Custom Bailie Bilt Cage Goodnes

[Okie69]

Thought y’all might enjoy a little bit of sneak peak into Gordon’s latest build!

 

[okie4570]

You keeping a spare bed up in the loft now? Haha

 

[Okie69]

You keeping a spare bed up in the loft now? Haha

It’s a couple of old seats. I use an old bikini top as a blanket.

 

[jeffncs]

Tell us more about that A pillar / windshield frame. Is it tied down to the floor and frame? Trying to wrap my head around the structure in that area.

 

[Yeller]

The “A” pillar of the windshield frame is replaced with heavy wall square tubing that goes all the way down to the floor with a reinforced rib though the body mount. Windshield frame is now fixed but makes it super clean and very robust. He’s done several similar A pillars but this is the first that I recall with a complete windshield frame, the others have been more trail rigs, super nice trail rigs but built to be used.

 

[bax]

Very Nice, thanks for the sneak peak a 7.3 and a fancy windshield / cage A pillar mod. I like it a lot. That looks like the body Todd had a SC. Looks like a few more alterations are being done to it too.

 

[bax]

Hey Steve, question for you. would it od looked odd if Gordon had just gone ahead a built a square tubing cage? With his design all the pieces except for the 2 rear uprights would all work with the sq. tube. It would be an easy change make the 2 rear one work also. I know we are all used to seeing round tubing. It was just a thought. I am not thrilled with his blend work from sq. to round at the top. But I do understand it I also have always questioned if the cages need to be able to be removable. I suppose it could be cut apart if need be. I'm not picking on Gordon, I love his builds. Especially Frampton's

 

[Okie69]

It’s removable. There’s one of those tubing joints up by the windshield frame. You can kinda see the screw in the pics.

 

[Yeller]

Hey Steve, question for you. would it od looked odd if Gordon had just gone ahead a built a square tubing cage? With his design all the pieces except for the 2 rear uprights would all work with the sq. tube. It would be an easy change make the 2 rear one work also. I know we are all used to seeing round tubing. It was just a thought. I am not thrilled with his blend work from sq. to round at the top. But I do understand it I also have always questioned if the cages need to be able to be removable. I suppose it could be cut apart if need be. I'm not picking on Gordon, I love his builds. Especially Frampton's

Round tubing is used because it’s what we want to see. There are some engineering reasons that make sense but don’t necessarily make it better. One of the reasons is tubing has a softer edge that is easier to pad for impacts with your body, that’s the only one that really holds weight with me, but even that is very thin. Round is easier to bend into pleasing to the eye shapes and who doesn’t like weld porn on round tubing doesn’t matter if it’s a set of titanium headers or a roll cage.

From a structural stand point I really have no qualms with square tube, it is more rigid, which is good and bad, some times some deflection with some memory is a good thing. As for bends if you look at a modern trophy truck, the only bent tubing is where it needs to be to fit the profile of the truck, the rest are all straight, all meet in nodes and if there is a need to change direction it is cut and mitered.

As for being removable it is not necessary. I’ve made enough buggies look like a real full bodied vehicles that it really doesn’t matter.

One advantage to round is the availability of different metallurgy to increase its strength. It’s really hard to get square tubing in anything other plain ol A500 low carbon steel. So no cold worked DOM, chromoly ect.

I wouldn’t know anyone that would miter tubing instead of bend it…… there are several mitered tubes here. Properly mitered tube is stronger than the tube itself. Bent tube is weaker than the tube itself.

 

[DirtDonk]

Wayne Hanson built a full rectangular cage for a bronco about 25 or 30 years ago.
Last time I saw it it was a really beautiful orange/ish/red with graphics and the cage painted silver.
Was very nice but Wayne said right then and there that he wouldn’t want to do another one, at least on purpose. The bending was too far out of his comfort zone compared to round tubing.

Knowing him though, it probably wasn’t really anything to do with a difficulty level. More than likely it was to do with time involved learning new techniques, price involved in buying proper dies, and him never wanting to charge what his time is worth.
Besides, haven’t I always maintained that back in the day Bronco owners were cheap?
Back then probably not many of us would have been willing, or able to pay for something that was total custom and very time consuming.
A few maybe, but not like nowadays.

 

[DirtDonk]

But back to the subject at hand, I really like the thought process of combining the windshield frame and cage.
It’s a good way to clean up that area while gaining some strength. Maybe not as strong as full tubing, or maybe it is (knowing Gordon), but just getting rid of the rust prone and leak prone hinge area and raising the windshield glass up are a couple of big bonuses that I see right off the bat.
Do you know what the process will be for windshield wipers?

 

[bax]

Round tubing is used because it’s what we want to see. There are some engineering reasons that make sense but don’t necessarily make it better. One of the reasons is tubing has a softer edge that is easier to pad for impacts with your body, that’s the only one that really holds weight with me, but even that is very thin. Round is easier to bend into pleasing to the eye shapes and who doesn’t like weld porn on round tubing doesn’t matter if it’s a set of titanium headers or a roll cage.

From a structural stand point I really have no qualms with square tube, it is more rigid, which is good and bad, some times some deflection with some memory is a good thing. As for bends if you look at a modern trophy truck, the only bent tubing is where it needs to be to fit the profile of the truck, the rest are all straight, all meet in nodes and if there is a need to change direction it is cut and mitered.

As for being removable it is not necessary. I’ve made enough buggies look like a real full bodied vehicles that it really doesn’t matter.

One advantage to round is the availability of different metallurgy to increase its strength. It’s really hard to get square tubing in anything other plain ol A500 low carbon steel. So no cold worked DOM, chromoly ect.

I wouldn’t know anyone that would miter tubing instead of bend it…… there are several mitered tubes here. Properly mitered tube is stronger than the tube itself. Bent tube is weaker than the tube itself.

Nothing wrong with mitered tubing

 

[Yeller]

I miter all the rectangular tube frame rails as well.

The trick to mitering tubing of any type is to cut your miters. Then cut a piece of plate that is the just big enough to not fall inside the tube. Weld the plate to the end of one of the tubes, then weld the tubes together. The joint will exceed the strength of the tubing, the tubing will fail before the joint moves and fails.

I typically use tubing the same thickness of my tubing, or 1/8” whichever is thinner. However if I want a softer corner on the miter I use thicker plate, that’s how the miters on my cage have a 3/8” radius on the outside.

 

[76YETI]

I'm still waiting for the "flipped" windshield frame to return!

 

[DirtDonk]

Me too! The Viewfinder was a slick setup. A bit finicky in the wiper department, but super nice to be able to see out the top.
I think the biggest mistake was continuing to make it out of stainless steel instead of just using mild steel and then protecting it from rust by galvanizing or some other type of coating. Heck, even dipped in paint would have made it worth it without the added cost and complexity of buying/welding/fabbing with stainless.
A full package out of mild steel and including a wiper system would be the ticket's meow.

Paul

 

[sprdv1]

Thought y’all might enjoy a little bit of sneak peak into Gordon’s latest build!

View attachment 903017 View attachment 903018

haha, nice Thanks for sharing

 

[sprdv1]

Nothing wrong with mitered tubing

for sure brother..

 

[sprdv1]

Hey Steve, question for you. would it od looked odd if Gordon had just gone ahead a built a square tubing cage? With his design all the pieces except for the 2 rear uprights would all work with the sq. tube. It would be an easy change make the 2 rear one work also. I know we are all used to seeing round tubing. It was just a thought. I am not thrilled with his blend work from sq. to round at the top. But I do understand it I also have always questioned if the cages need to be able to be removable. I suppose it could be cut apart if need be. I'm not picking on Gordon, I love his builds. Especially Frampton's

especially pine monkey

 

[chrlsful]

Bronks were made in the day so not real safe even for road travel. "Fake bars/cage" (not frame tied) are a lill better but give false confidence to the un-knowing when going off rd (I seen too many that trusted, tipped & observe the feet stickin straight up, several ft above the body [now upside down], pieces of floor sheet metal still adhered, 4 ft from where they started. Ie a useless form of crash protection..

So of course I want 'frame tied'. But also ability to flip dwn the windshield when top/door-less. 1 solution would B pins like @ the rear of the wagon top (beefier & w/the pin/bail like a tractor's implement pins). Remove top half with 'the rest' when topless.

One frame tied crash protection I've seen plates each side of the floor sheet metal, a lill square on the frame to receive the lower of these 2 plates (the cage's lower arm resting on the top of these 2 plates. Not too complicated, plated "4bolted" to each other floor-as-sandwich style. Doesnt this negate the beneficial effect of the 'rubber' bushings at the 'official'/oem body mounts?

A second way was to frame tie at the 8 body mounts. This may avoid loss of benefits of bushed body mounts. I just cant see their construction. Question: How are they designed? Some 1 who'd make this single component (x 8) could make an aftr mrkt killing as many of us might buy, custom make the remaining (still a 'project' 2 B sure).