Reviews and Articles

International RockCrawler

While most people are fixing up Jeeps and Toyota's, Andrew Paulson broke the mold and built one of the Baddest Cornbinders we've ever seen. He started out with his daily driver 1973 Scout II and went from there. At first it wasn't much more then a lift and some tires, but after a trip to Moab one year, he had the bug and pulled out all the stops.

The Scout II was no light weight machine when it rolled off the assembly line in '73. So Andrew removed the body and only left part of the floor and the firewall. The rest is 1.75 inch DOM tubing and the body panels are gauge metal. Both the panels and the cage have been completely powder coated. This was easy for him to do as Andrew owns and runs his own Powder coating business. In fact, everything but the head work on the engine was completely done by Andrew in his own shop.

Next Andrew needed a good drive train. First stop was the engine. He took the stock IH 304 and completely rebuilt it. The heads received stainless steel valves and a full port and polish with a 5 angle valve job. The engine was bored .40 over and the bearing and piston skirts received a Moly Performance coating. Also the piston domes and the valve tops were ceramic coated. This is all getting fired up by an MSD ignition topped off by a Holley Projection system. Engine cooling is handled by an Aluminum radiator with a set of electric fans. Backing all that up is a 727 automatic transmission with a set of racing clutches, shift kit, and its own cooler and fan. The transfer case is a Dana 20 with a Terra Low 4:1 kit and a twin stick conversion.

The rear axle was custom built by Andrew using his own axle jig. Its a Dana 60 center section with 4:88 gears and a spool keeping it all locked up nice and tight. The axle outers are Ford 9" units with disk brakes. Axles shafts are custom Dutchman 35 spline units.

The front axle is a Kingpin Dana 60 robbed out of a Dodge 1-ton truck. It received a full rebuild with 4:88 gears, Detroit Locker, Chromolly 35 spline outer shafts, and hub flanges. The Kingpins were eliminated in favor of a solid bushing using custom steering arms built by Andrew.

To keep the steering out of the rocks, the tie rod was located up and behind the axle and a full hydraulic steering system was installed using PSC components.

Andrew wanted the grooved 39.5" TSL's on homemade beadlocks to stay firmly on the ground so he ditched to stock leaf springs and put in a double triangulated 4 link system on both the front and the rear. Damping duties are handled by 2" Fox Shocks with 14 inches of travel. Keeping things in line is a set of axles winches for steep climbs and descents.

He wanted his ride to be comfortable on long trail days so the interior was fitted with a set of PRP seats and dash was fitted with a full set of Autometer gauges. The stock Scout floor shifter still lives on and is topped of with an antique brass door knob. The whole thing is covered with a homemade soft-top.

Other goodies on the outside include a Ramsey 8000 winch with winch rope on the front and a Lexan windshield to help keep the weight off. An Andrew built fuel cell and storage boxes make up the rear.

This rig is a rolling work of art and has proven itself down in Moab on trails like Coyote Canyon and Upper Helldorado. Check out some of the below pics for more Cornbinding action!