Gembrook techie Questions

Submitted: Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 07:14

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Member - Sparkie (QLD)

Just curious about who had diff lockers and which people noticed how much difference did it make.
From Terracan Tims posting it seemed there was a hill there only one car managed to climb or was the only one who was willing to try it.
what was it, that helped him climb it. Could it have been his tyres? Clearance? Power? Difflockers? or a combination of all the above.
I am curious to know because I figure a good tradesman also has good tools so what tools did he use????

Sparkie(IE not Y) ;-)

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Reply By: Jimbo - Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 12:17

Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 12:17

OK Sparkie I'll have a go. Only Eric got up the first hill with a combination of experience, power (4.5L petrol), 5 inch lift, lockers and good tyres.

Now for another comparison, on a later hill my Petrol Terracan running AT's went up much easier than John's Diesel Troopie running AT's and lockers; and John's far more experienced than me. I'll put it down to power to weight ratio and momentum because I'm never even going to hint that a Terracan is more capable than a Troopie, that would be absurd.

Kevin got up easily in his diesel GQ which has been lifted and runs muddies.

Note: John is buying a set of muddies tomorrow. With decent grip I reckon the Troopie would waltz up.

Tony also had a go at the first hill in his 3L challenger with big muddies and lockers, but failed due to power. He told me with all the extras he has fitted and the increase in gearing, the Challenger simply ran out of puff. But christ, he gave it a red hot go.

I think this generally supports your assumption that it was a combination of man and machine.

Jim.

AnswerID: 69511

Follow Up By: Member - John (Vic) - Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 14:56

Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 14:56

Jim's pretty well correct in most of what he said.

Tyres was name of the game, the mud was thick clay very very greasy without a tyre that is quick to drop the mud then you had a problem.

Other factors that influence the situation can come down to things such as the last major climb of the day I was tail end charlie and 11 trucks had climbed before me leaving the surface very slick and greasy all sandy grit etc and potential grip had been thrown off leaving a firm slick surface.
The first couple of tries I had I did not take a big enough run at it.
Consider the Troopy weighs probably twice the weight of the Terracan's.

When I finally did back down further and stayed in low 2nd with front and rear lockers in we made the top, a hell of a ride sliding from one side of the track to the other (Surprising we didn't side swipe a tree) we made the top.
My view was no lockers no way to have made the top without winching.
Lockers made the difference, you can feel the front or rear wheels grab as they gained some traction.
They are worth the money. I would not buy a 4by and not fit them having had them.
They take out of the equation, the issue of power lose to the wheel with traction, but when all 4 don't have traction all thet happens is all 4 wheels spin and you still go nowhere.

I believe that if I had a more agressive tyre tread then the job would have been easier, this is the same for all.

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Reply By: Member - Sparkie (QLD) - Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 15:07

Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 15:07

Thanks for that I was curious as I have no idea as to what constitutes a good 4wd.

I have seen sierra's go places a td patrol couldn't tackle. The patrol shred 2 tyres before he got halfway there.I am talking about some tracks in the blue mountains where rockhopping looked like the order of the day.

The reason I asked was because it seems to depend on the terrain as to the type of vehicle will tackle it.

I realise experience plays a big part as to what a driver can do with his vehicle.

It seems to me that for the most part when travelling around this great land of ours most 4wd's will be very capable because the major part of it is dirt and corrugations. Unless you are looking to do weird and wild 4WDing you dont need to have the biggest and most powerfull 4wd on the market.

Sparkie(IE not Y) ;-)

AnswerID: 69526

Reply By: Rossco100series - Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 16:34

Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 16:34

Have a rear factory fitted diff lock to my SWB Mav but some very second hand looking BFG muddie's. And being the 9th or 10th car to climb hills it become very interesting same as watching john in his Troopy following me. Oh Muddy girl where my spanking ??????? :-).

Anyway fantastic day

Rossco

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Follow Up By: Member - John (Vic) - Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 16:59

Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 16:59

Hi Rossco,

You got your spanking in the IGA car park in Gembrook, so my promise has been kept. I never said what with or for how long,

Now John is asking were is his.

But thanks for yours & Gary's weight on the side of the Troopy,
much appreciated.

Regards
Muddy Girl

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Follow Up By: Rossco100series - Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 17:20

Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 17:20

And it was goooooooood :-). It was good to see that we got the troopy out all in 1.

Looking forward to another great day

Rossco

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Reply By: 2ndLow - Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 16:59

Sunday, Jul 25, 2004 at 16:59

I just want to add a few points. 4wding is a learning curve. I remember the an article saying "Generally a 4wd is built tougher than a driver".....it implied that a 4by can actually go more place than you could imagine. It also mean human factor affect how far a 4by can go before it need to be recovered.

I clearly saw this yesterday when I was filming how Eric sucessfully conquered the first hill with his impressive driving skills.

Yes, he got muddies, rear locker and powerful 4.5 engine. But he when he attempted the hill, he had stopped more than 10 times. If he is a novice, he may give up when he stopped at the first couple times. BUT.....he knew he can make the difference by keep trying. Everytime when he stopped, he back off about a meter to 2. As he slided back, his car actually building a short runway for the next run............and he did it perfectly.

But.........he rev his car to its limit.........I have never heard the engine sound from non-turbo cruiser sounds like from a turbo-charged engine........ but I did hear this first time yesterday!

Best 4wding = (Machine + Human + Terrain)

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