daily doubler build

[Bray D]

OX install:

Old welded carrier

Setting up the OX

Final install

"Drive away lock" in the open position

And locked

Broken spring hanger

Home brew shackle bushing

And the replacement hanger installed

The president of the company I work for got a new toy as well. Everyone was scared to park close to him, so I thought I'd take advantage of the parking opportunity (front row!). There's a whole lot of fun in this picture. I was waiting for him to stop by my desk for a quick chat, but it never happened, haha.

 

[036speed]

OX install:
There's a whole lot of fun in this picture.

I would say so!

I probably would still take the Ranger over that R8.

 

[Bray D]

I haven't updated this in a while, so I suppose I should bring it up to speed. Life has been pretty busy lately, but it's been full of exciting adventures. Work sent me to Finland for a week, then once I returned, I immediately left for a week long canoe/camp trip on the Boundary Waters between Minnesota and Canada. The weather for that was perfect. The fishing was terrible, but we swam every day.

As for wheeling, I just got back from a tour of the south central US. We covered 8 states in 8 days for a total of just under 2200 miles. The girlfriend and myself left last Saturday and headed south, camping in Alabama before making our way to Pensacola Beach.

Flounders Chowder House

Sunrise

Parked on the beach

Beach time before we left

I had a room reserved on the Gulf, but we didn't stay long. Just one night there and we were gone by noon the next day, heading north. We camped in the Mississippi Petrified Forest one night, then continued north to Byrd's Adventure Center where we spent a day wheeling.

We ran Pure Screaming Hell, Busted Knuckle, and the second half of Widow Maker. Between The Rocks was another fun one. Other than that, we just tooled around the park hitting the trails as we came to them. Here's some pics from that park:

 

[Bray D]

Then we continued north to wheel at FlatNasty in Missouri. I absolutely love this park. I had the cabin rented for Friday night, so we wheeled all day Friday and into the night, stayed at the cabin, then headed home on Saturday to conclude our 8 days on the road. They have some killer black diamond rock trails.

Only had to pull rope once the whole week. I couldn't back down because my hitch was dragging the ground so hard that all 4 tires were spinning in reverse, haha.

And the resulting damage from the week:

I'm currently trying to source a new bed, haha. I've thought about going to a tube bed and all that jazz, but I think I'd rather keep it 'stock' for now with some body armor to see how it does. If I destroy it in a couple years, I'll probably back half it and go tube at that time. We'll see I suppose.

 

[wahlstrom1]

Tube bed and run skins on the street, tie them in the bed for wheeling?

 

[Grunizzle]

Wheeling without having 6ft more feet of sheet metal to worry about is awesome

 

[kris97ranger]

Personally i love how "stock" your truck looks. wouldnt change anything

 

[4.0B2]

Keep the bed look.

Maybe make a tube bed and skin it with factory panels that are removable

 

[Bray D]

I'll be sticking with a bed for a while. I have the packaging figured out beautifully, it just needs a little more protection so it doesn't get so beat up. Keeps the authorities at bay as well. I'm sure a tube bed would draw some more attention on the streets.

I also wanted to note that the OX with the drive away lock worked awesome for the trip. After wheeling I would just drive to the first gas station and unlock the diff while the truck was filling with gas, then hit the road with a full tank and an open diff. No lost time in that regard. Everything worked just as expected.

 

[escort_gts]

Need some rub rails on the next bed

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[Bray D]

Yep. I'll be doing my best to whip up a minimal 'bed slider' once I get my hands on a straight bed. I need to get a bed so I can study it to figure out what I want to do.

 

[Kage]

It's good to see this thing still getting around the USA. Looks like you two had a blast!

 

[Bray D]

Oh yes, the truck is still kickin. We had a great time and I was happy to get the truck back on some trails. No breakage at FlatNasty so we got to run all over the park during the day this time.

Like I said, I think the bigger trips are done for the year, but I'll be pondering another westward trip come spring time. No huge plans for the truck either. Everything is still working well.

 

[n_bannerman]

I know it's buried in this thread somewhere, but what did you to for your steering pump to take the 37's?


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[Bray D]

I'm still running the stock pump and box. I may have spoke too soon when I said I don't have any plans for the truck, haha. I have a hydro assist kit just waiting to be installed. I'd like to get that done this winter so I have strong steering for the upcoming wheeling season.

It still does alright with the stock stuff. If the steering locks up, it usually just takes a light slip of the tires to get it to work.