So, as I mentioned above...took the truck to Hard Rock in Ocala (missed the meet up / Turkey Trot by a couple days, such is life!).
Wanted to do another shakedown, climb some steep hills...make sure everything was working as it should.
Here's a poser pic - I had to add a Vortec badge:
Since the last time I was there: Swapped the motor, fixed my t-case shifter (it was being knocked / pulled out of 4 by the boot), put the lower leaf spring back in my front springs (+1"), added a front driveshaft spacer (plus bump stop extensions to keep it from bottoming out in the t-case), extended rear shackles (to match the front lift)...and a bunch of other little odds and ends.
And with the new motor, sorted suspension, and rear locker...this truck feels unstoppable! I climbed hills in 2-low that should have required 4WD, and romped over some rocks that should have been avoided until I have sliders...and it all seemed "too easy".
Here's a few pics:
(headed down into one of the quarries)
(climbing back up and out)
It was a good way to spend a day off work.
But, it's not all rainbows and unicorns...I found out that I had a couple (small) issues to address.
The main one - Crawl speed "bucking". It's 100% NOT related to the power delivery or motor...it's got to do with the driveline. Slack, play, something loose, maybe a crappy trans mount coupled with the near-solid motor mounts...maybe U-joints...not sure. Gonna start investigating this evening, see what I can come up with. Basically, if I try to crawl along at 1000rpm, and have to hit the gas (or let off)...it start in a cycle of "bucking" or "jerking" until I push in the clutch. It's done it a few times in parking lot situations in the last couple weeks, but it's magnified 10x off road.
The other issue is less of an issue, more of an "oops" on my part. I mentioned before that I cobbled together an upper radiator hose to get it on the road. Well, it bit me in the ass (do it right, or do it twice!) as it rubbed the alternator pulley and sprayed a gallon of coolant (well, 95% water mix) all over the engine bay:
I should have seen it coming, but it was working so well on the road...I thought I'd make it through one day off road without trouble.
It was a simple fix to get back out of the woods - Duct tape + a plastic bottle one of my daughters found on the side of the trail. I always carry an extra gallon of water, and I needed nearly all of it to top off the radiator...but it's why I trailered the FJ60 (even though we were only 1.5hrs from home).
Anyway, thanks for reading.
I'd appreciate any input on the bucking issue, as I think there's a bunch of reasons it might do that...could use to narrow it down a little.
- Brian