Thats a tough break Ben.
I suspect that the underlying problem is that the LJ series of trucks are 'light duty' - if you look at what the others are driving they look to be heavier bits of kit, which is what I think you may need to undertake the sort of trips you have in mind.
I can see stuff breaking being a regular thing if you stick with the LJ, I reckon you'll get sick of it yourself soon enough, never mind the other guys.
Cheers
Pete
Ben - did you regear the diffs? would not doing so and running huge 37" tyres mean the diffs are a weak link?
When I looked at the photos this afternoon, I was thinking about both of those points...
From what I understand the coil sprung 70's are the lighter duty ones, up until they changed the Troopy and Ute in the mid/late 2000's. This applies to the LJ/KJ/RJ/BJ70 and the equivalent 78's in my understanding.
Do they not run a smaller axle etc compared to the FJ/BJ73/74 and the FJ/HJ75/76/79? Ie based off of the HiLux axles rather than the 60/80 Cruiser?
Is (was?) it a greasable UJ? Prop shafts aren't too bad in Aus, there is often somewhere locally that does them. I think a new UJ and re-balance comes in at about $600 based on what it cost for someone in Cairns.
With the trails in Australia I tended to err on the side of caution, partly because it was the first times I drove off road, but mainly because my 73 was my pride and joy (and was the most expensive thing I've ever bought!)
With the comments regarding the others in the group I think it's important to remember that a group is only as strong as the weakest link. As someone who has led clubs in environments that are challenging and hazardous, you quickly start to arrange things so that some people don't come along, either by not telling them about it, or arranging it so that they can't do it, be it days they can't do or by very short notice... and that's what may happen to Ben unfortunately.
Ben's big challenge is that in the UK and within his group that he'd go wheeling with, he was one of the top guys (from what I can understand) and well regarded in that respect. Now he's at the bottom of the group, and trying to prove what he can do. This will have been a big knock to the system so it's a case of stop, review, plan and then go from there. I've been in that position when I moved to a new area and joined a kayak club where I knew no-one, and I came in with qualifications that put me towards the top of the club and took my time learning about the people in the club and the locations that the club used. Only once that happened did I try new things with them and expanding bits and pieces. Trying too hard and screwing things up doesn't work that well.... it'll not endear you to the club.
By the way how much is RACV membership?
Looking at the pics your 'Cruiser seems to be very over-tyred in comparison to the others there; they seem to be sitting on 35's, as well as being GQ/GU Pootrols and 80/100 series LC's on the whole. I found that the 73 got stuck in places (wheel spinning in the air because it was hanging up in the air) where our friends with a longer wheelbase didn't have that same problem because it had crossed through the trench and had all of it's wheels on the ground. My feeling in Aus is that the longer wheelbase actually works better because the vehicle crosses the obstacle instead of a SWB where it may have one end in the rut and the other out of it, spinning the wheels. Once you then lock the diff and you're trying to pull it out using one driven wheel it's not a surprise that (a poorly installed - Ben's own words) the diff gives up the ghost.
Right enough stone throwing from inside this greenhouse on top of the ivory tower... we weren't there, Ben was, it's happened and now Ben's got to sort it out.
Good luck with it Ben, and hope it doesn't get you tarred and feathered... hopefully they won't put a sticker on the Pootrol saying "Toyota Rescue Vehicle"