Nothing Special Posted August 27, 2022 Author Share Posted August 27, 2022 You got a lot done in that time. And you'll certainly enjoy it, I'm sure. As for the ability to look back and see what you've done, I'd be both lost & sad w/o it. Lost because there are many, many times I want to know what I did. Sad because I know I've done a lot but don't really remember what all I've done until I take a trip down Memory Lane. So I'm happy to continue to document my journeys, and I'm glad you are doing it as well 'cause I get to take the journey with you. I took it in for an alignment. I didn't do as good a job on the caster as I'd hoped. Driver's side wasn't bad at 6.4*, but passenger's side at 4.5* was a bit disappointing. They said there's nothing they can do about it. For now I'll live with that, but if I think it needs fixing I'll look into adjusting it with bushings, which at least used to be a thing. Camber wasn't great either with 1.0* driver's and 0.4* passenger's (they say spec is 1* - 2*). But it doesn't seem that bad either. It definitely drove better after the alignment, but seemed worse than before. On the highway it just didn't feel planted. It wasn't really trying to wander, but it wasn't trying to go straight either. So as a shot in the dark that I could take back if needed I added about half a turn to the tie rod adjuster to give it a little more toe-in. It's a LOT better now. Maybe not quite as planted as my pickup, but I do have the 33/12.50-15 mud tires on it too. I still will probably add another 1/4 turn to see if I can make it even better. But if it stays like it is now I can easily live with it. Speaking of the mud tires, they gave me a lot of vibration at some highway speeds before. I had them re-rebalanced now. A nice side benefit of the F-150 axle and brakes is that there's a lot more clearance for wheel weights than there is over the Chevy brakes I had. That gave them room to do it better this time. And up to 70 mph it's smooth! I was a little worried about that with a trip out to Utah coming up in 2 weeks! On the down side, I had forgotten how LOUD these tires are! I shouldn't be able to hear them from the motorhome while we're towing it. And on the trails they'll be fine. But driving around while we're out there won't be quite as pleasant as it might be. Oh well, we'll live with that too. I got the trans shifter boot on. That worked out well, but sorry, no pictures yet. The transfer case shifter boot wasn't quite so successful. I set up the shifters as far back as I could to keep them out of my leg while I'm driving. But the boot doesn't like them that far back. The furthest rear position is high range, and when the front shifter is in high (to be in 4-high) the boot is spring-loading it back to neutral, and it pops out of gear pretty frequently. So I need to adjust the shifters forward a bit. I did get the clutch adjusted well, and have the hand throttle hooked up. I still haven't driven it on the new front gears. But I have spun the front driveline on the freeway (trans in gear, hubs unlocked) and there's no noise or vibration (at least no noise I can hear over the tires). So lots of little things done, and a few little things left to do. But I'm getting more confidence that it'll be ready for this trip! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted August 27, 2022 Share Posted August 27, 2022 I took it in for an alignment. I didn't do as good a job on the caster as I'd hoped. Driver's side wasn't bad at 6.4*, but passenger's side at 4.5* was a bit disappointing. They said there's nothing they can do about it. For now I'll live with that, but if I think it needs fixing I'll look into adjusting it with bushings, which at least used to be a thing. Camber wasn't great either with 1.0* driver's and 0.4* passenger's (they say spec is 1* - 2*). But it doesn't seem that bad either. It definitely drove better after the alignment, but seemed worse than before. On the highway it just didn't feel planted. It wasn't really trying to wander, but it wasn't trying to go straight either. So as a shot in the dark that I could take back if needed I added about half a turn to the tie rod adjuster to give it a little more toe-in. It's a LOT better now. Maybe not quite as planted as my pickup, but I do have the 33/12.50-15 mud tires on it too. I still will probably add another 1/4 turn to see if I can make it even better. But if it stays like it is now I can easily live with it. Speaking of the mud tires, they gave me a lot of vibration at some highway speeds before. I had them re-rebalanced now. A nice side benefit of the F-150 axle and brakes is that there's a lot more clearance for wheel weights than there is over the Chevy brakes I had. That gave them room to do it better this time. And up to 70 mph it's smooth! I was a little worried about that with a trip out to Utah coming up in 2 weeks! On the down side, I had forgotten how LOUD these tires are! I shouldn't be able to hear them from the motorhome while we're towing it. And on the trails they'll be fine. But driving around while we're out there won't be quite as pleasant as it might be. Oh well, we'll live with that too. I got the trans shifter boot on. That worked out well, but sorry, no pictures yet. The transfer case shifter boot wasn't quite so successful. I set up the shifters as far back as I could to keep them out of my leg while I'm driving. But the boot doesn't like them that far back. The furthest rear position is high range, and when the front shifter is in high (to be in 4-high) the boot is spring-loading it back to neutral, and it pops out of gear pretty frequently. So I need to adjust the shifters forward a bit. I did get the clutch adjusted well, and have the hand throttle hooked up. I still haven't driven it on the new front gears. But I have spun the front driveline on the freeway (trans in gear, hubs unlocked) and there's no noise or vibration (at least no noise I can hear over the tires). So lots of little things done, and a few little things left to do. But I'm getting more confidence that it'll be ready for this trip! Seems like you are close! Very close! I hope a bit more toe-in will nail it, at least for the trip. But bushings might help even more, later. And yes, tires can make quite a racket. At least you shouldn’t hear them while towing, and maybe they won’t be too obnoxious at low speeds? Anyway, it seems like you are getting the last of the details worked out. Well done! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nothing Special Posted August 27, 2022 Author Share Posted August 27, 2022 Seems like you are close! Very close! I hope a bit more toe-in will nail it, at least for the trip. But bushings might help even more, later. And yes, tires can make quite a racket. At least you shouldn’t hear them while towing, and maybe they won’t be too obnoxious at low speeds? Anyway, it seems like you are getting the last of the details worked out. Well done! We were driving around a bit this evening at speeds up to about 40 mph. Lesley didn't say anything about the noise. But on the trip we'll be driving from Hurricane to Bryce Canyon, which is over 100 miles. I hope at least some of that drive is fast enough to make the tires loud! So we'll see how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nothing Special Posted September 3, 2022 Author Share Posted September 3, 2022 We were driving around a bit this evening at speeds up to about 40 mph. Lesley didn't say anything about the noise. But on the trip we'll be driving from Hurricane to Bryce Canyon, which is over 100 miles. I hope at least some of that drive is fast enough to make the tires loud! So we'll see how it goes. I got the transfer case shifter adjusted so I can put it in 4-high without the boot pushing the front stick back to neutral, so I finally have pictures of the shifters. In these pictures the transfer case is in 4-high (both sticks all the way back). Most of the time of course it will be in 2-high, with the left stick (which shifts the front driveline) one click forward (in neutral). And on the trails it's usually in 4-low (both sticks 2 clicks forward of these pictures). 2-high and especially 4-low puts the shifter for the front stick against my leg, so I would have preferred having them farther back. But I should be able to live with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grumpin Posted September 4, 2022 Share Posted September 4, 2022 I got the transfer case shifter adjusted so I can put it in 4-high without the boot pushing the front stick back to neutral, so I finally have pictures of the shifters. In these pictures the transfer case is in 4-high (both sticks all the way back). Most of the time of course it will be in 2-high, with the left stick (which shifts the front driveline) one click forward (in neutral). And on the trails it's usually in 4-low (both sticks 2 clicks forward of these pictures). 2-high and especially 4-low puts the shifter for the front stick against my leg, so I would have preferred having them farther back. But I should be able to live with this. That looks nice! Pluto looks happy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted September 4, 2022 Share Posted September 4, 2022 That looks nice! Pluto looks happy! Yes, i does look nice. And I guess the shift levers don't lend themselves t heating and bending? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nothing Special Posted September 4, 2022 Author Share Posted September 4, 2022 That looks nice! Pluto looks happy! Thanks! And Pluto usually looks happy, that's partly why he's my favorite Disney character! (he also hangs from the Bronco's rear view mirror) Yes, i does look nice. And I guess the shift levers don't lend themselves t heating and bending? The left lever for the transfer case (that shifts the front driveline) and the transmission shifter have both been heated / bent. Is there a direction you'd recommend bending them from where they are? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted September 4, 2022 Share Posted September 4, 2022 That looks nice! Pluto looks happy! Thanks! And Pluto usually looks happy, that's partly why he's my favorite Disney character! (he also hangs from the Bronco's rear view mirror) Yes, i does look nice. And I guess the shift levers don't lend themselves t heating and bending? The left lever for the transfer case (that shifts the front driveline) and the transmission shifter have both been heated / bent. Is there a direction you'd recommend bending them from where they are? I was thinking that bending them to the right would get them off your leg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nothing Special Posted September 4, 2022 Author Share Posted September 4, 2022 I was thinking that bending them to the right would get them off your leg. Looking at the picture now I see that too. But I haven't seen it as a good option when I'm in the vehicle. I'll have to look into that at some point. But it won't happen before this trip! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted September 5, 2022 Share Posted September 5, 2022 Looking at the picture now I see that too. But I haven't seen it as a good option when I'm in the vehicle. I'll have to look into that at some point. But it won't happen before this trip! I understand that position. It works, and that's what is needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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