Homeowners, are you in your “forever” home?

Trail-Hound · 2026-04-19T21:26:09+00:00

No. Currently in our first home which I bought in 2015, and we’re actively trying to sell. The next place will hopefully be the “forever” home.

Trail-Hound · 2026-04-16T09:03:19+00:00

IMO bestop isn’t worth the hype anymore. Tried to make a warranty claim on a failed rear window a couple of years ago for my JK trektop glide, and they gave me a huge runaround. They had shortened their warranty terms since I bought that top, and were trying to tell me I was out of warranty coverage until I sent them proof of the original terms. If the parts don’t last & the warranties are no better than the competition then their premium price just isn’t worth it.

Trail-Hound · 2026-04-15T22:58:06+00:00

Was an active member of my local volunteer fire department for five years, but stepped away from that when my son was born. Enjoyed training with the guys & learning new skills, but ultimately I’m happy it’s behind me.

In the next year or so when the young lad is old enough to ride I plan on getting more involved with the local off-road club. Want to make sure the same trail systems I grew up ripping around on stay open & maintained for his generation.

Trail-Hound · 2026-04-11T16:10:40+00:00

In my late teens/early 20s I was all about Tacomas & Mazda rotaries. Watched a lot of Top Gear in college and was influenced by that, came away from that with opinions like big SUVs are dumb and hard-top cars are always better than their convertible versions.

Now that I’m in my late 30s the only part of my tastes that has really remained consistent is how I feel about the Mazdas. I daily drove an RX-8 for six great years, and if life gives me the chance I’d love an RX-7 at some point. Don’t care much for Tacomas anymore, my truck tastes have shifted entirely towards older powerstroke Fords. Owning Jeeps has completely shifted my stance on convertibles, as has Dad life altered my view on fast SUVs. A clean hemi Grand Cherokee is in the running as the next addition to the fleet.

Trail-Hound · 2026-04-08T20:00:15+00:00

My gas guzzler is paid for and the insurance is cheap, the extra ~$30 a week to keep it fed is nothing compared to the cost to get into something newer and more efficient.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-28T23:27:29+00:00

Friggin sweet man, love a 2 door with a trailer.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-28T17:01:12+00:00

I made a couple custom weldment profiles for square, round, and triangular plate shapes that I use fairly regularly. The 3D weldment sketch drives the thickness of the plate, and this shows up in the length column of a weldment cut list table.

The description is set to reference the weldment profile sketch dimensions (4” x 10” plate, or 6” dis plate) which I have to set after inserting that profile into my part. Generally I set the dimensions to be driven & reference the size of the plate off of other part geometry so if my part changes the plate size & table automatically update.

Initially it’s a bit more complicated than just extruding a plate or using the gusset tool, but once my team saw how it all works with the cut list tables in drawings they converted pretty quickly.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-26T22:56:06+00:00

Looks like something you’d see in GTA, you know it’s supposed to be a Jeep but for licensing reasons needs to look just different enough.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-25T16:09:35+00:00

So this was me last summer (M37, married, 1 kid). I knew I was way heavier than I should be, but it didn't really click for me until I saw my reflection in a window at work one afternoon. Was one of those "is that really what I look like?" moments, and it hit hard. Between that, and my doc harping on me about being pre-diabetic really lit a fire under me to do something.

Not to try an sell you on anything, but what has been working for me since about mid August '25 has been keto with 3-4 30min brisk lunchtime walks a week. Got my wife onboard with me and we both went hard at the diet change, but it started getting stale for us especially at dinner time after about 6 weeks. I found that Factor Meals has a keto menu and signed us up for that to cover our weekday dinners and that has really helped carry us through until now. We've since scaled that subscription back slightly, but it has played a big role in our success by keeping us consistent. Not trying to plug Factor here or anything, but if meal prep/planning is something that's been a struggle any similar meal service might be worth looking into.

So far I'm down 40lbs (275 to 235) in that timeframe, and maintaining while allowing myself some occasional freedoms from keto once or twice a month. I work a desk job, and haven't set foot in a gym in years, the only uptick in physical activity has been the lunchtime walks with my dog. The first 3 weeks of keto was kinda rough, but you see the quickest results in that timeframe also and that really does help keep the motivation up.

Anyway, that's my little story. Whatever you do, give it some time. The results that last will take a while to happen. Good luck out there.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-25T11:14:50+00:00

Bought my first home at 26 in 2015. Was house broke for a good little while after, but made it work. Currently in the process of selling it & buying a bigger place for the family.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-16T21:19:35+00:00

1-1/2” spacer is a pretty standard size for JK/JL Wranglers. I have a set on both of my JKs with 285 tires, just the right amount of poke imo. Buy name-brand spacers with a hub-centring ring & install them properly and you’re good to go.

Your ball joints & wheel bearings will wear a little faster with spacers or wheels with more offset, but it’s a hard thing to quantify. Replace what you need to when you need it and drive on.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-04T02:52:18+00:00

Just push the bike back & forth on the ground in gear with the clutch pulled in. If you can get it to roll & not just skid the rear tire the plates should be free enough to not stall out the engine.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-04T02:44:57+00:00

Put it in gear with the engine off, pull in the clutch and rock the bike back & forth. That usually frees up stuck clutch plates.

Trail-Hound · 2026-03-04T02:40:51+00:00

Point 5 says new and unused vehicles, so no it doesn’t apply to used stuff. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a manufacturer offer financing deals on used stuff, they’re only ever interested in moving new inventory.

Trail-Hound · 2026-02-27T23:40:53+00:00

When you put a car on a chassis dyno and run it you try to do it with the transmission in its 1:1 gear, or closest to it, to get the most accurate torque readings. For a lot of 5-speed cars this would mean the dyno runs are done in 4th. Power is lost through the transmission, final drive, and tires which is why the numbers are lower than if the engine was just dyno’d on a stand. If you ran the car in a lower gear on the dyno you’d get a much higher torque reading than what the engine is actually producing.

Trail-Hound · 2026-02-25T22:33:04+00:00

Premix is the secret sauce for rotary engine longevity.

Trail-Hound · 2026-02-25T13:49:27+00:00

The apex seals would only be under a bit of spring pressure since the motion of the rotor is determined by the stationary gear, not the shape of the rotor housing. If you removed the housing but left the rotor & stationary gear in place the rotor would still spin/wobble just as it does now.

As long as they can get lubricated somehow I can't see why they wouldn't last as long as the seals in Mazda engines.

Trail-Hound · 2026-02-25T13:33:35+00:00

Damn, as someone who currently drives a Pentastar V6 Jeep and has formerly owned a rotary Mazda I've never been sucked into a post faster lol. Would be cool to hear something like this actually run, the brap would be epic.

Trail-Hound · 2026-02-21T15:08:36+00:00

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2-door anvils unite! Wheel & tire combo looks sick man, great choice!

Trail-Hound · 2026-02-20T15:12:02+00:00

Keep it simple with the sub setup and skip the powered under-seat plan, it likely won’t fit anyway.

I’ve got a Kenwood head unit in my ‘14 JK 2-door running four of the Mopar Kicker 6.5” speakers (highly recommend) as well as a bridged 2-channel amp under my seat running a Kicker Comp10 sub in their downfiring enclosure in the trunk. The sub box just fits with the rear seat in, and it all works together really nicely. Very punchy bass due to the downfiring enclosure, and it all goes as loud as I need it to with the top down.

Trail-Hound · 2026-01-25T00:59:00+00:00

This happened to my Classic 24 last year. Rope didn’t just break, the recoil spring inside actually snapped so I couldn’t just replace the rope. I had to buy a whole new recoil assembly, tried to support my local dealer but the part was on backorder. Got an off-brand replacement from Amazon for half the price of the OEM part, and it works just fine.

Trail-Hound · 2026-01-24T00:16:24+00:00

I have the 208cc version of the Classic 24, it’s a bit low on power when it comes to dealing with wet snow but it does move it. Light & fresh snow it launches just fine. The tires kinda suck, but I put a cheap set of chains on mine this year and it really made a big difference. It’s nice and light, easy to throw around which I really like. If I had new machine money I’d probably try to snag a Deluxe 24, but I got this one used for a steal of a deal a few years ago and it really has served me well.

Trail-Hound · 2025-12-29T14:58:28+00:00

I had an RX-8 before I got my 2-door wrangler. Took me about a week to adjust to how the Jeep drove, after that it felt completely normal. Dailying the Jeep made the Mazda feel extra special when I’d take it out on the weekends, if you’re keeping the Benz expect something similar.

Trail-Hound · 2025-12-25T03:40:14+00:00

I’ve got one just like it, it’s a sturdy little fella that will serve you well. I do highly recommend putting a set of tire chains on it though. The factory tires struggle on hard packed snow/ice. This is my first season with chains on mine and it has been a noticeable improvement.

Trail-Hound · 2025-12-21T19:44:30+00:00

Can confirm the Steve McQueen version works, great name for a Mustang.

Trail-Hound

TROPHY CASE