RADO's Off Road Rig- Build Thread

[VXorado]

looking great, if you need any help let me know, i might be slow with the wrist but at least i would have one good hand to give you.

Thanks, I should be good getting the VX to the test drive. After that,your lift might be a real help for making adjustments.

Coming along nicely. I was reading a Zu build on Pirate and they were using an f250 steering box. Said it worked great and had enough power that no hydro assist was needed with large tires.

I researched quite a bit on steering. Initially, I was going to use a FJ60/FJ80 box because they have a forward facing pitman arm. I believe the splined u-joint on the steering shaft is the same but the gearbox hose connectors are a different size. I found that with my axle location, I could get away with using a rear facing pitman arm and save $500 not using a toyota setup.

I had read the same about the F-250 box but that's even more work than using the toyota box because it would need a new steering shaft. The F-250 is a bigger box but I believe the gearing is the same. I'm not convinced you would get much extra benefit of a bigger box without a larger, higher pressure steering pump.

I figured for now I would keep it simple and cheap by using a stock ZU box. If I have issues with weak steering, I'll look into a new setup &/or hydro assist when I have more time.

[tom4bren]

Check with Buffy on the trick steering setup he put on his race truck.

[VXorado]

Check with Buffy on the trick steering setup he put on his race truck.

Yeah he's got full hydro steer (I believe Sleveritt with Nuke VX does too). Best option for offroad, not great for streets. For daily driving, hydro assist kits exist to keep eveything original in place but more turning power for bigger tires. Awesome but expensive and I blew all my extra spending money on the suspension!!!

Buffy's full hydro


Hydro assist