It was just Steve and I.... we stayed on the Putney side in a bunkhouse at "Harlan County Campground". Steve brought a Willis on 60's and 44's.
Sat. morning was a clusterfuck of getting Steve's trail pass, riding to the other side of the mountain to get fuel, ect.
About 11:00 am we hit Rail-bed. The waterfall at the entrance was dug out so bad it wasn't even possible to try. (8ft vertical with a 5ft flat step on top and water running off it) We drove around it and started the trail. There was a group of stockish Jeeps on 35's in front of us stacking the trail into a highway and taking forever doing it. So we turned around.
Went into the lower rock garden and crawled through effortlessly. I came out the other side with a broken transfer case adapter. So I was pouring tranny fluid (even more than usual).
On the way back to camp some tranny fluid turned into an engine fire and turned into an electrical fire. We got it under control and kept going back to camp. (both Jeeps were running really hot).
When we got to camp I started dropping the T-Case and Steve went into town to get parts. We had it back together in a few hours and went back out.
We rode from the upper playground down trail 15 and over to "Whitetail". At the end of Whitetail trail there is a rock hill that is a solid class 5. 6ft rocks piled all the way up this bitch. I tried it for a few minutes and backed off, so that Steve could have a shot before I broke again. He found a promising line and was looking like he might make it (that shit-head is a very smart driver). Well, he fell off his line and ended up sitting high-centered on a rock that had to be 9 feet around. He tried a front dig to move off of it and blew the front drive line at the 205. We went back to camp.
Had him fixed the next morning by 8:30 and headed out to upper rock garden/ can opener. Fun trail up to the can opener section where it was dug out to a ridiculous line. Steve backed off of the section, it was an undercut rock on the right about 5ft high. The left side was an undercut rock about 8ft tall that we were trying to go around. If the right tire did climb, his left tire would wedge pinching the top of his 44. Well, I tried it. I got in line, backed up a foot or two and stabbed the gas. Started up and then "BANG"..... Snapped the front output shaft clean off the transfer case.
That was it for wheeling....
Got home and pulled the t-case to replace the shaft (I have a spare shaft laying in the garage). Split the T-case and it was missing the rear bearing that holds the back of the front out-put shaft in place.
It was never installed from the factory
