Found limits of departure angle, need new tailgate

[BlueC]

I going to start putting the ball mount back on my pickup full time.

I came out of a store one time before I had those hitch-skid things and found a car parked so close to my Jeep that it's bumper and hood were under my spare. That was the moment I knew I needed something, so now I keep one on my Jeep and truck. and I'm about to put one on the back of my wife's SUV. It works well on the trails with the Jeep too, but I'm not pushing limits.

 

[Moglocker]

Yes, but that's only an issue if your trying to push limits and don't mind damage. If you want to protect body panels, keeping the body away from things when departing is necessary.

Also, this situation was my original purpose for purchasing a couple of the hitch mounted skids. If they want to get that close, let them take the damage.

View attachment 639444View attachment 639445

Yep,and then they key your shit(lol)people kinda suck!

 

[freedom_in_4low]

Adding a hitch with a skid or ramp or wheel is just going to decrease your approach and/or departure angle.

perfectly valid observation.

For me it breaks down to 3 scenarios:
On the street - don't need a spare, like the visibility and the unloaded tailgate when spareless, so I'm probably gonna go without it.
Trailing with my kids/family - don't really do the kind of things that push it on the departure angle, so a step to protect it would work here, even if it's not great for departure angle...or could just do without the step and keep on keeping on. Also don't generally go places that would slice a sidewall or are super remote so might not need a spare.
Doing hoodrat stuff with my friends - need a spare but this is the most likely time to taco my tailgate, backseat is out for this so I can just carry spare inside.

 

[The4bangertj]

I just took my spare off the back as well. I originally took it off because it wore my hinges out and was sagging to the point it wouldn’t close without lifting it. I would have to pick the tailgate up and with the tire still there it was too annoying to stay.
My tailgate did get dented in the middle from the carrier too but not enough to bend the edges so better take my luck now and move the tire than replace the whole tailgate later.
My thoughts are i am either driving it on the road where a plug kit and onboard air will be 99% of the issue which I’ve never had a flat yet but i had a friend who got a whole crescent wrench through a tire once so ya never know. That or if im wheeling hard enough stuff to want a spare I dont want people in the back seat anyways so they’ll trade places.
The advantages of either having no spare at all or having it inside are better than having it hanging off the back in every way except interior space.
I plan on making a quick attach rack that my first thoughts would look like Woodrow’s pic. I havnt yet decided on specifics. Such as do I want the tire on top of the rack so I can put stuff under it and have it enclosed so lighter things arnt worried about being blown out or strapped down. Will the gear weight significantly less so maybe I want to keep the tire lower instead. Can I fit the tire standing up to one side and would that fit the gear better? How can I do this storage system while also making the mounting as simple as possible so swapping to a back seat to drive kids around town wouldn’t be so time consuming?

 

[Moglocker]

I just took my spare off the back as well. I originally took it off because it wore my hinges out and was sagging to the point it wouldn’t close without lifting it. I would have to pick the tailgate up and with the tire still there it was too annoying to stay.
My tailgate did get dented in the middle from the carrier too but not enough to bend the edges so better take my luck now and move the tire than replace the whole tailgate later.
My thoughts are i am either driving it on the road where a plug kit and onboard air will be 99% of the issue which I’ve never had a flat yet but i had a friend who got a whole crescent wrench through a tire once so ya never know. That or if im wheeling hard enough stuff to want a spare I dont want people in the back seat anyways so they’ll trade places.
The advantages of either having no spare at all or having it inside are better than having it hanging off the back in every way except interior space.
I plan on making a quick attach rack that my first thoughts would look like Woodrow’s pic. I havnt yet decided on specifics. Such as do I want the tire on top of the rack so I can put stuff under it and have it enclosed so lighter things arnt worried about being blown out or strapped down. Will the gear weight significantly less so maybe I want to keep the tire lower instead. Can I fit the tire standing up to one side and would that fit the gear better? How can I do this storage system while also making the mounting as simple as possible so swapping to a back seat to drive kids around town wouldn’t be so time consuming?

I’m putting a gigantic wheel barrow wheel on mine ,I like my tail gate!(lol)j/k

 

[Moglocker]

Well this sucks...dropped into a hole with a steeper entrance than I expected (knew I messed up when the front bumper landed about simultaneously with the front tires but didn't have time to stop) and caught the spare. I can address the minor tub damage but need a new tailgate.

1. Confirm my understanding that a 97-02 gate is interchangeable? My understanding has been that the only differences are the vent and a couple of extra snubbers.

2. Crown Automotive makes a new shell, is it of decent enough quality? It's comparable in price to an original gate with rust in the lower edge and less expensive than a straight, rust free original.

Also considering rigging up some sort of vertical interior spare tire mount so I can keep it inside on these long distance wheeling trips without the kids (and without the back seat) and just don't carry a spare when I'm around town.

Last summer we went to colorado and made it through mineral creek(,lotsa rocks.and then coming down engineer,very easy,I came off and hit my spare of all places.thought it trashed the gate but somehow it survived.

 

[freedom_in_4low]

I havnt yet decided on specifics. Such as do I want the tire on top of the rack so I can put stuff under it and have it enclosed so lighter things arnt worried about being blown out or strapped down. Will the gear weight significantly less so maybe I want to keep the tire lower instead.

my thought is tire below because it's heavier than the gear that I'll put above it and I want the vehicle CoG low.

Can I fit the tire standing up to one side and would that fit the gear better?

It'll fit at least up to a 35" vertically and depending on your gear that may work better, but it makes it harder to secure, in my opinion. I'd want to have some sort of rigid mount attached to the tub or the baseplates of the roll bar or add some solid hooks in the right locations. I had to re-secure it a couple of times because it wanted to lean out toward the window, scoot the bottom inward, until it got loose in the ratchet strap and started moving around.


In either case, I'll strongly consider an AT 35" spare, because that'll be 20 pounds less to heave around and even a slim 35" diameter cylinder of cargo volume I could recover if I can find something narrower than 12.5 for a 15" wheel.

 

[The4bangertj]

my thought is tire below because it's heavier than the gear that I'll put above it and I want the vehicle CoG low.



It'll fit at least up to a 35" vertically and depending on your gear that may work better, but it makes it harder to secure, in my opinion. I'd want to have some sort of rigid mount attached to the tub or the baseplates of the roll bar or add some solid hooks in the right locations. I had to re-secure it a couple of times because it wanted to lean out toward the window, scoot the bottom inward, until it got loose in the ratchet strap and started moving around.


In either case, I'll strongly consider an AT 35" spare, because that'll be 20 pounds less to heave around and even a slim 35" diameter cylinder of cargo volume I could recover if I can find something narrower than 12.5 for a 15" wheel.

Good points. I think the simplest solution that does all that is basically what Woodrow posted. With that said are you mounting the tire under the rack or just assuming the rack tailgate and seat block it in enough?

 

[Apparition]

my thought is tire below because it's heavier than the gear that I'll put above it and I want the vehicle CoG low.



It'll fit at least up to a 35" vertically and depending on your gear that may work better, but it makes it harder to secure, in my opinion. I'd want to have some sort of rigid mount attached to the tub or the baseplates of the roll bar or add some solid hooks in the right locations. I had to re-secure it a couple of times because it wanted to lean out toward the window, scoot the bottom inward, until it got loose in the ratchet strap and started moving around.


In either case, I'll strongly consider an AT 35" spare, because that'll be 20 pounds less to heave around and even a slim 35" diameter cylinder of cargo volume I could recover if I can find something narrower than 12.5 for a 15" wheel.

Laid down there’s quite a bit of room to pack stuff around the tire. Behind the seats and the rear floor pans.

With the refrigerator behind mine there’s still a gap between the tire and the fridge and I didn’t pack anything around the fridge as I wanted stuff contained under my tonneau.

 

[Rickyd]

my thought is tire below because it's heavier than the gear that I'll put above it and I want the vehicle CoG low.



It'll fit at least up to a 35" vertically and depending on your gear that may work better, but it makes it harder to secure, in my opinion. I'd want to have some sort of rigid mount attached to the tub or the baseplates of the roll bar

@jjvw Didn't you have a vertical mount at some point?

 

[jjvw]

@jjvw Didn't you have a vertical mount at some point?

Still do and I do not like it.

 

[JMT]

I don't push the LJ into real rough areas but after this thread I am adding a long ball mount. I know that spare has been real close a few times.

Go BIG or go HOME

 

[macleanflood]

So Rory aka Trailmater is rebuilding his LJ.

I bring this up because Moad is the only place I hit my spare...not that I've been many places.

And Rory is running a swing out tire carrier and a spare.

File that one away somehow.

-Mac

 

[Woodrow]

So Rory aka Trailmater is rebuilding his LJ.

I bring this up because Moad is the only place I hit my spare...not that I've been many places.

And Rory is running a swing out tire carrier and a spare.

File that one away somehow.

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-Mac

He is pretty dang familiar with everything there, I think. And he’s got multiple rigs. Point being, he can easily pick the rig for the trail and the line for the rig. But for my one rig, if I bring a spare, its not going on the tailgate.

 

[lBasket]

YouTube guys can make money by breaking shit and then making soyjack face thumbnails. What they do has no bearing on my real person life

 

[Woodrow]

YouTube guys can make money by breaking shit and then making soyjack face thumbnails. What they do has no bearing on my real person life

yeah,@macleanflood !

 

[Woodrow]

OK, I stand corrected. Spares on the tailgate are useful in Moab:

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[JMT]

He is pretty dang familiar with everything there, I think. And he’s got multiple rigs. Point being, he can easily pick the rig for the trail and the line for the rig. But for my one rig, if I bring a spare, its not going on the tailgate.

Yeah. Everyone who rejects spare on tailgate already did spare on the tailgate. So we know both worlds.

I’m not telling anyone what to do. If you can figure out how to run it in the tub then great, and if you forego it, I assume you’ve calculated the risk your taking.

 

[Apparition]

OK, I stand corrected. Spares on the tailgate are useful in Moab:

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That looks familiar

 

[Apparition]

Yeah. Everyone who rejects spare on tailgate already did spare on the tailgate. So we know both worlds.

I’m not telling anyone what to do. If you can figure out how to run it in the tub then great, and if you forego it, I assume you’ve calculated the risk your taking.

When I shredded my brand new Trasharoo on the Escalator and when I couldn't get my rear tires up to the last waterfall on Gold Bar Rim because I was dragging my spare it was evident that my spare was in the way.

I would not attempt the Fall on Steelbender until I removed my rear mounted spare.

Someguys have no issue