It's all in good fun. Thanks for the sub!

@ For sure!

Glad you enjoyed the video!

Old Rovers around here are as rare as the 40 series. I loved them since the day I watched "Ace Ventura Pet Detective 2" :D. That said, I found a jalopy for sale a couple years back, but the wanted over $60k for it. I'm guessing parts locally for a British relic are also hard to come by?

@@FnCJAdventurer Back in the 1980's when I got into these things, they were cheaper to buy than a similar age Jeep in good shape, and much to my surprise, parts were way cheaper and easier to get than for my Willys at the time. Back then, OEM parts were still being supported for 1950's models..... Crazy! Remember that like the FJ, these were world vehicles made in large numbers. Thru the 1950's an average of only about 250 Rovers per year were sold in the USA, and the ramped up to about 1000 per year in the 1960's and early 1970's . Rover never took the USA market seriously and never had a real dealer network here. They were so successful in third world countries prior to Toyota dominating, that they just didn't care. These old ones are blue collar vehicles to he core, and along with the Willys Jeep, set the blueprint for the FJ. In fact, The late 1950's series II short wheelbase Land Rover is exactly the same body width as FJ 40, same exact axle width (WMS to WMS) and weighs almost identical (for comparable spec) despite the aluminum tub , doors top and front clip. I've owned them both and it's really interesting to compare them side by side. Where the early Land Rover is really inferior to the FJ is the engines..... They kept a four cylinder engine in most vehicles, and were geared very low to compensate. This four cylinder was also extremely heavy, and thirsty, so no fuel economy advantage over the FJ. My best fix over the last 35 years has been Chevy power !! The beefy chassis (factory reverse shackle on front) handles great on the interstate freeways heading for the trails.

True - low range first gear doesn’t provide much wheel spin or momentum in the mud.

We just got a bunch of snow dumped on us. Our next trip is going to included airing down those old bias plies to see how she helps.

Welcome! Thanks for the kind words. I haven't been to Ellensburg yet, but we are planning a wheeling trip towards that way soon, and exploring Ellensburg while there is on the list. Do you take your Cruiser on the trail?

I’ll do some more substantial repairs and restorations to the FJ once my CJ is up and running. Until then, hack jobs will keep her on the trail.

@@FnCJAdventurer Absolutely, I love it ! Purists hate me for wheeling the whee out of mine, but it's living its best life, and I'll deal with my rust spots in due time as well😁

Yep - snow wheeling with buddies is a good time. Where are you located?

@@FnCJAdventurer Placerville, Ca. I also have a place in Longview, Wa. that I spend quite a bit of time at. I lived in Portland Oregon throughout the 1990's, so I spent every other weekend out in the Tillamook forest / Browns camp area. So many good places to wheel !!

Thanks, man!

😂

I’ll take some of that action!

Sign me up!

Thanks for the kind words, my friend! When I’m out alone in the snow, I generally like to go up hill heading in. Then if I get stuck going forward I can usually back out of it. 😅 And knowing I could make it going up hill I can definitely make it back out going down hill. But yes, the winch is definitely a source of security.

Im restoring my cj2a right now, and I was kicking around the idea of 31”x7.5” KM3’s. But I’ve been told, any tire larger than stock will make the old gutless L134 struggle to move 😅 What’s your experience?

@@FnCJAdventurer have 31x10.5r15 on cj7 wheels on stock cj3a no rub and 4 mph gain my l134 engine is rebuilt and good shape not problem i think to put a overdrive

@ That’s encouraging! No lift either?

It would be nice to have an old VW Bug in the group - especially if it was baha’d! To bad you didn’t still have one 😡

We have thought about that and are planning on trying it sometime soon. We are a little concerned that a reduction in clearance will exasperate the challenge. We’ll keep you posted.

@@FnCJAdventurer hopefully the floatation you gain will combat that

@FnCJAdventurer chains are best for low amount of snow/ice, airing down is good when you are one 1ft+

That’s the hope. His chains are basically shovels - they dig like crazy. But since his tires are only 6.5” wide to start, I’m not overly optimistic airing down will get him the surface area he needs. But there’s only one way to find out 😀

@FnCJAdventurer We definitely have to do some spring snow wheeling this year. Round up as many rigs that are pre 1980 and bring back the 70s to the trails

Thanks! Old jeeps + mountains + snow = good times.

Thanks, and amen! I had a 74 CJ5 before my FJ40, and I miss it every day. They are amazing rigs. That said, my aging body would prefer a CJ7 if I were to try to replace it 😆

Plain toast is more interesting than plain bread, so things could be worse I guess.

Tall, skinny, and "bias ply". The sidewalls are so stiff on these, that airing down does basically nothing.

It actually has front and rear lockers. The two big factors are traction and traction 😂. His 6.5” wide tires, and lack of weight work against him. Also, since his tires are bias plies, they don’t benefit as much from airing down. But, that’s what makes for a good challenge, and challenge is part of the adventure.

@@FnCJAdventurer I thought I saw it spinning one wheel. later I noticed it spinning both wheels. maybe he didn't have it locked early on. yeah skinny tires suck in snow, they also look like army type tires, hard stiff rubber. Anyway, looks like fun!

@@mmafreaks4871​​⁠- you saw correctly. A lot of the time he leaves one hub unlocked to improve his steering ability. With both hums locked, it’s a workout to turn that little rig at low speeds. 😂

​@@FnCJAdventurer I added power steering to my '69 FJ40 using parts from an old F350. The bigger the tires, the tougher it gets to turn without it. Never thought about unlocking one side. lol

@@mmafreaks4871 - Unlocking one side helps, but its no replacement for power steering! I have a saginaw power steering set up on my 79 FJ as well, but I don't have front lockers. Do you have a stock front end with a locker? If so, I'd be interested in knowing what kind of locker you have, how well it steers, and if you've had any trouble with your birfields.

True story!

Radial or bias plies? Jamie’s rig only has 6.5 16’s, so they are a bit narrower.

@FnCJAdventurer they were bias ply recaps! I was around 18 years old back then. Nobody had radial tires. I'm 61 now. Biggest problem I had was keeping axle shafts from breaking on the front end. They had a cup and ball with a center pin. Damned things would crack.

Not usually. Why do you ask?

They seem pretty affective. On Jamie’s rig they pretty much just dig because of his narrow tires. This can be an issue in deep snow due to clearance.

There are a lot of variables involved, and just as many opinions. The topic makes for a good conversation 😂

@ it’s a fun one to discuss. 2WD with chains, 4WD without, 4WD with chains on the front, or 4WD with chains on all four. Good questions!

Sounds like a rough night, but at least it made for a good story.

Amen!

Sometimes the best wheeling happens on the local logging roads, right?

I’ve been getting a lot of love from BC Canadians lately! Thanks! My wife and I have visited the Vancouver area a couple times, and loved the city. In fact, our Honeymoon was kicked off at the Capilano Suspension Bridge park (on route to Alaska).

We are a couple hours southwest of you guys. My wife and I went up to the Cle and Roslyn area for a few days last year, and loved it. We brought the FJ and did some exploring, but didn’t have enough time to do it justice. @jamiekaiser6539 and I have been discussing a true wheeling trip up that direction for a while. May we will have you guys give us a tour.

​@FnCJAdventurer That would be awesome! We primarily just do forest roads, but the spring snow it makes it a challenge. We also like to do the Fortune creek trail / Van Epps pass. I have some videos on my channel of some of the snow wheeling

We went back to the snow yesterday, and I drop my pressure down to 10 psi (lowest ever) and it was essentially unstoppable. Jamie stuck to chains on his CJ. We kicked the idea of dropping his pressure as well, but being bias ply, we weren’t convinced he’d achieve the same benefit.

Just a rear auburn locker.

Smart. I just added a couple to the FJ. Jamie has a full set in his CJ now. We were out in the snow again today, and his chains were priceless. I'm still getting around pretty good with low tire pressure.

I hear that! My FJ40 loaded up is nearly 5000 lbs where Jamie’s flatty is about 2800#. The weight is an advantage frequently, but I’m his compact size fits him through areas I can’t. It’s definitely a give and take. One thing we haven’t played in is sand (yet). You and bam bam are truly living the dream! Seems like you guys are always off to an awesome location to wheel with buddies.

@@FnCJAdventurer Yea, we have actually weighed our rigs (a little obsessive LOL!) and the "Penalty Box" is 4,000 lbs , empty and with canvas top. "Bam Bam" is the heaviest flatty in the group, at 3,000 lbs, but he's heavily reinforced and very modified. Jesse's "Brutus" is 2,600 lbs, much more representative of my other wheeling pals flattys. I'm afraid if I put a hard top on "Penalty Box" and weighed it loaded with gear it would also nudge the 5K range. I try to wheel as light as possible on the tricky stuff. It's sometimes tough to make the time to get out with the guys, but it's so worth it !! Sacrifices, right?? You guys seem to be having a great time, too.

@@timmcooper294 - did I confuse “penalty box” with “bam bam” again? I’m going to have to go wheeling with you guys someday so I can get this stuff straight. 😂

@@FnCJAdventurer That's all right ! Bam Bam is Jeff Petrowich's highly modified, but stock looking 1943 Willys MB. Penalty Box is my 1958 Land Rover short wheel base, Chevy V8 swapped but otherwise pretty stock. Yes, we may have to meet up at some point, I'm up in Washington a lot, and getting a house in Longview this spring. We're going to be at Easter Jeep Safari in Moab , and if you've never been to Moab, you gotta go sometime !! Its a whole other dimension of wheeling, highly addictive though😊

I’m heading to the snow tomorrow and only have one set of chains. I guess if I need them, I’ll throw them on the front. 😉

Hence the video Title “FJ40 Hack Job”. But to be transparent, I cleaned it up a lot more than what’s shown on video.

We found the lake, just couldn’t get to it. The only access appeared to be behind that abandoned explorer, and the road was littered with downed trees - too many for even the Land Cruiser to clear out 😉

@@FnCJAdventurer Yes I know all about Land Cruisers as I was the lucky owner of one, from brand new, many moons ago.

@@78a67h - wow! I bet you wish you still owned that. It’s hard to believe, that at one time, you could buy a 40 series for between $2500 and $3000 off the lot 😂

@@FnCJAdventurer You read my mind. I owned it in the early 80s. Had I kept it, it would need at least one body restoration to last me to this day. Engine and transmission would last no problem, these are bulletproof if given the right attention.

I was hoping to hear that. Thanks for sharing.

@@FnCJAdventurerIf your looking for hard to get to lakes check out Duck and goose lake once the snows gone

Yep - sbc 350 adapted to the Toyota 4-speed.

He’s running the original 60 hp flathead four. It struggles to make the power necessary to break things. Which is probably why after 80 years of service, it’s still going strong.

Thanks!

With these old rigs and the great outdoors, it’s pretty easy to enjoy yourself.

I bought a 2016 jk I sure I will have it for the rest of my life I would like an older one also. But I need some land first no room

@@Trackdad1 - you can never have too many rigs 😅 (said my wife NEVER). I have an FJ40 and a CJ2a I’m restoring. I would like and old Scout, Bronco, Defender as well 😆

It was, and yes, the snow was wet. Our rigs could push powder around all day, but that wet snow was making fools out of us 😅

@FnCJAdventurer i live up in Lynnwood area. Just north from you and wet snow is about all we get. Lol. Great video

I’ve never had any experience with G-Wagons, but it’s my understanding that they are amazing vehicles. Unfortunately I don’t see any older one around my neck of the woods. I love the old defenders too. I wish I could have one of everything.

Thanks, and Happy New Years lower 48! My wife and I have been to Vancouver a couple times. That’s a beautiful city.

@ Thanks and Happy New Years to you and your family as well! Yes we are extremely fortunate to live in the PNW of the states and Canada and have all this awesome nature at our doorsteps!

Thanks!

I saw the 1st 2 sentences in the comment summary, and rolled my eyes. Thankfully I opened it up and seen the rest 😂 You got me. A chainsaw is now on the equipment list.