treated, painted, new axle in with new springs and 5100’s.

Ball buster single-handed, but got it done....

Also got the front sections cleaned and treated, ready for paint.

My SPC’s are still 10 days out or so, I’ll have plenty of time to get going on the rockers/sliders in the meantime.















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[BlakeTheCarGuy]

Nice shop first time I have seen this thread. I hope I can build a shop one day lol.


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[BigNuge]

Nice shop first time I have seen this thread. I hope I can build a shop one day lol.


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Thanks! It’s another “work in progress”....seems I need many of those in my life[emoji1787][emoji1787]


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[polski-13]

Awesome build! Just went through the thread, so good!

 

[xtremek]

You look like you were having fun. Nice job as usual.

 

[BigNuge]

Thanks everyone, it’s been a fun project, though I’m really wanting to enjoy it some soon...lol

Some more progress today, rear brakes complete. These Toyota brakes are a real PITA....glad to have it all done now [emoji1787]











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[jonshonda]

OMG the toyota parking brake is a nightmare. I would be very interested to see how experienced toyota mechanics handle it.

 

[BigNuge]

I found that the best method was to use a body clip tool (for removing the plastic body panel pins). It was just right for holding the retaining pins and springs.

I got it done, but I’m glad it’s all brand new now. I’d like to think the likelihood of having to get these ebrakes apart again in the next 5 years or so is remote...lol.


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[BigNuge]

Got started on the lift up front. Hope to have it back on its wheels by the weekend.









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[Mr. Roboto]

Grab up an entry level MIG, a spool of flux core wire (no need for gas), some scrap steel and burn away. You’re a methodical guy, you’d pick it up quick!

Looking forward to following your XJ! It was a fun rig, just wasn’t for me.


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I may be forced into learning to weld sooner rather than later. There was a small pinhole on the drivers floor I knew about when I bought the Jeep, visible from underneath. I pulled the carpet up last night, and it appears to have been rusting from the inside out. After some research, there a few common leak points that can cause water to leak into the passenger floor board. So, the floor is soft and crusty. New floor pans are cheap enough, so I may order one, do all the cutting and prep work myself, and then try to find someone to tack weld it in... or invest in a welder and try it myself. Everyone around here seems to be overpriced when it comes to fab work from past experiences, so we'll see. I still need to register this thing and see if they'll notice it during inspection. This will dictate the timeline on the repair... kind of bummed about it really.

 

[BigNuge]

I may be forced into learning to weld sooner rather than later. There was a small pinhole on the drivers floor I knew about when I bought the Jeep, visible from underneath. I pulled the carpet up last night, and it appears to have been rusting from the inside out. After some research, there a few common leak points that can cause water to leak into the passenger floor board. So, the floor is soft and crusty. New floor pans are cheap enough, so I may order one, do all the cutting and prep work myself, and then try to find someone to tack weld it in... or invest in a welder and try it myself. Everyone around here seems to be overpriced when it comes to fab work from past experiences, so we'll see. I still need to register this thing and see if they'll notice it during inspection. This will dictate the timeline on the repair... kind of bummed about it really.

I hade to repair the floors on the 99, I just bought a panel of 22ga and made custom patches for the bad areas. It wasn’t that bad!








I also had to fab up a new evap canister bracket. Not that bad, I’m not a pro and I got it done.










Time for some shopping dude! Go pick up a Lincoln from Home Depot, a roll of flux core (no need for gas), be sure you have a good angle grinder with grinding and cutoff wheels.

I highly suggest a decent auto-darkening helmet, you can pick them up much cheaper today.

Watch a few YT videos, have some fun on scrap steel. Really, it’s not that tough!


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[BigNuge]

[mention]roboto [/mention]

This is a solid entry kit. All you need is safety gear and you’re good to go...


140 Amp Weld Pak 140 HD MIG Wire Feed Welder with Magnum 100L Gun, Sample spools of MIG Wire and Flux Wire, 115V

https://www.homedepot.com/p/100670934


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[Mr. Roboto]

Thanks for the pics of your repair, and the welder suggestion. It's been something I've wanted to get into for a long time, so this is probably a good excuse. I just talked to a guy I work with and he has a Lincoln that he said I could borrow for this job to try out/get a feel for.

What did you use to paint the undercarriage? Came out real clean looking.

 

[BigNuge]

The top coat is Duplicolor bed liner in black. The key is cleaning and prep. Rescaling, brush, wipe down with alcohol, rust converter, top coat....time consuming but it comes out great, I’ve done it on several projects, current one included!


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[Arclitgold]

The top coat is Duplicolor bed liner in black. The key is cleaning and prep. Rescaling, brush, wipe down with alcohol, rust converter, top coat....time consuming but it comes out great, I’ve done it on several projects, current one included!


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Would love a tutorial if you’ve got time or another project to tackle!


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[BigNuge]

Made some progress, front diff repair and service, got that back in, new high angle CV’s, got the front end back together.

New roof rack assembled, got it sitting up there.











Finally got the wheels sorted out on the Sequoia. Underside is next, got my metal brake in and am preparing to make new rockers. Getting close!





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[xtremek]

Very nice work.

 

[BigNuge]

Now it’s time for an alignment...


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[BigNuge]

Quick update on the solar system.

We have officially begun fully offsetting our electric bill. I’m pretty excited about that seeing as we are only in the first week of March and we are making 1.5x what we are consuming. This means the bill for the day is fully offset because I’ve sent back enough power to pay for all I imported and half again to pay for the transport charges (I don’t get those back, I only get paid for the power I export).

In the end, the system has been working well. I’ve been learning a lot about how the weather, sun angle, and seasons effect the system. I went on line in mid-January. By the end of 2021 I’ll have a solid year to be able to report on. The company I went with uses software to size and calculate the performance of the system. Their default settings build the system in such a way that it completely offsets your power utility bill (annually) given your average usage history. My site presented a very favorable example as my barn roof is only a few degrees off (in both directions) for solar alignment. A static roof array can be tough for alignment, but I guess the folks that built the barn 230 years ago were thinking about the sun![emoji1787]

At the end of the say I’m happy with it so far. I did have a bad micro inverter on one panel from the start, but all is good now.

I’ll update when we really start cranking out the watts...




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[xtremek]

That's great news. I wish the idiot who laid out my shop had used his head for something other than a hat rack. Then again, if he had, I wouldn't have been able to marry my wife.

 

[BigNuge]

Damn close now folks....

Rust-belt brothers and sisters, this rusty crusty bird is an example of how they can be brought back! Determination and effort (and a few burns and bucks) can get it back on the trail.

Still have a couple small pieces to weld in, but I’ll have this wrapped up this weekend, alignment on Tuesday, ready to wheel by next weekend!








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[xtremek]

Looking good sir.

 

[BigNuge]

Thanks! Got the Sequoia at the alignment shop, pick it up in the AM. Can’t wait to get it on the trails!


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[BigNuge]

Just got my first “credit” bill from the power company. My power utility bill runs mid-month to mid-month. I just got the bill for mid-Feb to mid-March, $84.44 credit! I am very pleased with this, only the second billing cycle in the year, and just barely coming out of the worst sun angle and daylight condition time of year.

For comparison, this time of year I’d be running a $150-$175 electric bill. From that to a $84.44 credit.....that’s big.

Can’t wait to see what the spring/summer brings!




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[BigNuge]

Got the Sequoia wrapped up (phase 1).

Rockers seam sealed, VSC/TRAC cancel button mod, Center Diff Lock Mod, Anytime rear camera mod, roof rack permanently mounted.









And finally out for a shakedown crawl....beautiful weather out here these last couple days.










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[Arclitgold]

Looking good!


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[xtremek]

The boys look like they're ready to roll.

 

[Boosted1]

The Sequoia turned out great! Nice work.

 

[BigNuge]

Thanks Guys, it’s a very comfortable trail cruiser for sure.

I have already got the recovery gear cases mounted in the roof basket, recovery/traction boards in the basket, hi-lift mounted to the basket, and working on moving the tools up there as well. Still have 1/2 the basket for trip related gear....this thing is a lot bigger than the XJ for sure...lol


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[BigNuge]

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[BigNuge]

More fun on the Sequoia build.

Started to get a growling noise up front. Both front wheel bearing were bad. Bad axle seals, replaced the needle bearings in the diff for a ECGS bushing (very popular upgrade for lifted Toyota’s).








Both wheel bearing clips broke when attempting to remove them....had to get creative to get them out.





Ordered up the parts, should be in tomorrow. In the meantime I started fabbing up the spare tire carrier.






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[Boosted1]

Again, nice work.

 

[Mr. Roboto]

The rig is looking great man! That is one big snap ring. Good solution, probably easier than fighting with those the normal way even haha.