Photos Return from Tellico.. and the marks it left behind.

[Muskrat]

hmmmm, cross the ratchet straps to hold an axle in place, huh? Where have I seen that before and front wheel drive, been there, done that, only 88 miles, but still fun to try turning under acceleration Glad you guys got the truck back to camp

 

[Spas]

HOLY COW! What a run for you guys! And here I was just looking at pics of what JoshC's truck looked like in April of last year...Glad you're taking this all with a grain of salt, dude!

You guys have some gorgeous beasts! Looks like you all had fun regardless.

(Don't think we up here near Paragon aren't learning anything from your pics, either ) Hope you find all the parts you need and can get it all fixed fast!

 

[hvac man]

I like your new track-straps, it must be your best mod so far...lol J/K

I have a dana 30 also and ripped all the factory brackets off and started over. The factory ones are really thin. You should not have any problem with a home made track bar mount. Don't lose faith in the beast. All you need is some MRT bead locks and a power welder.

Nice testing though. Beautiful trails

 

[hvac man]

OH and know one said "it's all part of wheeling" yet. I guess I'll have to do it for them...lol

 

[JoshC]

Originally posted by Spas
HOLY COW! What a run for you guys! And here I was just looking at pics of what JoshC's truck looked like in April of last year...Glad you're taking this all with a grain of salt, dude!

oh the memories! haha.

I've gotta get the move on this thing. I started take the rear axle out yesterday, i'll finish that up today. Got a torch to use to carefully cut the perches off then i'll gring them down and start over again. Not sure what perches i'm going with yet. I'm going to look around town at some shops before i go to the internet.

Talked with Cory a few times yesterday and he said he couldn't make a bracket with it being in front of him, but he'd help in any way he could. So i'll figure that out later today hopefully. I ordered a set of Rancho 9000s. Both of the shocks up front are worthless. That's about it. Already looking forward to next years trip! Next on my list is Attica i believe!

 

[JoshC]

OH yeah, and to John. We did think about pulling me out of the creek in reverse. But the way my front PS tire was, i almost rolled breaking over it, and the way my wheels were turned and me having no way to turn them, there is no way of going back. I don't know how we could have made the situation better.....unless there was a bridge

 

[jasonb]

Originally posted by Josh Adams
That and I think we didn't want it to try and roll, but I can't really remember.

that's a good point...


trade sounds good josh..

 

[410Fortune]

somebody will always find a way to break something no matter how built or how tested it is.

However usually I find that ol Krusty is right no matter what when it comes to off roading. Why? Because hes been there and done that. Plus hes the best damn spotter I ever had the pleasure of listening to....

I also cannot believe those rear perches bent, they must be made for a Toyota or something
I have some on my BII, spring over 8.8 welded on, never had a problem (thank goodness!!)

Still looks like fun to me!!

I am trying to "test" my new setup in the next two weeks before the road trip to Moab for mem. day.......I will keep my fingers crossed!!!

 

[GJarrett]

Well, I am somewhat rethinking what Josh said when he disagreed with me saying that Tellico is not the best place to test a new setup. I still firmly stand by that, but do agree that Josh did do everything right that he could given the circumstances.

I just read Josh's buildup thread and Tellico was not the first place he tested it; he did do some trail testing before bringing it out here. And the morning of the run, he made the decision not to run with the Texan BigDawgs and run the tougher trails with them - if he had broke on the hill on Schoolbus he might still be there. And yep, stuff happens no matter how well prepared you are. And what did break can get fixed. Josh found the first of the weaknesses and now he and Cory are handling the situation.

I think many of us may have posted way too quickly as soon as we got home just because we were so emotional about toughing out such a very long day on the trail. And like I posted, one single piece of trail equipment (onboard welder) would have changed the dynamics of the entire trip and our views on it.

Wheel, learn, fix, and wheel again.

 

[410Fortune]

see I told you!!!

Now if you could just weld underwater we would be set!!!

 

[2002 fx4 ranger]

I use 2 batteries, a set of jumper cables and 6011 rod for my onboard welding.

Looks like you guys had one hell of a time in Tellico. It is definately the place to make or break your rig.

Josh --- Looks like you have everything figured out well now. Good luck with everything.

 

[JoshC]

My new saying is, "Never tested enough!" haha.

The perches are bent pretty bad. They are not cheapos either. They are 1/4" thick. I don't know if i had loose ubolts or what?? I tightened the crap out of them in the staging area on trail one. So, who knows.

I finished cutting off the old perches. I forgot my cameras memory card at home, so'll get a picture after lunch. They aren't pretty. I've gotta clean up the old weld and then find some new perches.

I don't think the perches are to blame, but should i go with a similar style that i can get here locally? I can't have my truck here in the shop all week, so that's why i'm wanting to find something here instead of ordering something.

I talked with the owner of the off road shop that i bought them at (a friend of mine) and he couldn't believe it. They use the same thing on all there Jeeps and their hummer they just built. So i'm guess something was loose somewhere, which i am to blame for.

 

[JoshC]

Here ya go, now you can see how bad it was.

 

[Josh Adams]

Good grief, no wonder you was having trouble with the rear. Hope you get it fixed soon man!!!

 

[JoshC]

I just took the axle down to the offroad shop to show the guys down there and found out some more outstanding news! The axle tube is caved in around the weld! But it's not bad enough to worry about, so it's okay. I bought a set of perches made by Chrysler. There are about 1" longer, so that should fix it. I left the axle with at the off road shop so they could weld them on for me. They are going to build up around the caved parts and then weld the perches on and then weld some 1/4" steel down to the factory perches. This way if it's going to bend, it's going to have to rip the axle tube in half!

They had a D30 laying in the shop floor up there, so i took a few minutes to look at the stablizer mount where my trac bar was, and i know now why it broke. The factory puts some punny welds on it. Course it wasn't made to hold that kind of pressure, so now i've got to find a way to make a new bracket with just a little bit of room to work.

 

[Josh Adams]

Here is another pic from my side of the creek. This is where Josh's tire is off the bead, and the wheel is completly submerged.

Here is a shot of Sammy and JoshC removing the rear driveshaft

 

[diablo5969]

Originally posted by Josh Adams
I'll make a swap with ya, video for stickers!!! Whatcha think???!!!

I'd buy a video if you were making a lot of them.

 

[Kris Guilbeaux]

I just got home... I drove 13.5 hours today. I am Tired...

 

[jasonb]

glad yall got home ok. do you have internet in your truck or something?!?! you were on a lot in the last few days to have been driving home. new web page.. all the pics done.. etc etc..
btw.. thanks so much for helping with the locker install.

 

[Randall]

I bring my computer with me and upload via satellite

We stopped by my dad's in GA on the way back, and I uploaded them there.