Great work so far, following!
Project Low Ryder (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Brandon Ryder
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
- Thread starter
- #42
finished the alignment. the last step is setting toe. unlike the previous video which only gives you overall toe, I'm using a different method to measure toe on each side. it's a little tedious but i managed to set toe to 0. i used jack stands and 30lb fishing line which is all i could find thanks to the virus.
it could be stretched and stay taunt while giving very precise measurement. basically you move the jackstands until the distance between the string and the rim of the wheel is the same in the rear. measure from the back and front of the wheel to the string.
once both measurements are the same move to the front and measure. mine was a little off. iirc it had too much toe in.
then i basically made an adjustment to the tire rod on that side to move it in and out accordingly.
after making an adjustment you have to move a jackstand and pull the vehicle forward or backwards a ways so the adjustment can be measured. if i had set the tires up to spin with the bag and oil method like the video, this wouldn't be necessary. i moved out of the garage a car length and pulled back in, then set up the jackstands and remeasured. i goofed a couple times and moved the TRE the wrong direction. this made it take 3 times longer than it should have because i didn't realize what i had done. took me about 2 hours. should only take 30 minutes. but i took it for a drive and it's tracking straight and my return to center is good as well. need to get it on the freeway to see if the caster is enough at 75mph but i think I'm good. shouldn't need aftermarket UCAs unless my tire choice doesn't clear the stock uca.
it could be stretched and stay taunt while giving very precise measurement. basically you move the jackstands until the distance between the string and the rim of the wheel is the same in the rear. measure from the back and front of the wheel to the string.
once both measurements are the same move to the front and measure. mine was a little off. iirc it had too much toe in.
then i basically made an adjustment to the tire rod on that side to move it in and out accordingly.
after making an adjustment you have to move a jackstand and pull the vehicle forward or backwards a ways so the adjustment can be measured. if i had set the tires up to spin with the bag and oil method like the video, this wouldn't be necessary. i moved out of the garage a car length and pulled back in, then set up the jackstands and remeasured. i goofed a couple times and moved the TRE the wrong direction. this made it take 3 times longer than it should have because i didn't realize what i had done. took me about 2 hours. should only take 30 minutes. but i took it for a drive and it's tracking straight and my return to center is good as well. need to get it on the freeway to see if the caster is enough at 75mph but i think I'm good. shouldn't need aftermarket UCAs unless my tire choice doesn't clear the stock uca.
- Thread starter
- #43
got around to drilling the the holes for the LCA support bracket that came with the ironman kit. i hear they're not result l really necessary on gas engine LCs but whatever. it was easy. had to put it up on jackstands to have enough clearance for the drill.
also i think I've narrowed my tire choice down to either the falken wildpeak at3w or the cooper discoverer at3 xlt.
these being some of the choices available in 295/70R18.
leaning towards the wildpeak just due to price and i think it may do a little better on rocks should i choose to do that.
the cooper is probably going to handle wet roads better and possibly be a better on road tire in regards to noise and ride comfort. but the wildpeak will probably be good enough on road. I'm probably going to have these tires for a few years as they both should do 50k miles or more, so i want to pick a tire i really like. if anyone has experience with these two let me know before i pull the trigger. ive read everything i can on these tires but haven't seen a direct comparison.
also i think I've narrowed my tire choice down to either the falken wildpeak at3w or the cooper discoverer at3 xlt.
these being some of the choices available in 295/70R18.
leaning towards the wildpeak just due to price and i think it may do a little better on rocks should i choose to do that.
the cooper is probably going to handle wet roads better and possibly be a better on road tire in regards to noise and ride comfort. but the wildpeak will probably be good enough on road. I'm probably going to have these tires for a few years as they both should do 50k miles or more, so i want to pick a tire i really like. if anyone has experience with these two let me know before i pull the trigger. ive read everything i can on these tires but haven't seen a direct comparison.
Great thread! Thank you! I don’t understand how you have the time to work so fast but I’m glad you do.
I've had both of these tires; good choices both of them. Had Cooper's on my tundra, wild peaks on the cruiser. Swapped back and forth a few times. If I was to do it again I'd probably stick with the Cooper's for the on road handling. Both pairs of Cooper's balanced better than the wildpeaks, and were better in the slushy snow and ice you will deal with on road. The Cooper's are quieter and track better even at more comfortable pressures.
I have been awful to both of these tires off-road, not one issue from either brand. The wild peaks look tougher but the Cooper's are tough as nails today. I have wild peaks on the LC now, would probably swap them for Cooper's if I did it again.
Just my $.02.
FYI, both sets of these tires were super reasonable from a pricing perspective. The Coopers wore more evenly, with the Falkens starting to make more noise around 20k than the Coopers. I've had KO2's that 'chunked' off road and just didn't wear that great, and I had sets that were amazing. From a consistency level though I have been impressed with both Cooper and Falken on these newer tire lines.
I think both sets I was able to get Discount Tire to price match, and Cooper almost always has a $70 rebate visa card running.
I think both sets I was able to get Discount Tire to price match, and Cooper almost always has a $70 rebate visa card running.
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #48
woah! great to know. glad i installed the bracket then! to be honest i didn't really know what part the bracket was supposed to be supporting. thanks!
- Thread starter
- #49
you definately got me leaning towards the coopers right now. thanks for your review!
- Thread starter
- #50
well flushed my power steering fluid. spent a good 1.5 hours cleaning the reservoir. its probably never been cleaned. look at that gunk on the screen! its maybe never been flushed. also made a goof and shot PS fluid all over the garage.i can laugh about it now.
- Thread starter
- #51
Installed the whiteline steering bushings today. Did the whole thing without jacking up the truck. I had to unbolt one steering arm from the knuckle to have enough room to slide the bushings in. Using the bolt and washers to pull the top bushing in was the necessary trick. Old bushings didn't look too terrible but they were definitely allowing movement. They are much softer.
steering is much more precise. i didn't really have a problem with the steering before but it's very responsive now. the power steering pump makes less noise as well. it didn't really quiet down after the flush but this made it quieter. it wasn't particularly noisy before but i was starting to notice the sound.
Worn bushings
Whiteline bushings
btw a 5.5 inch bolt would have been better. the 6" was too long and i had to use washers to space it down.
steering is much more precise. i didn't really have a problem with the steering before but it's very responsive now. the power steering pump makes less noise as well. it didn't really quiet down after the flush but this made it quieter. it wasn't particularly noisy before but i was starting to notice the sound.
Worn bushings
Whiteline bushings
btw a 5.5 inch bolt would have been better. the 6" was too long and i had to use washers to space it down.
- Thread starter
- #52
picked up my white knuckle sliders this weekend. today's project is painting them. its taking much more paint than i expected. i had to buy extra self etching primer. the rustoleum stuff goes on waaay better than the duplicolor. might have only needed 2 cans if it was all rustoleum. otoh the rustoleum gloss paint i also used for the underside is taking fooooooorever to dry. I recommend flat so it dries faster. this duplicolor textured metallic is interesting. not sure how it will look on the black Cruiser. i got it hoping to give the sliders some traction without being overly aggressive as to tear up clothes and skin when getting out. if it doesnt look right I'll just do one last coat of semi gloss black over top.
- Thread starter
- #53
Sliders! 
- Thread starter
- #54
teaser pic
- Thread starter
- #56
got most of my Dissent rear bumper mounted today. i really lucked out getting this bumper since Ben doesn't make them anymore. i really wanted the high clearance of his original design and didn't mind cutting out the rear cross member. i love the looks of this bumper and the functionality is unmatched. I'm still in the process of finishing the tire carrier and second swing out.
some install pics
some install pics
- Thread starter
- #57
i wanted to post some comparison shots of the ground clearance difference between the stock bumper and hitch and the new dissent bumper.
- Thread starter
- #58
and the most dramatic difference for me, the spare tire/ hitch area...
- Thread starter
- #59
picked up some well used slee skid plates from @hoser on Sunday. i got the belly plate and intermediate plate. Slee says you need both the belly pan and the front skid to mount the intermediate plate but i was able to mount it without the front skid by drilling some holes that lined up with holes in the stock diff cross member and through bolted it with some 3" long 7/16 grade 8 bolts. 3" long bolt is just barely long enough to get through with 2 washers and a nut and clear the oil pan. if you had a diff drop it wouldnt be a problem and you could use a longer bolt with a lock washer (which i did on one side).
those holes in the cross member already go all the way through. i just drilled the skid plate.
the bolt on the left in the picture is 3.5 inches and has a lock washer on top. a 3.5 wouldn't fit on the right due to the oil pan.
this last pic is the gap between the stock front skid and the intermediate skid. i handled it by bolting the splash shield back on over top the skid. i could have left it off entirely and been fine. i plan to order the front slee skid imminently so I'll deal with it then. you don't need the slee diff drop to do what i did but i think I'll need it when using the front skid depending on how it bends around the front cross member and diff. besides it will probably have the proper welded nut locations so i can just use bolts. and lowering the diff probably isn't a bad thing.
unintended consequence: engine noise seems much louder. it must be reflecting off the intermediate plate. not sure i like that aspect.
edit: now i think the exhaust is contacting the belly pan since its bowed a little, leading to vibration congruent with engine RPM.
those holes in the cross member already go all the way through. i just drilled the skid plate.
the bolt on the left in the picture is 3.5 inches and has a lock washer on top. a 3.5 wouldn't fit on the right due to the oil pan.
this last pic is the gap between the stock front skid and the intermediate skid. i handled it by bolting the splash shield back on over top the skid. i could have left it off entirely and been fine. i plan to order the front slee skid imminently so I'll deal with it then. you don't need the slee diff drop to do what i did but i think I'll need it when using the front skid depending on how it bends around the front cross member and diff. besides it will probably have the proper welded nut locations so i can just use bolts. and lowering the diff probably isn't a bad thing.
unintended consequence: engine noise seems much louder. it must be reflecting off the intermediate plate. not sure i like that aspect.
edit: now i think the exhaust is contacting the belly pan since its bowed a little, leading to vibration congruent with engine RPM.
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #60
fixed the vibration! had to straighten out the skids
the exhaust was contacting the skid previously.
after straightening i still had to relieve the area where is was contacting by using a sledge hammer to dent it downward. it worked and now i got a fingers width of clearance and NO VIBRATION
the exhaust was contacting the skid previously.
after straightening i still had to relieve the area where is was contacting by using a sledge hammer to dent it downward. it worked and now i got a fingers width of clearance and NO VIBRATION
