November '09 ZOOM - Kevin (Skyhiranger)

You all know how much I appreciate a Zuwharrian that contributes a lot in Tech. Well, this month is no exception. Matter of fact, you can find his posts all over both Sammi and IFS Tech. He’s probably even got some good stuff in Diesel, too! Well here you go, Skyhiranger!

Congratulations for winning the November 2009 Zuwharrie Owner of the Month!

So tell us about you. Who are you, where do you live, and what do you do for a living?
I own lots of Samurais, Sidekicks and Trackers, and parts. I live a little ways outside of Kansas City, MO. I work in the Telecom field.

Tell us a bit about your family.
Me, Kevin, age 39.
Wife, Denise, age....yeah, right.
Son, Kolson, age 6.
Daughter, Kiaya, age 4.

How did you get started in Suzuki’s?
I bought my first Sidekick in 1996. It was an '89 convertible, JLX. I added a rear Lock-Right and some old school 28” mud tires, rebuilt the engine, added a cam, a header and exhaust system and replaced the soft top with a hard top. It had an automatic and with stock gearing it was horrible off-road (not enough gearing/power). That was before I knew much about them and was just getting into off-roading. I got rid of it in '98, when I bought my '97 Ford Ranger. My brother and I wheeled our Ford Rangers, until he got rid of his and bought an old Willys jeep. The trails he made for the jeep weren't cut big enough for my Ranger, and I wasn't taking my Ranger down narrow jeep trails (it currently has about 65K on it, and is still in very nice condition). Anyway, I definitely wasn't buying a jeep, so I bought my first Samurai, a '91, in '04. I wheeled it stock a few times during the course of a year, then decided I needed a dedicated off-road Samurai, so I bought another Samurai (the one I wheel today) to build up and use exclusively off-road. Since then, I have bought several more Samurais, Sidekicks and Trackers......and sold a few of them.

You’ve built Sammis, you’ve owned a grip of Sidekicks and Trackers, you’ve built your own dual-transfer case setup. What’s next?
I have thought about building a small scale Samurai for my kids (or maybe myself), or building a custom stretched Samurai, or maybe a tube rig. I got lots of ideas rolling around in my head, LOL,......just no definite plans for anything, at this point.

How long did it take you to build your Zuk to what it is today?

I bought my off-road Samurai in '05. I did the initial build in '05 over the course of a few weeks. My initial build consisted of an EFI 1.3 swap, 5.12 Trackick axle gears, rear Lock-Right, RUFs and rear YJs with relocation brackets, reinforcing/boxing the Samurai tcase arms and making the tcase skid/bucket, modifying the tcase for 2-low (removing the center detent ball), longer front brake lines, new rear shocks and mounts, extending the bumpstops, bedlining the interior floor areas, making body panel skins, and new floor boards.
Since the initial build in '05, I have made/added the following over the last 4 years....gas tank skid/protector, front and rear bumpers, new front shocks and mounts, a winch with dash mounted and external switches, Trackick power steering and a cooler, switched to ribbed belts on the engine, longer front shackles, a spare tire relocation bracket and backup light, Neon seats, a front Lock-Right and birfield rings, 33” tires (started with 31s) along with different wheels (went from 15x7s to 15x8s with a little less backspacing), finished the paint job, made my dual tcase setup and twin-sticks, diff caps/protectors, changed rear shocks, rear discs, rock sliders for the rockers, and Dodge 318 motor mounts.
My last mod, a couple of months ago, was switching from 4 pack YJs in the rear, to 5 pack YJs (because the 4 packs just wore out).
I fabbed everything that could be made and installed it all on my Samurai, from the dual-tcase setup, to the skid plates, to the power steering kit. The only work I have had someone else do is weld up the Trackick tcase (since it is aluminum and I have no way to weld aluminum), once I cut the front output off and made/shaped the piece to fill the hole.

Any changes in store for your rig?
I have my Samurai built almost perfectly for the way I use it. It works great 99% of the time and is very reliable. I might add some tcase gearing, just for that super low gearing when occasionally (but rarely) needed. I would like to put better (and more) rock lights under it. I have no plans to go to any bigger tires, change axles, change the drivetrain, or any other major mods.

If you could have anybody else’s Zuk, who’s would it be and why?
No offense, but I like my Samurai. For where I wheel and how I wheel, my rig works great. There are several nice and very nicely built rigs out there. If I would wheel differently, or in different places, then there would be several better ones to choose from, but at this point, mine works great.

Do you still own the Ranger, from which you got your name?
Yes, I still have the Ranger. I doubt I will ever sell it. Unfortunately, it now sits in the shed most of the time. Because it isn't real convenient to haul 4 people in and it doesn't really get used off-road anymore. I have thought about putting it back to stock, or nearly stock, but I really like how it looks, how it drives on the road with the solid front axle, and how it gets around off-road, when I need it to. The full list of mods is in my profile.

What has been your best wheeling adventure?
I don't know that I have one that really stands out. I have fun pretty much every time I go wheeling. I especially like when people that don't know me see my “stock” Samurai and think it is incapable off-road. That is, until it out performs their obviously built rig, that they probably spent several 1000s, if not 10s of thousands, of dollars on. I like the comment one of the guys I wheel with said to me once.......”You [censored] a lot of people off with your Samurai.” Perfect. I like it that way.

What other toys/hobbies do you put a lot of time into?
I used to ride ATVs a lot. My brother and I have put thousands of hours (and miles) on our ATVs, over the years. After the kids came along and it wasn't real practical to take the kids, along came the Samurais. I still have all my ATVs, but just don't find the time to ride anymore.
I guess you could call the internet a “hobby”. I know I spend a lot of time online.
I also enjoy hunting. I don't hunt as much as I used to, but I still go deer hunting every year.

What is it about the Zuwharrie.com BBS that brings you back for more?
The people and the tech/info. Some of the other zuk/off-road sites have their little “cliches”, and can be a bunch of dorks, of you aren't part of their little group. That really isn't an issue here. On the Zu, you can find the answer to most any question/problem you have. Or if you can't, there is usually someone here that can give you the answer.

What about the Zuwharrie Event would you like to see changed?
For it to be closer to KC. But then I guess it wouldn't really be the Zuwharrie event, now would it?

Contact Information:
Name: Kevin
Zuwharrie user name: Skyhiranger
Nickname:
Email:

Main Vehicle Specs:
Year: 1987
Make: Suzuki
Model: Samurai
Color: Urban Camo or Snow Camo

Driveline: '91 EFI Samurai 1.3, Trackick 5 speed, Trackick tcase (stock gearing), twin-sticked Samurai tcase (stock gearing), stock Samurai axles, birfield rings, rear discs, front and rear Lock-Rights, 5.12 Trackick axle gears.

Steering: Trackick power steering and stock Samurai linkage.

Suspension: 5 pack YJs and YJ shackles in the rear, RUF springs with longer shackles in the front (all SPUA).

Tires/Wheels: 33x10.50-15 TSL Radials on Ford 15x8 steel wheels.

Armor: Front and rear bumpers, tcase skid, gas tank skid (all 1/4” steel), rock sliders/rocker panel skids (1/8” steel), front and rear diff caps/protectors (made from an 8” pipe cap).

Interior: '01 Neon seats, Dodge Raider cluster (oil pressure gauge, voltage gauge, inclinometer) on the top of the dash, Uniden CB, roll on bedliner on the floor areas, custom stainless steel door panels.

Exterior: Body panel skins (to cover up the rusted out body), tubbed rear fender wells, virtual lift in the front, spray can paint job.

Recovery gear: HF 8K winch with dash-mounted and winch-mounted hardwired switches (that way I don't have to hook up the remote lead when I use it). Tow strap, tree saver, screw clevises, snatch block.

Best Modification: Honestly.....probably power steering. It is nice to be able to wheel and not have to fight the steering all day. Although, my twin-sticks are pretty nice too.

Worst Modification: I don't know that there is one. But I guess if I have to pick something, it would probably be the 4 pack YJs in the back. They worked fine, but just got weak/soft from use. The 5 leaf packs seem to work just as good and should last longer.

Future Mods: possibly a cage (probably an exo), probably some additional tcase gearing, better rock lights

Other Clubs: kczuks. KCZUKS.US is the website