My d35 guard

[351crownvic]

A few weeks ago I decided my D35 looked a little exposed out there in the front so i decided to make a good heavy guard for it. Here is what i came up with. Excuse the pic's there are from a old camera phone. I have others on how i made it but it works excelent with plenty of clearance between it and the steering linkage.

The week after I made it I went to Yankee lake's halloween bash and it worked excelent....

After i dressed up the welds i was gong to leave it like that then i decided there was still to much room for objects to make there way into my front diff so it got a shell of thin plate steel.

Here is a pic of it on the truck.. Again sorry about the pic quality its a older camera phone...

When i replace the axle beem since its cracking at the pivit bolt i am going to round the edges off of my mounting points to clean it up.

 

[rangergt89]

Very nice work I like it

 

[Ranger44]

Simple, Crude, Effective

Yet, the aluminum housing is what seems to be the weaker link of the D35.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

its neat and all....but that beam is like 1/4" steel already isnt it? ive bashed my pig on all kinds of rocks and logs and i havnt managed to bend or puncture it...

 

[97BlackBetty]

The real weak link in strength is the aluminum 3rd. Most of the time, when guys make a differential guard for the fron, it slings under the beam to protect whats behind it.

 

[metalmacguyver]

No the beam is not made of 1/4". It is made of something maybe a bit heavier than 1/8".

The weak point that I have found on the beam itself hitting on rocks and bending to the point where the pass side shaft rubs on the opening in the pass side beam.

351crownvic, I see you already plated the bottom side of the beam. That is the number one thing you need to do to strengthen it.

I personally have never had or heard of any problems with hitting and caving the front of the beam in onto the gears and differential cavity. You can be sure that you wont have any problems either. Definitely a bit crude but an effective piece of armor.

 

[86ford]

i am happy to see another northern ohio person. i never did make it to yankee lake this year but i am kind of sick of the 3 day de-mudding that comes along with going......

86

 

[351crownvic]

I actually added more re-reinforcement to the beam i am installing. I took half inch wide steel about 1/8 inch thick or so and went from where i ended with the plate on the bottom all the way around to the diff on the top of the beam. I did this because my old beam is cracking right the beam bushing. I ended up having to grind it down just where it bolts up into the drop bracket cause it wouldn't clear there.

I did manage to make my guard just with a torch a 110 MIG and basic hand tool's. The diff plug is still accessible and I am quite proud of my job..

Like I said I did get to test it out at Yankee and i was actually surprised at how much stuff actually hits that front exposed diff. After all the time and money i spent on installing the 4.56 gears in the truck myself i just wanted some protection for it.

I made it to Yankee lake and fire ball.. Well i was there the last night of fireball since they will no longer be at that location any more. The avatar pic is from the extreme terrain section at fireball.. The 2 times i have been at Yankee lake i have made their video.. I'm in the 2008 Halloween bash video at 2:43 into the video going down the "manic mountain" steep side ( They never seem to get me getting air born going up the hill...) and again in the 9/12/08 Loud and Smokey video at like 44 seconds in.. Yea the cleaning part relay sucks afterward!

 

[crawlin91]

neighborhood cats watchout!