thetundrawolf

LOL! Perfect!

Oh yes, that's just down the street from me! Fantastic, thank you VERY much for this! I never would have considered it. I was ready to take a 200 mile round trip. Thank you!!

Has anyone seen this? http://wherewheelgo.com/toyota-dolphin From the above link:

Can anyone tell me a way to find out if there are any scales near me? I searched and apparently there is one a hundred miles away in Phoenix (I am in Prescott, az). I want to do a before and after weigh...

I have considered this. Fiberglass is a better insulator temperature wise. but it also weighs more. And I need something I don't have: A donor. I would consider it if I had a donor to be honest. But right now I have a ton of aluminum siding I got from A 40ft fifth wheel trailer.

I had no idea. Thanks for the information. My old axle was bent maybe 1/4" upward at the end.

Sorry. That was posted some time ago. But the axle end being bent simulates a bent axle housing. You are partially correct, the splines were so expanded from the heat it took a ton of force to get the half shaft out of the differential. Lots of pounding and pulling. Almost welded a stud to it to get it out. The new half shaft slid in with a slight interference, same as the other side. The effect of flexing the end plate was such that it burst out like in the pics I first posted. So a bent axle housing will stress the plate.

Exactly. It wasn't so much the housing itself as the axle stub that was bent upward. The new axle housing was inspected with a laser for straightness. The swap was easy, and I decided to go with a new crush sleeve for the pinion shaft, just to make sure everything was fresh.

I purchased a new housing and half shaft and it seems to be holding. Got an FJ80 axle for the front and a trans with transfer case gonna make it 4wd.

Yeah, honestly, why call it a one ton? I bought a full floating Toyota from a guy who had a nineties pickup in his bone yard. I put it under my RV and drove it about 600 miles before it blew out. Turned out the passenger side was bent, and the driveshaft on that side flexed until it blew the six bolt end plate out. Luckily it blew out right in my drive way! I bought another housing and I was back on the road. Here is the thread: http://toyotamotorhome.org/forums/index.php?showtopic=6341&hl= Since installing the new housing, I have put a lot of weight in the RV moving my stuff from an emergency move in CA to AZ. At least a half ton of extra weight, probably more than that, but not over a full ton. Where do you get the 5,000 pound rating on the axle?

The inverter has a small display on it. My guess is the guy who said it only drew 11 amps with a 540 watt load was looking at the battery voltage. You're right. I wish I had an accurate current draw graph. http://www.amazon.com/Sunforce-11240-Inverter-Remote-Control/dp/B000WGNNUQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1418700617&sr=8-1&keywords=1000w+pure+sine+wave#customerReviews I wish I could weigh it without the shell somewhere to see what it would all end up weighing. To be honest, it's not going to be much. Maybe a couple hundred pounds, max. The axle is rated at 2,000 lbs and is full floating. I will be conscious of weight. There's only so much I can do.

Glue and screw? Do you have any examples? The pocket joint: http://www.amazon.com/Kreg-R3-Pocket-Hole-System/dp/B000J43A7W Now for the floor plan. More or less. Want it open... But the windows. There were a lot of them. But I like a lot of light... Not sure what to do.

Not now I don't. But I have enough material to completely re- do the roof. I will be able to re arrange things so they will fit.

Funny you say that, I am looking at a sine wave inverter @ 1,000 watts that is 12V. I have 500+100 watts of solar to keep it charged. The inverter draws 11.4amps with a 540 watt load, and based on the batteries it will power it for a week before they are dead, without solar input. But that is a 12V system (6+6) so you are right.

Very good point. But if I add some heft to it, maybe adding a 1/2" thickness to the wood, in the end if I were to shave off that and weigh it, it might weigh 5LBS. 10 lbs... Foam weighs next to nothing... It's the steel that may add some weight. Fiberglass weighs more than aluminum, and aluminum weighs more than wood in similar applications. My worry is the solar system my boss just gave me... 6 6 volt batteries that weigh 70 lbs a piece. That's almost 400 lbs... Maybe I will delete two of them for the RV and go with a 24 volt inverter. The inside of the RV is going to be as spartan as it gets. A toilet and shower, some shelves. Mostly open. I like it that way.

Hello, I have an RV that I love. It is a 1982 Toyota Dolphin, 20'. I have already rebuilt the engine, the transmission, and the rearend, plus the driveline. I also have most of the stuff needed to make it a 4x4. But the back end is rotted out. It was stored by the ocean for a long time and some of the wood is absolutely rotting away. I cannot stay inside of it for too long because of all of the mold inside of the walls. So today I began tearing all of the skin off. The skin is not in good condition, either. I recently stripped a 40' 5th wheel of it's skin, in hopes of having enough to do this RV with. I am down to the wooden frame and insulation currently. Can anyone give me some hints, tips, and advice? I am going to make the back end of it open like a toy hauler for putting a quad in there. As far as the roof goes, it is going to have a steel skeleton with a peak in the middle so water will not pool. I am going to beef it up where I can, because roof leaks are a nightmare. I am probably going to re- use the windows. I am going to use 2x4's I will cut in half. Foam insulation and expanding foam to seal it. A coat or two of mold resistant primer on everything inside and out before it goes back together. Also looking to add another three inches of height to the cabover because I am pretty tall and would like to sit up up there.

I'm not too concerned with what it's worth. I've already invested more than it's worth and that's not the point for me... In fact I am converting it into a 4x4 soon, I have all the parts except for the driveshaft and front springs/ hangers. I will be "Upside down" on it but it will be mine.

For sure. Not only this, but I plan on making the entire rear portion open up on gas cylinders to accept a quad or whatever. I'd have to make a steel frame and gusset it inside to do that but it's not a problem for me to do. I also want to make a small steel skeleton on the roof with a slight radius so water does not pool on top like it has been.

The other side is much worse. I backed into a hill and the rear corner is very tweaked and torn. There are screw holes everywhere from where I had to put drywall screws to hold everything together.

Thank you very much for this! And great idea about the door skins, i am definitely going to give those a try.

It is going to be completely rebuild, from the inside out. I already rebuilt everything underneath, now it's time for the living area.

Thank you, that's a great idea! Not sure if fiberglass is recyclable or has a scrap value. I might have to patch it here and there but that might actually work.

Hi, I have a 19' 1982 Toyota Dolphin motorhome. I've spent thousands rebuilding the motor, transmission, differential, and driveline. The problem is, it has been stored by the ocean all of it's life, and the rot is bad. I've gutted it and was living in it on my moms horse ranch for a while, but the mold from the numerous leaks when it rains, makes me cough and sneeze when I am in it more than a few minutes. So it's gotta be re- done. Problem is, I am extremely poor. It's been suggested to find an RV boneyard and I have a query into one that's two hours away. I am looking to spend a couple hundred dollars at best for the aluminum. But I may have to end up going with a different floor plan? Does anyone have any suggestions or help?

You are incorrect. If I were to rotate the tire with the axle housing stationary, the tire would rotate without any wobble whatsoever, as it is reliant on the bearings, and nothing else. The spindle itself is not bent or the bearings would eat themselves alive, or crack completely off from the axle housing. If the spindle itself was bent about halfway, then you would see wobble by spinning the tire itself. However, if I rotate the housing, and there is a bend in the housing, then a wheel will show it by having a wobble, or runout, because there is no hiding a bend with the bearings, if the spindles are bent, it will show. The break on the flange is characteristic with fatigue cracking, which would be happening if the spindle was bent (Or axle housing) and explains the higher temperatures when read with an infrared thermometer when I brought it from CA to AZ. It's like bending a coathanger back and forth, back and forth- sooner or later it's going to break. And the inch and an eighth thick axle shaft that is more solid than a semi full floater axle shaft isn't going to give like the quarter inch thick flange, which is exactly where it broke.

Thank you very much for that. After some diagnosing, including pulling the third member out and checking it over, I pulled the axle, and set it on two saw horses. I rotated the axle housing and watched the wheels- the passenger side (The one that blew out) has over an inch of wobble (Deflection). So my axle housing is bent. Which is why it finally fatigued and blew out. It wouldn't be such an issue if it was just an RV. But right now it's my living quarters *and* work truck while I am in Arizona. I am trying to find a replacement axle or axle housing. In case if anyone is wondering, no, i didn't bend the axle. It was pulled from a random flatbed minitruck in a friend's boneyard, 15 years ago. I've put less than 1,000 miles on it. I've never had more than 1,000 lbs (Less in fact) inside the RV at any time. (RV is gutted inside)