Its a true road warrior.
Tim dropped me off at the bike store (thanks again Tim!) and I rode with the owner over to his house to grab the 60. We handled the paperwork, exchanged some cash and I was on my way. She fired right up, just as he explained it has a "miss" at lower rpm's, though as soon as it hits ~1500 it really runs great. I go to push in the clutch and shift it into first... grrrrrnd. Clutch isn't fully dissengaging. Pump it a second time and I can feel it pump up and dissengage. Easy, I just need to rememeber to double pump it each time. I check out the gas gauge as I drive back towards Main Street, everything in check but the gas gauge. I figure I better top it off, check the fluids and go from there. As the pump filled I systematically checked the fluids under the hood. The oil was a tad low, nothing to worry about but with a long drive home I decided I would top it off. The PS fluid was full to my amazement (it drove like it had manual steering). The radiator was full, and the brake and clutch mastes were good to go. I finished topping off the tank, grabbed a Mtn. Dew and I was off. Just me and the Cyprus Hill cd the owner had left in the CD player... "insane in the membrain"... yeah it sucked.
She motored down Main Street just as expected, a little rough off the line but nice and smooth as she roared into the upper rpm's. By the time I reached the highway speeds north of town I was confident it was going to be a smooth ride home, I could actuall pass on the flats and hold speed on the hills, something I havn't done in a Land Cruiser of mine for quite some time (take not I havn't owned a Land Cruiser with 30" tires in some time either). I reached the intersection with Interstate 70 in what felt like minutes after leaving Moab, she was a race car. To celebrate I bought the two of us a bag of jerky from a roadside vendor and again sped down the road, this time heading west on the 70. I thought it prudent to top of the tank in Green River, at least that would give me some sort of inclination as to how the vehicle was running fuel wise and where I would need to stop again for fuel if needed. To my amazement I had only burned ~3 gallons from Moab to Green River, a distance of ~55 miles, meaning even at my above average speeds, I was getting 15+ mpg. At that rate I should be clear to drive it home on the tank. With that peave of mind, it was back to the interstate. As I approached the interchange heading to Wellington, I couldn't help but think of the lonely swell, just a couple of miles further down the interstate. I've got a rig that runs great, a clutch that has to double pump, an unknown condition 4WD system, a bag of beef jerky and a 9mm... I did was I thought was best... go wheeling.
I entered the swell via Black Dragon Canyon. The canyon bottom is strewn with bowling ball size rocks, in combination with the low clearance and the crappy power steering (it was tight, just not much power), I decided it was already time for low range. "Click" it slid right in, and the light on the dash lit up "4WD". I wasn't too concerned with having true 4WD, if it got bad enough I would get out and lock the hubs (hmmm, had I ever checked those back in town?). We motored up the canyon, passing a couple of hikers along the way (I turned down the Cyprus Hill each time I encountered anyone
). The one obstacle I feared was nearing, its a 2 foot rock ledge, with sand making its base and top, nothing to precarious for a normal rig, but this thing sits low. I gave it the college try, attempting it in 2WD low just for giggles. The front end popped right up, but it quickly snagged the front diff once on top, we were stopped dead in our tracks. I got out to survey the situation and more importantly lock the hubs. Passenger side first... "click", good to go. Drivers side... nothing. It was seized in place, and no amount of force I inflicted with my hand was changing that. Oh well, no sense breaking out the tools for one little obstacle right? I got back in the 60, fired her to life and backed it down a couple of feet. From there I gave it the "Moab Bump", and with a bit of tire squeel and alot of dust, she made it up. Victory was mine.
The remaining trip would take me through the Jackass Benches and up Buckhorn Wash. The truck was an absolute blast to rally, 50-60 mph hour the whole way, Tokyo drifting around corners. What a riot! We finally landed back on the pavement in Lawrence, just south of Price. The rest of the drive was rather bland considering the adventures thusfar, up and over the summit into Spanish Fork where I topped off the tank again, and on home to Sandy. Mission complete!
Now the rig itself. I'm not sure what her destiny may be. Its a legitimatly no rust rig, the frame is clean and appears straight, no pitting or nasty rot that you see in SLC rigs. It spent its life somewhere in the southeast before coming to Moab with a stop in New Mexico for a handful of years. The interior is pretty beat, not unrepairable, but beat. A good cleansing would actually make it feel usable. The drivetrain seems solid, short of the clutch master/slave issue (easy fix) and the front hub issue (again easy fix) its a sound rig, although I do need to figure out whats up with the power-steering system. Worst case is a bad pump or box, both of which I have spares for. All the exterior lights work, wipers, horn, etc. The only issues I've noted so far are a fuel gauge that doesn't work, and a couple of the dash lights are burned out. Nothing a little elbow grease won't fix. The body has a few dings and dents, the most concerning being on the roof where it looks like he tossed a bike or two arond up there. Nothing that couldn't be fixed (or overlooked). I'm going to keep my eyes out for a truly pristine 60 Series for my diesel build... if nothing sparks my eye in the coming months, I'll build this one, otherwise my FIL is alrady offering me cash (though he thinks the miles I put on it have depreciated it a few hundered
) and I don't think it would be a hard rig to find a home for here in the valley. It runs (motor was rebuilt ~30k ago), it has a brand new (1-2years) OEM carb on it (dude paid $900 for that
) and the body has no rust. It would make a great builder/DD for someone, we'll see if its me
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
