70's and the Rubithon

[Behemoth60]

Where are all the 70's on the Rubicon trail? I've been thrice, and only ever seen two on the trail. In 2000, Bruce Loewen's 'Dent' was there, no 70's at all in '05, and in '06, Snowflake was there, very lonely.

Alas, Snowflake, and her buddy Shaker, the BJ42, made a grand showing on behalf of the lonely Canadian contingent this year. For a stock BJ74, I was very impressed with how easy it made the trail.

I did manage to twist a rear long spline, short side, axle shaft, and this bound up the locking mechanism, leaving me without a rear locker for 75% of the trail., but it didn't break. Frankly, it wasn't until I finished the trail and got back to Calgary that I figured out what the problem was. Alas, Snowflake really didn't need it. 210:1 crawler gears are absolutely amazing for finding traction.... wheels spin helplessly against a rock... let off on the throttle, apply some brake to slow the wheels down even more. Steer a little bit up hill, then a little bit down hill searching for traction. In only one instance did it take more than a 1/4 turn of the wheels to find the needed traction. On one wet, muddy and off-cambre section on Cadillac Hill, with an open rear diff and the front locker engaged, it was a bit of a challenge to hook up the tires. Finally, after a minute or two of searching, the edge of a lug on the right front tire snagged a boulder, pulled the truck forward a few cm's, and the rest of the tires hooked up. That really brought a smile to my face.

70's kick ass. More of you should take them on the Rubicon.

Peter Straub

[petescoffee]

Would love to. Find me a decent left hand drive one and ship it to me.
Nice talking to your group at the Maurader Bar. I learned a lot about diesel Land Cruisers. I've got the itch to find a 70 series but the ones that have been imported are expensive.

Dave Thomas
Walnut Creek, Ca

[Cruiserdrew]

Peter-Nice seeing you again on the trail and at lunch. Unfortunately, the 70 series trucks are essentially unobtainium here in California. Assuming we could by a used one in Canada, the smog Nazis here virtually preclude ownership. Then if by some miracle we did get one here, we would have paid too much to run it through the Rubicon and beat it up. I would love to have a lightly used 70 series diesel as a daily driver, but I know that just isn't going to happen. Maybe one day the state will come to it's senses about the light duty diesel issue, but I'm not holding my breath.

Anyway, your truck is hardly stock! Good seeing you guys from the frozen north down here, and I hope you can make it again next year. We'll be thinking about the River Shiver, but even Brett says it was cold, and I don't even own a winter coat.

[crushers]

Originally Posted by Behemoth60

Where are all the 70's on the Rubicon trail? I've been thrice, and only ever seen two on the trail. In 2000, Bruce Loewen's 'Dent' was there, no 70's at all in '05, and in '06, Snowflake was there, very lonely.

Alas, Snowflake, and her buddy Shaker, the BJ42, made a grand showing on behalf of the lonely Canadian contingent this year. For a stock BJ74, I was very impressed with how easy it made the trail.

I did manage to twist a rear long spline, short side, axle shaft, and this bound up the locking mechanism, leaving me without a rear locker for 75% of the trail., but it didn't break. Frankly, it wasn't until I finished the trail and got back to Calgary that I figured out what the problem was. Alas, Snowflake really didn't need it. 210:1 crawler gears are absolutely amazing for finding traction.... wheels spin helplessly against a rock... let off on the throttle, apply some brake to slow the wheels down even more. Steer a little bit up hill, then a little bit down hill searching for traction. In only one instance did it take more than a 1/4 turn of the wheels to find the needed traction. On one wet, muddy and off-cambre section on Cadillac Hill, with an open rear diff and the front locker engaged, it was a bit of a challenge to hook up the tires. Finally, after a minute or two of searching, the edge of a lug on the right front tire snagged a boulder, pulled the truck forward a few cm's, and the rest of the tires hooked up. That really brought a smile to my face.

70's kick ass. More of you should take them on the Rubicon.

Peter Straub

Peter,
i am having a bit of difficulty understanding how a "stock" BJ74 has 210-1 crawl...
cheers

[crushers]

Originally Posted by Cruiserdrew

We'll be thinking about the River Shiver, but even Brett says it was cold, and I don't even own a winter coat.

Brett, is a pansy...
even by Canadian standards he should be wearing a dress...


;^)

[Behemoth60]

Originally Posted by Cruiserdrew

Anyway, your truck is hardly stock!

What? Oh, you must be thinking of all those dealer installed bling bling accessories that make it look soo shiny.

Anyway, my challenge is directed more towards the ever-growing Canadian contingent of JDM 70 series owners. LOTS of these trucks are very capable of meeting the challenges of the Rubicon. Especially the factory locked BJ74's. That wheelbase is super-sweet for that trail, lots of room for your gear. A set of 33's, proper bumpers and sliders, and you can spank that trail. You don't even need all the excessories that Snowflake has.

Maybe we need to organize a 70 series Rubicon ride. There's already a 80 run, 45 run, and I remember something about a pig run. Is it time for a 70 run on the 'Con?

I got it. 7-7-07. 70's on the 'Con.

I'll organize this. How do I find out what's going on on the 'Con that weekend? Is that too close to july 4 where I expect it would be really busy? When are the jamborees?

Peter Straub

[Behemoth60]

Originally Posted by crushers

Peter,
i am having a bit of difficulty understanding how a "stock" BJ74 has 210-1 crawl...
cheers

Factory chrome bumpers.

[crushers]

now, now, don't evade the question by "blinding" the facts...

[dieselbigot]

Oh sure...pick on me when I'm in BC all week and away from a computer with no way to retaliate!! For the record Wayner, it was 35 below on the Friday we left for RS...even when I lived there I thought that was cold