[FINALIST] - Murraymountain's Mountain Murray [2019 Build-Off Entry]

I know right. Deck drive pulley to 4 inch on trans and a double pulley clutch AND, it's adjusted for the smallest belt it'll take.

Are you running a 1/2” or 5/8 belt? Thinking if you flipped the original pulley you may have a mixed size of pulleys? Most deck belts are 5/8 with pulley to match and a 1/2 belt would ride deep in there.

The deck drive was originally a 1/2" belt. It rides deep, but it is 1/2".

In the mean time, the 101 passes with flying colors. Put it on, too loose. Adjusted it, too tight. Adjusted it again, perfect. Then went 'round and 'round with the clutch spring. Put the brakes back on... Need to mess with those some. BUT, she's ready for some play now! Gonna give 'er heck after church tomorrow...

Good to see you got that belt sorted. They can be a big pain to get right. That ride should make it all worth the pain

Belts are the thing I hate most about this. I still haven't got it right. The clutch doesn't fully return, the belt always seems to be engaged (maybe I need to break it in), and it throws the belt whenever it wants.

Either way, I'm gonna put up with it today and run it like it sits. I'll fix it later.

Yeah belts are a pain sometimes. Things I would check is pulley alignment first. Then the pulleys to see how belt rides in them. I’ve had problems with a/b pulleys or a spread pulley allowing the belt to ride deep causing a belt to throw. Staying engaged with a loose belt could be improper guide placement or a deep pulley. If a belt rides deep in a pulley it will grab the sides of the belt as it gets “wedged” in there.
Sometimes you can tell if the belts are hanging up by pushing the mower in neutral....it should roll Rey freely...you can sorta feel while pushing if the belt is sticking or dragging.

Okay, I'll have to try that.

But yeah, I got 'er out and about today! This thing is a pain to work on, but it is FUN to drive.





Then I went mudding since the mud pit was full of water....



Then I did a quickie wash job. Still gotta clean it from every angle before the BO ends...



I have a video of me doing donuts in the mud, so I'll post that up later. Right now, I'm describing the Mountain Murray as fast and fun. It handles really well. Mud flaps did their job great. Only problems that came up now that I've run it around some, the throttle WAS responsive, but now it lags BAD. The brakes work backwards because the engagement rod is too short. It throws the belt when you press the clutch, and it still goes with the clutch depressed. And the hood doesn't stay shut. Other than that, the list stayed the same. I gotta say, I can't wait till the BO ends.

Mudding Sorry about the shakiness at the beginning.

Nice work! Now we just gotta wait for a month, haha.

Whoa there Allis... Ain't done yet

The list is winding down:

-Turn tow hooks 90 degrees
-Reinforce the RH trans mount
-Weld steering shaft bushing and plate to frame
-Weld clutch pedal to frame
-Install a cargo rack
-Make a rear bumper (also to serve as winch protection)
-Fix clutch
-Fix brakes
-Fix throttle
-Redo skid plate
-WASH IT

And after that list, I'm calling it complete unless I have time and feel like reinforcing the frame. Gonna try and knock most of this out Wednesday.

Well, still leaks. Not fixing it this time.

Since I was busy all day yesterday, and couldn't work on 'er, I just drove 'er around some. Got some good night time pics...






All the lights work good. The headlight's bright enough, the foot board lights help a lot, the taillights are bright, but not too bright, and the brake light is annoying just like it's supposed to be. Anyway, I think I know what went wrong with the throttle, but I also think I don't know how to fix it yet LOL. Gonna start fixing things this evening before the final mods get done tomorrow.

The more I beat this thing, the more it leaks. I just don't have it in me to fix it before the BO ends.

However, I did get the throttle fixed! SUPER responsive! This thing does REAL donuts, REAL 180s on gravel, REAL drifts, and it FLIES! Like I said before working on it is a pain, but driving it makes every bit of it worth it. The clutch fixed itself! No throwing belts! Anyway, I THINK,  I will have my final video out by the end of the week. If not, it'll be out by the end of next week.



Some videos...

Top speed run
Drifting
WHEELIES!

The donut video ain't even here yet.........

Nice work.  It leaking out the axle ends?

No matter how much I RTV'd the keyway on the Doc locker it leaked.  I ended up JBWelding the keyway under the axle oil seals and "rounding" it out resolved my leaky issue.  (Little sanding and elbow grease and you can make the jbweld nice and smooth)

Yep. The key ways. Yeah I'm gonna JB Weld it next.

It's also leaking out the side because I stripped 2 bolts that are next to each other, so that part did not seal, so I covered the outside with RTV. It held, but it couldn't stand the abuse I guess.

I don't have it in me to fix it anytime soon. I guess the ol' parking over cardboard will have to do.

Okay. 6 things left on the list! Took it over to a friends house today since I can't afford the fab shop yet. We worked on it for about 4 hours. Also, it's staying over there until Saturday when we can finish it. Gonna go and get supplies at the fab shop tomorrow... Here's what's done so far...

First, we welded the clutch pedal on... No more bolts!



Then that middle plate...(Also welded the steering shaft bushing at the bottom on)



Then, after one failed attempt at fixing the brakes, we just added a stop. That fixed it. (and then I found out I needed that bolt. LOL.)



Our brake fix fail...



Then we reinforced the the trans mount that never got done...



And the skid plate is 100% mounted!



So, on the weekend, we need to put the tow hooks on, put the winch back on, weld up some stuff in the hood that should've been welded on from the factory, and make a rear bumper. After that, I need to replace the brakes, put a cargo rack on, and install the belly pan!

Nice. What kind of welder are you using? Looked like it was done with a Mig machine but I wasn't sure.

Actually a $200 stick welder. He's pretty good with it.

Ah, I should've recognized the little bits of slag still left on some of them, haha. Gotta love a good ol' Arc welder!

Slag? What slag? LOL, really though, I get more slag with a mig than this thing. They came out pretty good I think.

Well every bead done with an Arc welder has a layer of slag over it that needs to be chipped off, sometimes you can still see little bits of it. There's no slag with Mig welding.

Good call on the trans mount gussets by the way, I've done that before too. Definitely a good way to prevent any breakage with hard romping.

Oh yeah, My brother went through 2 brackets and I've killed one myself... Definitely gotta strengthen 'em up.

I guess I've had the meaning of "slag" wrong this whole time. I thought slag was the little beads that fly everywhere and have to be ground off with the grinder... I guess that's what the wire brush and chipper thing he was using is for.

I call the beads spatter.

Okay, it hasn't been touched since Wednesday, but, I'll be getting a couple ATV cargo racks this week that we'll be putting on, and on Friday, we went to the fab shop and picked up this 6 or 7 foot long piece of square tubing and about a foot and a half of flat steel. The other piece is the belly pan. (I'm talking about the black pieces.)

Alright, almost done.... Got the hood welded up, tow hooks are done, and we've started the rear bumper.

What's left? Well...

-Finish bumper
-Cargo Rack
-New floor mats
-New brake pads
-Put a plate on the gas pedal for more surface area and put grip tape on it

I'm gonna come pretty close to the deadline I guess.

Anyway, today's progress...

The tow hooks...



A more solid hood...



The start of the bumper... (This one is already welded on)



And just because, here's the welder we're using...



The cargo racks didn't happen sadly. The final video won't be out this week either, but ain't much longer...

Yeah the tow hooks will work much better in that orientation, nice work!

Neat looking little welder there too. So is it you doing all the welding modifications or someone else? Also do you remember off hand what brand that welder was?

No, I was cutting the square tubing today as my buddy did the welding. They're my modifications, but not my welds.

Amico I believe. 160 amps.