The toll that conditions on our outback tracks can take!

Gaz, Gaz, Gaz. It's all part of the adventure mate. I should have mentioned that I'd also done the Gary Junction, Kiwirr-Balgo Road, Canning Stock Route, WAPET Track, Kidson Track, Great Sandy Desert to Joanna Spring (no track), Anna Plains Track, Rudall River and the Talawana immediately prior to the tank breaking it's mounts lol. T'was a big trip that year. Tyres were the main problem though.

Anyway for your viewing pleasure, I just dropped a few video snippets into an Album called Outback Mishaps" on my vimeo site. Heres the link;

Outback Mishaps (of a mechanical nature)

That'll keep you busy for an hour or so ;-)

Cheers mate.

Suggesting that Mick takes that useless dope Roothy along would have to be the ultimate insult. I think MickO has forgotten more about outback travel than that clown will ever know.

Jack

My apologies to Mick then Jack !

I forgot that some people on this site don't have a sense of humour !


Gazz

Cheers Jack and Craig. I took it in the good humour in which it was intended…eventually, I mean once I’d cried myself to sleep I got over it ;-)

Now I don’t want to detract from the topic of this post (track conditions and the effects that it can have on our vehicles) but I can see how the building of a brand and market can polarise people, particularly if they have a bit of knowledge on the subject. I subscribe to that mag and have done so for a while. I find their “how to” articles quite good and of course one or two of our better known members write fantastic articles for them (nice one Phil). The best bits are the paid advertisements. It’s amazing just what new products you can find in the 150 odd pages of paid advertising (and I’m being serious now). What I’ve found to be unpalatable is the building of the brand and secondary income streams around particular individuals and suppliers. The entire mag is prepared and marketed to the lowest common denominator and while some may find that offensive, it’s all too apparent in continuous articles about the editorial teams wheels, trips to “The Cape” and “The Simmo” (Christ I hate that abbreviation – It’s the bloody Simpson Desert) and the constant pumping of Roothy’s Roo System specials!

There is always a very real danger associated with belief in your own propaganda and that’s something that’s been played out in very public circumstances on this website on a few occassions. I’m sure JR is a mightily skilled individual and a good journo but you have to keep sight of the fact that he is involved a commercial media venture trying to pump out enough stuff to fill 15 editions a year (yes 15, not 12 per year) aimed at a very particular demographic whilst also generating a secondary revenue stream in product offshoots. It is what it is!

Might be time to go back to the “other” mag and get back into bed with ARB lol.

Now back to desert tracks….

Funny that Mick - totally agree with you. I get copied of said magazine 2nd hand from my father - I've reached the point where I totally skip over the articles and head to the advertising section. That's where the real info is nowadays .. what's out in the market and what's new out there. Mind you it's mostly 15 different vendors flogging the same thing. (Amazing how much spin can be put out over the fact that my version of the watchamathingy has 3 spinballs instead of two - or my version is chrome plated !!)

However to the point, I tend to find the articles fall into 3-4 basic categories:

1. the comparison / road test - which almost inevitably chooses the sponsors product
2. the road trip with the lads - a compendium of hilariously drunken exploits, bush cooking, getting bogged, and some information on the route - can be useful sometimes for people new to the game, but for old hands who've been there is somewhat boring and not very useful
3. the workshop / new kit / maintenance trial - which as you said can be useful when it doesn't involve Roothy bolting on some new mates freebie widget to Milo.... fair dinkum - I reckon that vehicle is about 15-20% original 40 series ....

Hi all,

Re 4Wd Action, without ads there wont be a magazine. And like Mick, I too find all kinds of info and ideas in the mag - especially the small and many to a page ads towards the back.


While some may not like Roothy or the way the mag is set up, we have to realise it has to cater for all tastes, not just say extreme of road travel.


Many people especially the younger 4wdrivers - male and female, even children 'adore' Roothy, these people are the next generation of 4Wheelers and if Roothy and Co. is the way to attract them to our hobby - that's fine with me.


You must admit that if you like Roothy or not he and the team have developed a following that has govt and such sitting up and taking notice and they have been pivotal in stopping (for now anyway) the move by state transport authorities playing havoc with standards on vehicle lifts etc.


I say live and let live - take the positives from everything life and move on - life too short.

cheers

Phil, don't get me wrong ... I've known of Roothy's exploits since the days of the late 70's and 80's when he was primarily a Motorcycle journalist, well before this 4wd bug - plenty of bike rallies with Roothy providing the entertainment.

Commercialism is a sign of the times - back in the bike days there was less $$$ in the game, and the journalism / writing were more for the purists.

Just nowadays it's re-flogging the same old tired formula trying to get a buck. Don't blame anyone for trying to make a quid out of it, just like a lot of people, don't find it interesting anymore. As Mick said, there's only so much of trying to flog your own products you can take before you start to switch off.

It is a formula Scotty and that's all we have to keep sight of. We say the same thing about Pat Callinan as well. Probably a lovely bloke but he is endevouring to make a living in a niche market and the backbone of that is his sponsors, advertisers and product placements. (I'm yet to see him get his blue shirt dirty though lol). I'll give Pat his dues though, between all the amply exposed product placements, at least he provides a bit of variety in the places he visits.

That's why I find this site the best, te range of experience is fantastic, the resources (material and personal) are amazing and theres a willingness to share knowledge. Best bang for you buck around I reckon.

;-)

Keeping in mind the topic of this post - the toll that conditions on our outback tracks can take - and the criticism of Roothy, I reckon Roothy's made many people aware of what can go wrong when you're off the beaten track and the need to be, at least, a bit self reliant.

I'm no longer a subscriber to 4WD Action but I'll buy the magazine if something catches my eye, or I know that something I'm interested in is in the mag.

In the past they have had things break and with make shift repairs to get somewhere they can fix it properly. I've learnt a lot over the years, or at least become aware of what can go wrong from the magazines and videos.

Mick's videos go to another level and I now know from experience that even when you think you have everything sorted something will go wrong, especially when you travelling as a part of a group. It all adds to the adventure.

Anyway, I don't reckon Roothy should be bagged out just because his head in front of a magazine that is encouraging thousands of families to get out and explore Australia.

I've got to say Mick, your compilation of bush repairs is fascinating, interesting and great homework. I've sent the link to my mates for them to check it out.
Don't get famous or they might want to cut you down.

Have a great Sunday,
Steve.

Steve, I'm a firm believer that if you believe your own propaganda, you'll get called on it one day and then the truth will be out ;-)

You have to remember that I'm taking the videos. That means I'm not doing the work. It's my job to "supervise". This is usually because the blokes I travel with will actually fight over the chance to fix something pushing we technically challenged individuals to the side lol. I just love travelling with those guys!.

I've met Roothy and he's a lovely bloke and my issue is not with him, it's about the narrowing focus that occurrs when it becomes all about the bottom line. We are kidding ourselves if we reckon that the bottom line is not important but it can have a very poor down stream effect if branding and the need to produce quantity over quality become the only focus.

Cheers Mick

Like you I tend to assist and supervise. Mainly because I've come to learn that my third generation bricklaying genes cannot adapt to be used in a mechanical way. I usually cause more damage.

That being said, I do travel with more than capable bush mechanics. That's why I forward your videos to them, in the hope that next time I break something a couple of days from somewhere they will have learnt how to get me going, again.

Roothy. I first met him in the early 80's when he was opal mining, with his brother, at Lightning Ridge. His background with working and living in the bush, plus mucking around with old Harleys and such most of his life, has meant he has to be able to get something going with a bit of fencing wire and a good hammer.
He's a decent bloke doing his job. The magazine is going flat out chasing the dollar but there's a market out there with a huge appetite for information and products. They're taking advantage of a section of the market that want what they supply.

All the best,
Steve

Pop,

The off track stuff has its own degree of difficulty. You'll enjoy these then. The first is a brief snippet of the corrugations near Well 50.




The second is of the corrugations approaching Well 33 from the north



Watch the sand flag oscillating lol.


Cheers Mick

Yes I have to agree. I've had tanks from all leading manufacturers and had issues with them all. Would not touch anything from ARB ever again. Their lack of willingness to stand by their products is legendary. Brown Davis and LRA are both good companies to deal with and with good quality products who provide aftersales service and a willingness to learn from feedback provided by travellers.

As for the tyres Craig, written for all to see but we'll say no more about that lol. Roothey was mentioned above. I see their aftersales service is so good that in the their latest 4x4 Action DVD they flew spares into him by helicopter! They didn't do that for me when I was down to my last casing having used every patch and piece of spaghetti I had lol. I guess it's good to be Roothy ;-) No problems with the big Toyos mate. Worth their weight in gold believe me.

Cheers Mick

Don't get me started. Roothey has become an icon like Pauline Hanson. Too many people listening to what he says but really has NFI. On a trip to Vic they rolled a car on a track up Woods point, couldn't recover themselves so called the cops. Long story short as a direct result the track was closed & still is today. And the chap has the gall to blame the greenies for track closures. He certainy doesn't live in reality world.
For your type of driving you really need a long range tank but I've gone away from them back to the simplicity of Jerries.
Agree: Toyo=Good.
Cheers Craig..............

Rossy, they are the bane of the outback traveller alright. Listen, I had some very good results in dealing with them through use of an adjustable damper shock absorber. I’m using the Tough Dog big bore 45. With them turned down to zero, (no dampening whatsoever), the ride certainly levelled out but in particular, the shocker stayed a lot cooler. The ride and suspension is also assisted with lower tyre pressures. You just have to be very cognizant of whoop-t-doos and bumps that may provide enough rock and roll to overextend coils and springs etc. It’s an investment that has worked well for me and a few of my travel buddies.

Cheers Mick

Mick
I've changed to adjustable Tough Dogs too after the Billies self immolated on corrugations. The TDs have done one major trip (the same one that destroyed the Billies) and they still feel like new. Its a pity you need to get under the vehicle to adjust the TDs. A dash control would be nice.
Bob

I can live with crawling under the car at this stage Bob. Yes I came to them after my OME nitro's reached 157C on the Canning. I've not had the T/D's over 55C on the same stretch while in a heavier car and towing!

I found it a wise precaution to weld a steel tab in front of the dial for a bit more protection.




Cheers Mick