Buying another person’s project comes with a gamble: Did they build the truck correctly or did they cut corners just to quickly get the truck on the ground? Unfortunately, the only way to truly find out which way it was built is to take an in-depth look at the suspension, frame and all of the underlying work. Sometimes the results can be less than satisfactory. Steve Nielsen and the crew of CanDo Specialties in Oroville, California, are no strangers when it comes to fixing other peoples’ projects. In many cases that involves telling a customer that the only safe method for fixing their ride is to start over. Such was the case when Brady brought his ‘bagged Toyota into their shop for a body drop to the rocker on 20-inch wheels. Hiding under the bed and the cab, though, was another hack job. The CanDo Install team which consists of Steve, Terry and Ryan decided that no work could be done until the ‘bag job was corrected, which meant starting from scratch on a new frame. This presented an opportunity for the team to document the build and bring it to the StreetTrucks readers as an example of how to correctly build a Toyota without cutting corners or hacking it up. This multipart series will show you that it’s better to take your time and do things right the first time and that it never pays in the long run to rush any job. Over the next several months we invite you to follow along as CanDo Specialties gives you an inside look into what it takes to ‘bag a Toyota from the frame up as well as body dropping it to the rockers on 20-inch wheels. CanDo will also be retaining the A/C and heater, which tends to get pitched aside for clearance these days. Follow along as the boys show you just how you “CanDo” it right the first time.
 After. |  Before. |  Since the old frame had crooked notches, faulty welds and previous hacks from several ‘bag jobs, Steve, Terry and Ryan opted to start from scratch with a rolling frame and virgin axle. |  The boys start with the rear, beginning the clean up process by cutting off the stock gas tank cross member. |  Ryan gets the plasma to work for him. The right tool for the right job will save countless hours. |  Before we install the frame notch we want the frame rail smooth. Too many times we see people skip these steps, and it results in improper fitment later down the road. |  A 40-grit flap disc is used to clean up the frame rails. |  Proper preparation is key for getting the best results when welding anything to your frame. The welder loves shiny metal. |  When you install a CanDo eight-piece step notch you want to start with the outside of the frame, making sure it’s centered over the axle. |  Once you’ve double-checked it and you’re sure of the placement, tack on the first notch plate. |  Then line up the second notch plate on the inside, making sure it’s even with the outside notch plate. |  Ryan demonstrates the correct way to weld a step notch by welding the inside of the plates as well as the outside before adding the top or bottom notch plates. |  When the sides are welded up then you can fit the tops. |  Take the time to make sure the sides did not pull in after welding the inside of the notch plates. You may need a heavy pry bar to pull the plates out again if they’ve sucked in. Once satisfied, you can tack them into place. |  Double check everything again and if it’s dead even, get to welding that bad boy. |  Terry steps in to lay some fat dimes. Quite often Terry and Ryan trade off to see who can lay the nicest welds. |  Now the old piece of frame can be removed, first by using a Sawz-all, cutting the top, and then coming back and finishing it off with the plasma. |  Again, the right tools save hours. |  Since we had the opportunity we decided to flip the frame over and finish welding the bottom sections of the notch. It’s a lot easier to lay fat dimes when you’re not upside down. |  |  Using a piece of angle or square stock brace the frame in the rear of the frame as well as across the notches to support the frame and keep it from moving. |  Cut out the old spare tire cross member. |  Cleaning the metal not only allows you to get a cleaner weld, it allows for a hotter burn and better penetration. |  After taking all of your measurements and checking them two, three and four times, tack the rear cross member into place. |  Once the cross member is tacked into place check to make sure it’s square. When you’re positive it’s square then weld it up solid. |  If your welds are penetrating, then you’ll see a red glow on the backside of the metal. |  With the new 2 x 3-inch, 0.25-inch wall square tubing welded in, you can now remove the temporary frame braces. |  With the new 2 x 3-inch, 0.25-inch wall square tubing welded in, you can now remove the temporary frame braces. |  |  Test fit your 3/16-inch or 0.25-inch plate to cap the inside of the frame. |  Once in place, clamp it down. |  Start by welding the inner plate to the frame, but take care not to weld too much at once. |  Take your time to ensure that no warping occurs. |  The same goes for the bottom of the frame. We welded up 4-inch sections at a time, giving each section ample amount of time to cool down between welds. |  Here you can see the bottom of the frame turned out nice and clean. As you can see, we flipped the frame to finish all of our welds. |  With everything welded the frame was flipped right side up and we can get ready to install the CanDo cantilever 4-link. |  Since 1997 we have been building our own in-house 4-links. We have the option to build and install any suspension setups that we want. The reverse versus the all forward 4-link has caused quite a stir in the industry within the past few years. We are not against one or the other, in fact we design, build and drive on both styles everyday. It always depends on the application, but a lot of CanDo installs are reverse setups. We’ve looked for the bad, but have never experienced anything negative when the suspension is setup correctly. |  | Show comments (0) - Add comments to this article: |
