1966 Travelall Ambulance Adventure Machine

Martinjmpr

Wiffleball Batter
Awesome! My first two vehicles were Travelalls, a 57 and a 67.

What engine/tranny does this have? Any info on who did the body? I notice it's not only got the top popped, it's also stretched between the 1st and 2nd set of doors.

That is a wicked cool vehicle!
 

shortbus4x4

Expedition Leader
Here is some more info. Its a 1966 International Travelall Intern 140 Ambulance, converted by I think it was the Springfield. They cut a T-all in two, added 12" between the front and rear doors and put a raised roof on it. It started life as a two wheel drive. The guy I bought it from had picked it up from the Southwest and it was two wheel drive. Judging by the stickers on it I would say it had spent quite a bit of time in AZ. He then bought a wrecked 3/4 ton 4x4 T-all from CA and had it shipped out to KC MO where he proceded to convert the ambo into a 4x4. Did a pretty nice job on it too. He was into boat building and spent most of his time on either coast and wanted to do some sailing around the world so he was downsizing.

It has a Dana 60 rear, 44 front, 304 V-8, 5 speed OD, and P/S. I have the current powertrain sold and am starting to pull it out. I thought about keeping it but I wanted something a little more modern and able to get parts for easily. You can get parts fairly easy for IH stuff but it takes a day or three because most parts houses just don't stock it anymore.

Here are a couple of more teaser pictures. Yes I want to put portals in it but due to the fact I want to be able to cruise about 60-65 its not going to happen for a year or two. The portals are Unimog 406/416 axles. By the time I get the super fast gears for the diff and portal boxes, pinion conversions, disc brake conversion, and misc seals and bearings I will have $8-10k just in parts, that isn't including the axles. I will put them in one day but it will be in the future. The axles I have are AAM 9.25 front and AAM 11.5 rear, they are found in newer Chevy and Dodge 1 ton diesel pickups. I plan on 4.56 gears with at least one locker.

I have a few different engine/trans/t-case choices. I thought about going with a big gas engine like a Chevy 8.1 or a Caddy 500 but I already own a few Cummins engines that are paid for and they get about twice the mpg. I have three 5.9's; VE pump, P pump, and VP 44 pump. I have one 3.9 ISB with an Allison 5 speed auto, 170 hp/420 ftlb tq, numbers are pretty close to what a stock VE pump 5.9 puts out. The VE or P pump 5.9 would be the easiest as far as wiring goes but they are a bit of a tight fit in the engine bay. The 3.9 ISB would be easy to fit length wise but it has a SAE 3 bellhousing which isn't small and its got a lot of wiring. The VE or P pump could be fixed with basic handtools, the ISB would need a scan tool. I would run a manual trans behind the 5.9, either a NV4500 or a Ford ZF6, I have both. The NV would get a Dodge NP241 which I don't have, the ZF6 would get a NV271 which I do have. I need to measure the frame rails and make sure I have room for the 271 transfercase, its big. I am probably going to ditch the side tanks too and go with one big one in back, less return lines to run. Shooting for 35-40 gallons.

Tires are Michelin XZL's 1100x16 on Hutchinson beadlocks.

Right now the interior is packed to the top with extra parts. Remember the wrecked 4x4 T-all, all the doors and lots of other parts are in back. Its a good thing too because the current doors need work. I plan on cleaning the interior out over the next month and will take some pics. I want seating for six with some luggage space in back, will tow a pioneer tool trailer(build under trailer forum) with camping gear. Debating on a rooftop tent and rack, we will see.

Current goal is to drill rivets out of rear spring/shackle hangers and flop them for some lift so I can ditch the lift blocks. Got one spring hanger loose last night. Hope to have then all done and the AAM rear axle/tires under it by end of this next sunday.

I would love to run this in the Maya Rally but I don't know if I would have a job when I got back. I need to talk to my boss and see. Not that I would miss my job but the wife and kids would miss the paycheck attached to it.
 

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Balzer

Adventurer
Talk about a lot of potential and a VERY cool build!

I dont know much about portals other than they are low geared so I can understnd how that can complicate things.
Simple is a good thing in a build, maybe not so much in the actual build but the end result. Being simple to maintain and repair is an important part in my eyes. Pure beef is another important part of a build for me. In a fullsize rig (or any hardcore small rig) its just hard to beat some good 1 ton axles/drivetrain.

Sounds like you have a good idea and plan of attack!
 

shortbus4x4

Expedition Leader
Got some more done this last week and weekend. Dug the front and rear axle out of the back of my storage unit. Stripped the front AAM 9.25 of its coil spring suspension brackets and converted it back to SRW from DRW. Will be adding a free spin kit on the front down the road so I have locking hubs and get better mileage. Briefly thought about doing a coil spring front suspension on it but decided to keep it leaf spring for simplicity and because I want to be out driving it this summer. Drilled/cut/ground/chiseled out the rivets on one side of the rear suspension. Was going to flop the front and rear spring/shackle mounts to gain some lift. Found out I can't flip the front spring hanger without the spring hitting so I will space it down on the frame, will be like the back shackle hanger except I will use some 1/4" wall tubing instead of angle. Then will run longer shackles. Plan on getting more done on the rear suspension this week, also need to finish pulling out the OE drivetrain. Hope to have the rear axle mocked up under it with tires this next week. Here are some pics. The wife has gone from saying "h**l no" to"maybe" on the Maya Rally.:elkgrin:
 

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chilliwak

Expedition Leader
Excellent:Wow1: progress Shortbus! Looks like things are coming along nicely. Keep us posted with updates and LOTS OF PICS!:drool:
 

shortbus4x4

Expedition Leader
Thanks for the compliements. Glad I could get some fellow binder nuts motivated to work on their own "junk".:elkgrin:

Well I came to my first obstacle on the rear suspension lift and am having to drop back 10 and punt. I am using the stock springs which are 2 1/2" wide. Well the stock rubber bushings and sleeves are 2 7/8" wide. Can't find the longer lift shackles like I want with the right dimensions. So I will be doing some customization, I know thats crazy talk when you are talking about an old Cornbinder.:victory: After doing some research and measuring and thinking the last couple of days I decided to get something a little more standard in the spring hanger/shackle department. Luckily my spring eyes are 1 1/2" dia which is fairly common. So today I ordered up spring hangers from Barnes and greaseable poly rear bushings and 6" super shackles from Offroad Designs. This will put my spring/shackle bushings at 3" wide and they will be greaseable. Tomorrow I am going to get the steel for the rear suspension upgrade. Hopefully the parts will be here by friday but I am not holding my breath. Here is a picture of my stock rear shackle.
 

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HOOLIGAN

The 4x4 Podcast
Wait a minute. You mean to tell me this was right down the street from me and I had no idea?

Can't wait to see the rest of this build.
 

shortbus4x4

Expedition Leader
Rear suspension parts supposed to be here Tuesday March 20.:victory: Didn't do anything on it this weekend, though I did go and see the Lorax. Did anyone else see this movie, there is a couple of sweet expo rigs in it.:drool:
 

shortbus4x4

Expedition Leader
Made some more progress on it this last weekend. Finished stripping the old powertrain out of it. Found a guy who bought the whole setup from me so we loaded all of it up Sunday afternoon. More room to work now. I put the engine/trans/transfercase in front of it too. I decided on my Cummins 3.9/Allison1000/NV271 combo. Destroked.com has a kit to put the Allison and 271 together. Here are some pictures.
 

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chilliwak

Expedition Leader
Thanks for the update Shortbus. The truck looks great with all the parts removed and the new engine/transmission close beside. I am sure you are going to have a very unique and sturdy truck once you are all done. Can you tell us a little more about the motor you chose for your conversion? looking forward to the next updates/pics, Cheers, Chilli.:)
 

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