enough chi-chat .... lets refresh some tech

[Provience]

Don't know if this is the right place to discuss this, but the last time I searched here it seemed like the only way to move a thread over here would be to do it all 100% manually - copy/paste all text and image links post by post. Obviously if you have a thread that is 20 or 30 pages, that's not really doable. I feel like I saw somewhere that there might be a solution in the works that would make it more feasible - anything new there? I have a couple build threads I'd be stoked to move over here, and I'm sure others would jump on that opportunity as well...

With the whole photobucket fiasco, I printed each page of a few build threads to PDF so that when I eventually quit paying for photobucket and my threads become useless, I've got a copy. If there was a way to upload PDF files to posts here, that might be a viable solution to retaining old content? I just tried to upload 1 page, but the PDF was 18mb so too large... I'll have to look and see if I can make that file size small enough to be able to upload here

i've done it several times for a couple different people with explicit permission.

it takes a while, but you get to cut out a bunch of stuff and try to make it flow a little better

 

[Provience]

Only valid for the GC8 series. Otherwise, you're a noob.

billavista has all his info on his own site and hasn't expressed much interest in recreating all that. can't say i blame him, i've thought about trying to do longer blog style posts, just can't bring it about myself.

 

[Mr Stubs]

Austin

shoot me a PM and remind me, I’m about out the door for work now. We can talk about my Toyota “notebook thread” that I kept as a pdf from the other place.

Or just search Mr Stubs notebook and see if it has info we want to use

 

['84 Bronco II]

A few things - there are a lot of 'tech in chit-chat threads' going on. I'd advise against that, much of that information is likely valuable to people in the various subforums. Maybe it won't get as much traffic, so put a link in chit-chat and say 'hey if you know about this, go post here'. Seems like a waste to have that info go un-sorted in this mess here.

This right here has been bothering me a lot lately; so much so I have been considering starting a thread in Chit Chat asking Austin and moderators to start actively moving tech threads out of chit chat and into their appropriate subforums if one exists.

There are a lot of tow rig, brand specific, and "Other Builds" technical threads getting posted in chit chat because people want more traffic. This diverts traffic from tech forums and just makes things worse. This is a major issue on this site and Pirate in its latter years. A full 78% of the posts on Irate are in chit chat, which is fucking embarrassing for a "hardcore tech-based" forum


As for the topic at hand, finally making an '05+ Superduty 60 bible would be a great place to start. Tons of people using those axles these days, and a plethora of great information on the old site and here. The problem is the information gets buried in those massive threads and it is really hard to weed through those threads and find good information through all the chit chat and arguing.

My preference would be for any "tech bibles" compiled from thread information be posted in an article format like Billavista's tech articles. That way it is clear, concise, and cuts out all the BS.

 

[Provience]

I like it!. Put a sticky at the top just titled tech, then once opened it had a different thread for each topic

sorta tried that in yota tech at first, couldn't really get moderator support. there is already a thread that exists and that's also why i tried to make a master thread for the various build types, similar to the one that used to exist atop Gen4x4, but it's damned difficult to get people to actually use the stuff

 

[Arickvan]

as for the topic at hand, finally making an '05+ Superduty 60 bible would be a great place to start. To s of people using those axles these days, and a plethora of great information on the old site and here. The problem is the information get buried in those massive threads and it is really hard to weed through those threads and find good information through all the chit chat and arguing.

My preference would be for any "tech bibles" compiled from thread information be posted in an article format like Billavista's tech articles. That way it is clear, concise, and cuts out all the BS.

we already started an 05+ superduty 60 bible thread in gen 4x4

that is an interesting idea to go thru the thread and create an article from it

 

[Lil'John]

<snip>

AMC 304,360,390. D300, T18, D30, Rubicon 44, etc in Jeep world. We could make a dedicated subforum for 'bibles' in the forums it makes sense. Or just name the title 'Dana 300 Bible'.

I'm open to either

I wouldn't split engines out as individual sizes like 4.8L, 5.3L, 6.0L, etc... I would go with something along the lines of "Gen 3 LSx" if possible. I think this applies to almost every brand/engine.

 

['84 Bronco II]

we already started a 05+ superduty 60 bible thread in gen 4x4

that is an interesting idea to go thru the thread and create an article from it

I know which is why I acknowledged the threads on Pirate and here. They have a lot of excellent information, but good luck trying to find the info you are looking for if it has been a while since it was posted. Also, a lot of misinformation to weed through in the threads as well. I am suggesting that someone take the time to go through the threads and distill all the known good tech and pictures into one coherent post/article. The thread format could be retained if a moderator could compile all the information on the first post and keep it updated as new information comes along. That way, discussion could continue the way it is now, but you could find all the relevant information without searching through 100s of pages.

 

[evernoob]

basic tech is still a stupid huge draw and a great jumping off point.

I STRONGLY agree.

Seems like a decent place to bring this up...

Austin have you or anyone from your team reached out to billivista. You were talking about rewarding tech heavy posters with advertising revenue.... well he is and has always been one of the greatest sources of tech out there and I believe he pulled most of his stuff from that other place.

There are foundational parts of tech that changed PBB and that's what I think we should be looking at.

Certain books or sources form a foundation of knowledge that have a broad impact. "High Performance Hardware" was one of the books I got from the Billavista (I think) PBB list and it's probably the single most important source of tech info for a non-Engineer garage machinist/fabricator to get into this sport.

How many times have someone come on PBB G4x4 or GCC and brought pictures of a break? Knowing what is a single-event stress break and what resulted from corrosion over time is one of the FOUNDATIONAL pieces of knowledge in a 4x4 journey.

A library of different DOM tubing parameters. Some tables about metal properties.

How to set up gears with pictorial.

Welding tech is huge, that draws in a huge number of people and constituted a huge portion of hardcore 4x4 enthusiasts who wandered into off-road sites and eventually ended up at PBB and got into off-roading. Maybe they were starting with their kid's wagon but now own a serious rock-bouncer or hardcore crawler.

Transfer case sourcing and pros/cons.

Transmission compatibility.

 

[evernoob]

Fuel injection tech.

ScottRS is doing a FI setup over here: https://irate4x4.com/general-4x4/4643-my-recycle-bucket

That could be a permament sticky in the tech bible. He's glossing over a huge amount of tech because that's the level the forum is at, and he's at. A basic tutorial assembled out of his pictures with details on the Megsquirt setup would be a huge draw. Answer all of the questions that DON'T make it to a thread, like which connectors go where and how to run a base tune?

I'm noting putting this on Scott just saying that kind of permanent thread is what lasts for years and makes it into a tech Bible. Yes I know the theory of how to set up aftermarket FI but what are all the steps I'm missing? The keywords I'd search for at 3am on a friday night?

 

[Clb]

Doing a "Toyota bible" in this instance could be any make....
i second the sticky to tech, then it opens a page of threads for this and that!
Effin pbb hid the old bible, and wants $$$ to buy it.

I wish as individuals we could yank our tech from their greasy mitts and drop it here...
my .02

 

[Austin]

I think each bible should be a thread in a sub that makes sense

Gen4x4
-Tech bibles
--kingpin60 bible
--superduty 60 bible
--dana 300 bible

Doing it this way relies pretty heavy on the mods and admins to keep everything up to date tho

I agree, I believe this is best.

I'm not a huge fan of a stickie that is nothing more than links to other posts. It's like chasing info down a rabbit hole and doesn't help for SEO

Ideally, people would use tags but thats been like pulling teeth. We'd create a thread titled 'T-18 Bible', tag that with the tag word 'Bible' and then all you do is search for things tagged 'Bible' and you have a list of all the bibles site wide. Only downside, is for newbs that don't know about tags.

My biggest issue with subs and stickies is the screen real-estate it takes up for mobile users of which about 1/2 of the members are. Pull up chit-chat on your phone, it's even worse for Red Skulls that can see the Trailer park Sub. These two do make the most sense for users, especially newbs.

Have you considered some sort of tech post incentive/reward?

Awesome build thread - have a sticker.
Build a great tech thread - send a t-shirt.
Troll GCC - free sunroof stuffings

Certainly not opposed to it but that could get subjective which I'm not a fan of.

This was the goal of the Blue Skull, you get out of it what you put into it, and Google tells you how much value it has.

A few things - there are a lot of 'tech in chit-chat threads' going on.

True, I'll do a better job of moving these and ask the mods to do the same.

billavista has all his info on his own site and hasn't expressed much interest in recreating all that. can't say i blame him, i've thought about trying to do longer blog style posts, just can't bring it about myself.

You should do it already.

we already started a 05+ superduty 60 bible thread in gen 4x4

that is an interesting idea to go thru the thread and create an article from it

I'm not opposed to that either and technically, talking an article vs Forum Topic, is what they are for. Much like BillaV did .... not to take anything from him, he knew a shit ton on his own and did a lot of research outside of the forum's contributions

 

[Austin]

We could also just make posts titled 'XYZ Bible' and I could make a tab to show all bibles for that particular forum

 

[Clb]

Certainly gunna take a mod team to sift thru all the makes / bibles in one spot...
or each makes mod gets first look?

 

[Eric]

1.) I don't think it makes sense to recreate here that which is already well covered elsewhere; Billavista + the Jantz videos have gear setup covered and the Billavista bibles covering hydro steering, coilovers, brakes, and cooling are still the gold standard for these topics.

2.) I don't think "crowd-sourced" bibles will be very useful; by that I mean opening a thread where anyone can contribute. I think bibles work best when somebody (or a team) goes off, does the research, collects all the information, then presents it in a concise and orderly manner.

3.) Chit chat and other off-topic banter does not belong in tech threads.

4.) Some ideas for tech topics:

Carrier bearings - what is available, pros/cons of the various options, mounting, etc

Engine/transmission mounts - lots of broken transmission tail housings due to improper mounting. Cover theory, root cause for these tail housing breaks, pros/cons of rigid vs flexible mounts, show designs that work vs those that did not, etc.

Link suspension - Lets recreate the god of suspension? LOL. But in all seriousness I still have not seen a comprehensive and concise link suspension design "bible". Content would include definition of terms, describe the various configurations, i.e. double triangulated, single triangulated, wishbone, four link w/ track bar, three link w/ track bar, etc with graphics of each along with pros/cons and typical applications. Cover the math underlying roll center, roll steer, anti-squat, pinion angle. How does spring/shock angle impact suspension travel and frequency. How to accurately locate sprung mass center of gravity using scale measurements of the whole vehicle. Etc, etc. The recent videos posted by Busted Knuckle are really good but something that brings all the topics together with more depth would be great.

Bump stop and limit straps - Theory, market survey, placement tips. I see lots of bump stops that will work fine for pure bump but are basically useless for full flex.

LS motor crankcase ventilation - Differences between the various generations and RPO's. Problems with factory configurations for off road vehicles. Schematics of how to properly plumb catch can into crank case ventilation for various different RPC's

Vent tech covering diffs, t-cases, fuel cells, steering reservoirs - Theory. Survey what is available on the market, Pros/cons of various options. Design and placement of vents.

Rear-mounting battery(ies) - cabling, shut off switches, bus bars, etc

 

[Treefrog]

Link suspension - Lets recreate the god of suspension? LOL. But in all seriousness I still have not seen a comprehensive and concise link suspension design "bible". Content would include definition of terms, describe the various configurations, i.e. double triangulated, single triangulated, wishbone, four link w/ track bar, three link w/ track bar, etc with graphics of each along with pros/cons and typical applications. Cover the math underlying roll center, roll steer, anti-squat, pinion angle. How does spring/shock angle impact suspension travel and frequency. How to accurately locate sprung mass center of gravity using scale measurements of the whole vehicle. Etc, etc. The recent videos posted by Busted Knuckle are really good but something that brings all the topics together with more depth would be great.

Bump stop and limit straps - Theory, market survey, placement tips. I see lots of bump stops that will work fine for pure bump but are basically useless for full flex.

Ok, lets get the tech started. https://irate4x4.com/general-4x4/212809-linked-suspension-bible

 

[Austin]

Sorry for pop'n this question and then walking away, had some troll/spam issues to deal with.

I updated the original post with some of the suggestions.


I've read your suggestions and put some though into this, unless I'm way off, I suggest we proceed as follows:

• A Bible will be in the format of an Article. They are much easier to read, especially on mobile. IBB or a Blue Skull will maintain them.
• Bibles shouldn't be written and be assumed gospel for 2k years. They should be a living document constantly discussed.
• Each bible will have a discussion thread dedicated specifically to it.
  • heavily moded to delete chit chat and "I have a xyz with this problem .. help" posts.
  • It will specifically be about the data presented in the Article. Debating content, new data to add, better imagery, a deeper dive into a specific part etc etc
• 1 New Bible discussion thread started every 2 weeks, gives members who don't log in as much to drop knowledge
• Each group (Ford, Jeep, General Tech, etc) will have a 'Bible' tab added where links to related bible and bible discussions are listed

Clear as mud?

 

[Eric]

Ok, lets get the tech started. https://irate4x4.com/general-4x4/212809-linked-suspension-bible

Nice job!!! I resisted the temptation to clog up your thread with chit chat.

 

[Toreadorranger]

Where are we at with cleaning up tech in Chit Chat? There is at least two Tool threads on the first page that would go great in the tools section.....