Cheap tricks in off-roading you've learned along the way...

[jinxspot]

Cheap trick to organzine your wrenches... lots of different latches and pins can be used:



cheap pins at tractor supply:

 

[Kevin B.]

I'm going to start keeping all my straps and tools and stuff in 5ga buckets, and grab a couple of those padded seat/lids for them so they can serve double duty as camp chairs.

 

[sixstringsteve]

Great idea Ryan, that's awesome.

 

[1TonTom]

Cheap trick to organzine your wrenches... lots of different latches and pins can be used:

View attachment 80796

cheap pins at tractor supply:

I give Tyler Harper the credit for showing me that trick Its organized my toolbox for the better.

Another busted radiator plug trick is crackers...It got a early bronco off the trail at Moab Bronco safari in 2009. Another good trick is using Baby formula plastic/Tin container's for spare parts and to help keep tools organized. Coffee Cans (the plastic folgers ones) work great for that. Medicine bottles are a great way to keep loose smaller item's easy to find.

 

[1TonTom]

oh yeah 1 more...on your spare ujoint's electrical tape the caps on incase they somehow work there way outta the box the caps stay on.... so you aren't looking for a missing cap when you need to change one on the trail

 

[jinxspot]

Easily Identify your Tools on the Trail....

We all know when stuff breaks we bust out our tools and get to work... problem with tool bags on the trail is they usually have specific tools for the occasion or a specific rigs so you need to borrow tools. When your buddies come bring their tool bags cause their such nice dude, things can get miss-matched and one easy way to idetify your tools is to have a tag of paint on them as seen in this petersens offroad picture! Now you will know where your wrench's went and who snaked them accidiently!!!

Another cool hint is to do a different color for SAE vs Metric.... OK now go ahead and wrench on folks (same idea applies to allens, sockets and other tools)!

 

[skeptic]

Cheap trick to organzine your wrenches... lots of different latches and pins can be used:

View attachment 80796

cheap pins at tractor supply:

Brilliantly simple! One of my pie-in-the-sky plans for this summer is to re-organize my garage. Trash all the mis-matched and makeshift work benches and shelving units and go with actual garage units, peg boards, etc. Until I get time/money for that I'm going to steal this idea, probably even put a few nails/hooks in the wall and hang them like this.

 

[Herzog]

I'm going to paint & hook all my wrenches. That's awesome.

 

[yotis 4x4]

use the bottom of a high lift jack, to break a tire bead. it works great

 

[STAG]

I paint all my work tools. Rakes, shovels, wrenches, gas can, diesel sprayer. Everything has a nice red stripe.

 

[Herzog]

I'm going to paint & hook all my wrenches. That's awesome.

I forgot about painting them but I got all my wrenches on those clip rings this weekend. Love it!

 

[turbosniper1]

One more, prepack spare bearings with grease and store them, seperately, in Ziploc bags. Label the bags with the bearing's location. My buddy was religious about this with his trunnion bearings.

This is a life saver in certain situations! It is such a pain in the @R$E to have to pack bearings out on the trail, and not make a mess of the area, yourself, and next to impossible to keep contaminants out of the grease!!

An easier way to do this is to use a food vacuum sealer. You take the vacuum sealer material and make a pouch out of it. Put a bearing in it, and then put spray some grease, from a grease gun, all around and on the bearing. Once there is enough grease in the pouch to fully pack the bearing, attach it too the vacuum sealer and turn it on. When the air is sucked out of the pouch, it will instantly pack the grease into the bearing. You can leave it at that, or wrap another pouch around it & seal it like the first... Or you can just wrap it in a rag, and then wrap that with duct-tape. Either way will help protect the bearing, and keep it sealed from the elements, and any punctures that might allow the grease to leak out all over everything! Then when you're ready to use it on the trail, just cut open the bag and your bearing is ready to install!! Plus... If you use the method I previously mentioned where you wrap it in the towel and duct tape, you can use the towel for either sitting under the part you're working on to catch any crap that might fall out and onto the ground.... Or for wiping your parts and yourself off when your new bearing is installed!! :thumbs:

Sorry for being so long winded there... But I had to provide the details!!

- Matt Klouzek
"Team Dodge T-Rex 6x6" - Owner/Driver
"Team Dodge MEGA-REX 6x6x6" - Owner/Designer/Fabricator/Soon to be Driver

 

[jinxspot]

I spy bucu spare parts!!! Saw this out at miller on a rig from CO... He said he didn't have it mounted that race, but also carries a spare ram as seen by the two hose clamps mounted to tube in the rear.

 

[EB101]

Broken axles at the spline can be a PIA to pull when you can't get them out with a magnet. The antenna from a YJ works great to push them out from the other side. Skinny enough to get past the cross pins in your diff. You'll still want a magnet on the other side to pull it with of course.

 

[Tom95YJ]

Broken axles at the spline can be a PIA to pull when you can't get them out with a magnet. The antenna from a YJ works great to push them out from the other side. Skinny enough to get past the cross pins in your diff. You'll still want a magnet on the other side to pull it with of course.

X2 I've done that before on my 95 YJ

 

[Pike2350]

I carry around one of those oil absorbent mats they sell at auto stores. Put it down under where you're working to protect the environment from fluids, as well as protect parts, nuts, bolts from the environment. Not to mention you can use it as a pad to keep yourself from getting filthy if you have to look under your truck.

like this one http://www.amazon.com/Oil-Dri-L90693-Garage-Polypropylene-Length/dp/B000BXOFY8

 

[broncomitch]

Here is a easy prevention trick that could help you not brake down on the trail


take a file, (I like to use a triangle shaped file)

Lay down your axle shafts and file a line down the shaft. (Your filling down the machining marks so your not weakening the shaft)

If your shafts are starting to twist so will the line, and you can replace them before they brake, causing more damage.


And be sure to keep the ears on your shafts clean. Nicks and dings will ether distroy your caps or bind them up causing them them to fail.
DONT USE A DIE GRINDER!!! you want to clean up the serface not open it up, A file and sand paper will work grate and could save you money!

and for your spares (lile these)wrap up the splines with at least a foot of duck tape so it's thick and can take a hit when there bouncing around your junk box on the trail.

I was told to paint a line down the shafts and the paint will peal off where it twists..I didn't like that idea cus you can't tell how much it has twisted and could chip off when installing and you replaced it for nothing.
So I figured this way would be better

 

[rondo]

awesome ideas!
a few tricks I've learned. 1. Broke a 60 rear shaft and a 2' long piece wanted to stay in the spool. Took out the shaft on the other side, pushed my antennae in there (it's a beefy military type for a flag) and pounded it out gently from the other side. now I carry an on old broom handle tied onto my car hauler for this task.

2. on my frontier in el paso once my driveline u-joint let go while climbing a nasty ridge. the driveshaft wacked the gas tank and put a hole it in. My firefighter friend said put sticks in the hole in smaller and smaller pieces until plugged. it's something they do on a scene when they encounter a punctured tank. this fix got me home. later I sealed it with a tank sealer kit from autozone (this stuff fixes radiators, anything) and the tank has been sealed ever since! i forget the name sorry but it's just mixed putty from a parts store. I've since used this stuff to fix a pal's radiator and my neighbor's fuel cell in his TJ. it's about the size of a roll of quarters.

3. a guy i used to wheel with in Colorado made a handly air hose with a valve in between. used this hose to transfer air between his spare to another tire. it would air up your tire until the pressure was equalized. he used a cheap air compressor to keep air the spare. this method is strong enough to set a bead. of course I've set lots of beads with my power tank, but have even used a tiny wallmart plug-in air compressor on a pal's xterra once. if you're a real cheapa$$, i know a guy that made a power tank from a milk tank

4. a trick i learned in the army is to paint a line over the locking hub. at a glance you'll know if its locked or unlocked.

 

[jinxspot]

Seen this the other day and def thought everyone would get a kick out of it!!!

Soooo, would you run this to get out of the trail?!?!?!?

Hell yeah I would on my end, probably duck tape the livin daylights out of it too. hahahha


looks like Tacoma down there wheeling in flip flops too!!!

 

[O'neal]

Seen this the other day and def thought everyone would get a kick out of it!!!

Soooo, would you run this to get out of the trail?!?!?!?

Hell yeah I would on my end, probably duck tape the livin daylights out of it too. hahahha

View attachment 87113
looks like Tacoma down there wheeling in flip flops too!!!

I would run that to get off the trail.I know I have done some crazy,odd ball fixes but that one is pretty wack but if it work's.....by all mean's,do it!