The Black Hole

[gmanpaint]

Looks like I got some catchin' up to do! Truck is looking great man!

Thanks Chris!


Took advantage of the nice weather today and messed with the rig a bit. Too bad the chores around the house got neglected haha! This crazy thing just keeps me so preoccupied, I need to attend some 4x4 anonymous meetings to balance my life back to normal. Step 1....I admit I am powerless to wheeling......

Will get some pics up tomorrow of the progress, if I make it back home before the sun goes down.

 

[gmanpaint]

Been busy, but managed to get home before the sun went all the way down today

Slider caps welded back on. Not painted yet, but soon.

Fender chop.

 

[gmanpaint]

Cable brush protection for jungle wheeling (Midwest US).

Once the bumper is installed, it will have separate posts to connect the cables to. They are connected to the brush guard and the roof basket for now. They are completely removable in seconds. Stainless turnbuckles to tighten and loosen for install & removing.

Used a set of marine clevis tie downs for cable guides. These are held on with epoxy to the windshield weather seal. Their only purpose is to stop the cable from carving a groove in the roof.

 

[gmanpaint]

A picture for the heck of it, cause I like it

 

[Keeper0311]

Reminds me of the set up we used in Iraq for low hanging wires. Your Ex is truly awesome.

 

[Turdle]

So will those cables keep people from being smacked by branches?

Looks like a good idea.

 

[corkey]

keep them off the windshield,

 

[yellowford]

Looks good, pretty soon your going to be in my territory about cutting of sheet metal lol.

Might be stealing the cable idea pretty soon, always saw the land rover guys with them and thought they were just goofy since I didn't know the reason for them before.

 

[crazyflights]

Yeaaaa!!!!! -Good time

 

[inh]

Diggin' the cables Gregg! Always thought about doing it 'eventually,' now I can see how they look on an X

 

[gmanpaint]

Yes, those cables will provide some protection for the windshield and help with a good field of view when going through the thick. They will hopefully divert branches away from the glass, & hood.

They are so simple to remove, and hook up, it will be a snap to slap them on before heading out on the trails.

 

[gmanpaint]

Took the rig in for an alignment. Had a dr side tire wobble. Thought it was the outer tie rod end. I brought a pair of them with me to have them installed before the alignment was done as to not have to worry about setting the toe and driving it to the shop. Simple, all good right?.......NOT!

Once on the lift, we discovered some bad news bears parts. Both new (couple of months) upper BJ's were toast. The weak stock inner tie rods were junk. Dr side was barely on at the joint. Thus the bad wobble. The outer tie rod ends were fine, so they were returned.

I ordered the Mcquay/Norris extreme inner tie rods, and a M-N pass side upper UCA/BJ as that is all I could find being sold anywhere. I ordered a new HD M-N version sold at Napa for the Dr side.

The alignment shop thinks the steering rack gear is shot, the shop that installed it (2yrs ago) says its fine. We shall see who is right and who is wrong after the parts are installed and the alignment done.

 

[CDW6212R]

Ah so, you are exploring the limits of the vehicle suspension parts in heavy duty usage. Hopefully you will have it sorted out this time with the better parts. I'm sure others will appreciate learning this from you, well done.

 

[IZwack]

In! thx for the chance!
Posted via Mobile Device

 

[gmanpaint]

All I can say is, it's a learning experience with a hefty price tag

These simple little parts are very pricey. They add up to nice chunk of change. I really hope they hold out, if they don't, a SAS is looking awfully tempting. The IFS is really limited to level 3 (out of 5) trail ratings. 4's & 5's are just to much as there is no droop / flex with it. Rollover's will happen with this setup, so a mild trail rig is the best it will be with IFS. Is it all worth it? I can't really say at this point. I tend to want to go harder, faster, bigger, in progression every time I leave the pavement. I am learning to never say never...lol

Lots of work, time, trial & error on my part to fully comprehend this. But, hey, it's a Great mild trail rig!

 

[gmanpaint]

Weekend Update:

Did some work on the rig this weekend. Installed some heavy duty IFS parts.

The Inner tie rods & pass UCA are the McQuay Norris Extremes.

The drivers side UCA is a HD brand made by XRF. They have a 1 million mile warranty. They make every part for our IFS as well. I found out about them after I had purchased the M-N parts. I stumbled across these talking to a NAPA store looking for the M-N dr UCA. It was considerably less money than the M-N Extremes. This NAPA is an independent store, and the corporate stores don't sell them.

Here is a link to XRF parts.
http://www.xrfchassis.com/

 

[gmanpaint]

Removed the 35" tires for now. The 33" KM2 are back on with a different set of alum wheels.

 

[gmanpaint]

The rig went in today for a much needed alignment. It has sat since the new IFS parts were installed. Took it to an "Old School" shop, with experienced employees.

They couldn't (or wouldn't) align it. It seems that the bushings on the steering rack are shot to ****, and there is play side to side because of this. I also have a Ear bent on the pass LCA mount. Not a biggie, I can bend it back. I am also going to get the HD Outer tie rod ends and Lower ball joints installed before I bring it back.

Now for the rack bushings. I need to start hunting those down. I would like to find some good (stronger than stock) replacements for them.

 

[97sprt4x4]

Would these work?

Amazon.com McQuay-Norris

 

[gmanpaint]

Would these work?

Amazon.com McQuay-Norris

Those are exactly what I need. I found them at rockauto.com for cheaper than Amazon. These are made by the same company, only dif brand names, just like the IFS parts.

RAYBESTOS Part # 5777035=$15.20
http://www.rockauto.com/catalog/moreinfo.php?pk=1031499

Anyone think I can replace the bushings one at a time? With out removing anything else?