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chadcopeland.com 620 build.


ChadMK4

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I've always had an affinity for these trucks since my 620 that I had my Senior year of high school in 89'/90' before the military.

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I figured that I'd put up a summary thread of the new 620 build.

 

The day that I brought it home (April 26, 2008). I got it for $500. It ran but had a bunch or little issues. Only the front left brake worked. So the truck would shoot to the left if you tapped the brakes. The truck wouldn't idle with out dying.

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It had a small little motor that I instantly remembered having to spend hours on just to keep it running in my 79' Datsun from earlier years of High School.

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The interior was beat up.

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First thing I did was see if I could get my ebay seats to fit. Went in perfectly. I only had to modify the mount just a little.

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The truck was an Auto so I made a trip to pull-a-part and found a 77' 4 speed and took the clutch setup.

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I also picked up a 3 point seat belt setup and installed that. For some reason the truck was only 2 point. ??

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And then I got this ridiculous idea that I wanted to put an SR20det into it and see if that would fit. So I had heard from a friend that one of his buddies had a blown SR that he was wanting to let go of for $750 which included harness, ECU, MAF, Ignitor chip, coil packs, downpipe, new turbo, and probably a couple of things that I'm not remembering at the moment.

So I went with Scott Tacket w/ RIP Garage in Atlanta to look at it. It seemed to be a decent deal. Plus the guy threw in a donor S13 if I wanted it. The car was in pretty bad shape. But I got another ridiculous idea to see if I could get the S13 subframes to fit under the truck.

So then the endless money pit started and caused me to become obsessed with completing this thing with a full S13 subframe and suspension powered by an SR20det. I originally thought that we (Scott and I) could have this thing on the road with in a month or two. Ha!! What a joke! I bought the Truck on April 26th. You do the math.

 

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I pulled the subframes, Steering column, all wiring harnesses, and anything that may be important down the road from the donor S13.

 

Sorry no pictures of the car. I forgot and was in a hurry to get it out of my neighborhood. HOA is a bitch sometimes.

 

 

Then it was time to start stripping the truck down and start prepping for subframe fitments.

 

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Had to use a 2x4 that was wider than the cabin roof to keep from stressing and/or crushing the roof.

 

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And strap on to the front bumper support keep it balanced.

 

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Frame and Drivetrain

 

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When I pulled the motor I took it to a motor recycle place off of Buford hwy and got $134 for it!! Extra cash is always a bonus. (Sorry, this was before I knew about Ratsun.net)

 

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Now I have just a dirty frame with wheels and stock subframes.

 

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After the rear sub was removed and gas tank, it was time to remove all fuel lines, brakes lines, electrical wiring and any excess crap that I won't be using.

 

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Got rid of all the crap that I wouldn't need on the frame. Spare tire rack, gas tank support, etc,.

 

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Tried to pressure wash the S13 parts the best I could with an electric pressure washer borrowed from Kathy's neighbor. *Note to self* Never by an Electric Pressure washer. what a waste of time!

 

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Cool- very ambitious start! so you're going for for full S13 suspension swap?

if so- if you haven't already seen this thread, BOB is doing a killer Miata swap.

maybe get some ideas...

 

http://forum.ratsun.net/showthread.php?t=7592&highlight=bob

 

looking forward to progress!

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Fitment time:

 

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After some measuring and cutting

 

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Start locking it in.

 

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I built these boxes because I originally planned to move the motor forward so that it didn't hit the firewall. But the tranny was sitting on the steering rack and the Sway bar wouldn't mount to the frame because it to was hitting the oil pan. So these blocks are going to just end up as extra support for the subframe. These welds are three welds thick. So they may look like they aren't penetrating but the welds under them are. I was just being overly cautious with my lack welding experience at the time. I lost a friend over these pictures due to his arrogance and ignorance of welding and fabbing. Apparently he doesn't like old school.

 

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After some paint

 

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The rest of the suspension in place

 

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The first of many issues:

 

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Glad you made it over here Chad! There is more to come! i know that for sure. I remember that truck being for sale now that i see the first pics. i really wanted the it since it was a king cab. Guys-this is one of those amazing 620 builds. when i saw it, i knew ratsun had to see it.

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Cool- very ambitious start! so you're going for for full S13 suspension swap?

if so- if you haven't already seen this thread, BOB is doing a killer Miata swap.

maybe get some ideas...

 

http://forum.ratsun.net/showthread.php?t=7592&highlight=bob

 

looking forward to progress!

 

Thanks, but I'm putting up these pictures WWWAAAAAYYYYYY after the fact. I've kept this build very quiet until about a week ago. We're almost done. We're already cranked the motor and now finishing up the gauges and bleeding the brakes and hopefully get to drive it by next week. All of these updates are from a private site that I go to and have been being updated since Jan of this year.

Thanks for the tip though. I would've loved to see how others are doing it to get some pointers and tips on how they're doing theirs. i will be checking out some of the other threads when I finish updating this one which is probably gonna take a few days to update completely. There are 9 pages on the other site.

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Time to sit the motor on the frame and see what the measurements are.

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Looks like I'm gonna have to chop the firewall back about 3.5" to get this sucker in there. So after a little paint and cleaning:

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I had to gut the interior to get to all the stuff that I was gonna have to work on including the firewall, pedals, gauges and wiring harness.

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After all of this I ended going on the road for AT&T and started buying all of my future parts. So the work part of things stopped for about 4 months.

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Parts parts parts!!!!

 

 

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Kathy bought these for me. I love them!!

 

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More parts:

 

S13 SR20det Power FC

 

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Complete Willwood pedel assembly with 3 master cylinders, Greddy E-01 boost controller, and new bottom mount manifold.

 

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10lbs Flywheel, 1620 Comp Clutch set up.

 

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Dual 4" tip exhaust purchased at RIP Garage

 

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16 gallon foam fuel cell for the weight difference in the rear.

 

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# 20g Turbo that I bought from TigerRacing here in Atlanta

 

# GReddy Style intake plenum

 

# 650cc SARD Injectors

 

# Mallory 30-100psi Fuel Regulator

 

# MSD external Fuel pump

 

# Hybrid Intercooler

 

# Top Mount manifold

 

# BC Springs and Retainers

 

# Greddy style BOV

 

# Z32 mafs

 

# Strut tower bars

 

# JDM wood steering wheel

 

# Just about every gauge you can think of

 

# New Toshiba laptop to help tune the power FC and because I needed a new one. :)

 

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New Welder so I could feel more comfortable with my fabbing.

 

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Everything needed from ATP Turbo to make the Turbo Elbow.

 

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Almost $60!!! Holy S***!! Just this one bit!! Jesus!

 

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I also have a 5 lug conversion and a VLSD sitting at RIP Garage that I need to go get. Not pictured.

 

 

 

I still have to buy the following:

 

* Wheels

 

* Coilovers

 

* driveshaft

 

* Muffler

 

* hydraulic hand brake, probably ksport

 

* Radiator fan/s

 

* all lines/fuel, brake, clutch, etc,.

 

* Radiator

 

* Oil Cooler kit

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Thanks, but I'm putting up these pictures WWWAAAAAYYYYYY after the fact. I've kept this build very quiet until about a week ago. We're almost done. We're already cranked the motor and now finishing up the gauges and bleeding the brakes and hopefully get to drive it by next week. All of these updates are from a private site that I go to and have been being updated since Jan of this year.

Thanks for the tip though. I would've loved to see how others are doing it to get some pointers and tips on how they're doing theirs. i will be checking out some of the other threads when I finish updating this one which is probably gonna take a few days to update completely. There are 9 pages on the other site.

 

WHAATT??? make with the pictures please!!:eek:

 

(EDIT) Just saw your website...

 

holy monster!! you've put some blood into this thing! :eek::eek::eek:that's gotta be about the coolest 620 build ive seen! Now make with the sideways!! :D:D:D

 

oh, and... wheelbarrow=awesome.

Edited by hessianben
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Motor break down and send off to machine shop:

The head is hammered!

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The guy that I bought the motor from used RTV to install the head gasket

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I didn't get pictures of it but he also didn't clean off the old RTV when reinstalling the oil pan and it didn't seal and fell off when scott took the bolts out of it.

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Two week vacation to spend with family and to get some quality time in on this crazy 620 Project!!

 

 

Rear Subframe fitment

 

 

Had to weld angle iron on to hold the frame in place so it didn't move after cutting.

 

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Had to take a day off to clean up the garage. It was Aweful!!

 

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After:

 

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This is all the time I have for today to update this thread. Hopefully I will have more time tomorrow.

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i want to destroy the image blocker here :cursing:

 

sounds like sick build! :thumbsup:

 

The guy that I bought the motor from used RTV to install the head gasket

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I didn't get pictures of it but he also didn't clean off the old RTV when reinstalling the oil pan and it didn't seal and fell off when scott took the bolts out of it.

datzenmikes new hero!

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If your welds underneath are good, why booger up a secondary pass on top of them? I'm not sure what old school means when it comes to welding, or how does it pertain to poor booger welds? If you're just talking about stick welding then you should get clean, more or less MIG looking, weld beads from a stick welder if you're doing it well. I guess pride and stubborness trump arrogance and ignorance? I'm not trying to be a dick, and I think it's a cool project, but I don't like how people sugar coat their comments just so feelings don't get hurt. You're making changes and welding joints on the most important subsystem of the vehicle, and despite what Mr. President might say, all the hope in the world isn't going to hold together a poor penetration booger weld on inadequately cleaned dirty, rusty metal.

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I was actually going to comment about those welds too lol, it's hard to post a honest non positive comment sometimes people take such offense.

 

My comment was going to be like "black paint makes everything look better" :lol:

 

 

It's a really fun really cool project, can't wait to see more. Just some constructive criticism.

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Rear Subframe fitment continued:

 

Finally got the frame moved and sitting like it needs to be. Still need to build the tabs for the front part of the subframe.

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I ran across an issue where the ROCA is gonna hit the frame if I go to low with the truck. We can't be having any of that so its time to chop and weld some more. :)

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Kathy came out and got some shots of me making metal tadpoles.

 

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The tools that I use the most at the moment.

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Safety first. Nothing in the eyes and you don't want to burn your hair. I can deal with the smell. I just don't like little molten hot steel beads burning into my scalp. :)

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