Lumpskie's "More Questions than Answers" build

[Lumpskie]

Had a buddy that got one, so he found a J10 bed trailer, put some side boxes on it and had me build a rack for it. Loved it and would love to find one myself.


And yes, just because we dont respond, doesnt mean we're not watching you...

^Haha that's good to know... I think!

Yeah I got lucky, I had actually given up looking for fsj's and was looking for an older Audi with the inline five. While we were in negotiations for one I put Quadratrac into craigslist just for fun and six hours later, I owned the hot mess I maintain now.

That wag is sweet though, a steal of a deal for sure.

Yeah, I wasn't sure if I paid too much when I bought it, but I feel like I got a good deal now.



So... I'm thinking that I'd like to lift my rig around 2". (as you can see from my other posts) I noticed that some years of Grand Wagoneers have trac bars that need to be dealt with and others don't. Do you guy know what I'd have to do to lift my '89 a couple of inches over stock?

[jaber]

Mine is more of a 3" lift, both track bars are removed, and dont feel a need to put them back. I dont know how much the tent on the roof will matter, but doubt you will feel it. IIRC there is some adjustment in the mounts, but would have to assemble with said lift to see. Also seems at one time I remember hearing about an extension for it, but have never paid any attention to it.

[Lumpskie]

^That's really good to know. When there's less snow on the ground, I think I'll try pulling the end links off and driving around... just to see what it feels like.

[Lumpskie]

I took everyone's advice and got a Yakima gutter rack for the waggy. Then, I got a 3.5" spacer kit so it clears the stock rack. Here it is!



Clearance

[mejerifly]

I think you made a good decision to get the gutter rack. It looks good. It will be safer and more secure and a full sheet of plywood will fit up there nice.

[Lumpskie]

I think you made a good decision to get the gutter rack. It looks good. It will be safer and more secure and a full sheet of plywood will fit up there nice.

Thanks, I think this was the right way to go. Good point about they plywood too!

In other news, I took the waggy out on some snowy forest service roads to do some hiking. With it's semi bald tires, I kept it on the groomed stuff. Still, it did really well in the snow.

[mejerifly]

That's cool! Where is that trail?

[Lumpskie]

That's cool! Where is that trail?

Thanks! It was Coffee Pot Road, out near Glenwood Springs. Not really 'wheeling but still fun

http://www.traildamage.com/trails/index.php?id=194

[Lumpskie]

I bought some new tires for the Wagoneer today. 30x9.5" Yokohama AT/S. All added up (after a mail in rebate for $75 selling my old tires for $35) my new tires only cost $468 out the door! Here's a quick pic. I'll get some better ones in the daylight.

[Lumpskie]

Here are a couple more pictures. Honestly, I'm pretty impressed with the thoughtfulness that went into the tread design. I like the interlocking tread blocks and I also like how the block sipes don't extend all the way through. It looks like these tires should do awesome in moderate snow and dirt (17/32" tread depth should help with that)... ok in rocks but poorly in mud. I can't wait to see if I'm right.

Pictures:

[Lumpskie]

I talked with Alcan Spring the other day. I'm thinking that I might go with 2" lift Alcans along with Bilstein shocks for suspension. One question for you guys... what valving is stock for the Grand Wagoneer? Do you guys typically keep the stock valving, or go with something else? I want a nice "luxury" feel ride without the truck feeling like a boat.

[Lumpskie]

No ideas?

Are there any shocks that you guys like? Maybe I can look up the valving from those.

[Lumpskie]

Had some fun in the snow. The Yokohama AT/Ss worked great!

[Lumpskie]

Well, I started a build sheet with Alcan. After talking with Bill, I'm thinking about 3" of lift on a nice soft spring. This isn't going to be cheap!

[GWag89]

Looking good! I like the look of those ATs. Like you pointed out they have a well designed tread pattern. Pretty high void for an AT and that should give you decent mud traction. I've been seeing more guys here in VA (red clay central) running ATs with impressive results. The added contact patch over MTs when driving on rocks is an overlooked feature

[Lumpskie]

Thanks, GWag89! I've been pretty impressed with the tires so far. They've done great in snow, seem to grip rocks well and are great on the road.

[Lumpskie]

Flexed the Waggy out at the loading docks today and it did pretty well considering I left the front sway bar on and both track bars on... 20 7/8" vertical inches!

[Lumpskie]

Ordered a set of Alcans! 3-4 weeks till they're manufactured.

[Nikkormat]

Can't wait to see em! I Might be able to get new tires before I go and try to flex the rig out this weekend so we can make a comparison from old post mount rear rig to the newer rig. If not I'll have to do some math to compensate for the tire difference.

Could you have used a shorter spacer under the Yakima bars? I'd like to make mine a little more snug to the roof but still clear the factory rack.

[Lumpskie]

Hey Nikkormat,

I'd love to see a comparison between your stock post mount and my stock... non-post mount? I'm just curious to see if there's a difference. As for the spacers, yeah looking back on it, I think an inch or so shorter would be perfect. I basically ordered the highest ones that I could find to guarantee that I cleared the rack. That being said, I can cut mine down to the size I want. (if I ever get the time!)

The baby was crying last night so we went for a drive. Random pics from that: