[nevada]

Originally Posted by Hyde802

Got a link? Forward shifts go for a lot less than top shifts around here.

heres the pirate link

front to top shift conversion, rear case use. - Pirate4x4.Com : 4x4 and Off-Road Forum


one of these days when I have some time, i'll actually write it up on here also.


keep in mind, you'll still need to come up with a shifter. but, there are now many aftermarket setups out there. twin stick, and remote shifters, that its a non issue.

[nevada]

Originally Posted by KidVermicious

I'm loving the pics, the stories are cool too. Keep 'em coming!

be careful what you ask for.

let me think about it a bit, and see if I can start where I left off..

[nevada]

lets see, what have I done since the axles and marlin crawler..


im not sure on the timeline of some of this, so i'll just put it here...

I replaced that old milemarker winch, with a rugged ridge 8500. it was under $300, and has been a damn good winch for the money. I may buy another to run in the rear.



Performance 8,500 lb Off Road Winch, Steel cable, Remote Control, Roller Fairlead

looks like they raised the price a bit, I think I paid $280. plus there was a $20 rebate I never turned in.

edit: I forgot to add, I ditched the leads that came with the winch. I went down to my local welding supply shop and picked up about 12' of 00 welding ground wire. i then ordered up some copper lugs, and heavy heat shrink tubing, and made up some very nice HEAVY duty leads. i believe this was a big upgrade over the stock stuff, and helps the winch perform better.
not to say the stock stuff was junk, but its a sub $300 winch, they are going to cut costs where they can.


I picked up about a 2.5G air tank from a place I was working at, similar to this,



I mounted it under the bed, where the spare used to be.

while I still had the 22r, I was running a stock AC compressor as an air compressor. I actually wired in an OE AC switch as the compressor switch, it even lights up when its on.
the sanden style compressors work pretty good, as long as you keep them oiled, and don't run the rpms up to get more flow. I added a tee fitting to the intake side, so I could oil it often.



one side was capped off, and the other went to the pump. when I was ready to use it, id turn the compressor on, unscrew the cap, and dribble a little engine oil in. it would suction it in, and oil things nicely.

I think I burned up 2-3 of those pumps. either from forgetting to oil it, or from running the rpms up to get more flow.


once I swapped the v8 in, I was able to use a YORK compressor. a MUCH better compressor. it puts out WAY more CFM, and has an oil reservoir, I just top it off every few trips. with the tank, and that compressor I can run air tools with ease. it does a much better job inflating the larger tires, and has enough air to make seating the beads much easier, and doable.

for reference. *not my pic*



if you have room, this is the way to go for an engine driven pump. they will make the best electric pumps seem like junk.

[nevada]

oh yes, after getting the mile marker winch, I soon found out how good my charging/electric system was...or rather wasn't.
this was the first winch id ever had, and pretty much the first winch our group had. at least the first that got any real use.

being that it was the only one, it got used a LOT, and heavily.
from pulling my heavy truck through the deep snow, to winching me and a disabled JEEP strapped to my bumper up a slick muddy hill.

there was one trip, where that jeep was strapped to my bumper that I finally decided it was time to upgrade some things.

not sure on the time, or time of year, but it was cold and dark.
the heater on high, both electric fans running, and the headlights on.
there just wasn't much left for the winch.

even running the rpms up high, to get as much charging as possible, the winch would still run the battery down so far that it would actually kill the engine. there wasn't enough juice left to run the ignition. it was a LONG night.


but, I decided then, I was getting a high output alternator. I was still using the stock one, which I think is good for something like 45 amps I also was still using a basic "stock" battery.

I contacted a buddy that worked at a local offroad/accessory shop and had him find me a good alternator. he came up with a 140 amp GM one wire, for like $150. not a bad deal, similar to what I could get online. I said go for it, BUT, "I do not want a chrome alternator. if its chrome, I wont accept it"

when I was searching for a high output alt, MANY of the ones I found were chromed. maybe it was silly of me, but I didn't want any chrome on my rig. have you seen my truck?
he said, "no problem, it wont be chrome"
it ended up taking a REALLY long time to get. way too long, I called several times, I was getting annoyed, and thinking I should have just ordered the one I found online. due to the time it was taking, his boss offered a discount, like 10% off or something. ok, that's cool.


finally he calls me up and tells me its in. cool. he offered to run it to me at work, he was just a couple blocks away. I asked, "its not chrome is it?"
"nope"

"perfect, will you accept a check?"

so he brought it down, I opened the box, FUCCKING chrome! are you shitting me?!
apparently they didn't OPEN the box, only looked at the picture on the outside.
so, back it goes, and they ordered another one. they offered another discount for the inconvenience. it finally showed up, and was matte black. perfect.
after all was said and done, I think I paid $110 for it.

even now when I do a search, most of what shows up are chrome. lame.

it was a chevy alt, and I was mounting it on a ford engine. ford uses larger diameter bolts than GM, but the spacing was the same. so I just had to enlarge the mounting hole a tiny bit. easy peasy, and it mounted right up. sweet. and wiring couldn't be simpler, ONE wire going to the battery, internally regulated, and auto exciting. it starts charging as soon as it starts turning.

now...I need a better battery...

[541joseph]

Just so everyone knows amazon has that winch for 247 or so

[nevada]

batteries.

i got a take-out red top optima. we replaced it, because it was "old" it still worked fine, but the guy wanted to replace it just in case. i think he'd been running it for like 10 years.

i snagged it, and bought a heavy duty winch/battery solenoid. just did basic wiring with heavy battery cables, and an in cab switch.
i didn't have matching batteries, and i had to manually switch it, but damnit, i had DUAL BATTERIES!

after a few years using it like that, and forgetting to turn my electric fans off after getting home, those batteries were toast. too many complete discharges.

i headed down to the local Interstate shop, and picked up a couple red top Optima blems. i don't remember the reason they were blems, but both had been checked, and tested very good. better than the rating on the sticker in fact. i got the pair for $100.

i used these for a few years...and again after forgetting to turn off the fans, the batteries were toast. damnit! i got a couple years for $100, i was happy.
i really needed a thermostat switch! i did add one eventually, but then it died during a competition, and i almost burned up the engine, im back to the manual switch...for now.

back to Interstate i go.
this time, i was after a better battery, one more equipped for how i was going to use it. i landed on the blue top marine deep cycle battery.



Marine Battery | RV Battery | BLUETOP® | OPTIMABATTERIES


even running it through my shop, my cost was like $180 each. ouch!
i bought one, then a month later got another.

these batteries are GREAT. im doing better at not letting the fans run..
but, im not doing a great job keeping them charged...they do discharge a bit from just SITTING, and i don't wheel nearly as much as i used to. but these batteries will survive that type of "use" better than the previous ones. so i stick them on a trickle charger every couple months.

im still using a manual battery switch, but will be getting a good dual battery switch, and monitor soon.

[nevada]

Originally Posted by 541joseph

Just so everyone knows amazon has that winch for 247 or so

nice.

i expected there were cheaper ones out there. i just didn't search for them. but, good to know, thanks.

edit: im adding the link here in case anyone is interested.

http://www.amazon.com/Rugged-Ridge-1.../dp/B0033LZ63Y

I may snag another one at that price.

[wallytoo]

enjoying the tale.

fwiw, i've had an optima red top for many years now. it was in my cj for at least 6 years; i put it in my 4runner when the wal-mart pos that came with it failed (right after i brought it home). it's a great battery, especially on a vehicle that gets regular use.

[my best battery might be a "generic" napa battery, a big one, that fits in my '48 dodge dump truck. it sat for 2 years, and when i finally finished rebuilding the engine, it started the truck up without a recharge. still in the truck 3 years later, too]

[nevada]

I just ordered a winch.
got the rugged ridge 10,500. got it for $359 shipped.

[KidVermicious]

I've toasted my red top twice now to where my Sears charger wouldn't bring it back. Each time, a night spent on a friend's Optima charger has brought it back from death.

I wonder if that's one of the reasons Optimas are getting a bad rap, is some guys aren't charging them right.

[nevada]

Originally Posted by KidVermicious

I've toasted my red top twice now to where my Sears charger wouldn't bring it back. Each time, a night spent on a friend's Optima charger has brought it back from death.

I wonder if that's one of the reasons Optimas are getting a bad rap, is some guys aren't charging them right.

yes, im sure. but they did have a few years after they switched plants where they had lots of issues.

[nevada]

I found some more pics of when I rolled.
you can see the stump in these.






the stump itself isn't TOO tall, but the ground at the road is a bit lower, making the overall height a bit too much

here we are later in that trip,



you can see where the top of the cab goes up right in the middle. we used the hi-lift jack on it.




random pic, and short story


we came across this spot in winter, when there was a bunch of snow.
after driving through that section a few times and stabbing the throttle, I figured I could probably lay the truck over on its side. it would be nice and gentle, and land in deep snow.


it took a few tries. the first couple times, we just drove on 2 wheels before it settled back down.
NEED MORE SPEED!

I think the 4th try it flopped over. a few of us just pushed it back on the tires. that was the first time on its side, it has happened a few times since then..mostly on purpose


another random pic..




you cant tell because of the snow, but there is a bridge under me, and I drove off the left side of it.
had to winch me backwards to get back on.
good times.

[nevada]

more random pics.



pretty deep snow that day. a lot of it was drifted, and hard to drive in.

we are actually sitting at an angle on the road. due to being locked in the rear the ass end swung out, and we crabbed walked the trucks up to that point. the snow was a lot deeper and hard packed on the right side.

it looks like my back tire is almost off the edge. its close, but the ground dips down a tiny bit right there, before it drops off the edge.

just by chance we both had our extra doors on, and they were both red.
I swapped them on, after I rolled. but I ended up putting the original doors back on, since they fit the crushed cab better. haha. I think he was in the middle of building half doors out of the originals.


here it is later, after he painted it.



as you can see, mine are still red.










you can kind see the flatbed he built. it turned out really nice, with built in jerry can holders. one on each side.






hes running 38" swampers, and 4:10 gears, welded in the rear, and an 87 22R. it did amazingly well.

it shouldn't have even moved, but it actually wheeled pretty good.


he wheels a jeep now...traitor!

[nevada]

heres a few vids from my last trip.

the snow wasn't too deep, but I was open in the front on 35's, and I had to work just to follow him and his 37's. you can see his rear diff drags pretty heavily a lot of the time.

37's and a curry hi-pinion 9"


















screw not being able to break trail, im taking my truck this weekend.

[nevada]

ooh, my new winch showed up today!