Playing in the snow

[James Gosling]

Hi everyone,
I finally got fed up working out in it everyday and decided to go for a play! The sunny south of England at its best.

[Barry Churcher]

Hi James
Great photos. Thanks for posting them. Last year was my first year with the TA and I couldn't wait to get snow photos to post on here. By Christmas we had over 3 feet of snow and much more to come. I couldn't get the TA out as the barn was snowed in, so no photos. This year I would be embarassed to post snow photos. You have more snow than me.
Cheers from No Snowy Castleton,
Barry

[Jordan Baker]

Looks great James. You have more snow then we do and thats fine with me.

[Geoff Winnington-Ball (RIP)]

I know what you mean, Barry... as much as I've come to hate winter, I've been waiting for a massive snowfall in order to crank my jeep into 4wd and put those fat 32" tyres to work. As a result, we have NO snow on the ground in Toronto... {sigh}

Originally Posted by Barry Churcher

Hi James
Great photos. Thanks for posting them. Last year was my first year with the TA and I couldn't wait to get snow photos to post on here. By Christmas we had over 3 feet of snow and much more to come. I couldn't get the TA out as the barn was snowed in, so no photos. This year I would be embarassed to post snow photos. You have more snow than me.
Cheers from No Snowy Castleton,
Barry

[Roland Koster]

Hi James,

it's good to see you're having a lot of fun with it. I have helped the first owner restoring your C15TA (1988-1989). I'll send him the snow photo's. It was a real basket case when it was found in Holland. Enjoy the rides!

best regards,

Roland

[Alex Blair (RIP)]

Originally Posted by Geoff Winnington-Ball

I know what you mean, Barry... as much as I've come to hate winter, I've been waiting for a massive snowfall in order to crank my jeep into 4wd and put those fat 32" tyres to work. As a result, we have NO snow on the ground in Toronto... {sigh}

Jif ..
I hate to tell you but fat snow tires are useless..they ride up on top of the snow and tend to snow plough..skinny snow tires ,on the other hand ,dig down through the snow to ground or gravel and grip there ..not on the snow..skinny tires also cut through the snow while fatties tend to snow plough and burn heep big gas and get no where..stick to skinny snows if you want traction..keep your fatties for looks..

[Geoff Winnington-Ball (RIP)]

Originally Posted by Alex Blair

Jif ..
I hate to tell you but fat snow tires are useless..they ride up on top of the snow and tend to snow plough..skinny snow tires ,on the other hand ,dig down through the snow to ground or gravel and grip there ..not on the snow..skinny tires also cut through the snow while fatties tend to snow plough and burn heep big gas and get no where..stick to skinny snows if you want traction..keep your fatties for looks..

Quite the contrary, Alex.... these tyres work beautifully in the deepest snow. I've used them in past and have been the only vehicle moving, with hundreds strung out behind me riding in my tracks, literally all the way down the 404 from Newmarket to Toronto... I was literally cutting a path through two feet of virgin snowfall (I had ten-foot rooster tails from all four wheel wells). The footprint is the thing; narrow tyres just dig down until you're bellied in, and then you're screwed.

[cletrac (RIP)]

I had a 1980 Chev 3/4 ton 4x4 that I used off road all winter. I found that a 10" wide 16" grip tire worked best by far. Any smaller and you weren't getting the power to the ground and any bigger just slowed you down by pushing too much snow and gas mileage took quite a hit too. The taller tires give you ground clearance but wide ones won't ride over most snow conditions anyway.

[Geoff Winnington-Ball (RIP)]

Originally Posted by cletrac

I had a 1980 Chev 3/4 ton 4x4 that I used off road all winter. I found that a 10" wide 16" grip tire worked best by far. Any smaller and you weren't getting the power to the ground and any bigger just slowed you down by pushing too much snow and gas mileage took quite a hit too. The taller tires give you ground clearance but wide ones won't ride over most snow conditions anyway.

Depends on the type of snow, of course. My tyres are 32-11.50x15s (deep dish rims which replaced the standard 16" factory rims) and they seem to do a pretty good job. The 31-10.50s I had on my old jeep were ok, but tended to dig into really deep, fluffy snow, whereas these seem to float a bit better (plus they have a really aggressive tread pattern for bite). I think the 33-12.50s are just a bit too much though, even if they do look good. I'm running 4.10 diffs, but I think I should have gone for a bit higher ratio; in a headwind on the highway you can't pull fifth gear at normal speed limits (2WD of course).

I LOVE big pickup trucks, but the advantage of this in mud or snow is its short wheelbase. I can always pull a trailer if I need extra carrying capacity.

Jif

PS: Gas mileage with this 4L engine sucks anyway, so I'm not too worried. Might change it out for a 4BT diesel down the road, but this engine's still strong so I'll leave it for now.

[Alex Blair (RIP)]

Originally Posted by Geoff Winnington-Ball

Depends on the type of snow, of course. My tyres are 32-11.50x15s (deep dish rims which replaced the standard 16" factory rims) and they seem to do a pretty good job. The 31-10.50s I had on my old jeep were ok, but tended to dig into really deep, fluffy snow, whereas these seem to float a bit better (plus they have a really aggressive tread pattern for bite). I think the 33-12.50s are just a bit too much though, even if they do look good. I'm running 4.10 diffs, but I think I should have gone for a bit higher ratio; in a headwind on the highway you can't pull fifth gear at normal speed limits (2WD of course).

I LOVE big pickup trucks, but the advantage of this in mud or snow is its short wheelbase. I can always pull a trailer if I need extra carrying capacity.

Jif




PS: Gas mileage with this 4L engine sucks anyway, so I'm not too worried. Might change it out for a 4BT diesel down the road, but this engine's still strong so I'll leave it for now.

Hi Jif..
You say...
"I'm running 4.10 diffs, but I think I should have gone for a bit higher ratio; in a headwind on the highway you can't pull fifth gear at normal speed limits (2WD of course).
If you put higher ratio diffs in,both of course..say 3.71:1..you would be in second gear in a head wind...that would really suck..
But your overall gas mileage would improve..mucho..
The old flat head Fords..'49-'54..had 4.11:1 rear ends.. they were the ideal ratio for making the old girls "Peel"to impress the chicks at school..no top end..but fast enough to scare a fellow..That is why they came out with overdrive.


You may want to look at your transfer case instead.This would be your best bet...change the input gears..
Check this out..
http://www.novak-adapt.com/knowledge/np231.htm

There are 40 something gear variations in the transfer cases..so there is something there for you..
Changing your diffs would not be the answer..
Check this out..
http://www.novak-adapt.com/knowledge...nput_gears.htm

Enjoy..a good project for the barn boys..
Or the Scag..when he isn't busy..

[Geoff Winnington-Ball (RIP)]

Alex

Thanks for those links. When I said 'higher' I meant numerically. In my previous jeep I went from 3.09s to 3.71s to accommodate the 31-10.50s, and while that wasn't enough, it did the trick, and it was cheaper than changing out the diffs themselves. The 4.1 diff gearsets I have in this seem to be about the same with these 32" tyres. I should have gone to ratios in the mid-4s methinks...

What I really need with THIS vehicle is a closer 5th gear - it's too far apart from 4th. Either that or a lower overall drive ratio (cheaper). I'll look into that transfer case.

Originally Posted by Alex Blair

Hi Jif..
You say...
"I'm running 4.10 diffs, but I think I should have gone for a bit higher ratio; in a headwind on the highway you can't pull fifth gear at normal speed limits (2WD of course).
If you put higher ratio diffs in,both of course..say 3.71:1..you would be in second gear in a head wind...that would really suck..
But your overall gas mileage would improve..mucho..
The old flat head Fords..'49-'54..had 4.11:1 rear ends.. they were the ideal ratio for making the old girls "Peel"to impress the chicks at school..no top end..but fast enough to scare a fellow..That is why they came out with overdrive.


You may want to look at your transfer case instead.This would be your best bet...change the input gears..
Check this out..
http://www.novak-adapt.com/knowledge/np231.htm

There are 40 something gear variations in the transfer cases..so there is something there for you..
Changing your diffs would not be the answer..
Check this out..
http://www.novak-adapt.com/knowledge...nput_gears.htm

Enjoy..a good project for the barn boys..
Or the Scag..when he isn't busy..