I gave up trying to work out cost in welding consumables..... it does get a bit nuts when I'm working on the digger laying down inch wide spray welds melting 20mm plate!!
Nice as it would be to cut clamp rings out of 25mm, cost would be nuts, got some smaller size rings cut for the digger @ $90 each so I'd be surprised if I got any change from $500 for the 5 rings
A wee update (this might interest ya Tom, decided to build some monoque bits...)
Got the Lower link mounts partially done (got to drop the motor again to finish them)... this means the axle is placed so I can start the guards
The wheels going to articulate up to the base of the bonnet so the inner guards needed rebuilding.... easiest way is remove them all together and build some new ones
I'm going to double skin the inner guard and turn it into a monoque structure to replace the strength lost to trimming the chassis fold out, I'm also going to use it to support the bumpstops and the panhard body mount
Here's what I've done on the passenger side
Used CAD to design everything... some bits are as little as 10mm clearance to moving bits so.... fingers x'd I get every thing in the right place
First cut most of what is getting cut out of the inner guard, then added profile base coming out to the side
Finished the inner skin and the brace for the bumpstop
That is the bumpstop sticking down the bottom of the frame, just sitting there at the moment so I could mark it for welding later with the axle removed
Here is a shot from inside showing the clearance for the coil over and the panhard bar
And the finished section with the outer skin on and the tie-in pieces to the old chassis folds
Had some fun trying to weld the base of the tie-in's as it was to a seam.... I don't know what the Russians use as seam sealer but its bloody hard to weld through.... the moment penetration goes through a layer of sheet metal it stops the weld flowing..... had to burn a pass to get the stuff out and then grind and weld properly
Working on the other side, this needs to be alot stronger as I've got the steering box and panhard mounts
Cheers Reece
normally I cut them larger got them cut at .25mm over size but the slight tracking curve of the laser as it cuts ment I had to drill them to get the bolts through chewed up 2 drill bits doing it 
way better idea come monday I"ll be talking to the profile cutter about what the thin'st they can cut with the laser in 10mm if I do them again thats what I"ll do.... too much work doing it with bits of tube 
If I did I'd get the outer rings laser cut from 25mm plate and machine the bead into it, drill the 36 m8 holes, paint, done. 
