DieselLover- just curious as to how you got stuck. I have a toyota pto winch going on in the near-ish future and I'm now thinking about the 8mm bolt instead of the pin.
Hey Pete! It was a very nasty "swamp mud" hole. I hit it with a little speed so I'd have the momentum to carry myself through it, but the hole was pretty deep in the middle. So as I tried to stay to the right and keep my right side on dry ground, the left dropped in, where there was no firm bottom, and all my weight shifted to the left side anyway. The stuff was pretty nasty. Out in this particular area, swamp buggies rule the roost. We're talking tractor tire-equipped monster truck-sized vehicles that can deal with the deep water and mud that you find out there. The BFG A/T's are absolute crap in the mud, so they were only a hindrance. The mud here just serves to fill in the tread and give you "slicks". The guy who finally came upon us said he has one of the "biggest buggies out there" and still makes sure he doesn't go near that hole - it's deep, slippery, and he's seen way too many buggies that couldn't get through it, let alone little stuff like my troopy. I was kind of happy to hear that and know that I had little chance of making it, regardless of driving ability, lol....
I suppose this thread is not "useless without pics", but I figured they might be appreciated, so see below....
The overwhelming majority of what I have read so far supports the modification and replacement of the factory shear pin. I will say that I have yet to read anyone complaining of major breakage occurring because of it. I think good common sense applies - I mean, if you're in serious crap and know you are testing the limits, use a snatch block. I mean, truthfully, I've got something like 150' or 160' of cable....there's pretty much no reason why I couldn't have used a snatch block in the same circumstance and reduced the load and risk of damage or breakage. I just didn't have one with me....

The more I read and think about it, the more I lean towards going with something homebrew - although I have no clue which way I would go. All I know is I would be extra cognizant about the loading I place on the winch and components involved and try to use a snatch block (or 2!) each time in order to ensure a less risky recovery....
Seems that according to toyodiy there are 2 numbers for the late model U-joints (or "spiders" as it says on the factory lit): 08/80-05/81 and post 06/81. The EPC shows the difference as having an o-ring or not. I guess someone with real experience should chime in here to clarify. The numbers listed are 04371-10011 and 04371-60020 respectively.
pete
So they refer to them as "spiders" eh? I'll double check again and see what it recommends for me, as I have NO idea if I need the o-ring version or not. And my troopy is an '82, which makes determining what I need that much harder!

Definitely need someone with some first-hand experience in this to chime in....