Well Ladies and Gentleman,
Its time to bump this thread again! 2017....where the hell do I even start?!?
It all started off with plenty of hammer trips and being there for KOH, then going to moab for a week, then getting picked for Ultimate Adventure! Getting ready for Ultimate adventure was quite a task. 4 weeks to do a roll cage, Dana 70 front axle build FROM SCRATCH. from cutting and lengthen sides to putting axle C's on, making my own H3 caliper brackets, axle seals, etc. half doors, and all the other stuff to get ready for the trip. Surviving UA and driving through a total of 4 states in a week (CA, AZ,UT, NV and back to so cal) it was then time to head to nor-cal to hit the rubicon, then why don't we do the rubicon a 2nd time for fun! Then fit 2 hammer trips in there before the end of the year.
So all in all it was an AMAZING year. I achieved a lot of personal goals with the H3 and really makes me look back to 8 years ago. When I said I want a rig that can do it all. Be comfy with the doors on, kill it on tough trails and cruise down the highway. Well I did just that and this really proved it. So where does 2018 bring me? Honestly, I am not sure...I have changes ahead. 2018 is about change. I got a promotion at work and will be moving up to northern CA early 2018. I do not think moab is in the cards this coming year because of that and I want to save up some vacation in case I get picked to go back on UA 2018 as a returning reader. I think 2018 is all about making the H3 as streetworthy as possible since it will now live a life cruising down the 5 freeway back and forth from so cal trails to norcal trails. I also want to finish up some things. Its about exploring new trails, making new friends, keeping in touch with the old and continuing the lifestyle of wheeling to and from the trail.
Lastly, this year I learned that things I used to think were "beef" aren't as beefy as they once were...
-1/4in steel. For years it was beef and couldn't be bent. Well I bent the hell out of it with tougher trails.
-1.5 .25wall DOM tubing. This tie rod is probably 5 times as thick as a stock H3 tie rod but I bent it to hell. It never left me stranded but it left me with the alignment off.
-I bent 2 johnny joints at the threaded portions of the lower control arm.
So what did I run trails wise?
-Resolution (hammers) 4 or more times
-Jackhammer (hammers) 1x
-Chocolate Thunder (hammers) 4 or more times
-Sledgehammer (hammers) 2x
-Clawhammer (hammers) 1x
- Upper big Johnson (hammers) 1x
-Lower big Johnson (hammers) 1x
-Boulderdash (hammers) 1x
-Spooners canyon (hammers) 1x
-Turkey Claw (hammers) 1x
-Wrecking Ball (hammers) 1x
-Rubicon Trail (nor cal) 2x
-Moab Rim (Moab) 1x
-Top of the World (Moab) 1x
-Steelbender (Moab) 1x
-Hells Revenge (Moab) 1x with Hells gate
-Fins N things (Moab) 1x
-Potato Salad Hill (Moab) 1x
-Table Mesa area including Terminator (UA 2017 Phx, AZ)
-Payette Draw (UA 2017 Payson, AZ)
-Trails to Crown King (UA 2017, Crown King, AZ)
-a ton of dirt roads to the grand canyon and dirt roads to UT (UA 2017)
-Cinders OHV park (Flagstaff, AZ)
-Sand Hollow OHV park running Joint Effort and Triple 7's (UA 2017 Hurricane, UT)
Damn, I don't know if I could ever top that LOL
Modifications
-Dana 70 rear axle turned into a front axle, running off the shelf axle seals, Dana 60 outers, factory length chevy inner and outer shafts, 35 spline stubs, Yukon Hardcore locking hubs and factory H3 calipers with 2003 chevy 2500 rear rotors
-Took H3 full doors and made them into half doors
-Hybrid roll cage with internal and external tie in's
-Battleborn bead locks because I was tired of ripping my tires off the bead running less then 13 psi.
-new gas tank skid (5/16th thick)
-New tcase skid (3/8 thick)
-Rugged radio mobile unit for UA 2017
That's all I can think of for now.
Stuff I broke
-Locking hub 2x (piece of **** G2 locking hubs)
-transfer case (poked a hole through it JB welded it shut, finished the rubicon trail and drove 400 miles home)
that's it. NO BROKEN AXLES, R&P's and best of all wheeling that much and that hard with ZERO TOW TRUCKS HOME!!!!!
2018 mods
-14in Fox shocks. Bilstein is a pain in the ass to get a hold of. I need to revalve my shocks again, I still think they are too soft so instead I bought Fox's used but never actually used for a great price with compression adjusters! I just need to modify the shock mounts a tad and install them but they are sitting in the garage.
-aluminum tie rod. These are awesome I can hit them hard on the rocks and they bend but go right back to normal shape unlike steel (already on order and may be done in 2017)
-Fix cruise control. This is a pain in the ass. I had cruise working since the V8 swap. One day it randomly stopped. I replaced a few things with no luck so I need to figure that out especially because I drive hours to and from the trails and sometimes to other states.
-finish roll cage ( need to finish the internal b and do some more a pillar leg renforcement.
-finish rear sway bar, I made mounts for the axle to put it back on since I don't run the stock rear axle anymore but need to shorten the end links (theme of more street cred)
-I would like to do rear half doors but not a huge priority
-Lights I gotta do some lights off the cage
-lastly, a doubler of some-sort. I have an NP 205 transfer case sitting in the garage. I could do a magnum 205 have 1:1, 2:1, 2.72:1 and 5.33:1 low range or a custom H3 doubler I have been thinking of 1:1, 2:1, 4:1, 8:1 low range. I would like to get a 2wd option and multiple low ranges.
Other then whats listed above 2017 was a GREAT year!!!