aircooled said:The duck thing seems to very much not be a west coast thing. Plenty of Jeeps here, never seen one. Friend has had an 87 for at least 20 years. No ducks ever and he has never mentioned anything about it.
Around Kansas City it seems to be specific to newer Wranglers and Gladiators. We have not seen one yet on my wife's "Jeep Shaped Fiat".
Appleseed said:In reply to bobzilla :
Look here buzz killington....
I would not say I'm a Jeep guy, I don't hang out with the crowd, but I do have one. While it's not stock, it's also not a cool one. It's just a 23 year old XJ instead of a Wrangler or Gladiator and the tires are too small for "Jeep" guys so it doesn't get waves or ducks. I bought it because it was a bigger more comfortable version of my Samurai and it had AC. I do carry one of those assault jacks. They are handy in all kinds of circumstances. I also have that huge spare on the back, traction boards, steel bumpers, side rails, a locker in the rear diff and limited slip in the front, a 12k-pound winch, shackles, snatch blocks, tree savers, kinetic rope, a snorkel, and even a fire extinguisher. It has little to do with looking cool and a lot to do with being hours out into the woods by myself with no cell coverage. Most of it has never been necessary, but that one time I need it and don't have it could make for a long walk back to civilization.
It's been a few places over the years but not as many as I would like.
SC has its own special type of slick. You better be prepared for it.
Interestingly enough, I got lots of Jeep waves when driving this. They loved the big tires. The big tires are also what made the fuel can and the assault jack a necessity.
And yes, they do on occasion get towed. In this case, because it sucked to drive on the street.
And in this case, because I haven't figured out how to drive two vehicles at the same time.
The best thing is I think it's great that the mall crawlers can buy this stuff and modify their rigs too. The diversity of builds and owners is actually what makes car hobbies great and I can love someone's build even while scratching my head trying to understand it. I really do like them all. Even the squatted trucks, the donks, the low riders, the stance nation, road racers, hot rodders, autocrossers, all of it. Build all the things and support all the builds.
If you want to hate on a vehicle, hate on your own. Then dig out the tools and fix what you don't like about it.
They're not "assault jacks", they're farm jacks. They've been around a lot longer than tacticool bros have :) Heck, they've been around longer than Jeeps.
In reply to Keith Tanner :
I've been using them for better than 40 years, starting on the farm my father grew up on. They started out as railroad jacks and were adopted by farmers for lifting everything from buildings to tractors, to stumps. My first experience was helping jack up a little house on the farm to change a sill, I think I was 10-11 at the time. I remember jumping on the handle because I didn't have quite enough weight to push it down. We had 2 ten ton screw jacks and the high lift. None of them were fun to use. I have also used one to jack up a 12x16 building high enough to back a trailer under it. That was another long day.
There are a lot of people that don't understand them and they will absolutely kill you if you don't know how to use them, hence the term of endearment, assault jack.
In reply to Toyman! :
I was about to say farm jack's have been killing people for years before the tacticool bros accessorized them.
In reply to Toyman! :
I really wanted an XJ but up here most of them are too rusty/tired for a daily. I have a small recovery kit with traction boards, strap shovel etc to go on the beach s few times a year. Thankfully I haven't needed it but the boards come out occasionally to help people that have gotten stuck usually because they didn't air down. We were in the Outer Banks last year and a couple kids had buried an FJ cruiser to the axle. They were shocked how easy it came out once we let some air out and put it in 4WD. I have some other parts, a bumper kit with tow points that doesn't have a shovel along the bottom, and a set of lift springs I haven't gotten around to putting in yet.
In reply to Wally (Forum Supporter) :
My XJ is in pretty good shape, but I wouldn't want to DD it. It does have almost 300k on it. I'm super tempted to send it to Davis Autosports for a complete up-fit. It would probably cost about as much as a base Bronco or Wrangler and I think I'd have a better vehicle at the end.
The best piece of recovery gear is between the ears. A little knowledge, like airing down, goes a long way and can keep you from having to use the rest of the recovery gear.
I not really a Jeep guy but I do own a 1948 CJ2A. It gets lots of waves from other Jeep owners and I've been told that the proper etiquette is for the newer Jeep to wave first.
Toyman! said:The best piece of recovery gear is between the ears. A little knowledge, like airing down, goes a long way and can keep you from having to use the rest of the recovery gear.
Out here on the Outer Banks it's fun/sad to see people leave that one piece of gear at home. I used to ride around on 33s at 8psi in 2wd and keep the mantra "as long as you're moving, you're not stuck."
In reply to Wayslow :
Is that a stock backseat or one from a CJ5?
About the farm jack - I think this cat would have been one of us. Not only did he develop the jack in 1905, he also designed the "seven-use hammer-hatchet-wirecutter-pliers tool"
In reply to Keith Tanner :
I'm always amazed at how much weight you can pick up with a couple of 1/2 inch pins, a few levers, and a 3 foot long piece of pipe.
Just treat them with respect. They will smack the hell out of you with the handle and drop a load without warning. Doubly true after getting dust and mud in the works. BTDT.
In reply to Toyman! :
Yeah, an acquaintance lost an eye to one. I always have one firm hand on the handle and treat them with respect.
buzzboy said:Toyman! said:The best piece of recovery gear is between the ears. A little knowledge, like airing down, goes a long way and can keep you from having to use the rest of the recovery gear.
Out here on the Outer Banks it's fun/sad to see people leave that one piece of gear at home. I used to ride around on 33s at 8psi in 2wd and keep the mantra "as long as you're moving, you're not stuck."
This takes effort, just how do you do that?
My wife had a beautiful 2000 XJ Classic, dark red, monochrome bumpers, dark grey wheels. It was absolutely mint, and she traded it in with 48k miles for $4500 in 2005 on a new Liberty. I should have bought that thing, but at the time I was in the Navy and already had a nice car and didn't have space and money for a second. Add 100k miles and 13 years and it's worth more than that $4500 today. Ugh. The one that got away.
I have a few friends with modern Jeeps and they love them. I haven't been motivated to try one. But I got a CJ2A a couple of years ago and it is so much fun. I like to give my friends a hard time and say it's not a real Jeep unless the gas tank is under your butt.
It's the only vehicle I've ever had that I can gas up without getting out.
In reply to Carl Heideman :
Now that's cool!
In reply to Steve_Jones :
That's what the kids in the FJ did. They start to feel some resistance, and the only thing they know is to give it more power until they dig in. We saw a number of people do it while we were there.
In reply to octavious :
It's actually homemade. I found the drawing online and used 1/2" rigid electrical conduit for the frame. The seat bottom is plywood and the back is sheet metal that I rolled three beads in to give it some strength and make it look stock. The fabric is marine grade vinyl. The front seats were made the same way.
buzzboy said:Out here on the Outer Banks it's fun/sad to see people leave that one piece of gear at home. I used to ride around on 33s at 8psi in 2wd and keep the mantra "as long as you're moving, you're not stuck."
Also:
Just like how smooth is fast in Motorsports, smooth doesn't get stuck on the beach.
Gentle inputs for steering, brakes and throttle.
Brett_Murphy (Agent of Chaos) said:Gentle inputs for steering and throttle, never touch the brakes
Fixed it. The beach speed limit is 15. You stop fast enough just hitting the clutch.
I've wanted a Wrangler since high school (part of the 'farm kid from the "city"' package, I suppose) and on July 3rd made it happen. I drove 2 hours north with my 2017 Expedition and came back with a 2007 JKU and I couldn't be happier. On the drive home, my right front blew out in spectacular fashion, and there was no jack or tools in the Jeep, so I waited in the middle of nowhere, reluctant to call my dad for help, for about 40 minutes before someone stopped to help. Got it home, ordered new tires and started planning.
She's already hit the offroad park, been lifted and gotten new wheels for the new tires that were an immediate, and unexpected, need. I do plan to build thread her, but I haven't gotten around to it just yet.
There are still a lot of things on the to-do list, but as those here who are also on my FB can attest, I'm in love with her and post about her like she's a newborn child.
(that's me being pulled off a high-center all the way to the left, and no, I didn't have hooks at the time)
(this was her first day. She got a bath after the offroad park then I decided to take her down some farm trails)
One of my favorite parts? The new (local) friends that I've made because of her.
^^Where in IL? I'm in the NW Chicago burbs, I've been kinda half-looking to join a Jeep club to go off-road on occasion.
You'll need to log in to post.
