The Lunchbox Build... 4x4 chevy shorty van

Lunchbox2

Explorer
The ol' girl really got a workout last weekend. It rained for like a week straight, so everything was absolutely saturated. One of the local jeepers invited me along for a ride, and it's always fun to ride in a group so we tagged along....



I've been in a little mud before, but never mud like this. This red clay stuff is SLICK, and it basically takes you anywhere it wants to (which was usually DOWN-hill). If it was off-camber at all you were going down into the ruts, there was no more riding on top of things. I discovered why people say you need at least 37's to not drag the pumpkin of a 14-bolt. It went like hell through everything as long as the tires were touching the ground, but if the ruts started getting too deep, the pumpkins would start dragging and eventually I'd get hung up and have to pull cable... It's never really been a problem for me until this day, but I definitely think a bump in tire size and a pumpkin shave will be in our future....











I took a little more body damage. There was nothing I could do about it really, I was just trying to get around a fallen tree and the trail was headed downhill. Every time I gave it a little gas, it'd just slide downhill, and eventually into the trees... I popped the worst of it back out, but not a big deal, just adds more character.



 

Lunchbox2

Explorer
I'm happy to report that this 3rd transmission is holding strong! My buddy Bill did me a solid on this one, I should have had him do it in the first place. I really kicked the $HIT out of it in that mud, and she took it like a champ. If something was going to fail, 6 hours of constant abuse would've done it. The pedal was on the floor for the majority of the day!
 

philos

Explorer
Gummy, sticky mud.

One more reason to love the desert!!! Although those trees do look pretty.


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Lunchbox2

Explorer
Gummy, sticky mud.

One more reason to love the desert!!! Although those trees do look pretty.


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I do like trees, and the color green....lol I almost moved to vegas several years back, but all of the gravel and brown really killed it for me. I need trees
 

Lunchbox2

Explorer
So I took the van swimming the other day.....:snorkel: That hole was a MUCH deeper than it looked...haha



Land HO!



The look on my face is priceless.... I had to stay in the van, ON THE THROTTLE, otherwise it would've died and sucked in water. Luckily my guy josh was there to lend a helping hand, and pull cable for me... She came right out with a little tug of the winch! I swear that ZEON 12 has been a lifesaver these past several times out....



I grabbed ahold of this huge tree that was in the way, and pulled her down out of the trail so we could pass. Only to run into the swimming pool at the top of the hill...LOL

 
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Lunchbox2

Explorer
Can't stay outta the mud can you?


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I learned my lesson on that last hole....I've replaced an alternator, re-packed the wheel bearings, my power steering pump is about to take a dump, the heater controls don't work anymore. There's way too much carnage that comes from the water/mud, I'm done with this nonsense...LOL
 

tgreening

Expedition Leader
Suuure


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Quitting can be done. It only takes a few rounds through a 3-step process. 1) Remove broke *** part. 2) Bust out wallet.
3) Replace broke *** part.

A few trips through the process is a fantastic motivator. A bit of a muddy trail is one thing, but blasting through semi-bottomless holes is another, much more expensive prospect. :)
 

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