i agree, wouldnt the main reason for goin to 4130 be so that we can use thinner/lighter weight material with the same T/S as the 1020 mild steel?

if the rest of the chassis is mild steel, then i personally would use mild steel to build all the mounting brakets.

"4130, or nothing at all" is an off-road saying we have used, kinda like a joke when ever we see anyone wreck.

but here are a few reasons i love to work with 4130.

-not prone to "oval" bolt holes
-cuts great with laser or cnc
-welds very clean
-can be used as thinner material, but we usually use the same thickness
-seen many of 1020 tear, bend, shatter, rip, melt, and overall just not hold up!

its just a preference i have, we have clients that spend the $, so i have no problem using all 4130.

just different strokes for different folks.

Jason

also im very surprised that HOT vs, Cold rolled has come up or even the "pickeled in oil" metal either.

IF for some reason we were using 1020, it would be at least COLD rolled.

:D
Jason

thats a great point, my local supplier doesnt even stock HR sheet, so i often forget about it.

Sorry for the lack of response guys - I haven't even been checking this thread lately, so I didn't catch the activity.

I already purchased 200 feet of 1020 1.5 DOM tubing. Then I was reading a couple chassis books and they all recommend 4130 for all stressed brackets. My concern was if it was necessary to use 4130 brackets and what mess I might get into mixing both types when I final weld. I'm not worried about weight as it won't be a full time racer - but I might take it to the track a couple times to see what it will do. My opinion was: do all mild steel - or go all 4130.

Interesting timing as I'm off to the water jet shop tomorrow to get the brackets going.

Also, don't know if it's a bad thing, but due to an ordering error the vendor gave me .250 wall instead of .125 as listed. I didn't catch it until they cut the 24's into 12's so I could get it on my trailer. The crabby dock guy didn't care when I brought it up.....

Thanks for all the guidance - much appreciated !

goodluck bending the .250 wall most hydraulic benders max out around .150 wall, hope yours is up to the task, be careful of the dies
jake

return the .250. It will be to heavy. I would get that figured out right away.

its ok to run 4130 tabs on a DOM chassis. It will be just fine if you are going to mig weld it.

Jason

Made a decision
 

Took your advice gents and went with the 4130. Much more expensive though - but it turned out VERY nice. Thanks for everyone's input !!!

:thumbsup:

Jim