GSW 2008 Carnage Thread (dial-up= not recommended)

[fpkites]

Jim, That is the same thing that happened to my KOR skid at GSMW this year. I talked to Kevin and we both agreed that the bracket that bolts to the unibody there just isn't thick enough to take that kind of abuse. I'm headed down to JCR this weekend to have them take care of it. I also had the problem of the skid being in contact with my t-case and it was causing some nasty vibration back through the chassis. I tried to bent that arm back with a BFH but just mangled it in the process. If you want me to forward you the email correspondence between Kevin and myself PM me your email address.




That is AFTER I tried beating it back....

PM will be sent shortly - thanks bro. I should hear back from Kev this week as well.

[ZJ TINS]

I'll try to get a pic but I picked the wrong line and bellied up on the KOR skid. Bent the unsupported corner of Kevin's crossmember so its hitting the transfer case. Stopped the noise by reusing the Mopar hitch plug that was ripped off and wedged it between the transfer case and Kevin's plate.
Kevin was their, and I talked to him a little, didn't seem too interested in a mod beyond what he has because the design has to fit everyone Jeep (can't say as I blame him). For now the plate just can't support the weight of the ZJ without some help. I am thinking of either triangulating against the box beam, or straight up into the floor with a 'big' spreader plate.
I never did hit any other part of the KOR xmember, so support the corner and it's a two thumbs up. Also much lighter than stock with mods for same issue.


I did the install with 2 bolts sideways through each corner brace into the box beam due to rusted (re: broken) factory bolts. Nothing else moved. Get a right angle drive for the drill, spent $50 at ACE and it worked beautifully. Its and Easy Power 81544.



Finally trimmed both stock plastic bumpers, front one was almost falling off anyway, specially after widowmaker.

[Z]

FYI, I've punctured the sidewalls of 2 GY MTR's. I've heard similar reports from others. If you're worried about sidewalls look elsewhere.

Hmmm, the MTRs on my ZJ were still going strong after 25K miles. I took chunks out of their sides, but never big enough chunks to require replacement.

Maybe I'll just keep running the Silent Armors since I have free replacement.
(Kinda wierd - the other 3 Silent Armors looked brand new, but I put a deep gash in the 4th.)

[Cody]

I went through 3 MTR's on my old buggy. I took out one pulling onto my trailer, and another time I put a hole the size of my big noggin in the sidewall.

Overall, a pretty good tire and at least as strong as most everything in it's class. I really liked my Bighorns though and will likely get a set of those when my MTR's bite the dust.

[Z]

I went through 3 MTR's on my old buggy. I took out one pulling onto my trailer, and another time I put a hole the size of my big noggin in the sidewall.

Overall, a pretty good tire and at least as strong as most everything in it's class. I really liked my Bighorns though and will likely get a set of those when my MTR's bite the dust.

Cody - what specifically do you like about your Bighorns and why are they better than MTRs? Seem more durable? Better traction?

[Cody]

At first, I thought they looked like a generic knock off of MTR's (and, honestly they kind of are lol) but they seemed to work really well, and I would have to say they at least contributed to how unusually well I felt that black ZJ I had worked--all things considered.

I never had a problem with them, and haven't heard of anyone else but you have to take it with a grain of salt since there are probably 500 sets of MTR's on the trail for every one set of bighorns. You see lots of flat MTR's, but you see a LOT of MTR's period.

I didn't have them long enough to get a good idea on milage, but I'm hard on tires and I thought that they seemed to hold up at least as well as the MTR's I've had. My buddy ran a set on his taco and it seems like he got about 35-40k out of them, with lots of dirt milage on fairly mild terrain.

Plus, they are cheaper so all things being equal I tend to spend less money.

I really like the looks of the KM2's, but I don't like the look of the price.

[ArloGuthroJeep]

Like Cody said, there are a TON of MT/R's on the trail so when people come on and start bashing their sidewall strength you have to take that with a grain of salt. I ran mine for 2 years w/o any issues. The bigger issues with MT/R's is the chunking of the tread after a while - you're missing quite a few lugs. Then again I think my TrXus MT's are going to do the same thing

[BigDaveZJ]

I was pretty disappointed in Pam's old MT/R's. Never displayed any real good traction, wore really fast, and was damn near impossible to make them wear even. Is there a BFG A/T in the size you need Tom?

[Z]

BFGs were the second "offroad" tire I had my ZJ - their sidewalls ripped the first time I had them out. Just not impressed with BFGs - the Silent Armors held up much better (for me) than the BFGs.

[ArloGuthroJeep]

I was pretty disappointed in Pam's old MT/R's. Never displayed any real good traction, wore really fast, and was damn near impossible to make them wear even. Is there a BFG A/T in the size you need Tom?

With all the tire problems you have, I am convinced that it is the drivers and not the tires at fault here

[BigDaveZJ]

With all the tire problems you have, I am convinced that it is the drivers and not the tires at fault here

I put my 33's on in December of 2003, and the ONLY problems I had with them was after hitting a tree/rock at a high rate of speed. I've got $175 into ALL 5 tires right now so I can't complain too much.

[Cody]

I've seen the BFG AT KO's take the same abuse as an MTR. I wouldn't consider them any less durable. They are a fantastic snow tire and for straight slickrock I don't think you'll find a stickier tread design. They load up with mud pretty quickly and don't clean as well as an MTR or traditional MT, but they deffinately have their place.

[Z]

I've seen the BFG AT KO's take the same abuse as an MTR. I wouldn't consider them any less durable. They are a fantastic snow tire and for straight slickrock I don't think you'll find a stickier tread design. They load up with mud pretty quickly and don't clean as well as an MTR or traditional MT, but they deffinately have their place.

They must have changed a lot then. The original BFG ATs we pretty mediocre in the snow. With the original ATs, I HAD to use 4WD in snowy conditions. When I switched to MTRs I didn't have to use 4WD when there were just a few inches of snow on the ground.

[Mtn WJ]

OK I will chime in with my experiences since this is becoming a tire thread.

Truxus MTs. I have had a set of them in a 32 inch size. Great Traction but it seemed they wear quicker than others and the treads had more chunks coming out than I prefer. Otherwise strong side wall.

Firestone MTs. I bought a new set and they did wear very well and were the quietest MT tire I have ever had. I did blow a side wall in Moab but it is hard to say if it was a fluke or a weakness.

MTRs. I have a used set of 33s and frankly they are wearing better than I expected and because I bought them from John I know they have had their share of offroad use so it appears a decent side wall.

It appears from most people I have seen the BFG AT KOs are a great tire but you never find them on sale.

I have seen the new Good Year Silent Armors. They look good but we will see how well they last off road. I like the rim guard just like the Firestones and BFGs.

If I were to buy new MT tires it would be a toss between the MTRs and the Firestones. I were to buy ATs it would be a toss between the Silent Armors and BFG AT KOs.

I have not seen any value priced tire that has the same sidewall durability as the tires I have listed above. If one exists I would like to know about it.

[Cody]

I have not seen any value priced tire that has the same sidewall durability as the tires I have listed above. If one exists I would like to know about it.

http://www.maxxis.com/products/autom...il.asp?id=5477




I wonder how loud and how road friendly these are....
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/4-MAX...spagenameZWD1V

[BigDaveZJ]

http://www.maxxis.com/products/autom...il.asp?id=5477




I wonder how loud and how road friendly these are....
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/4-MAX...spagenameZWD1V

Maxxis is really coming to market with some good products. The Creepies have always impressed me, as did the Bighorn's when I drove your rig last year. Right now the biggest issue is finding someplace close by that carries, and that will give me a road hazard warranty on them. The Trepadors are looking like a VERY good candidate for my next set of tires.

[Mtn WJ]

Interesting. I will need tires at the end of the summer. I will look into the Maxxis as well. Anyone know where they are made? US?

[BigDaveZJ]

Interesting. I will need tires at the end of the summer. I will look into the Maxxis as well. Anyone know where they are made? US?

Maxxis has its U.S. headquarters in Suwanee, Georgia, with other U.S. facilities in California and Texas. Internationally, Maxxis has facilities in Taiwan, China, Thailand, Japan, Germany, and Canada. Worldwide, Maxxis employs more than 15,000 people, with distribution in over 130 countries.

BFG's, and ginormous balls, got Putz up the right line on the creek obstacle on Cliffhanger. BB, 265's, and an Aussie. Pretty damn impressive IMO.

[KevinF]

Yeah, when we have some time, I want to redesign that skid plate. We should have used 3/16" L bracket on that leg, rather than the 1/8" L, or even 1/4" material. It's the foot we use for the Rock Sliderz, and it was convenient to grab off the shelf when we were designing it the first time, and we just never dealt with upgrading the strength.

I think said "new design" will also be a 2-pc. design...both a crossmember and a skid, however, they bolt together, rather than being welded. And, it will cover most of the area left to right, rather than the area just under the t-case.

I'm sending Jim (FPKites) a new third-leg for free, and will be more than happy to do so for anyone else who has one that looks like the one in the photos.

On my own personal carnage, I only had a semi-bashed taillamp and a bent hard-line on my drivers side front brake (somehow). The Jeep never worked better with it's new height...everything was outstanding!!

All in all a GREAT trip!! I had more fun this year than I think any other year for some reason. Maybe it was all the great company?

Take great care you guys,
Kevin

[fpkites]

Kevin, you're the best! Thank you! I was perfectly willing to pay for the support, as you may have seen in my email today. Thanks so much! I thought that skid had saved me before, then I saw that it really saved my ass on Cliffhanger. It's actually amazing how much you can thrash those things.

[ArloGuthroJeep]

Back on topic here.

I was with the Golden Spike crew and Friday morning, probably a couple hours into the trip we were on Poison Spider and going over some giant speed bumps. The first one we hit (going just a couple mph) I heard a weird noise. Two bumps later I heard a giant clank and Tom Wood gets on the radio and goes something like "Wow I have never seen a driveshaft just fall out like that". It was actually my rear driver LCA pulling apart and the driveshaft slipped off as a result.

These pics are after I got home, cut off the trail welds, and rewelded them up. We were off about 1/2" on the length. Welded both sides.

Pics: http://www.arlojeep.com/Trip-Reports...rnage-5-30-08/

[AprilzWarrior]

All in all a GREAT trip!! I had more fun this year than I think any other year for some reason. Maybe it was all the great company?

Take great care you guys,
Kevin

Must have been, I too had a blast. Im not sure how many beers you fed me but I kept at it.


GSW 09

[zj95]

Tom Wood gets on the radio and goes something like "Wow I have never seen a driveshaft just fall out like that

Lmao, thats great

[wannabe_offroad]

Carnage? Isn't this what skids are for?

And Putz, you got every minute's worth of effort out of that "16 hour skid" with your repeated attempts at that obstacle on Cliffhanger. You rammed on it like it was a beater, and throttled it like it had a bulletproof drivetrain. Your skid did it's job and then some.

Oh, I totally agree, but of course, it couldn't be my fault!! It really won't be that hard to fix. I do have to say that my KOR sliderz took a beating on this trip too (yeah, so maybe I am a little hard on my rig) and came through with shining colors!!!

.....those shining colors are the shiny steel that is now showing through after I scraped all paint off of them as possible.

I had a blast as well. Glad to meet some new faces and I'm REALLY looking forward to another GSW!!!

[fpkites]

Finally got the chance to drop the tweaked support arm for my KOR TC skid - Thanks again to the KOR crew for sending me a new arm.

Old busted and new hotness







I briefly tried putting the new one on last night, but I'll need to use a bottle jack to push the skid down a smidge and didn't have time.