neohic

Yessir! :thumbsup:

What? What?! WHAT?!?! Doors in the apartment bedroom? Well... that can only mean one thing! Yes, the ol' Ape found a new forest to swing around in today. Been working at an offroad shop since a couple weeks ago after moving out to Colorado. Today was the day to join a new crowd! ... almost. The crank position sensor decided that it had enough of life on the way to the trail. Fortunately, one of the guys I work with was gracious enough to drive back into town to pick up a new one. On with the trails!!! Sure was strange being the "little guy" in the group. I had the smallest tire and the least amount of gearing (even with my 4.56s). That being said, I also was the only one without an actual frame and I had the most bodywork to swing around. Still, the wife and I had a great time! Sure was nice to be doing some of the stuff we came out here to do.

$#!& like that gets my blood boiling. Sorry it happened, man. :fs2:

Agreed with above. If it were me, you'll want an entire vehicle for a donor anyhow. Find a good one for the swap now so you can drive it all winter to make sure that everything is good before the swap starts.

Adding some real power-adders there, eh? :yes:

Very cool, Shawn! I really like these simpler builds that seem to be more of a "best of" kind of approach. Plenty of good stuff happening here. :cheers:

Damien sold out a few years ago. Guy named Eric Younger runs it now. Seems like a good crew there.

Well... 'bout time for an update, I suppose. I got a job! I'll be working at D&C Extreme starting tomorrow... technically started today, I guess? I got a call at 1:15 asking if I'd be interested in working there. By 1:45 I was already bending and notching tube. Still no wheeling yet. Vehicles are licensed and registered as of yesterday. First time driving my XJ in this altitude today. Fingers crossed the sensors will adjust to it's not so much of a slug. Poor thing... running on a few month old gas too. Looks pretty good with those fancy green plates though!

Did you get in contact with Bobby for that poster?

This is turning into quite the epic road trip. :rock on:

Perhaps "Ben of the Springs" would be more appropriate now. Has a nice ring to it, si? :thumbsup: Ben FROM the North? Ah hell... I'll just leave it for now. :idea:

Yessir. Already changed the location in my profile and everything! ... can I still keep the title of "Ben of the North", Don? :laughin:

I'm here!... rather, I've been here! For the last two weeks I've been unpacking, organizing, putting things in storage that we just don't need right now, and STILL looking for a job. The search has been pretty good and I think that I've impressed a bunch of employers. Sadly, I've been picky with the shops I've been looking around at, but it is the wheeling season for a while out here. Everybody is out using their rigs instead of working on them so most shops in the area are a bit slow. Still not worried. Worst comes to worst, I'll stock shelves at the Home Depot or something in the mean time. As for now, the wife and I have future plans for a tiny/small home. The apartment we found is a cozy 540 square feet. The size is perfect for us, I think. What the lack of space does for us is it forces us to keep things tidy and efficient. Her aunt and uncle have been awesome with us being out there and storing things. I built a shed to house my shop stuff for now... ... and the Eliminator, buggy, and Comansion are all out there too. The Ape is temporarily out there until plates go on. I've got my license, VINs have been verified, Colorado local insurance has been purchased, and hopefully this week my wife will get her birth certificate to she can get her license too to we can register all the vehicles. All in all, it's been a super busy couple weeks but I feel as though the dust is starting to settle. I'll be happier once I get a job and can set some kind of routine.

Those little 4 bangers packed a punch after they had been "massaged". They had a laundry list of things they'd do with them off the radar to make sure they'd rev like a dirt bike. Most of the time, they wouldn't have much space to really open them up. Some tracks even had an average speed of 70 mph! Were they made up their time was spooling up fast and cornering. Weight limits too. If you were "X" amount of pounds heavier than the rest of your competitors, you had to pack on a few. Archers got creative with it though putting weight down low to lower the center of gravity and some races they even had a tube in the bed tucked up behind the cab that contained weight that would shift back and forth to better help plant tires in tight corners. ... and for all those who haven't seen it yet, here's a good little video to get your blood pumping...

All the race trucks where 2.5s. With the 2.5s were custom spun coils pared with mono fiberglass leaf springs, rear sway bars, and a host of questionable to SCCA spec modifications.

Everybody (Archers) knows where it is and that it's still available. Dean (seller) uses it and isn't afraid to throw it around the auto cross. Anyhow... someday it'll be mine... just sayin'.

Quit bragging ya dork........ :D Yeah what he said! Hahaha ... still in the original packaging. :peek: :D

^I've got two of those straight from the source.

Can't believe I haven't checked in on this until now. Looks great so far! Big fan of well documented '97+ swaps.

Got the truck loaded up with the Comansion in tow. Closing... leaving... driving... Big day tomorrow.

Right? Oh, the tangled webs we weave... :roll:

Oof... Three more days of work, pick up the truck and load on Thursday, Friday is closing, Saturday is move in.

Actually, 'Nests were made ridiculously universal between make/models. They went off of bed size and that's about it. They had the huge mounting flanges on the inside of them just for that reason. Looks good on there!... now get it done. :smart:

I've got a couple irons in the fire yet. On the return trip last week, we stopped at TNT Customs in Cheyenne, WY. Obviously this is a bit far away to really consider, but that's not to say that they don't have any local friends. :peek:

Excellent choice! Excellent member! Congratulations on your month. Very well deserved, sir. :thumbsup: