Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

enjoy!

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Here's the check-in and vehicle inspection. My personal favorite rig, other than mine, was the '79 Ford Bronco parked next to mine piloted by Keith.

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There were 14 invitees and quite a few support staff. I just loved the mechanics that traveled with us. One of them was Randy Ellis. Randy is a super chill guy with a offroad resume of awesomeness. I'd known about Randy for years. It was great to actually meet him.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

The first morning we worked our way out of Wickenburg up Highway 89 through Congress and entered the primitive road system near Yarnell. We worked our way east into the Bradshaw Mountains over trails to Crown King.

The easy way into Crown King is Crown King Rd (59, Forest 259 Rd.). We did not come the easy way. On the way up we had to strap the broken down Pinzgauer in our group to clear the trail. Pinzgauers are super neat Austrian military rigs with 6 wheels, independent suspension and portal axles. In this story, our good old 'Murican iron represents the puller, and the curious foreign rig represents the pullee. Wish we took a picture.

This is the day that support staff following us killed both a Tahoe and an Acadia. Bad choice there.

After lunch we followed the trail system north into Prescott for a night at the Hassayampa Inn.

My wife hates this shirt. Can't imagine why.
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Here we are at the Old Mill eating lunch at Crown King. You may notice I removed the steps. The suggestion was made by the mechanics that they would not survive long. Good advise. I'll also note that these heavy E-rated tires are kinda important. We came across many trucks with streetish tires that were just shredded. Things get pretty real quickly with rocks.
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Finally, getting some R&R in the Hassayampa Inn Parking Lot. This is B, my wingman.
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Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Too cool. I see a Scout II, my first car was a 77 model. You look out over the parking lot and know everyone there's BP is down in the lub--dub zone... Send pics when you can.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

There's a green Scout II that you'll see later that was great. My second favorite behind the '79 Bronco.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Dude the Hassayampa is cool. Glad you guys stayed there.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Yep. Super cool place.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

The second day of the journey we headed north out of Prescott towards Bill Williams Mountain.

We came across this motley crew of sheep:
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Before we found our lunch destination, we ran out of waypoints:
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After a shortcut through the woods, we found lunch:
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Airing the tires back up for some highway duty. This Viair 400P Automatic was fantastic. What I like about it was using the air trigger/gauge attachment as an air down tool. The air hose is plenty long to get around to all the tires. Just worked really well.
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During the afternoon we backtracked and made our way into the Skull Valley where Camp Overland was setup:
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I hung out with the mechanics into the night as they repaired a Series I Landrover with a bad steering pump setup:
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Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Cool stuff Cameron!! Looks like a great time! 👍

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Yep. Super epic experience.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Started the morning out with a walk to the showers watching shooting stars. The Moon and Venus gave me this show:
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The rising sun gave me this shot after breakfast:
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More of the same epic landscapes with our continued trail work:
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Ah....My favorite photo I've seen so far. This is on a ridge south of Seligman as we worked our way towards camp. I almost forgot the YETI tumbler when we were loading up.
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The catering provided by Sierra Bonita Grill & Catering was world class. These ladies and gentlemen worked harder than just about anybody out there:
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Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Oh man.. Keep em coming!

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

The last night we enjoyed some cowboy story telling and singing:
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I documented the end condition of the interior in the In & Out drivethru...not bad:
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The exterior has minimal scratches but a lot of road rash on the lower panels:
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On the trailer headed home:
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Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

More epic photos. These were all shot by the talented Christian Otjen. You can find him with his Instagram handle @cvotjen or his website OtjenPhoto.com

Working the trails on Day 2:

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Across some ranches on Day 3:

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Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

I did supervise one upgrade this past week to the Blazer. With the added weight of the tires, bumpers, etc., the brakes were not up to the task of locking down on the rotors. I was thinking hydroboost, but after a quick call to Chris at Offroad Design, I learned that there was a bolt on upgrade. Apparently the mid-80s 3/4 ton trucks had larger piston calipers for the higher GVWR trucks. It's a direct bolt-on upgrade that gives you 20% more clamping force. So for under 100 bucks I can stand this truck up on its front toes. I ordered brake lines from Offroad Design that have the matching 10mm banjo bolts, but if you're 79 and up, you already have the right brake lines. It's awesome. Feels good.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

That's good to know! Ours stops well but always good to put in the back of my mind. Thanks for sharing!

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Is the brake upgrade just for 4/4s or will it work on 4/2s also?

Thanks
Rick

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Based on Rockauto's cross reference, it works for both. There's a big piston caliper (JB7/JD7 - 13" - 3-5/32" piston diameter) and a smaller piston caliper (JB6/JD6 - 11" - 2-15/16" piston diameter). Starting in 1979, they started using the 10mm banjo bolt. Earlier than that, the banjo bolt was like 7/16".

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Sorry to hear about the new road rash. It must've been hard for you to take such a nice rig "out". Glad to see you did. Really cool to see these rigs on the road. What's the next adventure?

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

No big deal. I had some touch-up paint to dab on it. I don't want this rig to be too nice. It needs to live. Me and my running buddy are putting our efforts into organizing a local 4x4 club for vintage iron. There's enough of our types around to get organized. I'm totally game for another adventure like this.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Keep me in mind when you guys organize a trip. My wife and I usually reserve Jan/Feb every year for trips south where it's warm.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Duly noted. :) Thanks brother.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

A few more:

Crossing our first bridge on Day 1
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Relaxing after Day 3
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B cleaning the windshield before Day 2
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B and I at the campfire on Day 2
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Us leading the way down the trail on Day 2
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Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

My tailgate switch stopped working. Opened everything up and decided to replace the key switch.

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Here's the GM Part # for the key switch. It comes with two pre-cut keys to operate the switch.

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The existing key switch was a little gunked up, but didn't look broken.
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Ultimately, I'm an idiot. This electric tailgate setup was retrofitted in the 90s. Once I replaced the key switch, it still didn't work. I followed the power wire directly to the power junction on the right front fender where a 30 amp fuse was blown. Always check your fuses, idiot. That said, the replaced tailgate switch didn't have a proper rubber seal to keep the water out. Perhaps the switch was shorting due to water and that burned the fuse. I've cleaned the replaced switch, and I'm gonna re-key the tumblers to the new key as a handy spare. I've also made sure I have the proper spare 30 amp fuse in the glove box.

As a note, I was able to pull the whole guts out of the tailgate without removing the glass by propping it up while rolled out and just removing 4 bolts for the window glass cam channel and the 4 bolts for the window regulator assembly. It really is an easy thing to work on.

Of course, I have removed the safety switch, but you can bypass that by hooking a cordless drill to the drive for the window regulator.

Re: 1978 Russet Metallic 4x4
 

Remember the front driveshaft I roasted on the trip? Well the repaired unit sucked for balance. I got tired of dealing with our local half-ass driveshaft outfits. Went with the Godfather.
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Now the driveline is docile and silent. I so love good quality parts.