Cruzer's Re-Build for the Rubicon

Oh shit....lol.......re gearing is and no one near where I live seemed to feel comfortable re gearing the Tundra. So that why I got rid of the 35s I didn't want to have any issues with the truck.

 

Looks like I’m going clamming tomorrow. Went by the shop and my truck was still at the same spot since Monday. Got my keys back, popping open that clam shell myself tomorrow.

 

No warranty

 

There is. I just don’t have anymore time. Gotta get my truck in 4wd or else no Sand Hollow trip for me. Already missed out on the Moab part 2 trip.

 

HOLY SHIT BALLS!

My next guess was that the splines on the stub shaft had stripped - the end with the splines that goes into the side gear inside the ARB carrier/locker. So I took off the diff extension tube only - left the clam shell in place on the truck - thinking I could just pop out the stub shaft but then HALF of the stub shaft just fell out



The other half, with the splines, is still in the carrier. So now I have to take out the diff, split it open, and take the ARB carrier apart to get it out.

Fortunately, I have a spare since I bought a whole front diff from the junkyard last week.
Spoke to my local Toyota parts department and they actually don't sell the stub shaft by itself, you have to buy a brand new front diff for $1800 which includes the stub shaft. Hellll nooo. Contacted ECGS (they don't have one listed on their site) and they have 1 available - swooped that up for $50.

This is what it's supposed to look like:


Need to find one that's made of chromoly or get one made cuz I see myself snacking on these like french fries.

 

Daaaamn! Good thing ECGS had one available!

 

Got that mofo out!



Here's the one I pulled from my junkyard diff



If this ever happens again I now know that I don't need to pull the whole diff out - just punch out the shaft from the driver side CV axle

 

Nicely done!

Damn mofo sheared off clean.

 

Diff is fixed but I ended up damaging the passenger side CV boot so I had to install my spare
Stepped on the brakes while the passenger front caliper was not fastened and ended up popping out one of the pistons putting that damn clip back on was a bitch and I had to bleed the brakes.
Decided to put the rubber boot on my CB tie rod end and then when down a rabbit hole in doing my own alignment but I learned a shit ton and my truck now drives straight

 

Sounds like the average amount of mod mishaps

Glad you got it dialed!

 

Lol why does that shit always happen?

 

If it didn’t you’d have the thought in the back of your head “wow that was easy... too easy...”

 

Hella annoyed! I programmed my Speedo Calibrator on Sunday so that my speedometer is correct I just hit the Lockwood/Miller Jeep trail (in SoCal) had to use the locker and tried to punch it but couldn’t. It seems like the 4Lo nanny delete that I programmed with the HP Tuner got reset to OEM settings by the speedo calibrator. Left the tuner back at home

 

If you’ve ever thought that a half inch slice on the CV boot could be held from blowing up with silicone adhesive and duct tape, it doesn’t.

Had to do a swap at camp while being attacked by a swarm of bees!!! Seriously!? WTF?!

 

So... Lockwood Valley needs a locker? Trail report when you get home, please. (Sorry about the snafus.)

 

First time at Cleghorn, just finished, went solo. Did all of the offshoots. Wow! Much more challenging than I thought. Driver bed side got scraped up in those really tight, high walled, off camber sections. Took me 3 hours, glad I have a bunch of cameras under the truck to spot myself otherwise it would’ve took longer.

 

Do your cameras record, or just for the advantage of visibility and self spotting?

 

I bought a recorder with the intention of recording my trail runs but have been too lazy to install it. It can record up to 2 cameras simultaneously but the quality is not going to be great though, which is the other reason I’ve been dragging my feet.

 

Not home yet but got time to write. Lockwood doesn’t need lockers, I was just trying to go over the top of the obstacle rather than find a line around it - was trying to get a feel for what my 39s afford me.

My plan was to camp for the night at Hungry Valley. There is a campsite at the end of the trail but, even though it’s currently allowed, I didn’t want to risk my campfire starting a forest fire. First thing I did was head to Hungry Valley and pay for my overnight stay. Then picked up firewood on the way to the Lockwood trail head. There’s a staging area about a mile in on the dirt road. The trail does a steep climb right off the bat, probably the section I was most nervous about cuz of my fear of heights. The trail is narrow so expect pinstripes. There’s a new, to me, rocky optional section on the way up. Once your up top everything is easy. Half way through there’s a shady spot with a picnic table to take a break. The end of the last half is where it starts to get rocky and that’s where the obstacle is - a big ass rock. You can go around it or over it. This obstacle changed from the last time I did it, more rutted out. The trail ends at the campsite. I veered to the left and took the fire road down to Hungry Valley. I wheeled around there before setting up camp.

The faucet on my water tank was leaking, which attracted a shitload of thirsty ass bees. I drove around thinking I could shake them - but them fools are fast and were drafting me. I gave up and waited inside my truck for 2 hours waiting for the sun to set, which is when the bees went home.

 

Good, detailed report. Thank you!

I want to do that run, hoping to do a meet of SoCal and NorCal guys, when @joonbug is back in a truck that goes over obstacles.

 

I’ll be happy if I’m back on the dirt before 2022

 

Looks like I am in need of hydro assist or just full on hydraulic steering. After doing Cleghorn I went out to Hurricane, in Utah, to go wheeling at Sand Hollow. I hit the level 6 rated Wayne's World trail, it was fun, had lots of good challenging obstacles. But I was having problems with my Gaia app navigating the trail, it was just all over the place, so I was making wrong turns and having to backtrack. Well, one of those wrong turns led me down a level 9 rated trail where I ended up getting stuck. My sliders where on the obstacle, the front driver tire was pinned against the obstacle and turned towards driver side in full lock, while the passenger front tire was in the air. In my effort to get out the driver front tire kept wanting to turn driver, I was unable to turn it passenger, and then it ended up exploding (parts literally went flying) the driver CV axle. At this point I knew I had to make a call - I called Matt's Off Road Recovery but they were at the Rubicon, so I ended up with one of their friends, Eric. Long story short my truck rolled onto the driver side, busted the steering rack and replaced 3 CV axles in total, both rear shackles are bent (which I'm actually glad that I had some cheap shackles on), the driver side tail lighted busted, and the part of the bedside right above the tail light got damaged. No shops were available to work on the truck but Eric was kind enough to offer to work on it. Was able to find all the parts needed to get the truck back on the road the next day. I had pictures and video but my phone died cuz I was partying at a Vegas pool party afterwards and my phone ended up at the bottom of the pool.

Anyways, if anyone knows how to tap into the steering rack and setup a hydraulic ram, let me know. So far the bigger wheels have been a big pain in the ass.

 

Ball'n dude!

 

This has become the most entertaining thread on this forum! I’m sorry for the set-back, but damn, it’s fun hearing you keep pushing though for more fun.

 

Lol! Good to know I keep you all entertained I do have GoPro videos of me going up some obstacles prior to getting stuck, I'll post those up in a bit.

 

Damn it! I was hoping to see you Matt’s YouTube channel! Haha I watch his vids all the time

 

Haha same!


@Cruzer
Bummer you had parts break, but glad you were able to get it handled!


Now just waiting for the videos

 

@Cruzer Hydro assist or full hydro is going to be a real problem. The steering system on our trucks is complicated at best, along with limited space. I think you are going to have a very hard time getting this sorted. Ive spoken personally with Howe about a custom setup for our trucks and we are talking 5-10k minimum just to R&D something. And space is the biggest limitation. adding a hydo assist will be next to impossible. Tapping into the lines is easy, I already did that on mine adding a cooler and removing all the stock lines replacing them with AN fittings and PTFE braided lines. so tapping in is pretty straightforward. Im not sure how you would do it, you would have to do some math to figure out ram and shaft length and orbital valve requirements. Now you could go full hydro steering but I would strongly advise against that.

 

I have the BDS bracket lift, which I know you're familiar with, and there is some space right in front of the front most crossmember that a mount could be fitted (somehow). Sounds like you tapped into the main line. Do you know where the lines are for the left turn, right turn? I know the older yota steering boxes had separate veins for left and right.