Hello from a new member

[robert-koch]

Having not really used my Disco to it's full potential and as and I'm about to buy a Tacoma (for a work project - but it is 4x4 and has decent rubber) I've decided to step up the off-roading a bit. to this end, I figured I'd get involved with a group and this one seemsw to have a pretty good vibe.

I could do with a bit of guidance as I've not done a huge amount of wheeling.

Any suggestions for good starter trails within easy drive of Denver? Also, is there anywhere that one can get out at this time of year? Both vehicle are pretty much stock so I might save the rock crawling 'til later, but nonetheless, I'd like to have a little bit of fun;).

Thanks

[Funrover]

Welcome! What are your plans for the Disco?

Trails open year round that are stock friendly that I know of:

China Wall - located in Lake George
Rampart/Gold camp - not really 4WD roads but scenic

And near Denver I believe (but others can help me)

Slaughterhouse


As far as "guidance" goes, join in on a few trails see what you think. If you like it you will find out what changes you want/need quickly. One thing I do recommend is sliders to protect your doors.... But do an easy trail first. Let us know if you have specific questions

[Chris]

Welcome to Front Range 4x4, glad to have you on the board!

I think you'll find plenty of folks in similar situations as yours and plenty of good advice. I think Funrover has a good point on adding sliders to avoid damage but I'm also of the opinion it's great to learn how to drive your truck as it is off-road. I spent a year driving all kinds of trails totally stock and had a great time.

Join us on a run and you'll find everyone willing and happy to provide advice and make sure you have a good time. I'm sure others will chime in soon.

:cheers:

[Brody]

Hey and welcome to the forum! You will find good folks here and there is plenty of information for you, too.

As far as open trails go, I try to keep up with what trails have been run recently and post them up in the trail resources section of the forum. If you check out traildamage.com in the Colorado Trails section, start looking at some of the trails and notice the dates that the trail was run. This is another good way to see what trails are open. Slaughterhouse, Chinawall, Bunce School Road, Johnny Park and other lower elevation trails are open , but the amount of snow on them decides what you need to run them with.

Keep your eye open as we post trail runs and try to make them so that the runs are doable by everyone, stock or not.

I have a totally different view than Chris when it comes to sliders or rock rails. Price a new door for your rig, including the bottom part of the door sill. Then price sliders. Which is cheaper?? And don't forget to add the cost of labor and paint into the pricing of the door and sill repair...BTW, there are a bunch of folks here that do fabrication work and can make your sliders for your truck or do any welding, myself included, so maybe I am biased....

[robert-koch]

Thanks to everyone for the warm reception and the beta on trails. I'm looking to get out this weekend - I'll let you know what I find.

As far as plans for the Disco, I have a few:D.

I'd like to lift it, but the thing barely squeaks under the garage door now - so I'll have to figure that part out.

I'm going to replace the front bumper, as I've already cracked it and knocked out one of the fogs this past summer (it's a series II with the shopping mall bumper).

I've also never liked the loss of the manual dif lock that I had in my old DI- we'll see if that's in cards. Got to justify these expenses, so it'll go bit by bit.

Otherwise, I'd really like to do some multi-day tours at some point so mods that make it more expedition ready are probably in the future too.

A winch might not be a bad idea either as I recently got it stuck up in Winter Park when I didn't realize that what appeared to be a hard shoulder was actually a 3 ft ditch filled with corn snow. Big thanks to the Texan with the Suburban who helped me out. 'Texans know how to pull!' is what he said and I have to say at least that Texan did!

Improvements in interstate relations notwithstanding, it would have been nice to have got myself out!

Any other suggestions?

[robert-koch]

...on the sliders question - I've been meaning to find a project to use as a means to brush up on my welding skills - thanks for the idea.

Any plans out there in cyberland?

[Funrover]

More expedition style.. Nice. If that is the case I would look for the OME (old man emu) 2" lift.

For now trim your front bumper, I can share some links if you want. And if you want plans on building and such go to www.lrrforums.com and PM a guy by the name of Discomike. He will be really helpful with how he had built his DII.

As far as Winter Park goes where was it that you were stuck? I pull people out half of the times I go up there!

Have a good one

[Brody]

Talk to Doug at Atitude Steel about steel for your sliders, especially if you just want to do square stock vs any bent tube. Mention my name, Pete Brody, or Front Range 4x4 and bring some cash with you. He will deal a bit and is a good guy.

As far as plans go, I would just google 'rock sliders' or something close to that and start looking at pictures. The actual making of isn't too hard after that. This is what I have done for all of the sliders that I have made. I looked at manufacturers stuff and everything anyone had built and went from there.

[scoutfam]

gotta love the yotas. My buddy just got his 4runner back after a 4 inch lift and 33x12.5x15 s put on. It's huge......

[KnuckleHead]

Welcome aboard, hope to see you on the trails this summer

[Brody]

As far as a winch goes, Patrolman posts every winch that he sees on craigslist on the site here so keep you eyes open. There have been some screaming deals, too.

[4Runninfun]

welcome to the board. I have built a handful of sliders for LR's including several Disco I's as well as a disco II. if you want you can go to www.myspace.com/blackfootcustoms to get some ideas. if you have any questions shoot me a pm.

[SCRubicon]

A winch might not be a bad idea either as I recently got it stuck up in Winter Park when I didn't realize that what appeared to be a hard shoulder was actually a 3 ft ditch filled with corn snow. Big thanks to the Texan with the Suburban who helped me out. 'Texans know how to pull!' is what he said and I have to say at least that Texan did!

Why can I hear Tye saying that??? :D Welcome to Front Range 4x4 Robert!!!

[SCRubicon]

Winch? Check out this site http://www.winchdepot.com/ It may give you some ideas. They also have a winch calculator. It will help you figure out how much winch you need for your gross vehicle weight.

[Funrover]

Why can I hear Tye saying that??? :D Welcome to Front Range 4x4 Robert!!!

Because we have.. hahahahahahaaha :lol::lol:

[Pathrat]

Welcome to Front Range! When I started going off road two weeks after I bought my FJC (my first truck), right to Moab. Here in CO, I looked at the local guidebooks and started on the dirt roads then went up to Cascade above Idaho Springs just to test things out. You can't get too lost, there are a lot of roads and a bit on the easy side. Brody is right, look at traildamage.com. I don't know what your experience level is but that is a good source to match your skill with the trail. Or, just do what I did: hang out with the people here and you will get your skill and experience. :)

[Chris]

Or, just do what I did: hang out with the people here and you will get your skill and experience. :)

:thunb: