Build Gerry's Build thread: "If it happens again I'm buying an Abrams"

[YezusLX]

Pretty sure that is the moment (separate wheels/tires per application) you know officially that you are getting to be an angry old man. That, and you perfect the "get off my lawn" bark. What a time to be alive!

 

[MongooseGA]

Pretty sure that is the moment (separate wheels/tires per application) you know officially that you are getting to be an angry old man. That, and you perfect the "get off my lawn" bark. What a time to be alive!

With age comes wisdom.


And I hate the idea of kids on my lawn.

 

[YezusLX]

With age comes wisdom.


And I hate the idea of kids on my lawn.

Touche sir.

 

[sammybones]

Michelin street tires? I see viagra, white new balance and ensure protein shakes in your future.

 

[YezusLX]

White New Balances from Costco is the jammy jam. My back has never felt so good! Like Michelin street tires for your feets.

 

[MongooseGA]

Michelin street tires? I see viagra, white new balance and ensure protein shakes in your future.

We'll be twins!

 

[Covered in Dust]

The Jeep I sold last month came with 33” D rated KO2’s when I put on 35” KO2’s I went with C rated. They felt so much smother on the road. I might look for some new rims so I can change the D rated KO’s on my LX to C rated.

 

[ClassyJalopy]

I had all 5 of those 16" wheels blasted and coated this week, I think they look pretty slick. Nice to have wheels worth giving a crap about on the truck.

Today was tire shuffle day. Took the trailer to Discount and let them mount the Michelins, swap those on to the truck, dismount the Toyos, install Dynabeads and remount the tires. They'll hang out for a few weeks until it's time to throw them back on for COTR.

IDK why I didn't think of this sooner. To hell with running MTs on the road. It feels like my truck has pillows for feet now and I love it. Call me a mall crawler, I don't care.

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Need to pick up a few extra lug nuts and mount the spare on the back still. Mileage today is 311,500.

Been meaning to ask: did you choose to go with E load rating for longevity or were the Defenders only available as E rated in 33"?

 

[YezusLX]

Been meaning to ask: did you choose to go with E load rating for longevity or were the Defenders only available as E rated in 33"?

Don't you mean Michelin's "white new balance" Defender in old man load (E)?

 

[YezusLX]

Introducing Michelin's newest defender lineup for you Mall crawler. When you're cruising the parking lots looking for hot single MILFs this tire will help you get the job done in any weather. Rain or shine Michelin's newest tire will keep you and your sweet grocery getter safe from anything mother nature throws at you. See your local tire retailer for more information and Labor day savings. Also available in old man load (E).

 

[MongooseGA]

Been meaning to ask: did you choose to go with E load rating for longevity or were the Defenders only available as E rated in 33"?

E was all that was available. I definitely would have taken a D rating, not sure about a C given normal running weight plus occasional towing.

 

[YezusLX]

E was all that was available. I definitely would have taken a D rating, not sure about a C given normal running weight plus occasional towing.

How much does your girl weigh these days? I know it's impolite to axe. But I am curious.

 

[tincan45]

Don't knock the LTX. They will run circles around the AT's in the winter months.

 

[ClassyJalopy]

Don't knock the LTX. They will run circles around the AT's in the winter months.

On the contrary! I am seriously considering these as my all round tires. I just need to decide whether I get these vs. winter dedicated tires

 

[MongooseGA]

On the contrary! I am seriously considering these as my all round tires. I just need to decide whether I get these vs. winter dedicated tires

Fwiw, the ones I bought are the "M+S" which designates mud and snow capabilities. I have no clue how they'll compare to a dedicated snow tire but I imagine they're probably not 100% as good. But, they're probably way better than about all mud tires that aren't even rated in snowy conditions.

Then again, I don't live in a snowy hell hole so I've never even owned a set of snowies before.

 

[MongooseGA]

Did some arts and crafts today. I'd ordered a new set of lug nuts for these 16s as the ones I had were gross and rusty.

I also repainted the center caps to match the new powder. I used a chisel to break the plastic welds from the back side that hold on the Sombrero logos, scuffed em and shot em with gunmetal wheel paint and clear. Feels good, looks more finished and complete.

Mileage is like 312k or something.

 

[MongooseGA]

How much does your girl weigh these days? I know it's impolite to axe. But I am curious.

I haven't weighed it but I'll guess somewhere right around 7k. I had done some simple math with the bolt ons but that's been a while.

 

[YezusLX]

I haven't weighed it but I'll guess somewhere right around 7k. I had done some simple math with the bolt ons but that's been a while.

Maths are hard.
Nice arts and crafts time. I like that you kept the Yoda logo original.

 

[MongooseGA]

Maths are hard.
Nice arts and crafts time. I like that you kept the Yoda logo original.

Well you know, I'm big on keeping my cars very original.


Going bobsledding wheeling tomorrow so I threw the Toyos back on. Big improvement on the highway with the balancing beads in there. Shoulda done it sooner.

 

[MongooseGA]

We had a little adventure over the weekend. @Wermz and I went out with 2 other trucks (not on mud) to slip and slide around Beasley Knob. I learned that 50k miles is too many miles on MTs to have any kind of decent bite. I think I winched like 4-6 times through the day, just getting my butt kicked. Also found out that my rear locker has decided to take the Summer off. Was a blast. I can say that now, from the comfort of my couch.


Today I put the Michelins back on for 'road-mode' and ordered a set of 35x12.5x17 Yokohama XMTs to replace my Toyos. I'm not going to show up to COTR looking like an idiot on bald tires. Should be sweet. GEOLANDAR X-MT® - https://www.yokohamatire.com/tires/geolandar-x-mt?gclid=Cj0KCQjw39uYBhCLARIsAD_SzMSdjAmpRAvKbVGbymCxvmlYuTGsnOyy1JhSQ5tK12nKFB3hVqK3leMaAom7EALw_wcB

On the lockers: what I was noticing was ATRAC kicking in off and on during the day when I'd have had both lockers engaged. This is not good, it means the truck is sensing one wheel slipping. While I had the truck on stands for the tire swap, I tested out the lockers' functions with the trans in neutral. Tested with various combinations of front/center/rear diffs. Front locker, check; center locker, check; rear locker: Fail. Turns out I have inconsistent to no power at the electrical plug on the rear diff. The connections behind the switch in the dash seem to be good, and I'm able to hear the relays clicking under the hood when I power both diffs. To me that says there's an issue somewhere between the relays and the diff itself. I'll work on getting this fixed before COTR. Thanks to Lee @ga12r1 for the help in troubleshooting.

The new shocks and front bump-stops, they're effing awesome. I didn't feel the suspension crash one time and the back end, currently with NO bump stops, was very much controlled when coming off of ledges and big bumps. I can still mess with the settings some more but for now they're in great spec.