Build JHF Trail Chassis

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So this is not a black? Or a different sticky compound? DOT or no?
Do you worry about breaking parts when running water?
 
whiterhino said:
So this is not a black? Or a different sticky compound? DOT or no?
Do you worry about breaking parts when running water?
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This is not a black....the sticky version is coming in 2022. It IS a DOT. This carcass/rubber combo is the same as what is on my FZJ80 in a 315-70-17.

I never ran water in my old FToy, the axles and drivetrain would not hold up....but no worries with the current setup. Plenty strong for that added weight/traction.
 
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pennsylvaniaboy said:
Ugh....why does noone make a 42 for 17" wheels besides maxxis and Interco....
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42's for a 17" wheel will be coming in 2022.

Personally, I feel there is too much sidewall with a 17" wheel and the 42. Far better trail handling/control with the 42/20 combo. But, that added expense of new wheels isn't fun either.
 
Working to feather the tires....coming along nicely 😎

Also decided to bump water to top of wheel...

However, they worked perfectly today....made one line I have never cleared and a few others with much less effort and wheelspin.

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And, we have lights!

Cleaned up the switch panel, and am finally happy with the whole dash layout. 6 rock lights installed, one 6LED bar, and a small amber rear facing light should arrive today. Haven't done a night run yet, but they look good in the shop...lol

Rock lights (I won these at an event)
Amazon product ASIN B0778K25ND
LED switches: (BTW, the yellow is useless and can't be seen in sunlight...)
Amazon product ASIN B08MT1JGT3
And, because the switches use smaller spades, you'll need these:

uxcell 100pcs 4.8mm Quick Splice Wire Terminals Female Spade Crimp Connector with Insulated Sleeve Applicable Wire Gauge 18AWG-15AWG: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

uxcell 100pcs 4.8mm Quick Splice Wire Terminals Female Spade Crimp Connector with Insulated Sleeve Applicable Wire Gauge 18AWG-15AWG: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific
smile.amazon.com



Originally, yellow for the front line lock, green for the light bar, and blue for the rock lights....but when you can't see yellow in bright sun and you accidentally switch it on and you smoke your front brakes....I switched the line lock to red. Pic below is from the drivers headrest.

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6LED flood bar below the winch plate. Have had it on for a week and it hasn't been hit yet ;)

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Two down-facing rock lights just aft of the rear bumper bar, two tucked in by the upper link chassis-side mount.

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And the final two rock lights by the rear chassis side link mount.

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woody said:
Working to feather the tires....coming along nicely 😎

Also decided to bump water to top of wheel...

However, they worked perfectly today....made one line I have never cleared and a few others with much less effort and wheelspin.

View attachment 15803
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So are you saying the DOT compound works as well as a sticky out there? I have to say I was impressed by the DOT milestars ability to hold a sidewall onto the face of a side hill out there. Although I was also impressed at how well my iroks were doing.

Is that James Treacy's new rig? You guys should do a feature on that one. Work of art!
 
Ghetto Fab said:
So are you saying the DOT compound works as well as a sticky out there? I have to say I was impressed by the DOT milestars ability to hold a sidewall onto the face of a side hill out there. Although I was also impressed at how well my iroks were doing.

Is that James Treacy's new rig? You guys should do a feature on that one. Work of art!
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It is the new JT rig, and it's already sold....so James was being nice ;)

The DOT versus Black Milestar is marginally different....not night/day like a red/blue label BFG. Two days of wheeling have surprised me, will be back out on Saturday (today was too windy). Never enough test time ;)
 
Did a few trails today....breezed thru Arrowhead in about 10 minutes (rated 10....barely) and then jumped onto a newer trail called Shotgun. The final climb (no pic) has only been completed by a handful of rigs thus far, and both John and I cleared it with little issue. Tough since the bottom forces you to slip one way or the other, and keeping the rear in JUST the right spot is tough...plus, a touch of momentum is needed.

End of day tire pressures in the rear was 9.5!! Dropped about a pound or so all around, so we'll see how they perform next time. Did clear a few climbs today that have denied me in the past.

Pics courtesy John "Madcow" Hembel.

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Ironman, Stage1 - complete :)

This was my view Sunday afternoon....we had already run Sandthrax (10) and DeKleined (10) and the buggy successfully ran all but the signature DeKleined crack....I was SO close, but just didn't quite figure it out. Hopefully when the tires are burned in a bit more.

Our fearless leader decided running TrailBreaker Year 1, Stage 1 (now Ironman) was a good idea...I wasn't so sure, but there is no time like the present to learn and push. The crack in the pic was easy, the BIG climb took a bit to find the line and the time the launch correctly, and the next crack about ate me up...but I completed it, and learned a ton about angles and tire placement. The tires performed.

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This pic was taken at the top of the SnakePit climb on DeKleined...its slick and sketchy and took a bit...but the tires are feathering in nicely :) YES, these are the DOT compound tires, NOT the stick/black labels. Andrew called me this morning after he saw the pic, FULL of questions...he was pleased with my report, and I'm quite pleased with the tires performance.

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I didn't even try the sig DeKleined with no rear steer but had fun on the rest of the trail. Was tempted to try the snakepit but was running SX stickies so I chickened out. That other stuff is out of my league.
Rig looks awesome. I've seen some pics of your rig posted on Irate4x4 too. They all look good. :)
 
whiterhino said:
I didn't even try the sig DeKleined with no rear steer. Was tempted to try the snakepit but was running SX stickies so I chickened out. That other stuff is out of my league.
Rig looks awesome. I've seen some pics of your rig posted on Irate4x4 too. :)
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I should check them out....haha ;)
 
Today, air shock tweaks...

Glenn with Radflo told me to run these "as is" for a while to be sure they needed adjusting. Honestly, he was about right. They worked well, had "ok" oil fill and allowed the nitrogen pressure to stay low. With 2.5-3" of shock shaft showing (depending on temps), I was 65# front and 50# rear.

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The easy adjustment for air shocks is oil. I added 10cc to each rear, installed the valve core and didn't add any nitrogen...then "dropped" the rear with the engine hoist. The shocks stopped with about 1/4" of shaft showing, which is perfect. 30# nitrogen left 2" of shock shaft (competition height) and 50# of nitrogen set shock shaft at 3.75", which is about perfect for trail height. (shop temp 60 degrees, cause that DOES matter) Things are likely to settle after a run/two, so pressures may change (as they will with outside air temps).


Per Radflo, their 16" 2.5 air shocks ship with 700ml of oil. No wonder they were near perfect from the get go!

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I mistakenly thought the light bar had sufficient clearance when positioned below the winch....I was wrong. A hard drop on DeKleined and the ram fitting contacted the light and bent/loosened it. Fortunately, a few seconds to tighten fittings and less than a cup of fluid lost....but that means repositioning.

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So, new wider/thinner combo bar in a new location. And while we are at it, a rear-facing amber on the same switch. I figure, if I need to see where I am going, others need to not run into me... LOL

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The light bar and rear LED:
Amazon product ASIN B07G38HYR9
Amazon product ASIN B08L4BNH31
 
And, for our 2nd stupid moment...

Route your vent lines....I failed to route the trans vent and then pulled off my ClusterF*ck smokeshow and soaked the passenger seat...not fun.

The fix? Remove the cover, soak it in degreaser in a 5 gal pail. Soak the foam equally with degreaser, ensuring you get it behind the foam and onto the support material. Then clear water rinses, about 5x for each (seat foam means soaking, squeezing, repeating until the water isn't soapy.... so fun!)

The foams were bright red when I started....attempt 1 was not aggressive enough so I disassembled them again Tuesday and re-vamped the process to actually get the oils out.

Route your vents.

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I'm using the lower X support tubes in the B pillar for venting. Drivers side is the coolant overflow and passenger side is transmission catch can/ drain back. If my math was correct each tube holds about a pint. I can add pictures if you would like.
 
Really good video. Enjoyed it a lot. I kept watching for the guy who "uses my cutting brake constantly" to actually use it. Never did. LOL What is down by your calf? Can't see - assuming maybe a locker switch?
I saw your post on FB mentioning you used to run it in the FJ but didn't really catch how long it would take you with it???
Edit, you said it used to take you 60 minutes round trip. Now I'm guessing 15?

Does Arrowhead really require rear steer?
 
Rear steer switch on the shifter, rear locker switch is in the shadows 😎

No rear steer needed on the trail, just uses to help unbind in a few spots. And no cutters needed obviously...haha

Never timed the FToy on just the trail, always timed from the parking lot and back.
 
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Weighed 😎

I was anticipating something in the 3500# range, not 4000#...but no part of the L67 is light, and it's not like I stripped anything to fudge the numbers....there's waters in the cooler, tools, recovery gear, etc all on board...effectively, trail ready right down to the camera mount...and of course, at least 200# of water in each front tire.

With me in the drivers seat, it adds another 200# and the front bias is within 7# side to side. No complaints there :)

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And, lexan....5/16" doesn't just bend, so an hour of slow heating is required to get it flexible, heat all the way thru, but not bubble....oh joy.

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Ghetto Fab said:
If its polycarbonate you can just bend it in a press brake, no need to heat it up. Hell of a lot of spring back though!
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my first attempt broke (short cutoff piece)....guessing I was trying to bent too sharp....heating worked perfectly :)


Ghetto Fab said:
So the switch is your rear steer? I guess I'm used to seeing a joystick type control for the rear steering.
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Correct. 12v over hydraulic. Lots of advantages when it comes to packaging, disadvantages when it comes to "sensitive" movements. I do like that a single tap is pretty predictable when it comes to how much the rear steer moves, and it's easy to count taps to help return to center. Also easy for spotting (which I do quite a bit of)....pat your butt (to indicate rear steer versus front), point in a direction and every hand movement/count should equal the number of rear steer taps in that direction.
 
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