Forums46
Topics537,756
Posts9,728,728
Members87,039
|
Most Online25,604 Feb 12th, 2024
|
|
|
Next project followed me home yesterday...
#7545187
06/30/19 12:11 PM
|
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037
Vern1
OP
Veteran Tracker
|
OP
Veteran Tracker
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037 |
2005 Mule 3010 4x4. Needs tires, two front drive shafts and rear universal joints in rear drive shafts but starts and runs fine!
Cheers, Vern1 Texans since The Old 300 in 1824 NRA Lifetime Member
|
|
|
Re: Next project followed me home yesterday...
[Re: Vern1]
#7545240
06/30/19 02:04 PM
|
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 19,123
TCM3
THF Celebrity
|
THF Celebrity
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 19,123 |
Good luck! Rocky mountain ATV for parts, way cheaper than most other dealers..quick shipping too.
Do not forget to entertain strangers, For by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels Hebrews 13:2 (R-TX)
|
|
|
Re: Next project followed me home yesterday...
[Re: Vern1]
#7545795
07/01/19 02:22 PM
|
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037
Vern1
OP
Veteran Tracker
|
OP
Veteran Tracker
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037 |
It cleaned up well and looks much better now. Runs nicely and is pretty smooth for about 10 minutes until front tires go down! It was only parked because tires quit holding air and buddy was still driving it as 2wd since front driveshafts lost CV joints and he cut them out. He has a newer 4x4 Mule Trans, his wife has a brand new Kubota and son just bought a new Polaris so this one has been sitting in barn for 6 months. Headed to town for new battery now as I want to drive it around gently and look for any problems before I pull it down and replace rear ujoints and bearings and both front axle shafts and bearings. Then do new tires all the way around.
Cheers, Vern1 Texans since The Old 300 in 1824 NRA Lifetime Member
|
|
|
Re: Next project followed me home yesterday...
[Re: Vern1]
#7545999
07/01/19 07:18 PM
|
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 3,414
ZK-315
Veteran Tracker
|
Veteran Tracker
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 3,414 |
A 2" lift kit and some 25" surefoot Essex tires will get you most places you'll ever want to go.
|
|
|
Re: Next project followed me home yesterday...
[Re: ZK-315]
#7546085
07/01/19 09:37 PM
|
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037
Vern1
OP
Veteran Tracker
|
OP
Veteran Tracker
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037 |
A 2" lift kit and some 25" surefoot Essex tires will get you most places you'll ever want to go. This will be a work machine and will stay stock for reliability and I have decent roads and trails here on the place. I don't really need to go anywhere that the stock suspension and 23" tires won't take me but if I do, the D7 or Kubota TLB makes good roads fast. I have seen lots of decent handling machines turn into top heavy, ill handling, bump steering, CV joint eating turds with lift kits and oversize tires installed.
Cheers, Vern1 Texans since The Old 300 in 1824 NRA Lifetime Member
|
|
|
Re: Next project followed me home yesterday...
[Re: Vern1]
#7546697
07/02/19 04:13 PM
|
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 3,414
ZK-315
Veteran Tracker
|
Veteran Tracker
Joined: Oct 2013
Posts: 3,414 |
I had a 3010 trans mule that wasn't top heavy one bit. handled just fine with no bump steer and was extremely reliable. The only reason for the 2" lift would be to put the Essex tires on, since they don't come in a 23" tire. 25 is the smallest they go. We put a set of those tires on my dads Kubota rtv900 over 9 years ago, and they are still going strong and have been through hell and back a few times. Back when I picked up my 3010, it needed tires something fierce along with one new wheel since it was bent to crap. It was a no brainer with the Essex tires. Mine was a work machine as well and did everything I asked of it. Ask anyone else on here about the Essex tires, and they'll say the exact same as I did.
|
|
|
Re: Next project followed me home yesterday...
[Re: ZK-315]
#7547667
07/03/19 02:48 PM
|
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037
Vern1
OP
Veteran Tracker
|
OP
Veteran Tracker
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037 |
I had a 3010 trans mule that wasn't top heavy one bit. handled just fine with no bump steer and was extremely reliable. The only reason for the 2" lift would be to put the Essex tires on, since they don't come in a 23" tire. 25 is the smallest they go. We put a set of those tires on my dads Kubota rtv900 over 9 years ago, and they are still going strong and have been through hell and back a few times. Back when I picked up my 3010, it needed tires something fierce along with one new wheel since it was bent to crap. It was a no brainer with the Essex tires. Mine was a work machine as well and did everything I asked of it. Ask anyone else on here about the Essex tires, and they'll say the exact same as I did. Essex tires are some of the best and if they made a tire in correct size for my application this would be a moot conversation. I don't want or need the bigger tires which then require a lift kit to install - I just want a tire that fits. I am searching but at the same time don't want to change the geometry and exceed the excursion angles on the CVs and universal joints just to run bigger tires that I don't want in the first place. The CVs on front will handle more deflection while the universal joints in the rear half shafts are much more limited and due to inherent limitations of the design and will start to bind then wear quickly. Unfortunately, most ATV/UTV tires are rated at 400 pounds at 7 PSI. The wet weight of the 3010 is very close to 1400 pounds and the total weight limit is 1600 for those tires - when I climb in, it's right at the limit with nothing else in it! People tend to overload and the tires sag so they air them up to hold the load - the problem is the tire carcass stretches from over-inflation and with a little age, starts to pull apart at the edges of the knobs. I am leaning towards a 6 ply mini-truck type tire that is rated for 1000 pounds at 20 PSI and comes in the right size. While I generally run close to empty I could air down to 10 PSI and not crown and wear the center section of the tire and air them up when carrying a heavy load. You did your lift/tires right and the results show. The lift is offset by the stiffer sidewalls of the essex tires so it is stable and not going wide helps combat bump steer. Lift kits on tall wide squishy 7PSI stock type tires is a whole other conversation though but unfortunately where lots of folks go!
Cheers, Vern1 Texans since The Old 300 in 1824 NRA Lifetime Member
|
|
|
Re: Next project followed me home yesterday...
[Re: Vern1]
#7547844
07/03/19 06:19 PM
|
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 1,586
ckat
Pro Tracker
|
Pro Tracker
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 1,586 |
|
|
|
Re: Next project followed me home yesterday...
[Re: ckat]
#7548460
07/04/19 12:58 PM
|
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037
Vern1
OP
Veteran Tracker
|
OP
Veteran Tracker
Joined: Sep 2011
Posts: 3,037 |
Thank you for the link. I have used Eastlake axles in quite a few of the Polaris's I have rebuilt but always got them thru a dealer. Good to have another reference link with part numbers to add to my growing list. Fortunately, that dealer is a lifelong buddy and multi-year sponsor when we raced dirt bikes that owns a cycle supply that repairs and races off road bikes. He doesn't care to work on ATVs/UTVs due to "having to strip plastic for days just to find the motor" but can get the parts needed and sends some of that work my way. I get pretty good prices on mechanical parts and the tire brands he carries but didn't have any luck on tires I want/need.
Cheers, Vern1 Texans since The Old 300 in 1824 NRA Lifetime Member
|
|
|
Moderated by bigbob_ftw, CCBIRDDOGMAN, Chickenman, Derek, DeRico, Duck_Hunter, hetman, jeh7mmmag, JustWingem, kmon11, kwrhuntinglab, Payne, pertnear, rifleman, sig226fan (Rguns.com), Superduty, txcornhusker
|