Sarge Green Cali in Bakersfield CA

[bakobobby]

Some thoughts on new anti-rock setup. When I was running no rear sway bar on the above pyramid flex was 100% rear passenger and maybe 15% front driver. Now with the ARs the front driver was probably 90/95% flexed while the rear passenger was <80% flexed. The cab staid much more level, before it was like I was going to fall out the driver seat out the passenger door. If nothing else the AR deliver on the promise of keeping the cab more level.

There was no uneasy feeling climbing up the steps, like rocking back and forth or being out of control. It was very smooth. Actually I noticed when going over whoops and other rough terrain it feels now like it just slithers over Its far less shifty side to side than w/o sway bars. Not rough and unyielding as it was with sway bars. Its the goldilocks in between... just right. At moderate off road speeds I find they help give the rig a planted feel. For the purpose of crawling rocks and such I still would need to do some of that to make a better read.

Note the rear driver tire was around 1/2" off the ground. When I got in it was on the ground. The front tire was quite a bit over the rear and the ground where the rear was is lower than the bottom of the pyramid though it is hard to tell from a photo. Because sport fenders I have a lot more spacer keeping me from flexing. I know I can remove at least 1 1/2" front and back if I change up fenders and that'd surely give me a ton more flex. Do I really need it is the question.

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[bakobobby]

Just a pic of my spare 37” next to the stockers

 

[bakobobby]

I installed some new speakers in the dash. IMO the premium audio is really disappointing even for OEM. Installed driver side first and faded left to right on some tracks. A lot of detail is left out by not having a fuller range solution. For under a $100 it made a big improvement.

 

[bakobobby]

I am planning on heading to Moab in just a couple days. Trucks in the shop at the 11th hour. Been having some odd vibration issues since I had the initial wheels/tires/suspension setup done in February. It wasn't really bothering me at first but I started commuting more and the vibration would really get pronounced driving at a constant 25 mph. Was getting anxious about driving the distance, wheeling and driving back. I was having visions of breaking down and having to get back, being out a ton of money and/or being stranded.

Turns out the wheels and tires are literally unbalanceable. My dealer spent a lot of time on trying to balance them and I even went and road force balanced them. We aren't sure if its the Toyo Open Country RT being out of round or the wheels maybe having some issue. Because of the way the vibration is it may be the wheels. Weird harmonic type vibes at specific speeds especially lower tend to indicate this I'm told. The vibration was there when we put it on a lift and disconnected one driveline at a time, which made the techs doubt it was the wheels and tires originally. They ended up spending a good deal of time opening the diffs to make sure the new gear sets and such were not the culprit. They checked bolts and other things to ensure it wasn't loose this or that. Then techs threw on the OEM wheels and another rigs new wheels and 37" tires and zero vibration totally smooth.

I'll likely fix the issue when I get back from EJS. Now that we at least know it isn't going to be something like a diff exploding or my transmission going out. The main tech would like to swap out these wheels and tires completely. I'm fine with that. While the ICON Rebounds look good I'm not married to them. Right now we are talking about the Method 704s in matte black and for tires going with Maxxis RAZR ATs. The RTs did fine off road. I didn't get to test them in muddier conditions which is where they should have differentiated from an aggressive AT. They were not quiet as advertised, always a pretty good whine even just around town at 45ish mph. They also are not good when it comes to mpg, might as well been a mud tire. In a time when I'm paying upwards of $120 at the pump to fill up that actually counts for something. Honestly I think having had some of these new fangled "hybrid" tires I don't get it. Either go AT or go MT, or have a set of both. I think the RT really ends up being a poor compromise. It's a marketing ploy more than a sensible solution. Sadly the Toyo definitely have a bit more visual flair. The RAZR are not bad but that cool mountains sidewall design of the RTs really adds some pop to my rigs looks.

 

[bakobobby]

Went to pick up and they already had all 5 wheels and tires mounted balanced and ready to go! Super stoked! Zero vibration driving home, gonna go hit the highway in a bit make sure that is good too. These tires size up very close to my Toyo OC RTs but are not nearly as flat across the tire with a pronounced hump in the middle. I am guessing that is part of getting better mpg and less noise which yes these are not loud like the RTs were. Noticed they aired these up to 40ish so they run higher pressure than the RT. With the new wheels its a less flashy look but still one I like. 4wp was very gracious and ate the $400 difference Been awesome working with them its one hell of a project thus far.

 

[PJZ]

Went to pick up and they already had all 5 wheels and tires mounted balanced and ready to go! Super stoked! Zero vibration driving home, gonna go hit the highway in a bit make sure that is good too. These tires size up very close to my Toyo OC RTs but are not nearly as flat across the tire with a pronounced hump in the middle. I am guessing that is part of getting better mpg and less noise which yes these are not loud like the RTs were. Noticed they aired these up to 40ish so they run higher pressure than the RT. With the new wheels its a less flashy look but still one I like. 4wp was very gracious and ate the $400 difference Been awesome working with them its one hell of a project thus far.

Good outcome! Have a great time in Moab!!

 

[bakobobby]

Good outcome! Have a great time in Moab!!

Thank you! A whole week of wheeling can’t wait

 

[bakobobby]

Spent the night not far out of Moab in Green River. On my way to Moab now and found this on my truck!

 

[bakobobby]

Got into town around noon thirty. Went to the Spanish Trails Arena and figured out I was too late for the registration. Gonna have to swoop in 7 am tomorrow before I head over for Wipe Out Hill.

Ran a shake down run. Went with Shafer trail. Pretty simple and went quick too, just under two hours with air down/up. The climb up the switch backs on the cliff face was a fun experience. Some spots are narrow and the drop off is guaranteed to be your last if careless.

Lotta driving yesterday looking to take it easy tonight. Here is my home for the next week. It is tiny but is right in downtown which makes most stuff walkable.

 

[bakobobby]

Went to checkout the kickoff party was way too loud and asses to elbows. Swooped in for a slice and made a loop got to see a good mix of youtube celebs. Walked around main street got some shots of rigs.

 

[SSinGA]

Lets see that rear bumper mounted up! I'm thinking Motobilt is the one I want to go with for my build as well.

 

[bakobobby]

Lets see that rear bumper mounted up! I'm thinking Motobilt is the one I want to go with for my build as well.

Haha It is sitting in the garage looking ready to install. Black powder coat turned out well. Gonna go on when I get home from EJS pretty quick I hope. I got the crusher is that what you are thinking too?

 

[SSinGA]

Haha It is sitting in the garage looking ready to install. Black powder coat turned out well. Gonna go on when I get home from EJS pretty quick I hope. I got the crusher is that what you are thinking too?

yep, thinking Crusher. I like the idea of the side protection. Can’t wait to see some install pics!

 

[bakobobby]

Sid

yep, thinking Crusher. I like the idea of the side protection. Can’t wait to see some install pics!

You see this already?

https://www.jeepgladiatorforum.com/...tion-for-non-rubicon-trucks.33182/post-569517

 

[bakobobby]

A look at my rock-slide engineering step sliders after a week in Moab. Found out too late about the need for the “skid” kit. Ordered it a bit ago but still waiting on it. For the $2700 these cost I would expect they can take more of a beating. For the over $700 the skids cost I can almost buy a full set of Motobilt’s sliders that’ll take a lot more abuse. At least they are still working and I think I can bend them back close to stock when I mount the skids.

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