Project: Tow-Rat (Lil' Blue)

[6DoF]

Originally Posted by youngrodder

Great fab work. I like where this is headed. Those wheels are huge to be tucked. What is the dia. on the fronts?

Keep it up

Marc

Thank you!

i'm always open to ideas, questions, or suggestions ya'll.

wheels are 17x6 but b/c dually, they are almost 8" back spacing. i do have a 2" wheel spacer in there though instead of the standard 4.5" dually spacer to help narrow it.

tires are General Grabber A/TX LT245/70R17 load range E. per TireRack they measure at 30.5" Dia, with a 9.8" section width, and 7.8" tread width.

the front should be less than an inch from the top inside of the fender, but the rear is where the problem comes in. for whatever reason, GM set the rear fenders lower on the bed. the damn body line doesn't even line up from the factory!! it's something like 2" lower, and i intend to raise the bed by that much to line things up and give me the extra height clearance in the back. it also gives me that much more depth inside the bed with the floor moved up over my rear axle. i hate sheet metal work, but i'll have to make a spacer to keep the step down at the rockers where they should be.

the cab clearance to the front tires at drop is ... "lacking" i'll at least fold the pinch seam over flat for a little more clearance, but i really hope to not have to notch the cab before i rub the fenders. i don't intend to drive around and try and steer that low, but i guess we'll see once i start driving it.

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by 6DoF

Thank you!

i'm always open to ideas, questions, or suggestions ya'll.

wheels are 17x6 but b/c dually, they are almost 8" back spacing. i do have a 2" wheel spacer in there though instead of the standard 4.5" dually spacer to help narrow it.

tires are General Grabber A/TX LT245/70R17 load range E. per TireRack they measure at 30.5" Dia, with a 9.8" section width, and 7.8" tread width.

the front should be less than an inch from the top inside of the fender, but the rear is where the problem comes in. for whatever reason, GM set the rear fenders lower on the bed. the damn body line doesn't even line up from the factory!! it's something like 2" lower, and i intend to raise the bed by that much to line things up and give me the extra height clearance in the back. it also gives me that much more depth inside the bed with the floor moved up over my rear axle. i hate sheet metal work, but i'll have to make a spacer to keep the step down at the rockers where they should be.

the cab clearance to the front tires at drop is ... "lacking" i'll at least fold the pinch seam over flat for a little more clearance, but i really hope to not have to notch the cab before i rub the fenders. i don't intend to drive around and try and steer that low, but i guess we'll see once i start driving it.

I'm not being critical just curious. 30.5" is not bad.

There are always compromises for laying out on big rims/tires (experience talking). You could always section the fenders to add over all height while maintaining the body lines.

Looks great

Marc

[RockTonka]

Nice work man! Fabwork looks great, and if you're posting updates real time...you're hauling ass!

[6DoF]

Originally Posted by RockTonka

Nice work man! Fabwork looks great, and if you're posting updates real time...you're hauling ass!

haha, thanks! we have no kids, and the wife just took a 2nd job giving vaccines. this leaves me with a few hours a night in the shop. i did a ton of prep work before i got the plate too, so everything was ready when that happened. now things slow back down as i go back to figuring it out as i go.

like front body mounts. the damn steering box ... one of the core support mounts ended up RIGHT in the middle of the box!