Picking up where I left off

[Vasq]

That's ALL I was trying to say.
I've changed how I feel about the jeep.
Most of my thoughts in the beginning were wrong. How I thought I would use it, drive it, like it etc. The jeep has so far surpassed every expectation!

You're doing great. And realistically there's no time frame or rush. Do it all at your own pace.

but post more pictures.. we're all picture hungry

 

[tombicon]

You just have a muscle memory issue, nothing more. We go through this all the time after we dial in the steering and get it all fixed up. The #1 complaint I get is that we made the steering very twitchy now and it isn't fun to drive. No, we fixed the steering so now when you turn the wheel, the rig responds instantly with no slop.

What happens over time is folks learn to drive to keep themselves upright. The human animal doesn't like to lean over, at all. So what happens is we learn to watch the road for imperfections that are going to toss the rig around and we steer into them so we don't lean or get tossed a bit. We develop a very learned response to our shit steering in order to keep ourselves upright and still.

When you drive a rig with great steering response and try to do the same things via muscle memory, you wind up tossing yourself all over the inside of the cab so you perceive that as "twitchy" steering. I have to take folks out and show them to just rest a hand on the wheel, stop driving 20 yards in front of the bumper, ignore the slight side to side leans of the road surface and just relax. Look down the road to the safe limit you can see, steer towards that point, relax, and just drive it like a normal vehicle. It takes awhile but they eventually learn that it really isn't twitchy, they are and then it is all better.

Blaine, you delivered a Cadillac in how this thing drives and reacts. It's truly that good. I absolutely could not be happier.
I expected quite a bit from you...
You delivered more than I told myself to expect, and that's just hard to admit I was wrong in what I expected, especially since you delivered so much more...

 

[jjvw]

...
Maybe people are offended because you saved a bunch of expensive $tep$ and started where many want to get to?

No

 

[Farmergreg]

No

Love the partial quote, typical JJ behavior we’ve all come to expect.

Regarding why people are upset, it’s all academic at this point since posts have been deleted.

No shits given.

 

[jjvw]

Love the partial quote, typical JJ behavior we’ve all come to expect.

Regarding why people are upset, it’s all academic at this point since posts have been deleted.

No shits given.

Your words, Tucker.

 

[Farmergreg]

Hope that wasn't for my Las Vegas analogy!
Sounds like you got a very nice rig put together...get out and enjoy it and build your confidence level.
Maybe people are offended because you saved a bunch of expensive $tep$ and started where many want to get to?

Here’s the whole context @jjvw

 

[P man]

Cant we take this elsewhere instead of taking a big ol' steaming shit on Chris's build thread?

 

[rasband]

Cant we take this elsewhere instead of taking a big ol' steaming shit on Chris's build thread?

I vote they just ignore each other and call it a day.

That said, this has rarely been a build thread!

 

[RINC]

I vote they just ignore each other and call it a day.

That said, this has rarely been a build thread!

This is a build thread ?

 

[rasband]

This is a build thread ?

There were a few comments of Blaine’s work that were! I want to know more about them myself.

 

[Fouledplugs]

As I told you, I've done a lot of autocross and track racing in different vehicles (namely Miatas and sport bikes). That being said, I wasn't expecting a TJ could actually be driven like an autocross vehicle.

65 MPH flying over pothole laden roads and I could barely even feel them. Flinging the thing around corners and hardly any noticeable body roll whatsoever.

I am now a 100% firm believer that the key to making these things outstanding drivers has nothing to do with springs, control arms, etc., it's 100% suspension.

This thing handles and performs infinitely better than my factory silver TJ Rubicon did. In fact, it's immensely more pleasurable to drive. The road manners are so behaved, not just driving it insanely fast through corners, but cruising at 75 MPH on the highway I can steer with one finger and the TJ no longer feels floaty, nor does it feel like a white knuckle experience. You hit the brakes and the nose no longer dives. A big gust of wind from a semi-truck hits you at 75 MPH and the TJ no longer feels like it wants to lift up and float away. It's so firmly planted, so stable, and yet soaks up the imperfections in the road to a level that you'd almost have a hard time believing that it has solid axles under it.

Once upon a time I believed that a TJ on 35s would never be a good daily driver simply because at this level of build there were too many compromises. I can say with 100% certainty I no longer believe this to be true.

I would put my TJ and my money up against ANY bone stock TJ and guarantee that mine not only drives better in every situation, but is also more fun to drive in general.

The sad part about this is that no one at all is ever going to understand this unless they drive a rig that has been setup properly. Until then they're just going to sit here and say we're exaggerating, blowing things out of proportion, etc.

You don't know what you don't know, and until you've driven a rig that's been setup like this, you have absolutely no idea whatsoever just how good your TJ could drive.

You get a chance to ride in his LJ on 40’s?
Or atleast I think it’s his…

 

[Apparition]

You get a chance to ride in his LJ on 40’s?
Or atleast I think it’s his…

MrBlaine’s?

 

[Fouledplugs]

The ideal setup might be an aluminum block I6 or V6 with around 300 HP or so and a better transmission mated to it. In fact, if the Pentastar could fit, it would probably be perfect. He mentioned trying to fit one in a TJ though and it wouldn't work, so no such luck.

My theory behind a LJ tub on a JK frame. Seems like a no brainer. Although it may be very difficult to fit the tub and frame together.

IIIRC Savvy did it recently. And the ultimate adventure summer camp jeep uses an aluminum tub CJ 6 on a JK frame.

Bigger stiffer frame, better engine and trans, more options that fit when it comes to engine and trans combos, etc.

 

[Chris]

You get a chance to ride in his LJ on 40’s?
Or atleast I think it’s his…

I didn’t unfortunately.

 

[mrblaine]

I didn’t unfortunately.

Not possible since I do not own one.

 

[Fouledplugs]

Not possible since I do not own one.

Was thinking the black LJ was yours. The one with the LJon40’s tag.
It looked tasteful, figured it had your hands under it to some degree.

 

[Fouledplugs]

Re read the entire thread, @mrblaine beautiful work. @Chris cant wait to see a lot more photos of this build.

 

[mrblaine]

Was thinking the black LJ was yours. The one with the LJon40’s tag.
It looked tasteful, figured it had your hands under it to some degree.

I built all of it. It was originally done by Poison Spyder and belonged to the manager. The owner asked what to purchase for a build, I told him as close to stock as possible. He showed up with a rig on 40's on JK axles on coil-overs. He was pretty pleased with himself until he drove it on something just a bit rougher than a Forest Service road and figured out that just about everything about it was wrong. Tires rubbed, 3" of up-travel sucks, steering was not very good, brakes were scary. Stock TJ Unlimited wheel base for the 40's. The hood is the only thing left from that build and it had to be completely reworked to play nice with the Crawltec fenders. We took it from 104 out to 114+ due to his restriction that there had to be a filler neck bezel in the side of the rear fender.

 

[James C.]

You just have a muscle memory issue, nothing more. We go through this all the time after we dial in the steering and get it all fixed up. The #1 complaint I get is that we made the steering very twitchy now and it isn't fun to drive. No, we fixed the steering so now when you turn the wheel, the rig responds instantly with no slop.

What happens over time is folks learn to drive to keep themselves upright. The human animal doesn't like to lean over, at all. So what happens is we learn to watch the road for imperfections that are going to toss the rig around and we steer into them so we don't lean or get tossed a bit. We develop a very learned response to our shit steering in order to keep ourselves upright and still.

When you drive a rig with great steering response and try to do the same things via muscle memory, you wind up tossing yourself all over the inside of the cab so you perceive that as "twitchy" steering. I have to take folks out and show them to just rest a hand on the wheel, stop driving 20 yards in front of the bumper, ignore the slight side to side leans of the road surface and just relax. Look down the road to the safe limit you can see, steer towards that point, relax, and just drive it like a normal vehicle. It takes awhile but they eventually learn that it really isn't twitchy, they are and then it is all better.

I am struggling with this after completing a PSC Pump, Box, and your cooler install. I don't daily drive mine anymore so my recalibration is taking longer. The main problem I have is highway ruts. Most of our pavement here is asphalt and gets rutted from truck traffic after a couple of years. The ruts still push my jeep around pretty bad and I toss myself trying to catch the steering and keep in the lane. Do you expierence this @jjvw ?

 

[Midnight LJR]

I am struggling with this after completing a PSC Pump, Box, and your cooler install. I don't daily drive mine anymore so my recalibration is taking longer. The main problem I have is highway ruts. Most of our pavement here is asphalt and gets rutted from truck traffic after a couple of years. The ruts still push my jeep around pretty bad and I toss myself trying to catch the steering and keep in the lane. Do you expierence this @jjvw ?

I don’t experience any of that on mine.