Casper's Xterra Build

[Casper]

Now, on to the front.

A couple shots of the drivers side setup.

Good stuffage of the rear.

Enough clearance infront of the drivers side rear tire.

Not so much room behind the rear tire though, more fixen

Shot of the passenger side front. Notice that it is "just" barely touching the bump stop.

Nice side shot.

And my second favorite shot.

Notice in this one, and the one like it in the last post that the bottom of the raised tire is at, or just slightly higher that the top of the tire on the ground.

He flexes like a beast now.

Cheers,
Josh
&
Porthos

 

[Jean-Seb]

Wow ! Nice build ! It's giving me lots of ideas, thanks for sharing.

 

[4307]

NICE Build!:safari-rig:
I read your thread and developed a curiosity, maybe I missed something.
Just wondering, why didn't you go with high steer arms and machined knuckles?

NICE Build!:safari-rig:
I read your thread and developed a curiosity, maybe I missed something.
Just wondering, why you didn't go with high steer arms and machined knuckles?

 

[hovenator]

Awesome X. I noticed you have a T-Max winch......How do you like it? I am thinking of getting one as well, just would like some feedback from someone who actually uses one. Thanks for any info you could provide.

 

[Casper]

NICE Build!:safari-rig:
I read your thread and developed a curiosity, maybe I missed something.
Just wondering, why didn't you go with high steer arms and machined knuckles?

Simple really, with the track bar mount on the axle, this setup provides the best steering with absolutely no bump steer what so ever.

As you can see, they line up perfectly. If I was to run high steer I would have to
A) Redesign where and how the track bar mounts, and still have some bump steer
or
B) Have suck wicked bump steer I would not want to /be able to drive it on the street.

So instead I decided to keep the design I have, and run a bullet proof drag link. :smiley_drive:

Awesome X. I noticed you have a T-Max winch......How do you like it? I am thinking of getting one as well, just would like some feedback from someone who actually uses one. Thanks for any info you could provide.

I absolutely love it. I got it from a sponsor I had. It pulls well, not super fast, but not super slow either. Is very controllable, meaning it stops when I want, starts when I want, no hesitation. It has been on the bumper for at least 3 or 4 years now, through very rough Truckee, Ca weather and still even looks good. Only one real complaint, and it's minor. The controller it has, has the ability to work plugged in with a nice long cable, or unplugged as a remote. After the first year the remote started working sparatically. Still works great plugged in though, so not really an issue. If I had it to do again, I would buy it again.

Hope that helps. :wings: and thanks for the compliments. :victory:

Cheers,
Josh
&
Porthos
:smiley_drive:

 

[hovenator]

Thanks for the info, just what I was hoping to hear. Is it the EW9000 you have?

 

[Casper]

No worries, I have the EW 9500.

Cheers,
Josh
&
Porthos
:smiley_drive:

 

[4307]

Simple really, with the track bar mount on the axle, this setup provides the best steering with absolutely no bump steer what so ever.

As you can see, they line up perfectly. If I was to run high steer I would have to
A) Redesign where and how the track bar mounts, and still have some bump steer
or
B) Have suck wicked bump steer I would not want to /be able to drive it on the street.

So instead I decided to keep the design I have, and run a bullet proof drag link. :smiley_drive:



I absolutely love it. I got it from a sponsor I had. It pulls well, not super fast, but not super slow either. Is very controllable, meaning it stops when I want, starts when I want, no hesitation. It has been on the bumper for at least 3 or 4 years now, through very rough Truckee, Ca weather and still even looks good. Only one real complaint, and it's minor. The controller it has, has the ability to work plugged in with a nice long cable, or unplugged as a remote. After the first year the remote started working sparatically. Still works great plugged in though, so not really an issue. If I had it to do again, I would buy it again.

Hope that helps. :wings: and thanks for the compliments. :victory:

Cheers,
Josh
&
Porthos
:smiley_drive:

I hear ya. just wondering.
In the Tacoma world most run high steer. I'm on the fence which suspension (linked or leafed) I want to run. I'll be running the same d44 as you.
Leafs, ya definitely need high steer to clear the leafs. 3 link, or radius arms i can either run high steer or the stock waggy knuckle, which I already have.

Did you rotate your knuckles?

 

[Casper]

I hear ya. just wondering.
In the Tacoma world most run high steer. I'm on the fence which suspension (linked or leafed) I want to run. I'll be running the same d44 as you.
Leafs, ya definitely need high steer to clear the leafs. 3 link, or radius arms i can either run high steer or the stock waggy knuckle, which I already have.

Did you rotate your knuckles?

Both setups you are considering are good, and have their good points and bad points. I really just like linked and radius arm setups.

I see the need for high steer with a leaf setup. With anything else I really don't. My steering is strong enough to support the truck (slipped off the jack and landed on the drag link :Wow1: ) The tubing is 1.5 but I don't remember the thickness. I can look it up if you need. It has Chevy 1 ton TRE's, and I carry spares just in case. It also sits high enough that I haven't really hit it on anything. I am not worried if I do.

Knuckle, I wish I had rotated them. I don't have a good drive line angle because of it. I tend to go through a set of u-joints a year. This however will be solved this summer. I am pulling out the Waggy axle and putting in a HP D44 out of a 77 F250. This will do a few things for me. One, solve my drive line angle. Two, give me a true 63' WMS to WMS without running spacers. I still have to narrow the long side axle tub, but that is easy. The nice thing is, once it's narrowed I will be running a long side waggy axle shaft on the long side and a stock F-250 axle shaft on the short side. This means I can still run off the shelf (or wrecking yard) shafts. :wings:

Good luck with yours. Question for you though, way not use a Trail gear housing for your front axle instead of a waggy? You could then run a HP in front and not worry about rotating the C's. Plus, with a set of "Dirty 30's" from them or longfields it will be WAY stronger then my D44. Just curious.

Cheers,
Josh
&
Porthos
:smiley_drive:

 

[Blain]

This X rocks!! The upside down PIAA Covers are a nice touch!

 

[4Rescue]

EDIT: ...

...

Whoops... Should have been this pic I posted... This is what I have that's simillar. a roof net.
First off SWEET rig Casper. I have the same net set-up (sort of, mines the full length of my top) and it's aone of my favorite camping mods. Wehn it get's too warm or too cold, the blankets (we sleep in the rig) are right there easy to find in the dark. Plus I put my clothes up there cause I can find them quickly when it's time to get up and I can leave everything in my pants and not have to stash everything in a cubby.

Neat rig, i can't wait to read all about it... I'm only on page 2 and I'm really impressed!!!

Cheers

Dave

 

[Casper]

Thanks for the compliments Dave. Only page two, you've got some reading ahead of you. Be warned, it could get kinda boring. :wings:

I like the idea of a full length roof net, however I don't think Porthos would like it, he barely fits as it is. :victory:

It's still a work in progress. Right now the big thing is putting it on a diet. I wieghed it a few weeks back, completely empty of gear, Porthos and parts, 5920. :Wow1: No wonder I can't climb a hill on the freeway at over 40 mph. :smiley_drive:

Cheers,
Josh
&
Porthos
:victory:

 

[Noxious007]

Casper,

You mentioned a dual battery in a post early on in your build thread. Do you have pictures? Where you able to fit a second battery in the engine bay?

 

[Casper]

Casper,

You mentioned a dual battery in a post early on in your build thread. Do you have pictures? Where you able to fit a second battery in the engine bay?

No pictures yet, kind hard to get to. Unfortunatly when I did my dual setup I just couldn't squeeze a second battery under the hood. At the time I didn't want to go with smaller batteries, so it just wouldn't fit. Thankfully I had no use for the area behind the front seats since I built a platform for Porthos to be nice and comfy back there. So the batteries are located under his plateform, just behind the front seats, one on each side. I really liked this area for a couple reasons. First, kinda wasted space for me since I have the plateform covering it, and second it gets the wieght of the batteries (those suckers are kinda heavy) as low as possible and out of the elements. Of course, there is the one drawback, if you carry passengers back there, it won't work. So not for everyone.

Search for "expeditionxterra" in this forum. He put two batteries under the hood in his X. Nice setup, he is useing smaller batteries, but they have just as much power (if not more) then mine.

Hope that helps.

Cheers,
Josh
&
Porthos
:smiley_drive:

 

[Noxious007]

I'm looking at these Heim joints for my hinge.
http://rightsideperformance.com/i-4751554-rod-ends-heim-joints.html
I was thinking the .875"- 14 Thread .75" bore. They are rated for 39,000 pounds.

Does this look like a good option?
Do you remember what size Heims you are using?