What would you do....

[Mporter]

So for a while now I have been wanting to build up a dedicated trail rig (but also street capable, since I don't/wont have a tow rig).

I'm more or less open to any make/model/etc I just want to be able to run at least 37's.

So here is where you guys come in. If you were going to make a crawler on a budget (think broke college kid ) what would you do? Any suggestions would be great. Axles, gearing, tires, lockers, rigs (scouts, jeeps, yotas, etc), and anything else that is associated with rockcrawling. There really isn't a budget right now since this is just a pipedream, but i'd like to keep it to things that I could easily find in scrap yards for cheap. I'm not looking to go out and spend thousands on that brand new Dana 44 with 5.29s and a detroit or anything.

[Mporter]

You pretty much hit it on the head Pete. I'm thinking if I bought a project rig the budget would be no more than $5k but if I bought a stocker to mod, probably around $2k max.

I've been browsing CL daily, seen a lot of 1st gen 4runners and CJ's on 35/37's for under $5k.

[RidgeRunner]

I paid $3300 for my 87 4runner, already on 37s, sas with high steer, 529 gears, detroit in the rear. It needed some love but was very capable as it sat.

Ill cast my vote for picking up somebody else's project and finishing it out to your liking.

Sent from my Droid using Tapatalk

[Popsgarage]

Dave hit it on the head. For example....http://fortcollins.craigslist.org/pts/2656628665.html

[Cr33p3r]

Matt after building my Ranger I would say like Pete & Dave did buy something someone else has not finished but already done a good portion of the work. Even at that you can still go thru what they did and check it out and mod it the way you want, will save some good money that way. If I was doing mine over again I would have bought one already built or started in that direction, but I want a challenge and did not trust some of the work I saw out there at the time.

[Fordguy77]

1freaky1 previously posted:

[Mporter]

Yeah if you would have asked me a year ago, I would have told you I wanted to build it from stock...but now I'm realizing that is just too much work being a full time student with a part time job.

What are some axles that I should be looking for when it comes to handling 37-40's?

[Chris]

Broke college kid with a budget of 5K?

Build the Cruiser Matt!

[Mporter]

Chris previously posted:

[Chris]

Drop in an H55F and it'll feel like a new motor, trust me!

[gm4x4lover]

I built my k5 with a budget of 3k. Rig was only $750 (fuel injected V8 with a rebuilt trans), used 37's on wheels $600, 3/4 ton axles can be had for $250 or less, my biggest expense was my gears and lockers which I have 1200 into. I do most of my own work and scour for deals. Last week I picked up a suburban for 700. 2 weeks before that a cherokee that needed a couple of trans solenoids for 650. My 1994 cherokee i have about 4900 into. winch, arb bumper, sye, sliders, tires, gears, locker, roll cage. Only thing i bought new for it was a set of tires. It was half done and used parts for the rest of it.

[Chris]

I have to admit my FJ55 with a V8 was a lot more fun to drive than the 62 with a 5-speed. I'll amend my comment to dropping in something like Nick says, Chevota!

[Mporter]

I would love to build a FJ55 crawler.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/_r...0/IMG_0528.JPG
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/_r...0/IMG_0045.JPG

[96blkbeauty]

You have to really ask yourself what you will be using the rig for. How difficult of trails would you want to run with it? A lot of people have overly built rigs for the trails they want to run. "Overly built" I suppose is always a good thing, but why dump a bunch of money into a rig to make it over-capable when you can get by with cheaper parts?

I'd like to SAS my Bronco, put some 37s on there, lockers, armor, exc...but then I ask myself am I really interested in doing trails that require all that? Wheeling is a fun hobby, but realistically I only get out to do it a few times a year. So with a better quality lift, maybe a rear locker, and some armor...I can run most trails i'm interested in running.

Another thing is, I personally wouldn't buy a second project vehicle if you already have one....especially while in college (Yes, I have two. But thats because I love my Bronco too much and can't manage to get rid of it. Even though I think about selling it all the time. If you're the type to get attached to possessions, don't get hooked up on another project). Unless you have a good place to park it and work on it. I picked up my Ranger as a DD, with little intentions of modding it, but it too has become a project vehicle. Meanwhile my Bronco has sat parked in the driveway for the last 1.5 years with little TLC.

Just a few things to keep in mind. But as others have said, if you want to pick one up try to find one thats already been built. People's toys can be had cheap these days. Just takes some time to find the right one. Honestly, if I was trying to build up a trail rig for a cheap price, i'd look into an older Yota, Ranger, or Bronco. Rangers and Bronco's can be had cheap, and they are easy to work on!

[RidgeRunner]

Mporter previously posted:

[gm4x4lover]

96blkbeauty previously posted:

[Fordguy77]

gm4x4lover previously posted:

[Popsgarage]

Fordboy77 previously posted:

[EldoradoFJ60]

So you want mainly a trail rig? I dig the 60 because it's a 4WD mobile home for me.

For a trail rig I'd either put a 350 in the 60 or build up a K5 Blazer. Then you already have a more powerful engine. Or possibly some sort of Scout, early Bronco or Toy mini truck.