Astoria Orgon, home to The Goonies and Kindergarten Cop.

What a great town. Really pretty. I want to go back next spring for the crab festival.


























You know you live in a nice spot when....













That's the end of what I have uploaded at the moment.


Browns park is coming next. I got to finally test out the new kit and it's where I got my avatar photo.

 

This is just the start. We are barely a week in at the end there.

Just short of two solid months in America. With my injury I have a lot of time off and we wanted to move from the North in case I need to retrain. The missus quit her job, we sold the house and jumped in the wagon.

We spent a bit of the profits from a reno. I will post up before and after photos of the place after I get all these uploaded. I did a lot of work. It kept me sane while being off. Had to get someone to build the deck and redo the roof though. Too heavy for me still.

 

That brewery and the deer are the only nice things about Astoria! Salty sea air rots cars too quick for my liking. Also love seeing the McMenamins pics, and can't wait to see pics of the Bend location to see if it's changed from how I remember it. Brown's camp, too, though I'm hoping to go there in a couple weeks to see for myself. Sweet trip so far, looking forward to more pics, like everyone else.

 

I hope I took photos there. I may have forgotten to.

Does anyone know how I could make a map image of my trip? Like a introduction image for sections and the path I went to tie pictures to the geography.

I've been searching Google but nothing has really been what I need.

 

Your trip to Northern BC looks so beautiful. I like the scenery. Keep'em coming dude. Loving this.

 

Awesome pictures man! looked like the start of a great trip. If you ever get the chance to check out Barkerville you should hit it up. Been ages since i have been there but i remember it being pretty cool. It's in Northern BC, was an original gold rush town.

For the video of your tires Toeing in like that, I wonder if an idler arm brace would help you out on that, those 35's have a lot of meat to pull stuff around.

 

I also think I need a new steering stabiliser. Every time I go over a manhole cover or small pothole I can really feel it in the steering wheel.

After that my last wandering front end suspect is the steering column and steering box. Everything else is new.


What does a steering box going out feel like? I've never had one go before so have not felt what it does to steering.


For testing this Blazeland kit I think the perfect tire size is a 33" tire. Even the Total Kaos ones recommend that size. Air lockers front and back, 4.88 and armour if you want to to LT IFS.

I want 37"s.

Starting to research now which is the best axle combination and ideal width I want to go to.

I'm going to most likely sell those FJ62 axles. I keep looking at FJ80 axles but maybe some sort of Dana axle might be better? I don't think I can afford 2 custom axles anytime soon so at this time I'd like to find a complete stock axle and mess around. Maybe a custom rear though as the pumpkin is offset to the passenger side in the Landcruiser axles. At least the FJ62 ones are. Those would be awesome for a swap but I want to go wider. IF anyone wants them let me know. The front is wider than the mini truck axle and has a 9.5 diff. It also has many common parts with the mini truck axle so there is pretty good after market support.

 

I actually just replaced mine with a junkyard box. Mine was leaking fluid everywhere and was getting worn out. Get a lot of slop in the steering wheel, It shouldn't cause you to toe in tho because the box only affects the pitman arm and then everything follows the pitman arm.

 

Redwagon shoot me a PM if ever you want to sell the Blazeland kit !
I'm on the east coast Canada so no shipping hassles from Vancouver.
Building up a HD IFS on 33's ) 295-75-16 with 4.88
The BL kit would finish it off proper, would run a stock SR5 rim
to pull the tire back in and use Bushwaker flares. Probably
use a late model axle ( e-locker ) out back to match up the track width.

 

Not the toe in but the wandering on road.

Did yours do that when it was going? It will drive straight but you have to almost over steer a little to correct for bumps in the road.


If I sell it LAurie I'll let you know.

 

Very Nice set up! Check those Ball joints, I noticed a little bit of wandering on the road recently and I had a ball joint failure last week... This reminded me when I had everything new with the BlazeLand kit the steering was very tight and precise.. I didnt notice after a while it got looser.... Of course I should have been strapped with the coilover, and I had a Chinese joint.... Never again, Converting to Uniball...

 

The mechanic checked them when he had it all apart. Said they where still solid but I didn't check myself.
He's really good and I trust him though. Even though it's not completely fixed it tracks straight. Great alignment.

What behavior where you experiencing before it went?


Mine was tight too before it got loose like it is now.

What did you do to convert to Uniball?

 

Still working on the uniball. Total chaos lower conversion. Gonna Fab the upper.

I just noticed it wandering more. You would have to jack it up and wiggle everything around and see if the joint has play.

 

Good luck!

 

Andrew? WOWWWW! I just had a huge flashback to living up in East Valley Washington, near to Canada...SOOOOOO BEAUTIFUL! Thanks so much for coming down and spending time with me and Richard.... You guys were so great..... And thanks for sharing this journey...... It is really pushing me to MAKE some time and get back up into the Sierras and Sequoias, at least, soon!

Please come back down and visit sometime in the not to distant future?

DANGGGG! Incredible pics! That one bar? WOW!!!!! what a gorgeous place that was! I've been through Oregon quite a bit and it's incredibly beautiful. Especially Eastern Oregon which is just literally like another world compared to even most of the northwest. So green is the green there, you know?

take care buddy, and please say hi to your lovely wife!

 

Thanks Mark. She says hi as well.


I'll be back again. Maybe next time in a new truck. I'm starting to think of cleaning it up to get ready to sell. An FJ80 is not that much larger than a 4Runner and has a similar look. It also has great axles and coils.

 

If you buy a fzj80 it has lockers already.


Having owned first three gens of runners and an 80 series i will tell you that i loved my 80 the most. It was built stupidly strong and went qnywhere i pointed it. A bit more of a buy in but its a beast.

There awesome for expidition wheeling. Mine ended up chooped from winshield back before i ended up selling it. SADLY!

Stuffs not as cheap. But there just awesome. There virtually no gearing offerings for xfer case. But for long trips like you do with pretty hard wheeling inbetween i think it would suit you really well. Ih8mud is the site for cruisers. Go cruiser you wont regret it.

 

I totally hear you and ur! They are really modifiable as well! Just look at 4 X 4 labs bumpers and so forth... Holy crap there is some beautiful stuff out there for the 80s. ..

Wow, seems like you had a very recent and suddenly practical decision flickering in your mind? I'm sure you'll miss old red if that happens, but you gotta do what you gotta do brother! There are no sleep is a point that we can get to where we would be happy for at least 10 years. I'm getting close. I thought about that very thing that you are... But I think I'm resigned to getting my bigger motor and then a trailer, something like Dirtco or maybe A 88 or so short bed Toyota pickup bed trailer. Matching red of course! Lol. I love having a removable top... That is an awesome option and I atleast want to have that even if I have another rig. Its pretty much this or Jeep or old blazer in that "alternates" category....

Can't wait to see what you do man... I'm really really really mean it when I say that it was great to meet you and your wife and I am also very much enjoying watching this journey on fold... I guess backwards? Lol. Doesn't matter to me... It is sick dude, every picture!

 

http://www.marlincrawler.com/transfe...-crawler-gears







Do any of the 80's come with a manual transmission?


Yeah Chef, I've dumped so much money into the wagon and I know to get what I want is going to cost another small fortune. Especially if I want to stay with Yota axles.

Why not get the vehicle that has the axles I want already. Plus the engine bay is bigger so a cool swap would be a bit easier.

I don't know much about the 80 series though. I think the rear axle an offset pumpkin like the earlier ones? No twin stick options either.

Tough call really.

 

Thats your only option except marks crawl box i think. Im not evensure if there made anymore.

Engine swap is another thing. There not easily done. Not like the runners where it can be done with readily available parts. Its all custom or having a shop do it like slee will be costly.

Theres trade offs.

90 to 93 has 3fe. Youll want newer one with better engine. Auto helps with gearing. Im not sure on there being stick. Im thinking not. Check out ih8mud. Its awesome site.