An expedition truck on portals...

Oilworker

Explorer
Here a comparison with a regular Defender....

3855117.jpg


and a new front view....

3855138.jpg
 

Ford Prefect

Expedition Leader
Wow,

Wow wow wow.


Ok, so, I am really curious about the braces. First, are they required, second did they come with the protals? IE did Killer engineer them, or did you? IF the later are you certain that they will not bend in? Not being a straight brace, I wonder what the chances are of them bending, and causing more trouble than they are worth...
 

michaels

Explorer
Wow,

Wow wow wow.


Ok, so, I am really curious about the braces. First, are they required, second did they come with the protals? IE did Killer engineer them, or did you? IF the later are you certain that they will not bend in? Not being a straight brace, I wonder what the chances are of them bending, and causing more trouble than they are worth...

the fact that they are diagonal actually makes them stronger. if they were just vertical, then you would just have the horizontal piece resisting horizontal forces, but since the vertical piece is not straight up and down, it can also resist horizontal forces in the x direction, since the diagonal with have an X and Y, instead of just a y. hope that makes since.
 

R_Lefebvre

Expedition Leader
Wow,

Wow wow wow.


Ok, so, I am really curious about the braces. First, are they required, second did they come with the protals? IE did Killer engineer them, or did you? IF the later are you certain that they will not bend in? Not being a straight brace, I wonder what the chances are of them bending, and causing more trouble than they are worth...

I have to admit that the brace design raised my eyebrows a bit too.
 

Oilworker

Explorer
The braces are designed by Killeraxles,too and come with the portals.
The may differ if you order your drop boxes for a Disco or any other truck they may fit to.

Regarding Tibus´experience with converting and building portals for daily drivers and serious competition I guess they will do their job....
 

Ford Prefect

Expedition Leader
the fact that they are diagonal actually makes them stronger. if they were just vertical, then you would just have the horizontal piece resisting horizontal forces, but since the vertical piece is not straight up and down, it can also resist horizontal forces in the x direction, since the diagonal with have an X and Y, instead of just a y. hope that makes since.

Yes, makes sense, but you are re-stating my question rather than answering it.

The braces he has are straight vertical, there is no real diagonal in the rear braces, therefore I would question their worth.

At least we know that they come from the factory, so I guess we can expect that if the brace fails then Killer would be responsible for the resultant failure of the hub.


By the way, for those into this idea Portal Tek (here in Utah) makes similar and for about the same price (as without the brakes and such attached.)

Anyhow, very cool portals. I am certainly jealous. Would not mind putting these onto my WJ. Would give me a lot of lift and clearance without changing the ride.


Another Question... How much does the portal change your top speed and handling on the roads?
 

michaels

Explorer
Yes, makes sense, but you are re-stating my question rather than answering it.

The braces he has are straight vertical, there is no real diagonal in the rear braces, therefore I would question their worth.

At least we know that they come from the factory, so I guess we can expect that if the brace fails then Killer would be responsible for the resultant failure of the hub.


well the shock mount also acts as a brace in transferring those forces. triangles are always better. if i were him, i would continue the diagonal peice of the lower shock mount to the bottom of the portal brace, giving it that diagonol force.
 

Oilworker

Explorer
Someone has to try and break them and I guess it´ll eather be me or Wolfgang on one of these test rides. If they break it´s probably him, as he constantly complains about the lack of power (I never missed that much :confused: )

Next week he´s planning to start his 100" Rallye Defender, which will be powered by some 340+ bhp V8 and I´ll be his co-driver in this years Dresden-Breslau Rallye. So if these portals survive this event, they should do it in our lifes just as well, don´t you think? Wolfgang is very optimistic, too :ylsmoke:

About Portal Tec I wonder how they got so cheap, so quick now. I got a quote fro them, early last year, for 2 G3 axles with portals and lockers and was nearly hospitalized when reading the 24,000.00+ US$ price tag, and that was without shipping and tax!!!

Axletech also makes some, though I never got a reply from my inquiry.


Any more pictures? Or shall I leave it for a while? :ylsmoke::)
 

07 Elephant

Adventurer
When you're ready I'd really like to hear and see what you have planned for the passenger cabin and dash board. Oh and also what are you going to do to the truck bed area? Such a sweet build. It's nice to see someone do it right from the begining. :smiley_drive:
 

Ford Prefect

Expedition Leader
Oilworker,

Dresden-Breslau Rallye, WOW, I can not tell you just how much I would LOVE to get to do this! Wow I sure am jealous! I would do this in a heartbeat. Can I come? Can I ride very quietly in the back or something? :D

As for the portaltek guys, they have been that price for a very long time. I am assuming your price is for a plug and play axle. My prices are JUST for the protals, so you take the axles you already have and mount the portal to it. Am I mistaken, or is that not what you did with the killeraxles? OR were the killer axles including a brand new axle?

Another nice thing about the portaltek guys is that they build with the intent of competition rock crawling, so theirs are built with the intent running large tires with lots of power, unlike the Unimog and Volvo axles (they have low torque and small engines, so not as much pressure put on the axle as would be in the case of a jeep with 44's and a v8 (for instance)

When you're ready I'd really like to hear and see what you have planned for the passenger cabin and dash board. Oh and also what are you going to do to the truck bed area? Such a sweet build. It's nice to see someone do it right from the beginning. :smiley_drive:

Whole-heartedly agreed!
 

Oilworker

Explorer
Well come over and drive my truck from camp to camp if you like?

The Portal-Tec bolt-ons aren´t that much inside the wheel, arn´t they?
And they have, as I understand it less oil inside, which is rather important when driving long distances and guess since when they have that "Expedition" section? :)
But hey, it´s a decision you have to make and you really have to know where you want to go with your portals.
Beware of the brakes you fit, you will want some sealed calipers otherwise you´ll be taking them apart after every play in the mud.

What I am going to do with the interior and tray, well that´s simple.
Cubby Box goes as that´s where I will install the battery kill switches and the CTIS controls.
The original dashboard stays, but will be covered by an aluminum panel that receives some extra gauges, a Toughbook mount, driver and co-driver GPS, a tripmaster and 2 LED reading lights....I guess that´ll be it, except for the radios that again go up on the ceiling.
Front seats will be again replaced by bucket seats and twin battery under the driver seat stays.

Full external roll cage (Safety Devices) and a utility rack for the tray (like used on the MWIK...
DEFENCE_WMIK-530.jpg

...as I have to store two spare tires, recovery gear and spare parts and an external fuel and a water tank....

That´s about it and we´ll comence as time and money permits....

So long,

Robert
 
Last edited:

mog9

New member
Oilworker,





Another nice thing about the portaltek guys is that they build with the intent of competition rock crawling, so theirs are built with the intent running large tires with lots of power, unlike the Unimog and Volvo axles (they have low torque and small engines, so not as much pressure put on the axle as would be in the case of a jeep with 44's and a v8 (for instance)



!

Portal Tek portals are Volvo copies. The same housing, same gear size and same ratio and you have to mount the axles upside down to have the right turning direction.


.
 

Red90

Adventurer
About Portal Tec I wonder how they got so cheap, so quick now. I got a quote fro them, early last year, for 2 G3 axles with portals and lockers and was nearly hospitalized when reading the 24,000.00+ US$ price tag, and that was without shipping and tax!!!
That is the whole axle with Ford 9" lockers..... For just the portal boxes with brakes, it is around $9000 USD, so about the same cost. Obviously, the housing would need a lot of work to get them attached. All prices are on their website.
 

revor

Explorer
Closer price but if you have to flip the axles to go the right direction (forward) will not that cause trouble with the oiling in the diffs? Most notably slinging oil to the pinion bearings?
 

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