Favorite trail fixes

[Blue Angel]

I will start it off.....

One time in Hot Springs, a Cherokee driver in our group hit a big rock with his steering link and bent it. Both front wheels were pointing at each other. We popped the tie rod ends out of the knuckles, counted the turns as we unscrewed the tie rod end. Wedged it in between a couple of big rocks and bent it back sorta straight. Asked the driver if he had a Hi-lift jack. We took the handle off the jack and used it to "sleeve" the link. Screwed back on the tie rod end the same turns it was removed and bolted it up to the knuckles. Good as new. The guy turned around on the trail and left though....said it was too extreme for him.

[PondSkum]

I have pictures somewhere, just not on the web apparently cuz I couldn't find them.. Back in 04, I believe, I was living in Baton Rouge at the time. I took my first trip to Gilmer, BMRA, with LA4x4 club in January. We were cruising all the trails and one of the guys was running a sweet set up YJ with 350, 1 ton axles, etc.. We got up to Scorpion Overlook, and he decided to try the hill climb on Scorpion Pass. So he went down, started climbing up and made it pretty far, but close to 3/4 of the way up, he hit a ledge. When he hit it, both front tires popped up about 4 feet off the ground, and when it hit back down, both front leaf springs snapped completely in two. Craziest thing I've seen. They were mono leafs, and I guess the torque from the wheels spinning when they hit the ground was just too much and the axle wrap made them snap. So we winched him to the top of the hill, and used the high lift to lift the frame up off of the axle. One of the guys had an on board welder, so we took a few pieces of scrap steel and welded it between the frame and axle tube. He was able to drive it from there back to the truck and get it loaded up. Was a bump(ier) ride than usual though with the nice rigid suspension system he now had... LOL

[texasfrog]

Snapped a leaf spring when we were in Hot Springs,welded it back together and then welded some scrap over that. Wheeled with it that way for years like that.

Mega run twisted a drive shaft in half,bought a drive shaft off a truck that rolled and used it to repair mine by welding the two together.

Dan Eldridge broke a ear off his drive shaft yoke at Shilho one year,we welded a 1" open end wrench over the ujoints cap and cut off the handle. That fix made 3 more runs and still held up.

Dan same rig,we were at trees ranch and his steering box broke some ears off were it bolts to the frame. Again wrenches came in handy by welding them between the box and the frame,it to lasted many runs before he went to full hydro.

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Anybody remember the pallet wrap for the mud pit?

[Blue Angel]

You talkin about plastic film?

[texasfrog]

Yes

[texasfrog]

I figured there would be more story's posted up here Jimmy! Not even a "I used nail polish once to fix my scraped sticker from the stupid car wash" story...

[Blue Angel]

It's all good brother.....just trying to get folks involved in discussion.

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When Brian Alley and I flipped back down "Helicopter Hill" at Alto....I was ridin' bitch.....we used some tree branches in the shape of a Y to strap the front axle back under the frame. It got us back to the trailer.

I have seen some folks use a tree branch strapped to slider and rear bumper to keep a C clip axle from coming out after breaking......rubs the lettering off the sidewall.

[Mudhog1977]

well its not trail damage... but I was on my way back from the store one sunday cause I needed some groceries, I had an old 75 f100 wit a 360 bigblock... man I miss that truck...but on the way home I blew a rad hose I looked in my toolbox and all I had was some duct tape and a can of pvc cement, I cleaned the hose and applied the cement and wrapped yhe devil outta it with the tape, then put on more cement, then I got a gallon jug out the back and put a coffee filter over the radiator spout ad used water outta ditch to fill the rad, it held up for a week lol, also I broke my throttle cable once and I took my laces outta my workboots and tied them to my throttle linkage and then ran it through my wing window... was tricky to drive but it got me to the parts house

[Blue Angel]

well its not trail damage... but I was on my way back from the store one sunday cause I needed some groceries, I had an old 75 f100 wit a 360 bigblock... man I miss that truck...but on the way home I blew a rad hose I looked in my toolbox and all I had was some duct tape and a can of pvc cement, I cleaned the hose and applied the cement and wrapped yhe devil outta it with the tape, then put on more cement, then I got a gallon jug out the back and put a coffee filter over the radiator spout ad used water outta ditch to fill the rad, it held up for a week lol, also I broke my throttle cable once and I took my laces outta my workboots and tied them to my throttle linkage and then ran it through my wing window... was tricky to drive but it got me to the parts house

Very cool story!

I seen a guy at Spring Creek one time put potato chips in a leaking radiator.....got him back to the trailer.