Whispering Pines trail run

Over the weekend I was invited out to Whispering Pines off road facility. There were
some people from the local 4×4 club that I belong to heading out there for some trail riding fun.

 

I had never been there before so I decided to tag along. I was not expecting any
hardcore trails or giant rocks that would give me any problems. I thought it would be a nice
easy day just driving through the woods. Boy was I wrong.

There were six Jeeps that went out for some fun. At first it was a nice day with no real obstacles that
my Jeep on 35s and locked at both ends could not handle easily. Then the rain came. It started as
just a drizzle and made it slippery enough that the people without lockers were having trouble.

Here is Jordan in his XJ stuck in a mud hole. It was pretty shallow and he was pulled out
without any trouble.

Here I am on the only rocks at the place. Its about 30 feet of small rocks.

We took a break for lunch and that’s when the sky opened up and poured rain on us.
This was a hard rain and lasted for at least half an hour.

After lunch we decided to head back out on the trails. At this point the stockish Jeeps had left
for the day. It was me in my ZJ, Mike in his CJ-5 with 35s and lockers, Paul in his CJ-7 with 33s,
and Mike in his TJ on 33s and a rear limited slip.

We were going along pretty well on the sloppy muddy trails for a little while. We went down a
hill and made a tight left hand turn which brought us to the hill climb from hell.

Mike in the CJ-5 was the first one up. He had a little trouble getting to the top but he did make it. I was next.

I thought that with lockers and 35 inch tires I would just walk right up there. I was wrong. It was a good thing Mike was already at the top because he was the only one with a winch.

Once we got me winched up it was Mikes turn. He dident make it either. We winched him up. Then it was Pauls turn. He did not get far before he slid off the trail and into a hole.

We had three 20′ long straps and 100′ of winch cable just to reach him from Mikes CJ. We pulled and pulled with no movement on Pauls Jeep. The straps were taking up all the energy and stretching.

Luckily there was another group in the park from Mohawk Valley Mudcrawlers. They had 10 trucks and
most of them had winches.

There is no comparison between a Warn winch and a cheap
Harbour Freight winch. Mike HF winch was having trouble and pulling extremely slow. When one of the guys with a Warn hooked up it was amazing. Pulled him right out and pulled fast. Seeing them perform side by side like that was a good lesson on cheap tools.

All in all it was a good day. A little more body damage and a lot of mud to clean off. Whispering Pines
is not a hardcore park like Rausch Creek but it is close and fun. Check them out at http://www.whisperingpineshideaway.com

Visit my website at www.bluedogjeep.com

Or email me at Ryan@bluedogjeep.com
Ryan@BlueDogJeep.com

See you on the trail

Tie Rod upgrade

Those of you that get my newsletter know that I swapped out my front axle for
a high pinion Dana 30. I rebuilt the axle, replaced all the bearings and seals, put in
4.88 gears and an Aussie Locker.

Here is the Jeep without an axle.

Here is the axle all rebuild painted and ready to install.

As long as I had everything unhooked and out of the Jeep I decieded to change out the
tie rod for a Grand Cherokee V-8 tie rod. This is a popular swap for those of us with 6 cylinder
Grands or XJ cherokees or TJ Wranglers. The stock tie rod is made of thin wall tubing and the
V-8 tie rod is made of solid 1″ tubing. The new assembly weighs about 10 pounds more than the old one does. You can see the difference in this picture

Not only is the rod itself bigger the ends are also much beefier. As this pic illustrates.

This was a completely bolt on installation. There was no drilling or fabrication required
to get this to fit. It is a very easy upgrade and inexpensive upgrade to do. You will need to re-set the toe after you install this, and may have to adjust the drag link to get the steering wheel centered again. I can supply the tie rod, ends and adjuster
for $115.

I feel much better wheeling with this new set up than I did before. I am more confident in the ability of my
Jeep now, so I am able to try harder lines and bigger obstacles.

Visit my website at www.bluedogjeep.com

Or email me at Ryan@bluedogjeep.com
Ryan@BlueDogJeep.com

Rausch Creek 7-5-08

July 4th weekend a group of us went to Rausch Creek off road park. This was my first
time at this amazing park.

I took the four hour trip down on Friday afternoon. I arrived at the campground around
7:00pm. I met up with the rest of the group that had been out wheeling all that day. We sat around
the fire and told stories and drank beer well into the night.

My Jeep is big enough for me to sleep in, so I had no worries about the rain that was forcast
for that night. We woke up early the next morning and headed out to the park.

I was very impressed with the trails and the scenery. I was told that this is reclaimed
coal mining land. Some of the roads and puddles were black and looked like coal. The trails are full
of rocks and some very deep water holes.

As I was the only one with a camera this is the only shot of my Jeep.

This is Mikes orange CJ-5 on 35s.

Here is anothe Mike with his Dakota on 40s getting a little more body damage.

I was in complete awe with a place called Rock Creek. It is a natural patch of rocks about 100′ wide
and about a half mile wide. None of the people in the group thought it would be a good idea to
drive into Rock Creek.

It was a great trip and I do plan on going back, soon.

The delivery

The CJ-5 is gone. It has found a new home on Long Island.

I drove it to Manhattan on Friday. The Jeep performed great on the way there. Thanks to the overdrive transmission the we put in I could drive 65mph comfortably. I left here at about 9:00pm and drove for a while in the rain. At about 12:00 I stopped in Binghamton for the night.

The morning driving was great. There was very little traffic until I hit the Holland tunnel, thats where the traffic hell started. It felt like I was in traffic for hours, 95 degrees, no ac in bumper to bumper traffic. It was horrible.

I finally found a parking spot on Broadway right in front of Yellow Rat Bastard. Feeling stressed from all the traffic I hopped out and went for a walk. Its my first time in NYC and I had no idea what I was doing, where I was going, or what to expect.

I met up with Brett and this was his first time seeing the Jeep. He loved it. We climbed in and headed off to Long Island City. I think as soon as we started driving the thunderstorms started.

So here we are driving the Jeep around with no doors in pouring rain around NYC. He drove like a New Yorker through the very tight streets. I have to say I was a little nervous. We got stuck in traffic again. What should have been a 10 minute trip took almost an hour.

He really liked the Jeep and is very happy with it.

I think the highlight of the trip was when Brett took me to Katz’s deli for a pastrami sandwich. . That was the best sandwich that I have ever eaten. If you go to NYC you have to go there and get a pastrami sandwich.

I had a great trip and met some really great people. Sad to see the Jeep go but im sure Brett will love it and take great care of it.

Meh, what can you do…….

I know its been awhile since my last post. I’m gonna tell you why and why I have been so stressed.

I thought I had Bretts 1966 CJ-5 ready to deliver. Everything seemed to be going along great until I got the plates for it and took it out for a ride. I skipped and bucked like an old beat up jalopy.

I could not deliver it running the way it was. I had my plane tickets for the ride home after delivery and thought I was heading to NYC for a pastrami sandwich at Katz’s deli. I thought wrong.

After replacing everything and trying everything I could think of, I had to cancel delivery.

I have it down to a carb problem. I need to find a rebuilt or new carb for this engine. I hope do get that all done this week and have it ready for delivery on June 14th.

I cant wait for the pastrami sandwich. That looks like some good eating.

Topless

I am a Jeep specialist. I dont know everything there is to know about Jeeps, that is imposable. I do know how to fix them and how to modify them to suit your needs. I know the history and culture behind the Jeep lifestyle. I drive Jeeps, I have for many years. When i drive a Wrangler or CJ-7 if the weather is good I do it without the top or doors. Is that what you do? If not then you should. There is no better feeling that driving a Jeep topless. Its a nice day today take the out Jeep for a ride.

Seth Goding has a great blog post today about specialists. Please read it at http://sethgodin.typepad.com/  

I dont have much to say today….

So here are a couple pics.

The interior of the 66

Well I said I would post up some pics of the interior today. I got most of it done this evening and I think it looks darn good.

The wheels that I have been waiting on for weeks showed up today. I put one on to make sure the 17″x8″ Pro-Comp wheel would have enough clearance around the brakes and suspension. They fit great. No rubbing at all. The tires will get mounted on Saturday then this thing will really look great.

BlueDogJeep.com

Almost done

Well Bretts 1966 CJ-5 is almost complete. Im waiting a new aluminum radiator and an oil seal. The Bestop seats are in and mounted. We went with all three new Bestop trailmax seats and a new Bestop top. The old seats were low back and were not adjustable. These new seats are comfortable firm and have reclining backs. Between the seats sits a Tuffy security console. This is an essential piece for any jeep with a soft top and doors. There are no locks on the doors and even if there were a pocket knife would cut a thiefs way in. I will get the carpet in tomorrow and post a few pics of the interior tomorrow.

Whats in a name???????

You may have been asking yourself where did Ryan come up with the name for
Blue Dog Jeep. Well the answer is very simple. I have a dog that is blue. In
fact he is a Blue Heeler or Australian cattle dog and he is a great friend.

Like a Jeep he is tough, reliable, and sometimes a PITA. He is always there
when I need him to get the geese out of the pond or help me out in the shop. His
name is Junior and if you have been here and had him bite your tires you will
not forget his charming personality.