Cassville, MO 09-06
09-25-2006, 06:47 PM
#1
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Cassville, MO 09-06
Headed out from Tulsa on Friday about noon, got to Cory's in Monett around 3:15. From there we stopped by the Ranger Station in Cassville and picked up several maps - Topo maps are $6 each (There are 8 maps for this district, 1:24000 scale). Ranger station hours are 9-4:30 M-F, closed Sat/Sun.
South of Cassville on HWY 112 we found the Sportsman's Corner C-store; they also sell the maps, along with guns, food, gas, etc.
We scouted out a couple of campsites, then went back to Cory's for the night.
Saturday, we left Cory's with 4 toyotas and 1 jeep; 11 people in all.
There are two campsites (~1 acre clearings, no facilities) near the trailhead of FR 1045 - that's ~2 miles into the National Forest on Hwy 112, then ~2 miles east on 197 or Sugar Hill Scenic Byway. Each site is large enough for several tow rigs.
Got everyone rigged up / aired down and on the trail around 1:30 and spent about 3 hours making the 1045 / 1045A loop. We took the 1045 A trail first, and never could tell where 1045A ended and 1045 began. There were some moderately challenging rock ledges, enough to keep some spotters busy for the new people / stock vehicles. Most of the trail, though, could be done in a Geo....Metro! Shoot, you could probably do the whole loop with a set of sliderz. There were a few muddy puddles, nothing very deep.
Note: all these trails are NARROW and SCRATCHY... be ready for Mark Twain's Pinstripes!
Back at camp, we investigated a noise from Cory's front driver's wheelwell. Wheel bearing? Spindle Bushing? Couldn't find it, so we threw it back together and on the trailer.
We sent a few people back into Cassville for supper, while the rest of us explored a few more trails. There's one unnamed road on the Topo map that we explored - this is a smooth road (for passenger cars) that is marked FR 2280 with a green streetsign, but shows up as FR 198 on other maps
I mention this because the Topo map shows two seperate road segments, but the road goes right on through, from 197 (Sugar Camp Scenic Byway) to Butler Road.
Keith and the white jeep left to go back home, but we had a nice campfire and sat around relaxing for several hours.
About 11:30 decided to make a night run. We took 1045 this time, and decided to go up a steeper segment of the trail that bypasses most of the 1045A-1045 loop. I was surprised that my open/open IFS runner made it just as well as Hans' locked/locked SFA pickup made it. I had a lot more weight with 3 passengers and all my gear, but my BFG TAKO's are also nearly bald.
Before we left on the first run, I had aired down to 15 PSI. Aparently, that's a good number.
After that hill climb, we decided to take 1045 B, which forks West from the North side of the 1045 loop. This trail never dead ends, it just gets narrower and steeper. Finally there is a sign which prohibits motorized vehicles, but it looked like ATVs regularly used the trail. Must have been a recent closing. Consulting the Topo maps, we decided that this trail probably connected to one of three other dead-end trails on the map. We walked up the trail - which was quite challenging due to the steepness, and somebody constantly humming "dualing banjos". We found the "dead end" of another trail (although neither of these dead ends was marked by any more than a small sign) which took us back to 197. This trail segment was marked 1023 on both the map and the trail sign.
We took a quick run down 1010, met up with 1004 and looped back to 197. This trail segment was smooth as silk, nothing challenging at all. Average speed was probably 10-15 mph. From the Topo map, it appears that 1004 goes on down into Arkansas - might be something to explore later.
Note, There is some private land here. There were a couple of signs, and the borders seemed to be marked by purple paint on the trees. We went through one gate with a "Posted" sign, since the gate was open and the Topo map showed the road going through the pivate land on into more forest service land. On that fork of the road, however, the locals didn't want us going past their front porch. They were nice enough about it, but in my opinion, if you want people to keep out of your land and off your road, your sign needs to say "Posted Keep Out" instead of "Posted." There are too many variations - Posted No Hunting, Posted No Fishing, Posted No Trespassing, Posted Keep On The Trail, etc. Or they could have closed the gate.
Back at camp safe and sound, we woke up the next morning to the sound of locals running their coon dogs on the main road. They didn't bother us any, but next time we'll try camping out further off the main road. There were a couple clearings off of 1045A for a good camp.
Sunday, Cory headed home with his rig on the trailer, to get home early and fix the grinding bearing.
Hans put his rig on his trailer, then he and and I moved on up to the Mary Cole Ridge Trail, aka FR 1011. We found a good spot to park the tow rig just north of 1070, which is about 3/4 mile North of the Mary Cole Ridge Trail (AKA 1011). We tried 1070; this turned out to be not very challenging. Several branches with small campsites, too small for a tow rig and pretty tight for us to turn around in.
There is also room enough for several tow rigs and a campsite at the entrance to Mary Cole aka 1011, although either of these places will be noisy considering how close they are to Hwy 86.
We tried 1071 - this branches off from the Mary Cole Ridge Trail, about 1/4 mile off of Hwy 86. Don't bother with this one, it also runs into private land, but these hillbillies are a little scarrier looking. Oh yeah, be sure you lock your tow rig... just in case.
Further east on Mary Cole (about a mile from Hwy 86) we took off on 1059 - This goes northerly and has a spur called 1059 A. Don't bother with 1059 A unless you're looking for a place to camp or just get off the main trail - it's just not worth it. But 1059 was by far, the best trail we found. It offers several rocky ledges, a couple washouts, basically enough for you to have to slow down and think about your approach.
1059 follows Spring Creek to Rock Creek & Rock Creek Road, which is tow rig accessible in case somebody breaks down on the trail. This trail helped Hans figure out what his death wobble in the front end of his rig was - we almost had to go get his tow rig when we got to the end of 1059, but we screwed him back together and turned back up 1059. About 2/3 of the way down 1059 there is a trail that heads south back to Mary Cole. The trail was not numbered on the map nor with a sign, but there was a sign which showed the trail to be open to motorcycles, ATVs, and jeeps. Since this cut off about 1/2 mile of 1059 and didn't look any worse, we decided to take it to save 1/2 mile on Hans' weakened front end. I finally got to try my flex out, and my wife Jennifer got a good look at some rocks out her window. I was amazed that I pulled out of this spot without any body damage, winching, pulling, and only a little bit of help from Hans and Vanessa jumping/pushing on my truck as needed. It did make me want a locker a little more, though...
The funny thing was, once we got back up to Mary Cole trail, there was a similar sign that marked the trail, allowing motorcycles and ATVs, but prohibiting jeeps. I guess we're allowed to go up, not down? There was more erosion on this trail, but it was in good enough condition that crawling - not spinning out a bunch - allowed us to tread lightly and I don't believe we did any damage to the trail.
Well, that just about sums it up -
White Jeep - no damage. Excited kids. Happy dad.
Keith's Green '94 Runner - will be happy to get the new lift, which is sitting in Keith's garage.
My Green '95 Runner - did sustain some damage. Torn CV boot on the inside passenger side. That boot is only 1 year old, and I have manual hubs. I must have killed it with a stick or something.
Hans' red xcab - Death Wobble identified. He now has a good reason to go ahead and swap in that un-bent front axle assembly.
Cory's 1st gen runner - had dirty hubs and a noisy bearing, and also sustained minor bumper damage. However, since he lives so close...it will probably be the first rig back on the trails!
Happy trails!
South of Cassville on HWY 112 we found the Sportsman's Corner C-store; they also sell the maps, along with guns, food, gas, etc.
We scouted out a couple of campsites, then went back to Cory's for the night.
Saturday, we left Cory's with 4 toyotas and 1 jeep; 11 people in all.
There are two campsites (~1 acre clearings, no facilities) near the trailhead of FR 1045 - that's ~2 miles into the National Forest on Hwy 112, then ~2 miles east on 197 or Sugar Hill Scenic Byway. Each site is large enough for several tow rigs.
Got everyone rigged up / aired down and on the trail around 1:30 and spent about 3 hours making the 1045 / 1045A loop. We took the 1045 A trail first, and never could tell where 1045A ended and 1045 began. There were some moderately challenging rock ledges, enough to keep some spotters busy for the new people / stock vehicles. Most of the trail, though, could be done in a Geo....Metro! Shoot, you could probably do the whole loop with a set of sliderz. There were a few muddy puddles, nothing very deep.
Note: all these trails are NARROW and SCRATCHY... be ready for Mark Twain's Pinstripes!
Back at camp, we investigated a noise from Cory's front driver's wheelwell. Wheel bearing? Spindle Bushing? Couldn't find it, so we threw it back together and on the trailer.
We sent a few people back into Cassville for supper, while the rest of us explored a few more trails. There's one unnamed road on the Topo map that we explored - this is a smooth road (for passenger cars) that is marked FR 2280 with a green streetsign, but shows up as FR 198 on other maps
I mention this because the Topo map shows two seperate road segments, but the road goes right on through, from 197 (Sugar Camp Scenic Byway) to Butler Road.
Keith and the white jeep left to go back home, but we had a nice campfire and sat around relaxing for several hours.
About 11:30 decided to make a night run. We took 1045 this time, and decided to go up a steeper segment of the trail that bypasses most of the 1045A-1045 loop. I was surprised that my open/open IFS runner made it just as well as Hans' locked/locked SFA pickup made it. I had a lot more weight with 3 passengers and all my gear, but my BFG TAKO's are also nearly bald.
Before we left on the first run, I had aired down to 15 PSI. Aparently, that's a good number.
After that hill climb, we decided to take 1045 B, which forks West from the North side of the 1045 loop. This trail never dead ends, it just gets narrower and steeper. Finally there is a sign which prohibits motorized vehicles, but it looked like ATVs regularly used the trail. Must have been a recent closing. Consulting the Topo maps, we decided that this trail probably connected to one of three other dead-end trails on the map. We walked up the trail - which was quite challenging due to the steepness, and somebody constantly humming "dualing banjos". We found the "dead end" of another trail (although neither of these dead ends was marked by any more than a small sign) which took us back to 197. This trail segment was marked 1023 on both the map and the trail sign.
We took a quick run down 1010, met up with 1004 and looped back to 197. This trail segment was smooth as silk, nothing challenging at all. Average speed was probably 10-15 mph. From the Topo map, it appears that 1004 goes on down into Arkansas - might be something to explore later.
Note, There is some private land here. There were a couple of signs, and the borders seemed to be marked by purple paint on the trees. We went through one gate with a "Posted" sign, since the gate was open and the Topo map showed the road going through the pivate land on into more forest service land. On that fork of the road, however, the locals didn't want us going past their front porch. They were nice enough about it, but in my opinion, if you want people to keep out of your land and off your road, your sign needs to say "Posted Keep Out" instead of "Posted." There are too many variations - Posted No Hunting, Posted No Fishing, Posted No Trespassing, Posted Keep On The Trail, etc. Or they could have closed the gate.
Back at camp safe and sound, we woke up the next morning to the sound of locals running their coon dogs on the main road. They didn't bother us any, but next time we'll try camping out further off the main road. There were a couple clearings off of 1045A for a good camp.
Sunday, Cory headed home with his rig on the trailer, to get home early and fix the grinding bearing.
Hans put his rig on his trailer, then he and and I moved on up to the Mary Cole Ridge Trail, aka FR 1011. We found a good spot to park the tow rig just north of 1070, which is about 3/4 mile North of the Mary Cole Ridge Trail (AKA 1011). We tried 1070; this turned out to be not very challenging. Several branches with small campsites, too small for a tow rig and pretty tight for us to turn around in.
There is also room enough for several tow rigs and a campsite at the entrance to Mary Cole aka 1011, although either of these places will be noisy considering how close they are to Hwy 86.
We tried 1071 - this branches off from the Mary Cole Ridge Trail, about 1/4 mile off of Hwy 86. Don't bother with this one, it also runs into private land, but these hillbillies are a little scarrier looking. Oh yeah, be sure you lock your tow rig... just in case.
Further east on Mary Cole (about a mile from Hwy 86) we took off on 1059 - This goes northerly and has a spur called 1059 A. Don't bother with 1059 A unless you're looking for a place to camp or just get off the main trail - it's just not worth it. But 1059 was by far, the best trail we found. It offers several rocky ledges, a couple washouts, basically enough for you to have to slow down and think about your approach.
1059 follows Spring Creek to Rock Creek & Rock Creek Road, which is tow rig accessible in case somebody breaks down on the trail. This trail helped Hans figure out what his death wobble in the front end of his rig was - we almost had to go get his tow rig when we got to the end of 1059, but we screwed him back together and turned back up 1059. About 2/3 of the way down 1059 there is a trail that heads south back to Mary Cole. The trail was not numbered on the map nor with a sign, but there was a sign which showed the trail to be open to motorcycles, ATVs, and jeeps. Since this cut off about 1/2 mile of 1059 and didn't look any worse, we decided to take it to save 1/2 mile on Hans' weakened front end. I finally got to try my flex out, and my wife Jennifer got a good look at some rocks out her window. I was amazed that I pulled out of this spot without any body damage, winching, pulling, and only a little bit of help from Hans and Vanessa jumping/pushing on my truck as needed. It did make me want a locker a little more, though...
The funny thing was, once we got back up to Mary Cole trail, there was a similar sign that marked the trail, allowing motorcycles and ATVs, but prohibiting jeeps. I guess we're allowed to go up, not down? There was more erosion on this trail, but it was in good enough condition that crawling - not spinning out a bunch - allowed us to tread lightly and I don't believe we did any damage to the trail.
Well, that just about sums it up -
White Jeep - no damage. Excited kids. Happy dad.
Keith's Green '94 Runner - will be happy to get the new lift, which is sitting in Keith's garage.
My Green '95 Runner - did sustain some damage. Torn CV boot on the inside passenger side. That boot is only 1 year old, and I have manual hubs. I must have killed it with a stick or something.
Hans' red xcab - Death Wobble identified. He now has a good reason to go ahead and swap in that un-bent front axle assembly.
Cory's 1st gen runner - had dirty hubs and a noisy bearing, and also sustained minor bumper damage. However, since he lives so close...it will probably be the first rig back on the trails!
Happy trails!
Last edited by Injohneer; 09-28-2006 at 08:07 AM.
09-25-2006, 07:59 PM
#3
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Sorry Kyle, I had to post some of the report then add to it. Didn't want to risk losing a lot of typing.
By the way, the rest of the photos are out in the barn...
By the way, the rest of the photos are out in the barn...
Last edited by Injohneer; 09-25-2006 at 08:03 PM.
09-26-2006, 05:42 AM
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Nice write up! I thoroughly enjoyed watching you gun it and bounce up the rocks with tires spinning. Like I told Keith earlier, a stock truck will go 90% of the places a built truck can, stock just does it in a more interesting fashion 
When he first dropped in that washout I tried pushing him upright as he gunned it, didn't do any good. He then backed up to where he first fell in the hole and this time with me pushing sideways and Cory's 90 lbs soaking wet gf started pushing from behind he was able to drive out the same line he failed to earlier. So it appeared her help was the difference between success and failure. So next time you question whether to bring your girl along wheeling... she may come in handy!
I haven't taken my truck apart yet.... but I've been looking at some bling 6 stud steering arms instead of the standard 4 stud type. When in doubt, build it beefier! And while it's apart maybe some Longfields.....
When he first dropped in that washout I tried pushing him upright as he gunned it, didn't do any good. He then backed up to where he first fell in the hole and this time with me pushing sideways and Cory's 90 lbs soaking wet gf started pushing from behind he was able to drive out the same line he failed to earlier. So it appeared her help was the difference between success and failure. So next time you question whether to bring your girl along wheeling... she may come in handy!
I haven't taken my truck apart yet.... but I've been looking at some bling 6 stud steering arms instead of the standard 4 stud type. When in doubt, build it beefier! And while it's apart maybe some Longfields.....
09-26-2006, 09:04 AM
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Oh yeah, that. I think that's just the way the tire is made - It looks a lot better than it did, but now that I think about it, that spot has always been there. In fact, I think each of my tires has a slight dip in the sidewall at some spot - you usually don't notice it until you start to wash the tires to make them shiney.
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09-26-2006, 04:41 PM
#8
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When he first dropped in that washout I tried pushing him upright as he gunned it, didn't do any good. He then backed up to where he first fell in the hole and this time with me pushing sideways and Cory's 90 lbs soaking wet gf started pushing from behind he was able to drive out the same line he failed to earlier. So it appeared her help was the difference between success and failure. So next time you question whether to bring your girl along wheeling... she may come in handy!
Wow, I didn't realize Vanessa was back there pushin' on it. I guess that explains the very amazed and somehow weirded-out look on your face, when I pulled out of the ditch.
However, ANYONE who has been around Yotatech long enough, will have already figured out how I *really* got out of the ditch...
09-26-2006, 07:37 PM
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Nice job on the write up buddy.... Will say that the damage to my rig concerning the bearing and hubs wasnt the fault of the trail, rather the dumb operator behind the wheel....
09-26-2006, 08:14 PM
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Took my truck apart tonight...
I remember someone commenting on the amount of grease leaking out of my axle and dismissing it as normal. You were right, that was way more than normal! I had more grease on the side of my tire than Cory had in his entire front end
The steering arm hadn't broken as I suspected (and is common). The knuckle bearing itself grenaded, and 2/4 studs were sheared. Not sure what failed first, I'm thinking the studs loosened based on others experience. The birfield bell was pretty tore up from the bearing pieces floating around in the knuckle... so I'm swapping it with my trail spare. So all I need to buy to fix it up is a new bearing, race, axle seal, and some new studs (with fancy Torx nipple on the top to make it easy to check tightness
So under $100... pretty damn cheap for a carnage!
Cheap advice for everyone out there (expecially ones with big tires that beat there stuff mercilessly offroad), check your studs before EVERY trip. I'm going to try some loctite too. Overkill is good. This is a known weak point for Toyota solid axles... I never paid attention because most of the complaints come from people with hydro assist. But now that I broke it and investigated some more there are plenty of people that have broken without the aid of hydraulics.
I remember someone commenting on the amount of grease leaking out of my axle and dismissing it as normal. You were right, that was way more than normal! I had more grease on the side of my tire than Cory had in his entire front end
The steering arm hadn't broken as I suspected (and is common). The knuckle bearing itself grenaded, and 2/4 studs were sheared. Not sure what failed first, I'm thinking the studs loosened based on others experience. The birfield bell was pretty tore up from the bearing pieces floating around in the knuckle... so I'm swapping it with my trail spare. So all I need to buy to fix it up is a new bearing, race, axle seal, and some new studs (with fancy Torx nipple on the top to make it easy to check tightness
So under $100... pretty damn cheap for a carnage!Cheap advice for everyone out there (expecially ones with big tires that beat there stuff mercilessly offroad), check your studs before EVERY trip. I'm going to try some loctite too. Overkill is good. This is a known weak point for Toyota solid axles... I never paid attention because most of the complaints come from people with hydro assist. But now that I broke it and investigated some more there are plenty of people that have broken without the aid of hydraulics.
09-27-2006, 09:24 AM
#11
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Oh yeah, more carnage... I think I lost a wheel weight. It didn't feel any worse off though, which is surprising for a 3" long wheel weight. So maybe I just moved where the one little weight is positioned?
I'm trying to figure out whether I should go ahead and throw another stock CV boot on mine - or go with some of Downey's spiral boots. I think a price comparison will say go stock - so let's hope I don't tear one up every trip. Or I could just go with the Duct Tape.
Any ideas?
I'm trying to figure out whether I should go ahead and throw another stock CV boot on mine - or go with some of Downey's spiral boots. I think a price comparison will say go stock - so let's hope I don't tear one up every trip. Or I could just go with the Duct Tape.
Any ideas?
09-27-2006, 09:41 AM
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If it were me I'd buy a new CV and swap the whole thing in and keep yours as a spare, torn boot and all, just tape it up.
Even if you wanted to leave it I'd tape it if you plan on doing regular maintenance. The only real benefit of a new boot is if you want to pack'er full of grease and not touch it for 10 years. And we all know that's not going to happen with all the wheeling we're planning on doing.
Well, I needed like $30 in parts to fix my truck... but by the time I hit the Check Out button on Marlin's site I was up to $150. And that took a lot of restraint!
Wheel weights come off a lot wheeling, especially with tires that have rim guards. The rim guard prevents your average tire shop employee from getting the weight fully crimped on. I've had them fall off in 500 miles with no wheeling on my BFG AT's. You could have also spun your wheel relative to the tire. That's very common, especially since we were wheeling on a lot of grippy rock and you were aired down. Though if your tire guy was really good (few of them are) they would have already tried to align the wheel and tire to get a good balance before putting weights on.
Even if you wanted to leave it I'd tape it if you plan on doing regular maintenance. The only real benefit of a new boot is if you want to pack'er full of grease and not touch it for 10 years. And we all know that's not going to happen with all the wheeling we're planning on doing.
Well, I needed like $30 in parts to fix my truck... but by the time I hit the Check Out button on Marlin's site I was up to $150. And that took a lot of restraint!
Wheel weights come off a lot wheeling, especially with tires that have rim guards. The rim guard prevents your average tire shop employee from getting the weight fully crimped on. I've had them fall off in 500 miles with no wheeling on my BFG AT's. You could have also spun your wheel relative to the tire. That's very common, especially since we were wheeling on a lot of grippy rock and you were aired down. Though if your tire guy was really good (few of them are) they would have already tried to align the wheel and tire to get a good balance before putting weights on.
09-27-2006, 11:42 AM
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Well, over lunch I went by SurfSide and picked up 3 boots - an inner for the one I ripped, and an inner/outer spare for $42.38.
That should last me a while...er, at least one more trip!
Come to think of it, I did drive the truck for about 2 years when I first got it with 2 ripped boots. But I hate driving around with dripping stuff or broken components.
Speaking of dripping stuff, the small leak that I thought was a Rear Main seal going out...suddenly dried up. I don't know if it had something to do with the oil change right before the trip, or all the dust forming a new seal (there wasn't really that much dust, though!)
That should last me a while...er, at least one more trip!
Come to think of it, I did drive the truck for about 2 years when I first got it with 2 ripped boots. But I hate driving around with dripping stuff or broken components.
Speaking of dripping stuff, the small leak that I thought was a Rear Main seal going out...suddenly dried up. I don't know if it had something to do with the oil change right before the trip, or all the dust forming a new seal (there wasn't really that much dust, though!)
09-27-2006, 01:34 PM
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Cool... I'd still recommend getting a spare CV shaft, especially since you're running ball joint spacers. I like to have spare 'weak links' around for all my vehicles... maybe that's why my house looks like a junkyard?
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