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My 44/9" full width cherokee build

If you can't resist, shave it and go 37s next time.
 
damnit you guys! You are making this really hard! LOL

(BTW, sorry to hijack the thread...)
 
I think there are positives and negatives either way.
A lot of it depends on where you wheel. Out east I would guess forest trails are pretty tight. I haven't seen much out here (like Moab) where more width does not help.

You can run a bigger tire with less lift with a wider rig because the tires don't get into the body as much. More width+ lower c.o.g. = Stability.

You will fit better in narrower trails with a narrower rig. but you can run more backspacing on you rims to get it narrower.

Jes would give some great reasons why narrower is better,

but I feel it's all about what and where you wheel. I didn't build my rig for mud for example, so it probably won't do as well as someone who did: and vice versa: a huge fullsize with 15+ inches of stiff lift, 400hp and tractor tires wouldn't work as well on the rocks
 
So I busted out to Little Moab on Friday night with my buddy Chris and my little brother to meet some of the Wild Yoats crew.

Here's some video why width, at least around here, is good.

I only folded the mirror back and scratched some plastic, and bent the post on the cop light, and almost ran over my stupid bushwacker that the tire ripped off.
If I was any narrower, I'm sure I would have took out the windshield, A-pillar, and driverside window like Rawlin said he did on his old yota.

With some killer spotting from Rawlin I made it through no problem


Oh and the new center limit strap, rear locker, and gears kicked butt, helped keep the front end from unloading and sucked down on steep stuff and I did a bunch on lines that have denied me before!

4.88's rule! I did a burnout friday on pavement with 35's
 
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that looked fun! how much wider overall are you than me though?
I'm (sadly) still on stock axles (obviously I'm planning on changing...), but I'm running 35x12.5's on 8" wheels with 4" backspacing... you don't really LOOK much wider than I am??? I guess you probably have wheels with a lot of backspacing huh? I dunno, you just don't look a WHOLE lot narrower than mine. I think that with a good spotter, and good (or lucky lol) driving, that little canyon would be just as do-able with stock width axles... but that's me... I don't know...


Nice Job the second time by the way!
 
So I started a ladder bar style traction bar a while ago, and I'm just finishing. It's pouring rain out so I can't finish bolting it up but here you go with a quick how too

mocking up the mount.
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welding the heim adapter into the tubing
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rough finished traction bar
1/4" plate between the upper and lower.
SU1HMDA1NjcuanBn.jpg

Unfortunetly welding the plate in pulled the upper and lower together about 1/8" so I need to redrill one on the mounts on the axle.





I modified a stock shackle to fit between the frame rail and muffler on the passenger side (ignore the pealing paint)
SU1HMDA1NjkuanBn.jpg


more pics when it quits raining.
 
:new: Finished the traction bar up last night, I'm pretty excited about it! :yelclap:The lower bar protects most of the driveshaft except for the yoke and hangs no lower than the muffler
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The mount (note narrowed shackle)
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Bolts through the floor and will bolt to the frame in a few places once I pick up some big self tappers
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a seriously tight squeeze,
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I had to tilt the bracket to the ps to fit
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I'm super excited to try it out in Moab... Leaving Wednesday!
 
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and that matters for this application why?
 
It seems to me that when the axle wants to wrap, it could flip the shackle up and then you could be screwed with the pinion pointing up?
 
The way I see it... The shackle allows for some flex movement. If the axle wants to wrap it'll push against the bar which won't allow it to torque either direction, because it is attached to the top and bottom of the axle. The axle isn't going to move forward enough to move the shackle much at all. That is the leafs keeping it where it is. This is to prevent wrap, not forward movement (there shouldn't be much anyway).
 
It seems to me that when the axle wants to wrap, it could flip the shackle up and then you could be screwed with the pinion pointing up?

That's a common misunderstanding. A traction bar is like a lever, imagine it as a large wrench rotating the axle on the widthwise axis. Now visualize the point at the end of that wrench. You pull up or push down to turn it. Most of that force, during rotation, is on the verticle axis which puts the shackle in extension or compression (based on the direction of rotation). Only a small amount of force runs along the horizontal axis (that distance decreases with the length of the lever). Since the shackle is mainly being forced to stretch or compress, mounting it either way is acceptable because it's "swing" is minimal. If you search and read the link inside of the links I posted above you will see other examples. Good question though. Wow that's a lot to type on a blackberry!
 
so that's basically what I said..... just stated better...
 
I guess this is becoming a tradition
so Happy Halloween! like my pumpkins?
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I never really did a report on my NAXJA Moab Fall Fling trip so
We ran Pritchett Canyon on Thursday
(that trail report here:
http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=971518) and the show and shine
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Friday we ran Moab Rim and Hells Revenge and walked Potato Salad my first try:clap: and then went to the raffle dinner.
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video (it was super windy)



Saturday we ran Gold Bar Rim, Golden Spike and part of Rusty Nail.
with a dead battery in the camera.
but I blew out a tail light trying some BAMF line just above and to the right of "Body Snatcher" (add $40 to the tally)
SU1HMDA1OTAuanBn.jpg


And Sunday we ran Hidden Canyon and The Pickle then headed home
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It was an amazing trip: I got to run new trails I hadn't done before all week long (except Hell's Revenge), meet tons of cool NAXJA folks from all over the country, and have a blast wheeling and camping with friends.

My favorite trail was Pritchett Canyon this trip and I'll be running the Pickle as my last trail every time I go there from now on!
 
so I broke my shit last weekend romping up a dirt hill in Hollister... I'm kinda tired of babying it. I'm seriously considering doing the 44/9" build... I'm just not convinced a D30, even with chromo's, would hold up to a solid romp in the rocks... I wanna do stuff like ^ that without having to worry too much. so that's pretty much it, unless there's another front axle with the 5 on 4.5 pattern that's a lot stronger than the D30.
 
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