Trail Ready Tool Box

Steve Rupp

Well-known member
Apr 21, 2004
3,213
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48
Seattle, WA
www.discoweb.org
Hey Bri, if you don't think I know how to tool you are mistaken. I'm not a 19 yr old student with my first offroader. I've been doing this for some time now. I have made quite a few trail repairs and know all the tools I should bring with. My Pelican is pretty well equipped for anything that may occur. I thought this may be interesting for some people who don't know what to carry. And don't worry, I won't forget my 1 1/16 socket.
 

bri

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
6,184
155
US
I like a lot of Pugsly's spares. My shop manual goes with as well.

BTW Rupps, Sorry, I did not mean to imply that <I though> you couldn't "tool", also mentioned nothing about your age. I don't worry about you at all. My comments were not directed to you because you didn't want us to just rattle things off, they were meant for the group.
 
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utahdog2003

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
1,842
0
North Florida
hey guys...how do you remove a spleen? I mean, if you had to on the trail maybe. I remove spleens all the time, so you know, this question isn't for me or anything, just thought maybe it'd be a cool thing to ask, you know, for the group and all.

couldn't resist :D
 

john

Well-known member
A comprehensive list is just impossible, but some oddball tools that you'll probably need are:

30mm socket for the nuts that hold the radius and trailing arms to the frame ears (also fits the nuts holding on the transfer case output flanges);
15/16" socket and wrench for the for the fasteners that hold the radius and trailing arms to the axle;
2 1/16" hub nut socket;
12mm 12-point socket for the exhaust manifold bolts;
13mm 12-point socket for the brake caliper bolts;
9/16" socket and wrench for the driveshaft bolts;
17mm wrench and 17mm deep and shallow sockets (there are M10 bolts everywhere on the Disco and your Hella 4k's are M10 as well)
19mm wrench and sockets for your OME shocks;
13mm wrench and sockets for your rubberized shock tower securing rings (and 13mm is another very common size)
11/16" flare nut for your female-ended Paragon hoses;
14mm flare nut for your male-ended Paragon hoses;
9/16" 12-point socket for the bolts that hold the brake rotor onto the hub;
17/16" impact socket for your wheel lug nuts;
Pozidriv 1,2,3 and 4 (I think the set screw on your parking brake is a Pozidriv 4);
9/8" wrench for your crankcase drain plug (this also works on your Power Tank's regulator flare fitting);
22mm wrench and socket for your panhard rod bolts;
a very long 14mm wrench for the 12-point bolts that hold the swivel ball housings to the front axle (a socket won't fit here);
11mm socket for the swivel ball level and drain plugs;
1/2" square socket for your swivel ball fill plug:

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You should get an entire set of extensions. The Snap-on Wobble Drive Plus in 3/8" size are my favorite:

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I also think it's wise to have adapters for all of your drive sizes, e.g. 1/2" to 3/8", 3/8" to 1/2", 3/8" to 1/4", 1/4" to 3/8", etc.:

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And also universals for all of your drive sizes:

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For my own use, I prefer the Knipex plier wrench over the standard adjustable wrench:

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The plier wrench's jaws tighten as you crank down on the handles and you get less of a tip spread problem than with an adjustable, so you get more cranking power with the plier wrench than with a similarly sized adjustable. The plier wrench also has a greater range:

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The plier wrench is really well designed and lets you use the pliers almost like a ratcheting open-ended wrench. The handles let you open the jaws just enough to reset the plier 60 degrees without having to remove the plier from the fastener. It's hard to explain but if you see it in use you'll immediately see the advantage. You'll probably need an adjustable too though. It's pretty much inevitable. But I definitely prefer the plier wrench for most jobs.

I also find a magnetic pick-up tool to be very handy:

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The larger ones are strong enough to fish out broken halfshafts and other vehicle carnage:

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I have both the biggie one and the micro-sized one that resembles the radios used by the Unicorn police in Johnny Sako And His Flying Robot. The little telescoping magnet is really useful for picking up dropped screws and such.

Those are ones off the top of my head. There are, of course, many many others. I think Thom's advice about using your field set to service your truck is really good advice. Use your field set whenever you work on your truck and add to that set whenever you need an additional tool. This is much better than using your toolbox while at home and trying to remember what you need to take for a trip. I now do this for both my Defender and my motorcycle.
 
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john

Well-known member
Ooops, I forgot another must-have tool. You need a 13/16" socket for your spark plugs. I think this is one area where I like to have a dedicated tool just for this task. This is my favorite spark plug socket (I definitely have not used them all):

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/pro_...&group_ID=1350&store=snapon-store&dir=catalog

That model has a rubber insert to hold the spark plug. If you prefer the magnetic retention, Snap-on makes the magnetic insert for that socket.
 

bri

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
6,184
155
US
Is the 2 1/16" hub nut socket, just a normal socket or do you really need the LR "hub tool".

Brian
 

nosivad_bor

Well-known member
Mar 27, 2004
6,060
63
Pittsburgh, PA
I tried to use a 3/4" Drive Snap-On socket but because the wall of the socket is too thick to fit between the nut and the hub area it wouldn't work.

Perhaps another brand will fit but I doubt it, otherwise there would be no market for the specialty tool.

Rob
 

john

Well-known member
I carry a hub nut tool in my field kit, but at the shop I much prefer to use this one:

http://buy1.snapon.com/catalog/pro_...id=435&supersede=&store=snapon-store&tool=all

This thin-wall socket is thin enough to fit into the hub recess and just long enough to clear the stub axle. The socket is very large. It's pictured here at the far end of our socket drawer (2" socket for the GBR drive flanges right next to the hub socket):

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This socket is 3/4" drive, so unless you have 3/4" drive ratchet, you'll need an adapter. I prefer the low-profile adapter for this socket:

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bri

Well-known member
Apr 20, 2004
6,184
155
US
I knew if there was an alternative, you would know it. You always know about the gourmet stuff.

I will get the hub tool and move up from there. Excellent advice I appreciate it.

Brian
 

RoverChic

Well-known member
Apr 19, 2004
1,446
0
den Haag
Distilled Water, Zip Ties, Tons of Hose Clamps (all different sizes) Vise Grips, Volt Meter (2 ~ With an extra 9Vbattery), V-Belt, Batteries, Camera (one digital), Film, Memory Card, I bought a Tool Kit from Sears with all the Metric tools that you might need...I also carry my laptop with Rave CD (u never know), knife, Saw...There might be more. LOTS OF THOSE BLUE Mechanic Gloves (I hate getting my hands dirty)..Extra Thermostat, Fuel filter..OBD2 Reader.. I am sure there is more just cant remember all of it now.
 
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