Where can I get my M1009 dirty, near NW Atlanta area?

[CycleJay]

Hi Guys,

I am just wondering..

Once I get my M1009 running properly, and fix a couple of things.

Where can I go off-road so I can get it really dirty?
Maybe do a little climbing too..

Any ideas? Comments? Suggestions?

I already know I should not go alone, in case I get stuck, that is a no-brainer..

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Thank you, Have a good night,

CJ

 

[WillWagner]

I'm sure one of Ga. group guys will pipe up, hang in there

 

[CycleJay]

Thanks Will,

I am sure they will..
I am in no hurry, since it will be a few days yet before I get it running anyway.

Thanks for the comment though..

But If I was still living in Los Angeles, I already know where I can go.. LOL

Have a good night,

CJ

 

[idM1028]

Suggestion: If you're gonna be wheeling, watch those diffs! It's the "Gov-Bomb" rear-end for a reason...

 

[Cucvnut]

check on pirate.

 

[CycleJay]

Hello Idm,

Thanks for the suggestion. Duly noted...

Exactly what should I do to "watch those diffs!"??

Thank you, Good night,

CJ

 

[Cucvnut]

he means a stock 10 bolt wont hold up to much abuse. if you push it hard it might break.

 

[CycleJay]

Hello Guys,

Thanks for the tips, I just want to get it dirty, I do not want to push it hard enough
to break it.

Good night,

CJ

 

[Oldsouthernboy]

Look at the Denham plantain about two hours east of Atlanta, Near woodville Ga, where the rally was in October. This has lots of trails from mild to wild. Lots of mud this time of year and have a winch close by if you want mud.. PS when you get ready drop me a line and I will tail ride with you in my M1028. A 5 hour drive for me but worth it (55) the whole way.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Durhamtown Plantation?

 

[Oldsouthernboy]

yes that is the place never could spell

 

[hndrsonj]

With as hard of a time as you seem to have maintaining your M1009, why risk breaking something you probably can't fix?

 

[wreckerman893]

What Jim said......if that's your daily driver and you depend on it for your livelyhood I would keep it on the street.

One of the reasons my deuce seldom leaves the pavement is because my fixed income does not allow me much money to fix things.

Just my opinion....your milage will vary.

 

[3dAngus]

To Durhamtown:
About 1 hour 45 minutes
From Atlanta, GA:

We Recommend the following route from Atlanta:
From I-20 East, Take Exit 130 to Greensboro. Take a left off of the exit (light) 2 MILES
At the 1st traffic light in Downtown Greensboro, take a right. Take a left at the next traffic light (The old Hardees building will be on your right)
Follow straight for 11 miles through the Penfield Community into Woodville. In Woodville at the caution light, go straight (crossing over Hwy 77 in Woodville.) PEACHTREE STREET
Continue on the main road for 3.3 miles to the stop sign. ( Please note: 1.5 miles bear right in curve) At the 4-way stop, take a left onto Randolph Church Rd and go 3.5 miles, Durhamtown will be on your right.​

 

[CycleJay]

Hi Guys,

Thanks for all the tips, and the advice to keep it on the pavement.
I do not want to break it, so I guess I will not go off-road with it,
unless it is an emergency, and I cannot avoid it.

Getting it dirty was just a passing thought anyway.

But I have been trying to learn as much as possible about my M1009,
so I can do my own repairs when something does break.
It is just that some times I do not have the time, money, or know how to do much.
But I am working on changing all that, and have some upgrades planned,
that I know I should be able to do myself.
Besides I live in a place where it is against the complex rules to work on your own vehicle,
so when I do, I have to try to not get caught.

Have a good day,

CJ

P.s. Maybe I will take it off-road when I get it to a point that parts will not break if I do.

 

[Bob H]

I had to read some of the replies a couple times.

Never really thought I see it being recommended that a former Military Vehicle be restricted to pavement to keep it from breaking!

Go ahead get it dirty! Just don't beat on it. When offroad, drive it as it was intended to be driven. Stuff can wear out and break on the street too.

 

[BIG_RED]

Coming from a guy who drives a mostly stock M1009, and Loves the thing to pieces (ie once got rid of some looney-toon girl because she didn't get along with his truck ) I can tell you that it will cost a bajillion dollars and just as many man hours before you can take that thing off road without having to worry about breaking anything.

First of all, we have a 3/4 ton 5900 LB truck, on little halfton axles. We've got GM 10 bolts, which I consider roughly equivalent to D44's. They're great for jeeps, Toyotas, and other 1/4 ton's (My buddy has a nice little S10 with the ZR2 offroad package that is a lot of fun) and they work fine under our trucks on the road, even in conservative gravel pits, but they are not strong enough to really beat-on off road without concerns about them breaking. You will want a D60 in the front and a GM 14 bolt in the back, or another pair of axles along those lines. They were designed to be under heavier trucks, and can take more of a beating. If you really want to rag on it, I'd say you need even bigger.. like deuce or cement truck axles (outside my knowledge.. for now).

Now, as soon as you upgrade your axles, you open up a whole other can of worms because heavier axles have lower gear ratios. So you're going to need an overdrive transmission or something like that if you want to drive on the highway (which you and I probably need, as we use them as our daily drivers) at a reasonable speed without over-revving your 6.2 diesel (some will disagree with me here, as many people drive their M1008's on the highways, but I wouldn't recommend doing that to a 6.2 if I depend on it and want it to last as long as possible. Please take no offense, M1008 highway drivers).

So now you're going to replace the transmission too.. But all GM's 4 speed auto's are a different size than the TH400, so you're going to need to move things around down there. And if you're into it that far.. you might as well address the old 6.2 diesel under your hood that is not renown for longevity and only makes 155 horsepower (thankfully she makes good torque though). And how about that chain driven aluminum transfer case?.. Hmm that could be a weak point too

If you really think about what you want your truck to be able to do (As I have been doing for years now) you're probably going to want to reinvent the whole truck. Now some would ask "is it worth it to put so much work into a 20+ year old truck?". My answer would be a resounding "Yes", for emissions reasons. Depending where you live, you can't put older engines into newer vehicles because they will then make more emissions. Personally, I think this is stupid, because I would never put a 2010 engine in anything except maybe a sports car. They are lighter, cheaper on fuel, higher performing - nut not nearly as reliable as the old fully mechanical stuff.


I'll get down off my soap box now.. Anyways, I'm still a young man in working hard to make my money, then spending it all on school, driving my M1009 to work/school everyday.. but if/when I graduate I could actually afford big toys. I will probably one day be the owner of a 1986 M1009 with a Cummins/Caterpiller/Detroit Diesel/Mack/Haven't decided engine, backed by an equally ridiculous 99 speed 10-stick transmission/transfercase and 2-3 even more ridiculous axles. (6 wheel M1009 with 4 wheel steer would be soo cool)

Although, by that time I may find myself a Deuce, 5-Ton, and some more toys to do the same with......

But that's because I'm crazy. My advice to you - If you're not mechanically inclined (just guessing because of previous posts, please do not take offense - I personally believe any man can do anything if he wants to learn bad enough<even if it takes him 7 years, sucks up all his money and makes him miserable>) buy a nice little trailer for your M1009, and a quad(ATV, etc). They're cheap, FUN, they do crazy things, and when they break - you can still get to work on monday!

Just my $0.02 - Wishing you the best. Take care.

 

[BIG_RED]

I had to read some of the replies a couple times.

Never really thought I see it being recommended that a former Military Vehicle be restricted to pavement to keep it from breaking!

Go ahead get it dirty! Just don't beat on it. When offroad, drive it as it was intended to be driven. Stuff can wear out and break on the street too.

I take my M1009 out in gravel pits and use it to recover stuff in 2 feet of snow all the time. They take a beating. You're right. All I meant was don't do CRAZY stuff with it if you want it to last, unless you upgrade it a lot or have the means to fix it when it breaks.

 

[CycleJay]

Hi Guys,

Thanks again for the advice, I was not planning on doing anything wild & crazy..
I just thought it would be fun to run around a little on some dirt roads/trails,c.
Just to get the ****ed dirty is all.. LOL..

But Big_Red, please explain "Crazy", as in your statement.. "All I meant was don't do CRAZY stuff with it..."??

By the way, I been watching many videos on youtube lately of M1009's being taken off-road (even to Durhamtown), and being able to handle just about anything without breaking.
So I thought, once I get the bugs worked out of mine, I can try that as well.

But like I said, I can & will learn how to fix my M1009, and since my paychecks have been better lately, and will get even better hopefully soon once I am single again.
I will be able to afford to get fixed, what I cannot fix myself.

Enough said, Thanks again guys..

CJ

 

[BIG_RED]

Some things I would recommend you avoid with a M1009, at least until you get very comfortable with it:

Water/wet mud. These trucks have something like a 20" fording depth, but you have to check every fluid afterward, and change any that are contaminated. If you take your truck through water, be sure to check the tranny dipstick, engine oil dipstick, both differentials, power steering, and the transfercase. Transfercase and diffs don't have dipsticks, so if there is water at the bottom of them (like there would be, since oil floats on water) you won't know. I change the fluids every time I go through water. Best not to drive all the way home on a tranny, t-case, diff or engine with water in it - so if you're going to be in water, bring stuff to change fluids with you. Also, water is hard on the tranny, engine, diffs and t-case even if it doesn't sit there long.. so don't be surprised if it reduces the life of these parts.

Air. It's best to keep your truck on the ground. As in, no jumps, driving fast over little dirt hills, etc. I would avoid the "dukes of hazard" type stunts you see online. Your truck is heavy. Your axles are small. They're good axles for most things, but not for jumping.

Sideways Inclines. Your truck will do well going up and down inclines, so long as you are going straight up or straight down, perpendicular to the incline, with the nose up or down but the sides level. You do not want to drive along the incline with one side lower than the other by more than a foot or so, until you get comfortable and get good at feeling when you're close to tipping. These trucks have a high center of gravity (especially if you are used to cars). They are fairly easy to roll. You do not want to roll. Be careful.

Go slow and get comfortable. If it is hard for you to turn your steering wheel, get out and look. If you're sunk in, you might need help. These trucks do not have very strong steering setups IMHO. If you really crank on your steering wheel, your steering box can rip right off your frame rail (this is a common enough problem that you can actually buy reinforcement plates for the frame where the steering box goes). Watch your oil. Keep it full. If you're on inclines, remember your oil will shift around. Watch your oil light (make sure it works - turns on when you start your truck). Stop what you're doing and shut er down if you have no oil pressure. Listen to your truck, for loose things, things bending, things cracking, etc. Be gentle.

I like to tear up gravel pits in my M1009. There are a few nice trails that go up and down in my area. It's fun driving up fairly steep inclines and listening to that diesel pull itself up slowly like a freight train. My friends in jeeps really go nuts in there, doing little jumps, taking running starts at steep hills.. I wouldn't do that with the M1009

In the winter, it's not unusual for us to get a foot of snow (or 2) in one night. Road plows don't get out for a while, it gets windy, snow blows into drifts, white out conditions (blowing snow) reduce visibility to a few yards.. and people get their cars stuck or slide into ditches. I use my M1009 as an emergency recovery vehicle in the winter. It tears through deep snow very well, and it's heavy enough to pull half-tons out of ditches and back onto the road without loosing traction (of course, this also makes the M1009 very hard to get out of a ditch when I mess up ).

The M1009 is a very capable machine. Start slow, and be gentle with it, and learn her limits. You'll be very happy with her if you maintain her well and don't abuse her. Take care. Be safe.