Quote:
Originally posted by Robert A.M. Stephens
Yes, this is clear for me, as I've had many of the Jeeps past, including VEX, in these situations, but always had to come up and over the escarpment alone, generally winching if it was too steep. I've let VEX down 90' cliffs too with the rear winch, to prove cable trust hardware and winch brakes etc, but I don't bounce VEX much getting things ariborne. There is a time and place for power up, as you all know, but I avoid this as much as possible since I hate breaking stuff all day long.
I'm still not completely clear how the coils unload, per se', since there is no tension or spring wind up with the front end air borne like that in you photo, in that the suspension is just hanging at full droop in your case?
Also, if the Jeep then comes down, through the power up to get up and over, what is the downside of this and what purpose is a limiting strap if articulation is desired.
There's a common dynamic I am missing on this.
Thank you for taking the time with me on this.
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What you can't see in this picture is that the driver's front is on the ground with no coil pressure or weight on it. It just sat there and spun and danced around. As the rear tires heated up from slow spinning; I gained forward momentum and the front dropped down and both tires were then on terra firma.
The unloading of coils is really no different than leafs. It all has to do with weight transfer. You reach the point of no return as you become more and more vertical to where the weight bias is shifted to the rear wheels. At this point; the front suspension is "unloaded" and has no downward pressure on the front tires.
You asked about cutout size on our typical trails. Let's just say that more than a few trails around here could use a 40" tire to climb out of these. You also asked why not go around the obstacle. Unfortunately; this not only takes the challenge away, but also many trails have no bypasses. One trail comes to mind and is named "Collateral Damage." Once you start; you are comitted. The whole trail is in a deep wash with tall vertical walls on both sides. There is no turning around.
A center mounted limiting strap will not hurt articulation. The axle can still pivot at the center mounting point of the strap. It works quite well. If you apply this same principle to the rear of Vex; you'll find that your axle won't walk forward under bind, yet it can still articulate.
