Unimog Club UK

Hello liongeorge and welcome to the forum

Lovely mog you have there  Regarding the difflock seals I've been taught by my Dad (Moose) on how to do them and they're not a bad job if like yourself you're mechanically minded 

Hope to see many pictures and updates.

Cheers, Brian

liongeorge,

How does it handle coming down a steep slippery slope with the weight out back?

My little 411, though technically it's a long(er) wheelbase is pretty short and has a relatively high center of gravity. I'm worried that one screw up and it's over, no walking away. The tracks are long and steep here. I walk it down slowly but if you hit a wet patch or a hidden undercut and you could swap ends in a heartbeat and roll the rest of the way down. Or maybe I'm becoming a wimp in my old age.

Another question, you've got a lot more experience with Mogs than I do, what's the reasoning for reversing the tread pattern in the front?

Thanks for your help.

Cheers,

Tom

 Hi Tom.     

  I find the weight at the back a distinct advantage for handling on a mog which tend to be v front heavy. The crane which is not super heavy  makes it better handling both on and off road. Off road this is particularly noticable and improves things going down steep inclines.   My old 404 used to regularly stand on it's nose until I added weight to the back...it could do this under severe braking in the road      . Those with more off road experience than me will be able to give you a more thorough opinion but I wouldn't be without it and have done a fair bit of off roading. The crane when folded has a relatively low centre of gravity.

   The tyres.....well there is a theory that running ag tyres back to front on the front when doing mainly road work stops them 'scrubbing off' and wearing out too quickly.  I can not vouch for whether this works or not the only thing I will say is that the wear seems more even and not 'ridged' with a sharp lip on the edge of cleat as I have seen on many worn ag tyres.  I would be V interested on others opinion on this.

 I hope that helps. George

Since mine is a “tractor” the top road speed allowable here is around 20-25 mph. Plus I don’t expect to do more than a few hundred miles a year on tarmac, if that, so for now, the tread stays the same. But now I know, it doesn’t take long to swap front tires around.

The weight issue sounds right and I will be looking for a small crane. The Norwegians have a good expression “kjekt å ha” which very roughly translates to ”nice to have”. I am sure that I do need one, I just have to find a reason.

Forestry winches and splitters/firewood processors are a dime a dozen here, so I’ll just borrow for the time being and see what comes up.

Thanks for your help.

Cheers,

Tom