Like the ring gear? Oh yeah, that goes first 
Builds "THe GeNTLeMaN" BuiLD THReaD (2 Viewers)
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THeGeNTLeMaN
WooD GRaiN WaRRioR
- Thread starter
- #242
honestly i thought the axle would go before ring gearLike the ring gear? Oh yeah, that goes first
Not when you have the same batch of ring gears in the 07-?? as the FJ Cruiser.
THeGeNTLeMaN
WooD GRaiN WaRRioR
- Thread starter
- #244
so did the ring gear ever change in the gx?
SouthernSS
Owner of Southern Style Speed
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just do a ford 9 inch and be done with it.... Im seriously considering it on mine.
THeGeNTLeMaN
WooD GRaiN WaRRioR
- Thread starter
- #246
these thoughts have been considered ...
the gx just has so much attached to the rear axle how hard would it be to convert?
youd be better off going to a LC 100 rear end or a sequoia rear end... you retain the toyota build quality and parts, but get the bigger diff. just my thoughs, i mean if you are gonna have to do some custom fabbing why not stay toyota? i know for me there is no way in hell youd catch me putting in a ford or chevy part... have you seen the axle shaft size of a toyota axle compared to a dana 60...? yeah basically the same size. only with a mic can you really tell the difference, the 60 is slightly larger. a 9" will have a stronger carrier, but it will lose strength in the shaft, so its a trade off. to me id rather keep the 3rd member the weak spot as they are so plentiful and cheap, not to mention fairly easy to change, ie no pressing or special tools needed to swap a diff. -i have wheeled hard on the 8" and only broke one ring gear... -and that was after i broke my ARB...
I agree. Thirds arent hard to R&R. Maybe I need a spare third bucket like I used to carry around in my 80
THeGeNTLeMaN
WooD GRaiN WaRRioR
- Thread starter
- #249
I agree. Thirds arent hard to R&R. Maybe I need a spare third bucket like I used to carry around in my 80
yeah im not going nuts just gonna upgrade gears and at most add arb lockers if i feel its necessary down the road
ill suggest Nitro Gear. i used them in my 4runner, and the install was super easy, and the customer service was great. Carl the owner was a pleasure to work with and talk to, he was very helpful in making sure i got what i wanted and got the right gear set. the install and set up was much easier than i expected -i got the full install kit with my gears. i simply reused the shims that came out with my old gears, and i got near perfect patterns, no need to change, but it was nice knowing that i had a whole assortment of shims had i needed them. they are quiet and very good quality. i would not buy another brand of gear, heck i probably wouldnt ever use another brand of gear even if someone gave me the gears. Nitro is a Toyota specialist. id probably go to a 4.30 gear if your gonna be redoing the gears -oh and i forgot there is the TJM air locker as well -Nitro sells those, and Carl speaks highly of them. says they have a beater seal-housing design than ARB, and thats very well possible as ARBs is nothing special. if i was only doing one locker i probably would have gone that route as it was about $100 cheaper. but sense i have a friend who works for ARB and i had to get a ARB for the front anyways, i opted to just stay the course and stick with on brand. the TJM works very similarly to the ARB and both a high quality units. id have no hesitations running one. -just looked at the price and it appears they are now about the same as eachother. but who knows Carl may be able to get you a deal idk.
THeGeNTLeMaN
WooD GRaiN WaRRioR
- Thread starter
- #251
Well i called Marlin Crawler yesterday to get a quote ... like Nittro of course Marlin Crawler is a Toyota specialist and Marlin is legend ... I chose them first bc Mr Marlin was at SCC this weekend and was cool enough to give me a few mins of his time to ask around if anyone could get me a replacement chunk overnighted .... and i also accquired a few 10% off my entire purchase from Marlin Crawler on my next purchase from the raffle .... Nittro is my next choice but im gonna support MC first.... dont think you could go wrong with either one
^^ cant go wrong with MC i have never had a bad experience with them, and like you have found Marlin and Mike to always be very helpful to others while out on the trail. cant go wrong with great customer service!
Since we are on the topic of gears and break/fix, should I bring up my theory that GXs do better offroad with AT tread and less traction to prevent binding while ATRAC is firing? I have seen MT tire trucks break and an AT tire truck go over the same thing with no breaks. This theory is not proven in a scientific manner, but is my impression from wheeling with FJs, 4R, and wheeling my own GX for a few years now (15 years on the trail, FJs since they were new, 4R since ATRAC was introduced).
No idea how to prove it unless someone has a very big budget and some fancy sensors, etc.
No idea how to prove it unless someone has a very big budget and some fancy sensors, etc.
i think driving style and manors have just as much to do with this as well. but im new to the ATRACs and the 120 chassis, im coming from old school T-cases -85 pickups and a 97 4runner. but i understand your theory and it makes sense. this is the first "awd" vehicle i have had and first with TC, so im still new here, but i have seen the same things you are referring to( i think) in the older rigs.
ATRAC is an art. It really is. You have to get a feel for it, get used to two footed driving to feather the brakes into firing ATRAC a bit better, and making sure the power band and rpm threshold for ATRAC isnt exceeded. I have grown to love it.
I found that I could get through pretty much anything in my FJ with one foot on the brake and one on the gas to manage power to the wheels. I followed many guys with 35"s and lockers with no problem while other people with similar setups winched the whole way up. Not just trying to toot my own horn but one you learn your power band and traction preference you can do amazing things with a simple setup. That being said I never ran an AT tire and had BFG KM2s then Nitto Trail Grapplers and never broke anything. (Well not drivetrain related, busted shocks and steering components) I think managing the skinny pedal is key but eventually you will break something.
THeGeNTLeMaN
WooD GRaiN WaRRioR
- Thread starter
- #257
Well I'll say this ... I am new to this ... and I am in no way above the thinking that the breakage I had in the rear isnt a result of inexperience ... my day had gone so well that I guess I had a Lil too much confidence and I tried something I shouldn't have ... I still have some learning to do ...
but hey I'm a firm believer that God allows these things to happen to me early on to humble me and teach me some patients. .. same thing always happen to me early on in any new motor sport I picked up ... driving over my head then catistrofic failure or an injury ... and after I got back in the saddle I was now more aware bc I had gained some knowledge the hard way ... and usually never had anymore major problems from then on
Guess I'm gonna have to learn the atrack shuffle. .
but hey I'm a firm believer that God allows these things to happen to me early on to humble me and teach me some patients. .. same thing always happen to me early on in any new motor sport I picked up ... driving over my head then catistrofic failure or an injury ... and after I got back in the saddle I was now more aware bc I had gained some knowledge the hard way ... and usually never had anymore major problems from then on
Guess I'm gonna have to learn the atrack shuffle. .
atta boy!
Nothing is better than learning the hard way!! I can't wait to wheel with you, I'm a little rusty since I haven't done it on a couple of years so I'm sure we will give each other a hard time 
but seeing how we work together well in tough situation (like working on your suspension lol) wheeling should be a blast
but seeing how we work together well in tough situation (like working on your suspension lol) wheeling should be a blast
THeGeNTLeMaN
WooD GRaiN WaRRioR
- Thread starter
- #260
Nothing is better than learning the hard way!! I can't wait to wheel with you, I'm a little rusty since I haven't done it on a couple of years so I'm sure we will give each other a hard time
Yeah for sure man ... I dont let things like this discourage me much ... they're just parts that can be fixed... at the time of breaking down I was only bummed out that i couldnt wheel any more and i was holding everyone else up from wheeling too ... but of course everyone was super cool about it and did everything they could to help me out ... I actually think some where just excite to use their recovery gear