Big Blue To Tackle The GOAT

[Gary Lewis]

I've always used the big size option. While I know you prefer images the whole width of the page it's what I have to work with.

Heck, I would have been excited to see a snake doing its thing.

They obviously aren't going to see you as prey.

I'm sure it was more scared of you than you were of it.

I thought about using Big but then how would you see the snake?

Yes, he scurried off as I approached. However, I was about to step right where he was going and that spooked me when I realized it.

[Nothing Special]

I thought about using Big but then how would you see the snake?

Yes, he scurried off as I approached. However, I was about to step right where he was going and that spooked me when I realized it.

Looks like an enjoyable trip, but I understand cutting things short. Not entirely unlike how Lesley and I frequently end up on easier 4 wheel drive trails on that last day of a trip!

What tire pressure were you running? With the chance of hitting big ruts at speed you wouldn't want to go as low as you might on a true 4WD trail, but a better ride is maybe the biggest advantage of airing down. I MIGHT have dropped my 50/40 psi normal pressures to something like 30/20 for that type of driving. (Or I might not have...)

[Gary Lewis]

Looks like an enjoyable trip, but I understand cutting things short. Not entirely unlike how Lesley and I frequently end up on easier 4 wheel drive trails on that last day of a trip!

What tire pressure were you running? With the chance of hitting big ruts at speed you wouldn't want to go as low as you might on a true 4WD trail, but a better ride is maybe the biggest advantage of airing down. I MIGHT have dropped my 50/40 psi normal pressures to something like 30/20 for that type of driving. (Or I might not have...)

I left the tires at 35 psi, the normal pressure. That's 'cause we had so many sections of highway between the sections of trail, and then the trip to/from the hotels. So it would have been a big pain to change the pressures.

If I had the compressor installed I might have dropped them to the low 20's for the trail. We could have driven slowly on the blacktop/highway and then aired up at the end of the day before dashing to the hotel.

[swampedout]

I left the tires at 35 psi, the normal pressure. That's 'cause we had so many sections of highway between the sections of trail, and then the trip to/from the hotels. So it would have been a big pain to change the pressures.

If I had the compressor installed I might have dropped them to the low 20's for the trail. We could have driven slowly on the blacktop/highway and then aired up at the end of the day before dashing to the hotel.

Those trails look nice and shady. It is definitely snake season, I had a bull snake or gopher snake holed up in my Bullnose last week.

I know Im a day late, but happy birthday! Seems like you celebrated it the right way!

[Gary Lewis]

Those trails look nice and shady. It is definitely snake season, I had a bull snake or gopher snake holed up in my Bullnose last week.

I know Im a day late, but happy birthday! Seems like you celebrated it the right way!

Oh no! I'm glad I didn't have a snake IN my truck.

But thanks for the birthday wishes. Yes, I got to spend it the way I wanted.

[ArdWrknTrk]

Oh no! I'm glad I didn't have a snake IN my truck.

But thanks for the birthday wishes. Yes, I got to spend it the way I wanted.

I'd rather have the black snake holed up in my truck than the rodent damage I've seen here on the forum.

[Gary Lewis]

I'd rather have the black snake holed up in my truck than the rodent damage I've seen here on the forum.

There's truth to that. But I don't know what damage I'd do to the truck if I was driving when the snake came out of hiding.

[Gary Lewis]

There's truth to that. But I don't know what damage I'd do to the truck if I was driving when the snake came out of hiding.

To wrap this up, I filled the truck up and washed it today. The fill up took 23.2 gallons and we'd gone 236.2 miles for an average of 10.2 MPG. Of the 236 miles, 111 were on the highway doing from 55 to 65, so only 125 were on the trail. So assuming we got 11.5 MPG on the highway then we got 9.2 MPG on the trail portion of Tuesday.

As for the wash jobs, plural, I spent quite a bit of money at the local car wash, mostly hitting it with hot water & soap at high pressure. Mud oozed from every pore. From behind all of the trim. From the wheel wells. From the bumper - especially the front but even from behind the rubber trim strip on the back. EVERYWHERE!

Once I thought I was done there I brought it home and spent a couple of hours going over it in the driveway. And still got a ton of mud out. But, finally it came fairly clean. Here's sort of a before and after:

However, I did find one ding we didn't have when we started. We backed into something that hit the trim panel on the tailgate. Oh well, that's why you don't "restore" a truck before taking it offroading.

Then, when I thought I was all done, I tried to close the hood and it wouldn't stay latched. As it turns out, the two bolts holding the hood latch on were both loose and the latch had slid down way out of adjustment. So there are the first two of what will probably be many loose bolts I'll find as I check the truck out.

[grumpin]

To wrap this up, I filled the truck up and washed it today. The fill up took 23.2 gallons and we'd gone 236.2 miles for an average of 10.2 MPG. Of the 236 miles, 111 were on the highway doing from 55 to 65, so only 125 were on the trail. So assuming we got 11.5 MPG on the highway then we got 9.2 MPG on the trail portion of Tuesday.

As for the wash jobs, plural, I spent quite a bit of money at the local car wash, mostly hitting it with hot water & soap at high pressure. Mud oozed from every pore. From behind all of the trim. From the wheel wells. From the bumper - especially the front but even from behind the rubber trim strip on the back. EVERYWHERE!

Once I thought I was done there I brought it home and spent a couple of hours going over it in the driveway. And still got a ton of mud out. But, finally it came fairly clean. Here's sort of a before and after:

However, I did find one ding we didn't have when we started. We backed into something that hit the trim panel on the tailgate. Oh well, that's why you don't "restore" a truck before taking it offroading.

Then, when I thought I was all done, I tried to close the hood and it wouldn't stay latched. As it turns out, the two bolts holding the hood latch on were both loose and the latch had slid down way out of adjustment. So there are the first two of what will probably be many loose bolts I'll find as I check the truck out.

Too bad about that panel as they are hard to come by, or at least expensive!

But, that’s what your truck is for. Looks nice, everything came out good for an adventure!

Drove my truck on a 170 mile or so trip today. Very uneventful. I like that.

[ArdWrknTrk]

To wrap this up, I filled the truck up and washed it today. The fill up took 23.2 gallons and we'd gone 236.2 miles for an average of 10.2 MPG. Of the 236 miles, 111 were on the highway doing from 55 to 65, so only 125 were on the trail. So assuming we got 11.5 MPG on the highway then we got 9.2 MPG on the trail portion of Tuesday.

As for the wash jobs, plural, I spent quite a bit of money at the local car wash, mostly hitting it with hot water & soap at high pressure. Mud oozed from every pore. From behind all of the trim. From the wheel wells. From the bumper - especially the front but even from behind the rubber trim strip on the back. EVERYWHERE!

Once I thought I was done there I brought it home and spent a couple of hours going over it in the driveway. And still got a ton of mud out. But, finally it came fairly clean. Here's sort of a before and after:

However, I did find one ding we didn't have when we started. We backed into something that hit the trim panel on the tailgate. Oh well, that's why you don't "restore" a truck before taking it offroading.

Then, when I thought I was all done, I tried to close the hood and it wouldn't stay latched. As it turns out, the two bolts holding the hood latch on were both loose and the latch had slid down way out of adjustment. So there are the first two of what will probably be many loose bolts I'll find as I check the truck out.

A) This is why I use Loctite and not Anti-Seize.

B) Be sure you flush the heck out of those wheel arch supports.

Mud loves to sit up there and hold moisture at the pinch weld.

While you don't have to deal with electrolytes like road salt and magnesium chloride 'brine' I can tell you where this will lead.

And that is why I have left a couple of holes in the top of each wheel well, so I can flush them out without having to lay under the truck to spray over the plastic fender liners.

Squirting some oil up there so it can wick into the seam and keep water out will help a lot in the long term.

Big Blue is certainly looking good!