Shortening A Lenghtened Wheelbase

[ArmyGrouse]

I have a '77 Scout II Tera, and I recently did a reverse shackle mount in the front. When I did this it stretched out my wheelbase to 120". I've recently started to look at moving the rear springs and found out I could move my rear springs up as much as 9" forward towards the cab without heavy modification. So I was wondering if bringing my axle forward and shorting my wheelbase to 111" would be worth actually doing, or should I just move it enough to match stock wheelbase of 118"?

[MR.ROCKAPE]

I have a '77 Scout II Tera, and I recently did a reverse shackle mount in the front. When I did this it stretched out my wheelbase to 120". I've recently started to look at moving the rear springs and found out I could move my rear springs up as much as 9" forward towards the cab without heavy modification. So I was wondering if bringing my axle forward and shorting my wheelbase to 111" would be worth actually doing, or should I just move it enough to match stock wheelbase of 118"?

It kinda depends what you use it for? For tight trails 120" WB and a full body will make you wish it was shorter.

If its primarily a daily driver that does easy to moderate trails 120" might not be so bad.

[ArmyGrouse]

I plan on making this a dedicated rig that won't be trailered.

[MR.ROCKAPE]

I plan on making this a dedicated rig that won't be trailered.

how big of tires?? What will its primary use be?

[ArmyGrouse]

Just extreme web wheeling until I get it running, then who knows. As for tire size, I plan on running either as small as 35s or as large as 37s.

This is about the most extreme trails I plan on going with my Scout:

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[SPOON-EAZY]

Have you considered building a Scout 80, Scout 800, or Scout II into a trail rig instead??? You would get an overall smaller package (wheelbase and body) that would work better for a trail rig and probably make you happier in the long run. If the Terra is in decent shape I would save it. Those trucks are getting harder to find and it might be worth hanging on to versus cutting it up and banging it down a trail.

[ArmyGrouse]

In a perfect world I would have bought a Scout 800, but I got this vehicle for free so I'm going to build it and I'm not worried if it gets banged up because its already in rough shape with dents and rust, plus it's a basket case. I thought about selling this rig, and spending money to get an 800 or similar vehicle, but I desided that the money I'd put into getting that vehicle would be better spent modifiying this rig with what I've got. I'm not really destroying a gem, just something that can be found in a junk yard, but I do agree with you that smaller rigs are easier to drive on most tight trails. As for the thing being a boat I plan on bobbing the shit out of the bed, while dove tailing and shortening the front end of the Scout.

[MR.ROCKAPE]

In a perfect world I would have bought a Scout 800, but I got this vehicle for free so I'm going to build it and I'm not worried if it gets banged up because its already in rough shape with dents and rust, plus it's a basket case. I thought about selling this rig, and spending money to get an 800 or similar vehicle, but I desided that the money I'd put into getting that vehicle would be better spent modifiying this rig with what I've got. I'm not really destroying a gem, just something that can be found in a junk yard, but I do agree with you that smaller rigs are easier to drive on most tight trails. As for the thing being a boat I plan on bobbing the shit out of the bed, while dove tailing and shortening the front end of the Scout.

If you are gonna cut the long ass body down to match the shortened wheel base and throw 37s on it...then I say shorten the WB.....

[darren y]

keep the 118 & just run 38 or 39's
= less work

[toyotaguy]

I rechecked my numbers and I can only move the spring 5 and a half inches at the most without modifying the frame.