Awesome pics, Joe! Makes me drool, all those nicely prepped rigs. Thx for sharing!
So for our rigs, what are the recommended mech spares to bring on these long trips, wheel bearings, cv axles, ??
A lot of it depends upon what type of thing you are doing. I prefer doing more the rock crawling type of wheeling. Spare half shafts are an important item to have. Along with those you need to look at spare seals, the socket to pull the castle nut and the tools to pull the broken piece from inside the R-180. If you are Titan swapped it's a lot easier process however over the years I've seen more Titan swap breaks than R-180's. You mileage on that may vary. Other things that are good to carry are crank/cam shaft position sensors. Lot's of J.B> Quick weld, RTV, Tire plug kit, spare valve stems, radiator stop leak, hose weld tape, fluids, multi-meter etc. Some guys go as far as carrying extra major parts like alternators etc. It's kind of a balancing act between being prepared and hauling more stuff than a Kragen Auto parts store can sell in a month.
What I have found that works well on some of these trips is to coordinate with each other in the group about spare parts so you can share the wealth and not bring a bunch of extra stuff. Along with that list of parts that I commonly carry is I try and keep a well stocked tool kit, jumper cables, tow/snatch strap and plenty of ratchet straps. Those can fix a lot of broken part issues. You would be surprised on how many different really great trail fixes I have seen and been a part of over the years. I'm sure I have forgotten a few things as others will to be sure chime in. It's all about the learning for sure.
