BajaNomad - PAPPY JON *Obtained* ASSISTANCE HWY. 5, MATOMI WASH

PAPPY JON Obtained ASSISTANCE HWY. 5, MATOMI WASH

David K - 3-30-2014 at 10:44 AM

Baja Nomad member Pappy Jon from New Mexico had just started his long planned annual Baja trip when his transfer case/ driveshaft failed.

He is 1/2 mile up the Matomi wash from Hwy. 5 (near Km. 60).

This breakdown report was sent Friday evening about 7:30, and I saw it about 3 hours later. I emailed BajaRob in Bahia Santa Maria, but learned this morning that he is not at home and cannot assist. I also posted on the South Campos Facebook page.

Here are the messages from Pappy Jon:

*Broke transfer case. I'm in Matomi wash south of San Felipe less than half mile off the road. Maybe input shaft or main shaft.

*85 4Runner with a 23 spline (turbo) input. Would like to drag truck someplace secure where it can be worked on more easily.

Can someone south of San Felipe find help for him?

His GPS location (WGS84): Lat 30.4897 Lon -114.674048

THANK YOU!

EDIT: Pappy Jon was rescued Sun. afternoon and is now OK!

[Edited on 3-31-2014 by David K]

David K - 3-30-2014 at 11:02 AM

He is in good shape, waiting for a tow or mechanical assistance...

Here is the last message, after I told him I put the word out:

Thanks David. Life is good. 83*, wind 6mph gusting 9mph. Baro 29.76". Fridge 37*. Battery on solar holding at 12.7V. But no damn beer! Pacifico por favor.

[Edited on 3-30-2014 by David K]

David K - 3-30-2014 at 11:10 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by soulpatch
MMc might volunteer :light:

Pappy Jon has a DeLorme 'In Reach' device (not a Spot device). It is superior in that it allows short message 2 way emailing (for a price).

http://www.inreachdelorme.com/

He is a long way from home and in a flash flood wash, so until he can get pulled out to Puertecitos, Colonia Delicias, or San Felipe.

[Edited on 3-30-2014 by David K]

David K - 3-30-2014 at 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by soulpatch
What's the closest town David? Would access from LA Bay be the easiest?
I've never been up there so I couldn't say.

Has to be a mechanic down there that would love to get in on that.

Matomi Wash is 40 miles south of San Felipe, 15 miles south of Colonia Delicias, and 10 miles north of Puertecitos.

There is no town 'Ejido Matomi', just a sign where that black square is on the map. He is just south of the road to Campo Los Olivos and just north of the Rancho San Rafael, on the map... and 1/2 mile west of the highway (see satellite image above).

[Edited on 3-30-2014 by David K]

Barry A. - 3-30-2014 at 11:14 AM

That's only an hour tops out of San Felipe to the south---------it would be easy-peasey to drag him back to San Felipe with any decent size 4x4, I am thinking--------nylon tow line would work fine.

Barry

MMc - 3-30-2014 at 11:15 AM

If I was in the area and had the time I would. I help folks all the time. Ask me about the three days I spent helping another party off of El Cap. Broken ankle from a fall. How about the guy at a remote point at the sisters. No tow strap, no tools, no clue. Read a report here and went for it.

I hope Pappy gets the help he needs.

[Edited on 3-30-2014 by MMc]

BajaBlanca - 3-30-2014 at 11:19 AM

It is always an adventure!

TMW - 3-30-2014 at 11:29 AM

I reached out to the Cheezer group in San Felipe to see if any of them could help or if they knew someone in the area that could help.

David K - 3-30-2014 at 11:30 AM

Here is a reply that just came in (after I asked him if he had 2WD at all):

Correct. It broke in 2wd. Not broken rear output, rear drive shaft is out. No front drive either. Must be input shaft. Need 23 spline tc. Marlin sells gear.

Thank you for helping Pappy Jon!

[Edited on 3-30-2014 by David K]

David K - 3-30-2014 at 11:44 AM

Thanks Frank... heck of a way to start a Baja vacation! At least he has plenty of food.

By-the-way... he can be reached by 2 meter radio:

>I will have the 2-meter radio and will park on the simplex home frequency of 146.52MHz during the day. Call sign KJ5RAT. I'm not aware of any repeater systems down there. Of course, you will need to be within 20 miles and have near line of sight.

TMW - 3-30-2014 at 11:52 AM

Who ever goes in remember to take some cerveza so if you can't get him out at least he'll be happy.

DENNIS - 3-30-2014 at 12:02 PM

Way to go, Nomads. You guys are like an insurance policy.

David K - 3-30-2014 at 12:15 PM

This just in from Jon:

David, make sure people know I'm safe and very content. They don't need to rush, until we have parts lined up. Or we need to tear into it for more info.

55steve - 3-30-2014 at 12:25 PM

Road trip David? I'm in and as an ex Jeep owner, I'm used to doing Toyota rescues!

PaulW - 3-30-2014 at 02:14 PM

Airing up now and will depart SF ASAP Local time is 2:13
Got coords. Probably wont use the radio for his freq
If anybody has contact tell him 1.5 hours after I gas up
Paul
my cell is 686 190 5325

[Edited on 3-30-2014 by PaulW]

freediverbrian - 3-30-2014 at 02:25 PM

I think I would walk to the hwy ,hitch a ride to town ,find someone to tow me back to SF . Take it to a mechanic order part, they can get it on the bus from mexicali buy the next day. Find a hotel and a cold beer. There are worse places to be broken down

TMW - 3-30-2014 at 02:46 PM

Way to go Paul, you're the man. Nomad hero in my book.

DENNIS - 3-30-2014 at 02:52 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by TW
Way to go Paul, you're the man. Nomad hero in my book.

Paul's "Nomad First Class" stripes are in the mail. :yes:

Sorry for the name error.

.

[Edited on 3-30-2014 by DENNIS]

David K - 3-30-2014 at 03:00 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by PaulW
Airing up now and will depart SF ASAP Local time is 2:13
Got coords. Probably wont use the radio for his freq
If anybody has contact tell him 1.5 hours after I gas up
Paul
my cell is 686 190 5325

[Edited on 3-30-2014 by PaulW]

Fantastic, I just sent a message to Jon.
Nomads are the best!

I have to tell you that being able send short messages back and forth sure has an advantage over SPOT!

http://www.inreachdelorme.com/

Baja Nomads Come Through!

David K - 3-30-2014 at 07:05 PM

Less than 24 hours from sending out the message of being broken down:

Calvary to the rescue. Dragged to San Felipe. Delivery to Pete's Camp.

Good news from Pappy Jon was sent to me at 6:21 pm, Sunday!

Pappy Jon - 3-30-2014 at 07:40 PM

Yep. Just finished dinner with Paul and Julie. Now to focus on the fix. Guess I just became a short term resident of Pete's Camp.

David K - 3-30-2014 at 07:41 PM

Glad you are in a better place to get the 4Runner fixed!

Pappy Jon - 3-30-2014 at 08:01 PM

From the Marlin Crawler website. This describes the issue.

Quote:

Having "total" or full-length splines means that more splines are in contact with the Coupler of your Dual Case Unit. This is important because the spline contact between a t/case input and a Dual Case Coupler is the weak-link of the Dual Case Unit. Therefore, by using a Marlin Crawler Total-Spline gear set you are also minimizing the risk of stripping out the Coupler of your Dual Case Unit.

I have wifi so I can order. Any suggestions how to get it to San Felipe?

[Edited on 3-31-2014 by Pappy Jon]

[Edited on 3-31-2014 by BajaNomad]

willardguy - 3-30-2014 at 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
Less than 24 hours from sending out the message of being broken down:

Calvary to the rescue. Dragged to San Felipe. Delivery to Pete's Camp.

Good news from Pappy Jon was sent to me at 6:21 pm, Sunday!

CALVARY to the rescue? geeze louise david, whats wrong with you? :lol:

Pappy Jon - 3-30-2014 at 08:20 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy

Quote:

CALVARY to the rescue? geeze louise david, whats wrong with you? :lol:

Did I say something funny?

willardguy - 3-30-2014 at 08:28 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Pappy Jon

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy

Quote:

CALVARY to the rescue? geeze louise david, whats wrong with you? :lol:

Did I say something funny?

not you, for someone who liked to dress the part, david should know better though :smug:

MMc - 3-30-2014 at 08:33 PM

It was devise province. Now starts the laying on of hands. :lol:

Pappy Jon - 3-30-2014 at 08:38 PM

Give David a hard time if you wish. I'm very grateful for his assistance. I'm glad David agreed to be a contact point should something happen.

tunaeater - 3-30-2014 at 09:02 PM

You might want to consider having a mechanic look at the junk yards in town. If no luck check Calexico. You can take the bus up and back or get lucky and have someone bring it down.

However I would think the first thing to do is get it checked out so you know what is needed. Maybe you get lucky and it can be fixed

Desertbull - 3-30-2014 at 09:49 PM

Call Efrain 686-577-1791 in San Felioe he has people coming and going to Mexicali all the time for parts ...he's your fix and a top notch mechanic and one hell of a nice man. Friends for 25 years .... You won't be disappointed.

David K - 3-30-2014 at 10:28 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by willardguy

Quote:

CALVARY to the rescue? geeze louise david, whats wrong with you? :lol:

The text in bold was Pappy Jon's message.

55steve - 3-30-2014 at 11:06 PM

Calvary, Cavalry - Very common - I see this all the time

Whale-ista - 3-30-2014 at 11:27 PM

Very impressive work Nomads!

You say Calvary, he says cavalry... in the end, help arrived quickly, if not on horseback then via divine providence with a few satellites mixed in.

This exchange/response via the Delorme system has me considering purchasing it. I looked at one yesterday at REI, and posted some info on another thread.

Situations like this one certainly make the investment pay for itself. Who knows how long Jon would have been out there otherwise, waiting/hoping someone would realize he was MIA?

Thanks for the real-life lesson in effective satellite linked communications...

Pappy Jon - 3-31-2014 at 08:13 AM

One advantage to the inReach is the ability to have a monthly service instead of a year contract. When I get home I will suspend service. A disadvantage is you can't install new batteries when they die so you need a way to charge it.

The device costs more but I think it's worth it. Texts were composed on my tablet and linked to the inReach by Bluetooth. Made composing easy.

[Edited on 3-31-2014 by Pappy Jon]

Pappy Jon - 3-31-2014 at 08:18 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by 55steve
Calvary, Cavalry - Very common - I see this all the time

Frankly I was too tired and let autocorrect do it's job.

TMW - 3-31-2014 at 08:49 AM

Good job by all involved. Thank you DK for taking the lead and putting it together. Good luck Pappy Jon on getting it fixed.

Pappy Jon - 3-31-2014 at 12:40 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Desertbull
Call Efrain 686-577-1791 in San Felioe he has people coming and going to Mexicali all the time for parts ...he's your fix and a top notch mechanic and one hell of a nice man. Friends for 25 years .... You won't be disappointed.

Assuming my phone works down here do I just dial the number as shown?

As far as the parts. They will not come from a parts store. I have a dual transfer case from Marlin and it appears I stripped the couping. It needs to come from him.

DavidE - 3-31-2014 at 05:10 PM

NOW WAIT A MINUTE

Calvary

You know, down on your hands and knees palms pressed together?

Calvary may have been more than appropriate...

Pappy Jon - 4-1-2014 at 07:38 AM

Wait for it. I might of had an epiphany to get me moving without parts.

David K - 4-1-2014 at 09:56 AM

Read your epiphany email... Wouldn't it be great if the solution also gives you 4WD so you can salvage some of your vacation... or just avoid 4WD areas?

I hope that works for either Jon... :bounce:

ehall - 4-1-2014 at 12:39 PM

I will be leaving Phoenix April 8th and heading to San Felipe if that helps any. I can pick up anything you order on Monday the 7th

David K - 4-1-2014 at 10:39 PM

In an email message he reports it may be repaired well enough to get home with parts on-hand.

I mentioned ehall's offer via reply email in case he doesn't get back on Nomad before leaving San Felipe.

PaulW - 4-2-2014 at 02:06 PM

Just got back and just got the latest 3rd hand briefing from Mike.
Mike at Pete's Camp repair shop towed the toy to the shop and dropped both transfers. Found a stripped rear transfer input shaft. The rear transfer shaft/gear/tail was put on the front transfer. Then Jon got a ride to town and the weld shop extended the rear drive shaft. Whole repair took part of a day.
Last report was he is on his way - somewhere.
PW

David K - 4-2-2014 at 03:04 PM

I will keep my eyes open for emails from his Delorme inReach device...

I hope he can salvage a small Baja trip out of this? Thank you PaulW for making the rescue!

Udo - 4-2-2014 at 04:09 PM

I may be out of line in this, but when I was a (Jeep) person, instead of Toyota, if something on the rear drive broke, we disconnected the rear drive shaft and drove home on the front axle. It was slow, and tough to steer, but it got us home more than once.

Pappy Jon - 4-2-2014 at 04:25 PM

Paul is correct. I have a duel transfer case set up. The input into the transmission from the crawl box was good. The input into the double adapter from the main transfer was stripped. That means no movement in 4 WD or 2wd.

We swapped the good gear into the transfer case, pulled the crawl box and adapter, and installed the transfer just like it came from the factory. This required a longer driveshaft. It was very unbalanced, but it got me to Phoenix where a shop will retube and balance in the morning.

[Edited on 4-2-2014 by Pappy Jon]

David K - 4-2-2014 at 05:43 PM

Thanks for the update Jon... Glad you are out of trouble!

TMW - 4-3-2014 at 08:06 AM

Question, I seem to remember that the squarecircle had a 4 runner with dual tranfer cases. What is the purpose of having two?

PaulW - 4-3-2014 at 09:18 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by TW
Question, I seem to remember that the squarecircle had a 4 runner with dual tranfer cases. What is the purpose of having two?

=====
Its a low cost deal for Toyotas to get low gearing for heavy rigs, however -- The result is a Low/Low used mostly for rock crawling when low horse power limits climbing ability. Also some rock crawl situations need very slow progress and very low gears are the ticket.
Example a transfer could have a 2.3 low and if one had two of them then the result would be 5.3. Not very practical for a typical desert rig since steep climbs are seldom encountered such as we see in rock crawling events.
Most full size off road rigs have a 2.7 low and two of those would be 7.3 gearing - pretty extreme.
What we see mostly these days for rock crawling is one 2 speed transfer driven by 500 Hp with various low gear ratios.
Another higher budget solution is to go with a 3 speed transfer and get the similar gearing to two 2.3s or lower.

David K - 4-3-2014 at 09:24 AM

I think Neal Johns also had a dual box... ?

TMW - 4-3-2014 at 02:43 PM

Interesting thanks

Pappy Jon - 4-5-2014 at 01:04 PM

So, I'm home, as of late Thursday night. The extended driveshaft from San Felipe was very unbalanced, but it drove me across the border, though a little slow. I stopped at a driveline shop in Yuma, but they were too busy to help me. I continued on to Phoenix and was referred to a shop, that also was too busy. They, in turn, sent me to another shop. They were able to make time for me Thursday morning.

With the driveshaft retubed and very balanced I continued home, leaving Phoenix around 1:00.

Older gear drive Toyota transfer cases are geared 2.28:1. There are 4:1 and 4.7:1 options. Originally I ran a single 4.7, but pulled it for the flexibility of a dual 2.28, which gives me 5.2:1 low if I need it.

The issue is sometimes you need to go slow, and feathering the clutch of a low torque engine is not a good option. A V8 with an automatic transmission is a different beast. There are many times where 2.28 works just fine, but 5.2 has a lot more confidence when the going is slow.

The stripped input gear.

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[Edited on 4-5-2014 by Pappy Jon]

David K - 4-5-2014 at 09:18 PM

Glad you are home Jon and I am so happy that you had the satellite communicator and it was flawless in getting help to you in less than 24 hours thanks to Baja Nomad PaulW

If there was one thing lucky it was you were only 1/2 mile from the highway... and not 30 miles up Matomi Canyon in the rocks or a more remote location.

That Delorme inReach device was excellent.

Pappy Jon - 4-5-2014 at 09:46 PM

Thanks David for the help. I'm just glad I wasn't down at Los Corrales south of San Francisquito/El Barril. That would have been about 145 miles on dirt roads from BOLA. I would still be there watching the buzzards circle.