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Montana checking in!

65K views 412 replies 89 participants last post by  mudrunnr 
#1 ·
Welcome from Montana. Anyone looking for 'wheeling info for montana can check us out at our statewide club website m4x4a.org We have a group of about 10 rigs headed to Moab the week of March 14 thru the 22nd. Enjoy!
 
#51 · (Edited)
the guys out of Kalispell / Columbia Falls and bigfork are awesome, First time i ever meet MT4Runner was when i got my F350 high-centered on a stump, him and PDC_RNR came up Blacktail and spent 4 hours helping me get it off the stump ... even started pouring rain for a bit. Hell, he's even got his garage full of shiny new parts, and a few old dirty parts waiting to go on my CJ while i'm over seas .... the C-Falls guys are equally as awesome, I cut a tire on some rocks and had to flat tow back to the house, and one of them (for the life of me i can never remember his name on here) loaned me his spare to make the trip ... argueably some of the best guys in the PNW in my mind! Looking foward to getting up there to do some drinking, wrenching, and wheeling with them again!!

Nick

EDIT:
I'll even admit that Montanatrout's Scout II is an amazingly bad ass scout ... even if the only thing left on it thats actually Scout is 1/2 a cab :flipoff2: he just needs to learn to drive ... cant even keep from flipping it on flat roads :blackflipoff2:
 
#57 ·
Bringing your wives? My wife won't go if it's gonna be a sausage party. Says she needs some "interesting" conversation while I'm beating my Jeep up :shaking: I say, "what ev" you got all you need right here baby :flipoff2:

You should PM me an itenerary if you have one made up!
 
#56 ·
Just to clear things up, I am in no way badmouthing the Mountaineers in general. I just have a problem with a couple LOCAL members and that has prevented me from joining.

I am a friend and a volunteer for just about any org. that is fighting the good fight to keep public land public and accessable (don't think I spelled that right.) If I offended in some way, any other Mountaineer I apologize and I will now go repent:D

Anyway, anybody from Bozeman going to Moab end of April???? Going wheeling next weekend???
 
#73 ·
I just have a problem with a couple LOCAL members and that has prevented me from joining.

Sorry to hear that... we could really use some new members because our numbers are getting low. If you have a problem with certain people in the club feel free to PM me and I'll let you know if they are still involved.

Unfortunately it's hard to please everyone with just one club. I here people call us pussies an not joining because we "treading lightly" and try to work with the FS & BLM. I also here people say we are to "hard core" and they don't feel welcome because they don't have a heavily built rig. People complain when the trail rides are to easy... and when they are to hard.

If everyone were to just join the club (or any club) there would be enough different people that we could have easy and hard trail rides every month. I try to encourage as many people to join as possible. We have strength in numbers and while organized. With out some sort of organization we can't compete with the "green" opposition.

Our meetings are the 2nd Thrs of every month (7pm) at MacKenzie River Pizza in Belgrade. I usually post up the trail rides on M4x4a.org right after that if you are ever interested. Not sure when the next one will be... We are having a motorized swap meet on 5/17 where it will be free to shop (booth space for sellers is 10$) and all profits are going to access-oriented organizations.

ROB
 
#65 ·
So what kind of runs are planned for around May 15th to the 20th? I'm hoping my CJ will be built by then, and we can get a few of the Kalispell guys out to wheel before i head back to El Paso and work ... just got to get enough beer to bribe Shawn, Chris, and Kyle into staying in the shop all night to work :D
 
#71 ·
How's my old jeep treatin' ya? Sounds like I won't recognize it before long. Lookin forward to wheelin with ya!:D

Hey, I have a hot tub!!! :idea:
A wife (or girlfriend) is required also. Don't want a salami fest!:flipoff2:
 
#81 · (Edited)
any other Zoo-Towners? we have a club here, usually go to Beaverhead-Deerlodge area
There are several "real" wheelers in the Missoula area, but not much wheelin' to be done, the greens have shut it all down.

I think there's stuff over by Superior. Otherwise, a lot of the organized Missoulans are members of the Skyliners out of Polson. :D


There's also the Mountain Jacks, a racing club out of Frenchtown, and Willie Worthy has his Backroads club in Evaro.

any body going on the Divide Ride?
I think we'll be at Divide Ride again. Dunno which rigs I'll take or what the real plan is. My youngest will be 6 months old, and her sister will be 3 at DR this year.

P-burg is a fun place to visit n' wheel though.

Before that, there's Convention coming up 4/25-26 in Helena that I'm still nailing down details on.



 
#88 ·
Mike, unless you really, really, really need the Taco 3rd, you can put a 4cyl/v6 3rd in a Taco/Tundra housing by redrilling/re-tapping 6 of 10 holes.

...are 3rd gen Runner 3rds the same thing as Taco 3rds, or are the non-elocker 3rds just a regular 79-95 8" 3rd? MT-Toy has a '99? 4Runner he's using as a donor for his 83 pickup rebuild...build is on the Pickup and 4Runner forum.

Shawn
 
#89 ·
Shawn I believe that the 3rd gen 4runner and elocker are not interchangeable with the 8.4 the stud in my housing are also larger than the studs in all the 8" housing Ive been around. If i don't come up with something soon i well get a new axle or re gear the 3rd i have, I plan on putting in 5:29's in but don't want to spend the money now so with my duel case I'd like to run 4:10's for the time being

thank Mike
 
#90 ·
No, it's not a bolt-in swap, but from everything I've seen (and people who've put eLockers in both 8" housings and Taco housings), the critical dimension--the distance from the 3rd mounting surface to the centerline of the axleshafts--is the same on all three.

There are 4 or 6 of the 10 studs that are in the same spot between any two of the various three...so they'll get you aligned. If Taco studs are bigger, just drill a 4cyl 3rd out to 10mm.

In 2 or 3 hours, you could make any one fit the other.

Call Spaldings in Spokane--they have a lot of late model Toys. Going price for a working eLocker out of a 3rd gen Runner is $350. An open Taco 4.10 should run $200?

...also...and this is just hearsay on my part...I have heard of more t-case output shaft failure if you run duals and 4.10's..especially with larger tires. If you go to an upgraded (Longfield or Marlin) output shaft, you're getting close to the cost of 5.29's.


...but if you break an output shaft, call me--I have 3 spare stockers! :D
 
#91 ·
good to know

good teak, your right that 4:10 will put much more stress on the transfer case. and putting in a different 3rd would not take much. I did not know that they align the same, that's good to know thanks for the info
 
#93 ·
Bigfork Montana 1985 4runner

Checking in from Bigfork moved here a couple years ago and can't seem to meet any fellow wheelers. I have a 85 4runner that needs a bunch of work but I don't have a garage to work in or set up my tools. I can on the other hand trade labor and B.S. for some help in return. I also have access to CNC router and some cool printers. Learning ACAD and lots of design experience. Family friendly is best but anything to get working on this truck.
 
#94 ·
Checking in from Bigfork moved here a couple years ago and can't seem to meet any fellow wheelers. I have a 85 4runner that needs a bunch of work but I don't have a garage to work in or set up my tools. I can on the other hand trade labor and B.S. for some help in return. I also have access to CNC router and some cool printers. Learning ACAD and lots of design experience. Family friendly is best but anything to get working on this truck.
Big Sky 4 Wheelers has a meeting tonight. 7pm at the old Pioneer School.

Drive north on US 2 East out of Kalispell; just past Glacier Park Intl Airport, the blue hangers will be on your left (West).

Turn right (East) on Pioneer Road.
Drive one mile East, the School is white with red trim and a green roof. Turn right (South) past the school and park behind the school.

We just had our annual Snow Bash run last month, so run planning will be pretty slow, but we earned $1,100 at the raffle afterward, and we just heard we earned a $3,000 matching grant...so we'll be talking about how to spend a$4,100 on the Blacktail/Wild Bill trail!!! :grinpimp:

PM me for contact info for tonight.

I have a shop. :grinpimp:...let's talk about your hand labor. :evil: nwnchstr is just coming home after a 14-month deployment, and will be looking for some help :beer: putting D60 and D70's under his CJ5. :beer:

Shawn
 
#95 ·
I too have a big shop, but not sure what kind of "hand labor" you have. but right now I've got our bronco pretty much tore apart but after that, maybe we can work something out.
 
#96 · (Edited)
Well now, I'm pretty sure I said a hand WITH labor but.... I really do need the help...Please anyone that needs help hopefully wrenching... Give me a PM and I'll see if I can buildup some favors. My plan is chevys in the back rears up front, new or rebuild motor, hi-steer, then eventually everything else! (lockers dual cases etc.) Thanks for the invite to the meeting. Seems pretty cool and it sounds like you guys have your act together. Please keep me in the loop for the next one.
 
#99 ·
in great falls.

hey, i dont want to interupt the ongoing talk on here but i just wanted to check in from great falls and ask if anyone knows of good wheeling near here. i travel a lot to pipestone by butte but would like to find something closer to great falls.
 
#102 ·
hey, i dont want to interupt the ongoing talk on here but i just wanted to check in from great falls and ask if anyone knows of good wheeling near here. i travel a lot to pipestone by butte but would like to find something closer to great falls.
I grew up in Great Falls, but didn't wheel a lot back then. We used to load up in the family Suburban and explore the jeep trails around Kings Hill. I heard a lot of those old backroads have been gated/closed/obliterated.

I don't know of a lot around GF, sorry. :(

We're working on a fun trail out of Lakeside! :grinpimp: Come visit this summer.

Any one around here have a good 22RE they want to get rid of ???
I had a heckuva time finding one when I was looking for one for my FToy...obviously, I bought Dustin's! :laughing:

I know of another in Sacramento--a fairly recent rebuild from Davez, with 2-3k on it.
 
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