Marlin Crawler Land Cruiser Products (1 Viewer)

[Marlin Crawler]

Hey 'Mudders!

2018 is going to be a big year for us, and one of the things we are most excited about is expanding our product lines. We are posting this poll to see how you guys feel about some of the ideas we've been kicking around.

We are not PROMISING to make any of these products and have no specific timetable, but we are getting a feel for what we can expect from the market. Please only respond to this poll if you REALLY WOULD BUY IT NOW IF IT WAS AVAILABLE. Use pricing equivalent products that are out there for other models of 4x4s to get a sense of what you would be signing up for. Please participate! This info could really translate into real products if you guys want it!

Marlin Crawler

 

[nukegoat]

How much lower is this gear set you're talking about? I'm sure that would be top for most people.

Also I can pretty confidently say that chromoly semi-float shafts or bothering with any of that stuff is a waste of time

 

[duggy]

Substantially lower gear reduction in low? You've got my interest. I have a transfer case on my bench begging to have low range gears and a spool installed.

 

[NateMob]

A 4:1 low range would be awesome, hopefully you could release it for a similar price to your current TC gearset.

 

[Marlin Crawler]

How much lower is this gear set you're talking about? I'm sure that would be top for most people.

Also I can pretty confidently say that chromoly semi-float shafts or bothering with any of that stuff is a waste of time

We know that going lower is possible, how much lower we end up going would be after we do some R&D. There is a reason why all of the gear sets stop at 3.112:1, to get it lower, a lot more modifications will likely be necessary. We wouldn't take on a project like this unless a. there is a lot of interest and b. we can get substantially lower than what is currently available. One thing that would help in an 80 series is allowing a better gear ratio in low without having to run such a low gear ratio in the 8" front, eliminating a major weak link in an otherwise bulletproof truck.

Semi Float shafts are not necessarily a waste of time, they just haven't been done correctly yet. There was another set of shafts on the market for 40 and 60 series axles, but while they were strong, they had issues with the metallurgy which caused premature bearing surface failure. Land Cruiser Semi Float axles are very strong for what they are, and there is potential for some major improvements in strength if these problems are addressed. One of the reason no one has done them for 80 series shafts is that you guys always have the option of swapping in a FF unit from an FZJ80 in the US, which is a superior choice, with disk brakes and a 4 pinion carrier. But, with availability limited and a premium on parts, we think that exploring the idea of drop in axle shafts isn't a total waste of time.

 

[jcardona1]

LOWER GEARING


/ thread.

 

[NateMob]

We know that going lower is possible, how much lower we end up going would be after we do some R&D. There is a reason why all of the gear sets stop at 3.112:1, to get it lower, a lot more modifications will likely be necessary. We wouldn't take on a project like this unless a. there is a lot of interest and b. we can get substantially lower than what is currently available. One thing that would help in an 80 series is allowing a better gear ratio in low without having to run such a low gear ratio in the 8" front, eliminating a major weak link in an otherwise bulletproof truck.

Your consumer commitment hinges massively on how extensive the modifications will be, if you can expound on what those might be you're bound to get a more concrete response and feedback.

 

[joez]

Give me more gearing!

 

[jcardona1]

Your consumer commitment hinges massively on how extensive the modifications will be, if you can expound on what those might be your bound to get a more concrete response and feedback.

Agreed. I don't mind cutting factory stuff out of the way, but lots of guys in the 80 market take issue with that.

 

[mudgudgeon]

R151 gearbox was used in 105 series landcruiser.
It does not have a good reputation for reliability in Australia where it is a common gearbox in HZJ105, also a common vehicle.
They have numerous failures and are commonly swapped out in favor of H151/H150.
In mini truck they seem to be fine, but don't cope with the extra weight and torque of the landcruisers.
I think developing anything to run a R151 in a landcruiser is flawed logic from the get go.

 

[Marlin Crawler]

R151 gearbox was used in 105 series landcruiser.
It does not have a good reputation for reliability in Australia where it is a common gearbox in HZJ105, also a common vehicle.
They have numerous failures and are commonly swapped out in favor of H151/H150.
In mini truck they seem to be fine, but don't cope with the extra weight and torque of the landcruisers.
I think developing anything to run a R151 in a landcruiser is flawed logic from the get go.

This is certainly an aspect we are considering. You guys in the land down under are blessed with a lot of accessibility to parts that we have a harder time with.

One thing to consider is an 80/100 series cruiser gets very heavy. A US spec factory FZJ80 weighs a full 500 lbs more than an FJ60 out of the gate, and a 100 series another 500 lbs from there, at around a staggering 5400lbs, which I'm sure plays into some of what you're seeing there.

One thing that we think a customer might find appealing is the ability for the customer to purchase a package using one of our Marlin Crawler R151 5 speeds which will withstand shocking punishment and opens up a ton of gearing options and easy parts accessibility to our US customers.

 

[LandCruiserPhil]

Lower than whats available in 80 gears Im in!!

 

[tacosupreme]

I'm in for a full float conversion. Getting rid of the drum brakes would also be awesome as well!

2nd would be a Marlin built R151 5 speed swap. Most of us use cruisers for cruising... with some mild wheeling on occasion, but most of us have wheelers for wheelin'! I think it would be plenty strong for 99% of us. Just sayin'.

 

[mudgudgeon]

I'm in for a full float conversion. Getting rid of the drum brakes would also be awesome as well!

2nd would be a Marlin built R151 5 speed swap. Most of us use cruisers for cruising... with some mild wheeling on occasion, but most of us have wheelers for wheelin'! I think it would be plenty strong for 99% of us. Just sayin'.

Yup, but 99% of r151 failures are in rigs with the same use you describe.
Increase power output, or torque loading and they don't like it.

H151 gearboxes are in high demand in Aus as a replacement for r151in HZJ105 s.
I have an r151 behind a 1HZ that I have turbocharged, it's something that is high on the upgrade list, and probably the major Achilles heel in my rig.

An 80 with front and rear bumper, sliders, winch and trail gear in the back is going to be pushing similar weight to a 105

 

[baldilocks]

I still think adapting a transmission with a compound low first gear like an NV4500 between the 1fz-fe and the hf2a(v) that has 3:1 gears would be something many of us could appreciate.

Once the NV4500 is installed someone who wanted to step up to one tons would have the option of running an Atlas or such.

 

[bulhas]

PLEASE lower than low tcase gears!

 

[Noahrob]

Lower gears, lower gears....

 

[Marlin Crawler]

Yup, but 99% of r151 failures are in rigs with the same use you describe.
Increase power output, or torque loading and they don't like it.

H151 gearboxes are in high demand in Aus as a replacement for r151in HZJ105 s.
I have an r151 behind a 1HZ that I have turbocharged, it's something that is high on the upgrade list, and probably the major Achilles heel in my rig.

An 80 with front and rear bumper, sliders, winch and trail gear in the back is going to be pushing similar weight to a 105

I would venture a guess that most of these failures are weight+power. I have seen (and owned) absolutely ridiculously overpowered pickups with Chevy V8s and R15X transmissions withstand remarkable punishment. I do think that a 3FE powered 80 would fine with a 35" tire.

 

[mudgudgeon]

I would venture a guess that most of these failures are weight+power. I have seen (and owned) absolutely ridiculously overpowered pickups with Chevy V8s and R15X transmissions withstand remarkable punishment. I do think that a 3FE powered 80 would fine with a 35" tire.

That's the thing, it's regular run of the mill trucks on 31, or 33" tyres with failures through normal use, touring, etc. (tyres over 33" aren't legal onroad in most of Australia)
I think r154 where used in Toyota dyna 3 tonne dump trucks for a long time, so maybe it comes down to final drive ratio and torque load.
There's vendors offering "strengthened" versions of r151, but precious little info on what strengthened actually means.

I'll happily point you to some Aussie based landcruiser forum threads about this if it helps.

 

[NateMob]

Judging by the results above, I'm not sure why there's much discussion on anything but T-Case gears.