By Brian Letendre
I have been tight lipped, as much as I could, but I now can share with you some excellent progress on The Spike!

Back in February, the suspension system was paid in full and shipped to Extreme Overkill Fabrication for install. Well, it arrived the last week of February and even Randy said this thing was stout! Mayhem Metal Works does not screw around. This system is well designed, and very beefy.

As you can see, everything arrived and Randy got to work on removing the center support from the frame.

Randy got out the plasma cutter and removed the original center support. By using straps to the upper cage tubes, he was able to support the transfer cases and get the new center plate in place.

It is difficult to tell in pictures, but the new center section gives me a nearly flat belly and amazing protection for the drive train. The entire center section can be removed simply by removing the bolts when I need to service it.

After mock up and positioning of the plate, Randy again got out the cutter and began the process of removing the old leafs and the spring hangars. We will be moving the engine back to accommodate balance in the rig as well as position everything properly for the best performance on the rocks.

As you can see, my new hovercraft is almost ready... just kidding. I am excited to see the amazing progress happening though on the Spike. More will be coming soon, I assure you. We have the axles coming back in the next few weeks and obviously more to do with the suspension and engine to get life back in it.

You can follow this build of the Spike both here on my blog and on my Facebook Page, www.facebook.com/ProjecttheSpike

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