Maiden voyage!

[chicago]

Hey all,
Last weekend, I took my 88 FJ 62 out for its first FULL day trip out in the boonies with me at the helm. I wasnt sure what to expect from it. I went with a group of friends 3 were on 4x4 quads and one was in a wrangler.
To keep it short, I (and everyone else I was with) was EXTREMELY impressed with the capeabilities my cruiser had.
Mind you, we werent doing and serious rock crawling or anything, but we got into some pretty steep, rocky terrain and some tight techincal wooded areas that were rutted. Some of the steeper climbs and descent, my friends on their quads stopped to make sure I was OK and were actually surprised I made it with NO PROBLEMS.
I did have ONE bobble where I had to back down and give it a little more juice, but other than that she did AWSOME!
The only functional problem I had, was when coming back down the mountain...The breaks smelled like they were BURNING, and the breaking ablility diminished. Has anyone else had this happen, or is it operator error? Anything I can do to beef up the breaks, technique or otherwise?
I just thought Id share this with you all here cuz Im sure you all have had similar experiences. Hope you dont mind.

Thanks,

Chicago

 

[89s rule]

Gkad it did well!! Post some pics!

You can do a rear disc swap if you want as well as a 4runner caliper upgrade up front. Biggest thing is to check your stock components. If they are in bad shape, then upgrade or just re4place pads, etc. If they are in good shape and you are not satisfied then sounds liek you need an upgrade.

Fromt he brake smell sound slike they may have just gotten overheated/worked hard. May need new pads and be sure to bleed them well.

 

[lovetoski]

The only functional problem I had, was when coming back down the mountain...The breaks smelled like they were BURNING, and the breaking ablility diminished. Has anyone else had this happen, or is it operator error? Anything I can do to beef up the breaks, technique or otherwise?
Thanks,

Chicago

Sounds like you overheated your brakes. Stock brakes in top condition are pretty good - especially if you are using stock tires/etc. Did you downshift the tranny so that the engine did most of the braking? This can make a huge difference.

 

[chicago]

Thanks for the imput fellas...
Im embarassed to say, that I really didnt do much down shifting UNLESS it was a pretty hairy descent. So, Im thinking that I was pretty hard on the brakes after reading the replies you submitted. Im pretty new to DRIVING off road, so when going down a steep grade, you should down shift to...LOW gear and tap the brakes as necessary? Is this correct?
Unfortunately, I didnt bring my digi cam with me, but I will be doing a trip to death valley in the end of April, and I WILL be getting photos then that Ill post. I have quite a bit of "odds and ends" work to do on the rig for that trip.
I have the stock springs on it, and I thought they would be WAY TOO STIFF, but ya know...they articulated pretty well when they needed to on the bigger hits.
One modification I can see, is a locker at least in the rear. What do you guyz run in your rear axels? I was looking at the aussies, lock right and detroit for the rear. What are your opinions?

Chicago

 

[sandcruiser]

definately use the tranny more--- the auto won't slow you as well as a manual would, but it'll slow you down enough to help you keep control and keep the brakes cooler.

The key is experimenting-- try low, try 2nd, see what they do. Keep an eye on your rpms... but again, with the auto tranny you should be ok.

Also, when braking, try not to drag them unnecessarily, anticipate when you need to slow and let off the gas well in advance.

Keep having fun!

One last thought: you might consider checking the wheel bearings-- if they are low on grease they can get pretty darn hot and that doesn't let the discs up front cool off... making for a hotter system.

 

[chicago]

Thanks for the imput sandcruiser,
I used low when I dropped to 4 low (obviously) on the steep terrain. I let her crawl some on her own and in spots the RPM rapped up higher than Id like them to be, and I pedaled the breaks. Ill have to do that when descending from now on.
I was going to check the hubs and do a break job before the BLOTCH trip in April along with a list of other things.
Does anyone run vented rotors?

Chicago