Offroad?

[Redneckintraining]

So who here takes their first gen off road?More Specically how well does it do?My truck seems to do fine as long as there is a firm base less than 3ft down,then it starts to have problems.Driving though snow up to bumpers is no problem providing that the ground underneath the snow is atleast somewhat firm. My truck once got stuck near a lakebed...The truck did what it does best and sank down to find a firm surface,but there wasnt any...That and I had highway tires and open diffs all the way around.now that my truck has a posi in the rear it might do better..

I havent really taken it offroad much because of its tires.Normally I just use a little subaru with some tiny (26") tall tractor tires.It seems to do pretty good.Between the tires and the light weight it just wont sink in the mud.The car weighs 2000 lbs and the tires provide so much bite that it doesnt have an oportunity to sink.


However I would like to use something more reliable.So Im thinking about lift my truck if I can find a lift kit that will hold the cummins.Then some 35" swampers or maybe some 37"s tires...

so how would a first gen with those mods do?

[nooblet]

it would depend on your terrain, but first gens are HEAVY. They are really too heavy for offroading in my experience. But if your just talking about mud, they do OK.

My truck is locked front and rear and i have 35" bfg mts. It does surprisingly well in the mud. It does awful rock crawling and hill climbing though. And of course it has next to no flex at all, which doesn't help.



Chris

[Redneckintraining]

does a 1st gen weigh more than a 2nd gen?Ive seen abunch of the 2nd gens offroading and they do ok...

[cummins king]

there not to much apart in weight it all depends on tires, and what kind of power you put out. a stock auto 1st gen, sucks in any condition. But ive done some crazy stuff with my truck and its done quit well.

And hes right they don't like to flex to much.

[nooblet]

does a 1st gen weigh more than a 2nd gen?Ive seen abunch of the 2nd gens offroading and they do ok...

No they are about the same weight. I worded that poorly. I meant they are heavy compared to a 1/2 with a small block, a jeep, a bronco, etc...

Chris

[MMiller]

I've wheeled both my 90 and my 93. I don't wheel the 93 anymore, but the 90 is my trail truck. I'm currently running 38" tires, detroits in both ends and 4:10 gears. I'm in the process of changing out the 727 to a 47RE. I plan in the future to put in a doubler kit, for more crawl ratios, and I have my eyes on a set of 40x16x17 LTB's and beadlock rims.

Now, I've never wheeled a Jeep, Toyota, 1/2 ton truck, but I have wheeled my 75, 440, 4spd, W200, and I really enjoy my Cummins powered offroad truck. I run with a group that have trucks all with big blocks, one ton axles, or rockwells, and 44" to 51" tires. My cummins will struggle more in sandy soils, but my current tires are one 12.5 wide. The weight is not much different then my other buddy's trucks, and I have no problem running with them.

Having the ability to idle along the trail, no choking or gagging of a gas engine, instant torque I all enjoy. Also having a power plant very different then the norm is fun. I was yanking on a buddy that was very stuck(couldn't see his 50" tractor tires), and when I finally got him out, we have lots of onlookers. One of them reported "We came to watch, because it sounded like someone had there semi truck stuck out in the timber" I for the most part stay out of the deep mud. I like to trail ride, hill climb, and do technical trails. I have not had the opprotunity to rock crawl(there isn't many rocks in the Midwest). Moab is on my list of places to go before I die.

Michael

[GO OVRIT]

The weight balance isn't wonderful on out trucks. They're very front heavy. My 92 actually flexes pretty good with 6" alcan springs and no sway bar. I think it does a better job as a tow rig to get my Jeep or my big block truck to the trail, mud bog, or sand drags though.

[burnt_servo]

weight balace is everything , i've got a couple m37's and they are close to 8000 pounds , but off road beautifully beacause it is fairly evenly distrubuted front and rear .

with a 1st gen diesel , isn't it like 70% of the weight is on the front tires when it's empty ?

[Redneckintraining]

so what exactly makes a stock auto first gen suck at everything?I had to tow a car 40 miles away up to a buddies farm.unload the car then go to turn around.it seems that the snow drifts were about 7" deep(basically the height of the rear diff of the ground) and the truck got stuck.My buddy ended up having to pull me out but he was an hour and a half away when I first got stuck.He drives a 2004-2006 dodge ram 4x4 with the 5.9 and a manual.he didnt have any problems at all pulling me out.he just idled and pulled me out.My truck just didnt want to drive out on its own,even after I had shoveled snow away from the tires and behind the rear diff abit...

[peobryant]

so what exactly makes a stock auto first gen suck at everything?I had to tow a car 40 miles away up to a buddies farm.unload the car then go to turn around.it seems that the snow drifts were about 7" deep(basically the height of the rear diff of the ground) and the truck got stuck.My buddy ended up having to pull me out but he was an hour and a half away when I first got stuck.He drives a 2004-2006 dodge ram 4x4 with the 5.9 and a manual.he didnt have any problems at all pulling me out.he just idled and pulled me out.My truck just didnt want to drive out on its own,even after I had shoveled snow away from the tires and behind the rear diff abit...

So, you are trying to compare an almost 20yr old tranny to a 3yr old tranny?

[nooblet]

I've wheeled both my 90 and my 93. I don't wheel the 93 anymore, but the 90 is my trail truck. I'm currently running 38" tires, detroits in both ends and 4:10 gears. I'm in the process of changing out the 727 to a 47RE. I plan in the future to put in a doubler kit, for more crawl ratios, and I have my eyes on a set of 40x16x17 LTB's and beadlock rims.

Now, I've never wheeled a Jeep, Toyota, 1/2 ton truck, but I have wheeled my 75, 440, 4spd, W200, and I really enjoy my Cummins powered offroad truck. I run with a group that have trucks all with big blocks, one ton axles, or rockwells, and 44" to 51" tires. My cummins will struggle more in sandy soils, but my current tires are one 12.5 wide. The weight is not much different then my other buddy's trucks, and I have no problem running with them.

Having the ability to idle along the trail, no choking or gagging of a gas engine, instant torque I all enjoy. Also having a power plant very different then the norm is fun. I was yanking on a buddy that was very stuck(couldn't see his 50" tractor tires), and when I finally got him out, we have lots of onlookers. One of them reported "We came to watch, because it sounded like someone had there semi truck stuck out in the timber" I for the most part stay out of the deep mud. I like to trail ride, hill climb, and do technical trails. I have not had the opprotunity to rock crawl(there isn't many rocks in the Midwest). Moab is on my list of places to go before I die.

Michael

I do this with mine as well, don't get me wrong. I always take my truck on trails following my friends, i just drive TO the trails not THROUGH them lol. I can safely say my w250 has seen more offroading than most.

But for end game wheeling, you would have to take a lot more into consideration to make it a capable vehicle than many others. I'd rather make a ram charger into a trail rig and tow it with my 1st gen, but maybe thats just me.

One thing thats undeniable about 1st gens offroad though, there isn't anything they can't get unstuck! My truck is like an unofficial recovery vehicle

I guess the point is do what makes you happy!

since this is the lounge i won't feel so bad about going off subject a little bit...

Heres my never running offroad PoS



It might be a gasoline engine, but she blacksmokes like a Cummins when she's on her side!



Pathfinder + tractor tires = fun



Chris

[PToombs]

C'mon, tell the whole truth! Garden tractor tires!

[Redneckintraining]

so is it the tranny that makes my truck suck at everything except being a pavement princess?It seems like my truck is only usefull for getting stuck some times.doesnt go very fast doesnt get very good mpg,etc.then it justs gets stuck on otherwise easy stuff.Most vehicles that have some offroad ability will go a bit before either tires or groundclearance stops them,my truck gets stuck literally 15 ft from solid ground.Although my tires are 235/75/16 so that can't be helping much...

[peobryant]

so is it the tranny that makes my truck suck at everything except being a pavement princess?It seems like my truck is only usefull for getting stuck some times.doesnt go very fast doesnt get very good mpg,etc.then it justs gets stuck on otherwise easy stuff.Most vehicles that have some offroad ability will go a bit before either tires or groundclearance stops them,my truck gets stuck literally 15 ft from solid ground.Although my tires are 235/75/16 so that can't be helping much...

What year is your truck? The 518's "supposedly" have looser converters from factory than the 727. If you have a turned up truck, and a stock tranny, then that may very well be your problem. A good converter would do wonders for the tranny, but you would probably be better off rebuilding the whole thing.

[Redneckintraining]

89 w250 with the 727.