SFJ 4x4 Studios presents, in my oversized four-wheel drive Jeep, a Jeep podcast starring industry
experts, curaminosity, say that again, with mad scientist Scott Brown, use my drill press
as a sort of lathe, our host, Neil Simpson, if one leg goes off, they all go out.
We are really professional with Jeeps.
This is iSpeak Jeeps.
Good morning, afternoon, evening, wherever, however you are joining us, this is the iSpeak
Jeep podcast presented by SFJ4x4.com.
You sure?
I am very sure.
This is Neil with SFJ4x4 Simpson Family Jeeps, joined in grandma's couch studio and afar, and
you'll know what I mean when I say that, folks who are listening, and we do have a special
guest on here today, but in grandma's couch studio, we have Jeff, the producer over there
in a shirt I don't own, I need to find one of those so we can win.
You two are actually in different clothes.
It's perfect because you have a shirt on that I don't own either, so we'll fix
that.
The twins figured out how to break the matrix for the first time.
Yeah.
You actually.
Folks, I mean, if you don't know what that inside joke is, I mean, it's literally they
just wear the same clothes.
They have a similar body build.
They both wear shm mediums.
They get upset if they're not in a shm medium.
And it's constantly we'll walk in and we're both wearing the same shirt.
And they wear the same clothes and the rest of us are convinced that they call
each other ahead of school, like they're middle school teenage girls, planning their
outfits for the next days.
But they don't.
And there was a time when we actually took a picture of them from the back and we
had a high Jeffrey sleeve, his tattoo sleeve.
But we took a picture from the back and they were darn near identical.
We tried sending it off to their wives, figure out which one's which.
So anyways, that's what that one is for.
With is all said, we do have a special guest.
We also have the mad scientist sitting over there.
Oh, he's not a special guest.
He's not.
I know, but he he has to introduce him.
I got all excited about, you know, you guys twinning.
And we forgot to mention him before we get to our special guest.
I should mention that this weekend is Bantam Trail Festival.
I'm sure I'm certain that there are some other opportunities going on out
there, trail hero included.
But on a regional level, Bantam Trail Festival, and they always try to do
a nice kind of Halloween inspired, you know, opportunity.
There are from mile to wild trails available.
So if you just want to get out there and stretch the legs of your Jeep
and do some fall foliage, you can do it with them.
If you want to get out there and bang off some rocks, you can do it with them.
So that's what's kind of going on in the Northeast.
Jeffrey, anything on while in the comments, we've got Jagga Jeepers
first saying good morning, SFJ got Bill McWilliam saying good morning.
Robert Siemens saying mornings.
Joe O'Brien says good morning.
Daddy Jeep says morning, guys.
We'll be seeing him this coming weekend at the trail fest.
And you got Jeanie saying good morning.
I'm sitting here hunting so I can make some more deer jerky.
Happy hunting. Oh, happy hunting for those of you.
I think it's archery season.
Fill in dough tags and, you know, trying to gauge their bucks
for upcoming rifle season, if you're into that.
And then Roy just joined in too.
So good morning, Roy.
Good morning. Good morning to everybody.
Thank you for prioritizing and joining us here.
And and so all of you listening elsewhere in the world
in the six out of seven continents and 90 plus countries first and foremost.
Thank you so much for prioritizing this time and energy as your infotainment.
And we also have a birthday shout out.
Nate has just joined in says good morning.
He was not first and he also can't stay long today
as it's his little guy's fifth birthday and they're going out to celebrate.
Outstanding congratulations to you guys.
And I know how important his his child is with their
wheeling adventures and what wheeling means to their family.
So happy birthday to him.
But there's lots of comments coming in.
But in the interim, we're going to have to keep moving on.
As I was mentioning, thank you all for prioritizing this
program as part of your infotainment.
And you too can join us in the comments
almost every Monday at 10 19 a.m.
And we are on the March to Seema.
So that one will be a little cattywampus coming up in the very near future
because I don't exactly know what that's going to look like.
I'm supposed to be moving a couple of jeeps into position
while you two are going to be representing here in the studio.
Yeah. And exactly what and how we'll do that.
Maybe I'll be a remote guest as we have done in the past.
We'll see how that plays out.
So in the interim, who do we have today, Jeffrey?
We have Matt from Revolution Gear and Axel.
Matt, are you there?
I am here. All right.
Morning. Good morning. Good morning.
Thank you for joining us.
Thanks for having me. Yeah, for sure.
And this is a fun, a fun opportunity.
Jeffrey, I don't know if you had an opportunity
to create any specific questions or outlines.
No, I left it as a conversational.
We're going to be winging it.
You're going to wing it anyway.
So I would say I've prepared notes for you
how many times and you follow the script once.
I do really good with the songs that you
crappily produce and that I produce papers to keep the couch warm.
The papers are nice, but I don't know.
Maybe it would give Matt confidence in the fact
that we're not going to ask him something.
Catty Wampus in the process.
We'll see. I think he's prepared.
You think he's prepared? OK.
I've actually had the opportunity just even recently
at Smoky Mountain to catch up with Matt
and had a very good conversation.
And Matt and I met a few years ago
when he was very diligently trying to convince us
that there was a better alternative gear
manufacturer on the market
and, you know, in trying to to represent revolution accordingly.
Now we pull no punches that we are for historically.
We've sold a lot of Dana Spicer components
and also historically, we sold a lot of Yukon.
But as of many things, all businesses have their ups and downs.
And while we're still very, very happy with Dana Spicer,
I am finding myself less and less thrilled about my Yukon offerings.
So with that said, we were very loyal to them
and as a product supplier.
But if they are not able to deliver for our customer,
then what's the point? Right?
And that's a very personal, professional approach that I take
that our customer comes first, regardless of our relationships with manufacturers.
And if manufacturers are not able to fill the way that we expect them to.
Again, we treat your Jeep like it's our Jeep.
And I want, you know, arguably the very best for whatever given circumstance it is.
In that interim, there are a number of alternative,
you know, there are a number of gear manufacturers out there, Richmond Motive.
And Revolution came on the scene some years ago.
In the aftermarket, Matt, when would you say that, like,
Revolution really took a stronghold?
Well, first, I would say it was probably I want to say it's 2012
was when the when the branding came about.
We've been making gear since 1984, just kind of had a different business model.
12 was when we kind of looked at the scope of things
and saw how things were going right e-commerce.
We kind of thought just wholesaling white box to to companies
maybe wasn't the route to just put all our eggs in one basket.
And that's kind of when we decided, like I said, to brand.
But that's that I wouldn't say that's when we really got, you know,
you know, stole market share. Yeah, that would probably be.
Man, last three years, definitely.
Yeah, every year, every year it's gotten it was better, right?
You know, we have a very grassroots approach to it.
And I joke around with a lot of people and say,
we would blindfold ourselves and throw darts at a dartboard or or a map, if you will.
And all right, I guess we're going to to Pika, Kansas today.
But we we did very I mean, we did a lot of stuff like that,
where we would let's say we had a customer and let me back up just a bit.
But, you know, our company is a gear company, first and foremost.
So 1984 was when it was founded.
We make a lot of internal components for transfer cases and manual transmissions.
So we had big remanufacturers, you know, builders shop, you know, large shops.
And that's kind of how we focused on, you know,
regionally growing the brand revolution.
So we would, let's say, fly into a Kansas city or an Oklahoma city.
And then we would plan out a full week where we would start there
and just kind of sweep that that regional area talking about, you know,
revolution and what we do, because there's a lot of overlap.
Like you, like I'm sure you're aware of, right?
There's a lot of guys that are building transfer cases and transmissions
that also do differential, but we would also look and just do Google
and Yelp searches where, you know, hey, there's X amount on off roadshops.
There's X amount of differential repair in the area.
And we would just really just knock on doors and just spread the word.
But to really answer your question, yeah, I would say about the last three years.
Wow, it's it's just it's just taken off.
You know, it's it's a testament to I think our team, really, you know,
you would do these shows, whether they're the larger shows or the small
even the smaller shows. And there was a point in time where
you talk to 10 people within an hour and two, three
of them would know who you are.
And, you know, it's very rare that somebody comes up to the booth now and says,
I don't know who you are.
So it's just, you know, it just proves a lot of hard works paid off.
Yeah, I get it.
And I can identify entirely too well, because quite frankly,
12 was when I went full time as well.
And we were part time, you know, part time business prior to that
and full time enthusiasts and 12 is when I kind of, you know,
kind of took the leap of faith involuntarily, but got out there
regardless. And then that concept of, you know, continuing to kind of
carve out market share, I get it, you know, entirely in an organic
fashion, who's just like, Hey, we have this great core, this great
foundational purpose. And then you got to you got to get in front of
the Jeepers. And I always said we will go where the Jeepers are at.
And that way we can kind of, you know, share the message.
And exactly what you're saying, as far as, you know, at one time,
you got to really bite and fight and scratch to get people to go,
Hey, you're a legitimate business. And now there's oftentimes,
you know, not there's not often an occasion where people haven't
heard a little bit about you, you know, so what you're sharing
is I get it entirely too well. And of course, when 12 when
you guys branded kind of the boom between 12 and 1617 was
this, this, this boom market for gearing, because of course, the
Oh, seven to 11 JK was just hot garbage, and was geared poorly
with an underdog of an engine. And, and, and gears were just a
hot topic. Every, you know, Jim, Bob and Harry was was
trying to make a gear just to do something with this
minivan motor Jeep. So I get it. And you guys obviously
started to do some market share. Now, what I think is
interesting for folks at home who are listening, I heard you
mentioned white box production. Maybe could you break that down
to maybe if somebody's unfamiliar with what that means?
Yeah, so it's just an unbranded gear, right? So we
manufacture our product. And there's, whether it's like I
said, let's just say it's a large factory that just
rebuilds or remanufactures axles, right? So they strip
it. The sandblast that obviously paint the actual axle
housing, and then those stuff with guts, you know, carriers,
whether it's an open carrier, a positive locker, ring
opinion, and then axle shafts. So, you know, a lot of those
guys will just on a white box program, right? And then
there's other gear, manual aftermarket gear
manufacturers that do the same thing, whether it's almost
the whole percentage of their their gear line, or it's 10%
or 20 or 30 or 50. It doesn't really matter. But that's kind
of where I think we really want a lot of fans over as far as
just more so shop owners and installers, right? Where I
think, you know, the first two or three conversations you
and I had. And listen, just like you started this episode
off, you know, you're a loyal guy. And I even told you that
when you were like, Listen, I just don't have room for you. But
you know, anytime you see me, stop by and say hello. And I
can't appreciate that so much just in the sense that I need
and I want customers the same way. Right? So I kind of
digress there. But you know, we that was the thing that I
pushed so hard on on installers or shop owners was just
give us a shot. Just the gear setup consistency, which obviously
time is money. That's such a huge factor, right? The quality
hands down is there. But the the ease of install is I think
what really want to heart the hearts over of a lot of these
these shops. And why I say that is because of our main
principle is we don't rebox anything if it comes in a green
revolution box, it's 100% our product, right? So for quality
control reasons, for setup reasons, it's really second to none,
at least in the aftermarket, right? You know, you mentioned
the Dana Spicer have have, you know, they're a great company.
They're the I mean, it's Dana Spicer, right?
Right, absolutely. They're not they're obviously not
reboxing anyone's product. But you know, on the after
market side, we are the only company that can say that. And I
can say that with certainty.
Absolutely. Yes. And that that was exactly one of our biggest
frustrations. And of course, you know, I when we met and I
I'm I can't exactly, you know, articulate when that was and we
had developed, as far as SFJ four by four was concerned, we
had developed a lifeline relationship with Yukon. And
so we had the Yukon that we had a we had a rep there who was a
really gifted gear and axle mind, like he understood bearings
and races and, you know, ring gear cuts. And there is still a
couple individuals there within their tech department who
arguably are very gifted gear minds, right? But this this
rep was awesome. And he, you know, for the most part, really
benefited our business as far as kind of putting us in tune with
things that were on the the edge of the market, right, the
pulse of the market. And that helped build our brand. And then
we have a specific technician, while everybody here has touched
gears in some capacity, doing axles ourselves years ago, we
have one technician, our lead performance mechanic, who just
again, has a gifted brain for it. And I value his feedback
highly in the process, but then also the logistics of the
business. And so we had been doing a lot of setup with Yukon
and and so we would oftentimes give our customers an option,
whether they wanted Yukon or Spicer, you know, ring
and pinions. But then there was kind of these alternative
options, as far as like there was warranties on their ring
and pinions. And there was other products that maybe Spicer
doesn't make as easy to access for the aftermarket, maybe, you
know, would be a gear kit bundle, you know, it created some
customer service, and some ease of consumption from our part
from our consumer standpoint, the brand Yukon helped sell
our ability to be relevant in the gear market. As things,
you know, moved and changed, the reboxing became a problem. You
and this is where I was going with you, you, you kind of came
up to me one day, we were at a, you know, Bantam. And again, I
think you were on the edge of the market, you saw things
coming, you and Revolution by extension were like, hey, you
might need us one day. And that was that was all you know
what I mean? And you were like, you know, I get I get
solicited constantly with people far more pushy than your
approach. And it, you know, Jeff, Jeff, oftentimes as our
front end filter, we'll just like hang up, not not that he'll
just hang up the phone, but he'll he'll filter out
I mean, I literally tried to bill somebody for using up my
time.
You did. You did.
A solicitor called the other day, and he said, well, I'm
going to start to invoice you now. So, you know, so that
wasn't that wasn't your approach. It was I think
you were on the cusp of the market, and you said, hey, I
can see some things coming, right? And at that time, we
still had, I don't know, 11,000 air quotes, you know, gear
in an axle retailers, you know, because every Jim Bob all
of a sudden, I mean, you know, Rough Country Nitro. And then
all of the subsidiary lines were selling rings and
opinions, you know what I mean? And alloy USA and G
to a lot of ones who are not relevant by today's
markets, but there was a saturation. Sure. You were
kind of like, Hey, just keep me in mind. So from our
standpoint, when we started unwrapping boxes from what
we felt was a reputable supplier, and it was a rebox.
And, and then setups weren't going quite as well, and
setups were going poorly. And we'd have, you know,
people mistakenly say, Oh, Dana 44 is a Dana 44 is a
Dana 44 until it isn't right. And that goes with any, you
know, manual transmissions would be the same way. You know,
it's 79, T18, and it's 80, T18 are very different
transmissions. So when you have that fringe stuff, and
well, since we do 41 to present, we see all of it,
right? When you don't have a company that's able to
assist, when you take it apart, and like suddenly
there's a seal here, or this one has a little bit of a
different thrush washer. And you need to figure that out when
you don't have a competent person on the other side of the
phone, that you can kind of like, Hey, I want to put this
back. We don't want to be the business that just goes, Oh,
well,
car. And that's exactly the thing is that we don't really
get the easy jobs. You know, I mean, you're talking
about that. And we're not the business who goes, Oh, well,
your SOL, we're the guys who have to, you know, dig
down and roll up our sleeves and figure it out, figure it
out. And and that we were lacking that what we once had
because that individual that rep that I was talking about with
Yukon, he was moved on in some capacity. And that
relationship started to struggle. And we got the
re boxes and then cuts of gears, a lot of people at
home don't understand that specifically our technician and
all technicians oftentimes, if the edges of the gears are
too harsh, they'll actually make noise and hum. And a lot of
people who set them up and you see these horror stories about
gears being noisy, our technician oftentimes, he was
getting out the ring opinion. And he was dressing the
gears for longer and longer, because the cart the cut was
entirely too square or imperfect in the process. And
dressing the gears for folks who are at home is basically
filing each and every tooth of the ring opinion on both
sides, on both sides, you know, and because of impurities and
our interest in having a good quality setup, just a race of
the bottom because like you had said, we had so many different
manufacturers on the scene. So suddenly you have people just
looking at price alone. Yes, they don't understand the
quality aspect. They don't understand how much time you're
going to lose on setup. So it's myself kind of good to see a
company like revolution, looking at the quality and going,
No, we are not going to sell a product that way.
Correct. And I think that's the biggest frustration is I feel
like we all think there's a little bit of as a consumer, I
think one of our triggers is this is the smoke and mirrors
the bait and switch. Yes. Right. And so if you are, we've
all seen it on the mechanical side of things. It's like my
receipt says I got blah installed. And then I open up the
hood and I'm like, Oh, wait a second, they told me and I'm
making stuff up, folks. They told me I was getting a dormant
part. And now all of a sudden I have a rugged ridge part or
vice versa. Yeah. You know, now it's like, well, I feel I
feel a little taken advantage of. And from a supply chain
logistic, that's how we felt when we would open up a
particular gear setup kit from not Dana Spicer. And we would
get somebody else's gears in there.
The part I love that I remember the most is we got a rebox
rebox once we did. Yep. And we're looking at we're like,
holy crap, you know, this is literally from this other
supplier that we actually have an account with. And we just
gone straight to them. Yes. And they're not making gears
they're just reboxing as well. Yes. And we're like, how did
we get here? Yes. Yeah, I think it's it's tricky, right? It, you
know, and I never go I never have conversations with anyone,
whether it's, you know, we're obviously live right now. But
if we were talking in a private conversation, I myself and my
wholesale team, we're not going to trash any of our
competitors. I think that's a, you know, let's jump in.
That's okay, you I respect that. I'm going to put their
business out there, though, because that's the that's
what our our customers deserve, right? And we're we're here to
be in the middle of that just like I'm not going to put any of
our, you know, other builders or anybody else necessarily out on
blast. That's not my job. My job is to explain to you how we
do things with excellence. Now, if there's somebody within the
supply chain, who's not holding up their end of the
bargain, then our customers, then our community deserves to
know that, right? So one's a business moral piece, and I
can respect that for you guys. On the other hand, one is a
defense of our community. And that's where I'm going to step
in, you know,
you know, when certain companies and it's not just
specific to the automotive industry, right? It's it's
branding, right? It's grown. It's just having this huge
conglomerate, right? And, and, you know, so I guess what I'm
getting at is you, there's a couple paths you can go down
go down. But I believe to and specific to what we're
talking about. And it's you want the skews, and you're going to
keep growing the skews, but you can actually keep up with
manufacturing of those, of those, those right, right? And then
that's when you get into where you have to look to the
supply chain, look to other companies. With ourselves, we
just decided at a, you know, at an early stage, and this
predates, you know, me being with the company, we're not
going to do that. And is there times that we're going
to lose sales on stuff? Yeah, because you you guys call me up
today and say, I need this gear package, and I don't have the
rears, I can tell you the fronts. And you know, and some
people don't want to mix match, and I can understand that some
people don't have a problem with it. And sometimes you have no
choice but to mix and match because availability off the
supply chain. What I'm getting at is, is we took an early on
approach to where we're just going to be, you know, open,
honest, you know, nobody boxing. And if that means we lose
out in a sale here or there, it is what it is. But we thought
just the way we're going to market and how we wanted to
grow this brand and grow this company is that that was the
right approach for us. So yeah, it hurts at times. Now, as
we've gotten more popular in our sales, you know, keep
increasing year after year, that obviously allows us to
go into production on more, you know, gears for the next
batch, or higher quantities or whatever that may be. So we
see less of it. Because fortunately, for us, we've
seen, you know, exponential growth over the last three,
four, five years. But again, it was in the early days, it was
tricky, right? It's like, All right, this, we're gonna, this
is the cross we're gonna bear. And there's going to be some
growing pains from time to time. And not that there isn't
still growing pains. But I think it's, it's a lot easier
to navigate through those, through those instances.
Absolutely. And I respect the company that's willing to just
put a line in the sand. Like, our quality is important, we'd
rather not sell you a gear, then sell you a crappy set of gears
that is just in a different box. Because again, that stings
for someone along that supply chain logistics.
And in their defense of sorts, their contention is and was,
hey, you still get our warranty, you get our
reputability, reputability, if you have a setup issue,
you can call our, our tech line. And I can, I from a business
standpoint, I can identify and understand what their contention
is. I can also simply accept that that's not how I'm going to
do business. For our customers, when they come to us, the
expectation is that we do have a line in the sand. And again,
we're going to miss market share on some people, right?
Because they're just budget minded, they don't care,
they're just trying to flip the vehicle, whatever it might
be. And that's just, I always been my belief is that there's
enough business to go around for the, the vast majority of
businesses, so long as you're doing things in a reputable
fashion. And then, and that's how we then pick and choose our
supply chain logistics, you know? So I appreciate it. As far
as, you know, as far as the quality of revolution is
concerned, are you willing to disclose some of the things that
make you guys unique in your quality approach?
Well, I, I, the obvious one is what I first touched on, right?
Not reboxing. So from a quality control standpoint, it comes
from the same factory every single time, which ease of
setup is associated with that. You know, there's we all of
our, I would say most of our top skews. And this is something
to keep in mind. And it's the same with my competitors. I'm
not saying we're any different in this regard. But, you know,
we're highly known in the Jeep and the Toyota communities
because of the off-roading and the overlanding. But, you
know, we make a full line of differential products, right?
So, you know, for example, people always are kind of
amazed by this, because again, we're associated with with
Jeep, you know, Jeeps and Toyotas. But GM 10 bolts is what
keeps the lights on. I mean, there's so many 10 bolts out
the Chrysler 9 and the quarters huge sellers for us. What I'm
getting at is is our really popular, our skews or and or
differentials that are just kind of finicky. A Chrysler 9
and a quarter is one of them. We make two cuts for those in
a two cut ring and pinion. The old school version has a five
cut. And I can explain that or if you guys even want to
elaborate. But what it is basically is you got a five
cut, you got the ring gear that's cut three times, and you
got a pinion that's cut twice, the total's five cuts. What
they're talking about on the two cut is where it's a
more precise cut, and the ring gear is only cut once and
the pinion's cut once. The other thing to that differentiates
itself from a five cut is that the tooth profile. So if you're
looking at a ring gear, the inside of that circle is the
toe, and that the tooth on the outside is the heel. Now,
obviously, I know you guys know that, but talking to the
audience, if they may not know that, is there is more
material on a two cut the profile of that tooth, if you
were to look from toe to heel, on a five cut, a traditional
one is from the outside in, it's thicker and it tapers off. So
there's less actual tooth or material, right? On a two cut
that tooth profile is the same from heel to toe. So obviously
what you know, more material, a stronger, more contact pattern
that that's always a good thing. So between precise cut
gears, more, you know, more contact surface, it's just a
superior gear. You know, 10 bolts, Christ, nine or quarters, 8.8
40.8 and all the our jail lineup, that's those are all two
cut gears. It doesn't mean a five cuts bet, don't get me
wrong. That's not what I'm saying. It's just, you know,
we decide, you know, there's only one gear company that
makes a two two cut gear. Why shouldn't say that? But as far as
Jeeps go, Dana Spicer is a two cut ring and pin for sure. And
we're the only other company that makes a two cut for a JLJT.
You know, I think it's fun. And this is where I totally
nerd out and nerd it out years ago. Is that this, it's a
my to my understanding is is literally about the machine
that is cutting the ring and pinion. And I think that that's
sometimes lost on on people because as a general consumer, we
look in at a business and we're like, Well, they should just
have infinite money, infinite resources to this magic. Yeah,
there's magic. There's a magic wand. And they should just
have the latest and greatest machine or technology or
whatever to do their job. And the reality is that, you
know, that that's not always the case that sometimes
manufacturers and it doesn't matter what industry it is,
they're shoving a machine in the shape of its, you know, of its
duties to produce a product. And so there's been a number of
stories about manufacturers, specifically in the gear
industry, buying and selling old school machines to each
other or within the, you know, within that manufacturing
chain, or overseas. And, and now a manufacturer is able to
offer a different cut because the five cut, as you mentioned, is
is not uncommon by any stretch. And that was the, you know,
standard of manufacturing at one time. It still is. It still
is to the state. Right, right. And the two cut just happens
to be a machine that does it better. And that's a kind of
an oversimplified, you know, nature of it. But I think
that that's fascinating. Of course, it aids in the longevity
aids in the quietness of the gears. There's a bunch of
advantages. But again, the actual kind of society as a whole
accepts a five cut ring and penion. And they're none the
wiser, right? The average person is none the wiser. That
was interesting. As we started to work with your guys stuff
more and more, you actually include instructions or tips for
whatever cut of gear it is. Sure, you know, because, and
listen, an experienced gear guy is going to understand that. But
there's I know a lot of guys that might not have set up a ton
of to two cut gears. Because again, a five cuts just it's
been around forever. So the pattern looks a little bit
different. It takes a little bit getting used to some of the
setup is almost the opposite of what you would do to get
that correct pattern on a five cut compared to a two cut.
So there's a little bit of tips and tricks of the trade. So
so you can read that gear pattern, right? Like I said,
sometimes you actually might have a good gear pattern on a
two cup. You don't think you have a good pattern just
because of the way that shape in the marking compound is
compared to a, you know, a traditional five cut. So, you
know, listen, we try to do our best to give you all the
tools right up front. But you know, if not, and it
happens, you know, that's why we have a sales sales and
customer customer support team waiting for you. We've got a lot
of guys with a lot of experience. Just we've really
assembled a great team over the years, pretty really proud of
these guys.
Yeah, that's awesome. And I, I have all the respect in the
world for a company that is not looking to blow smoke
that they're going, Hey, this isn't magic. This is nuts
and bolts. And yet, we understand that there's a
technical difference between that, right? Because I think
there's too many companies who, you know, kind of employ that
reboxing method method, that misdirection method to be
like, what we do is magic. And you're supposed to just
accept that. And, you know, and, and, you know, as far as
with evolution is going, Hey, we have both these cuts of
gears. And here's we need you to be successful with
both of them. Whereas I think there's, again, a number of
businesses that are going, you don't need to know this
information. You know what I mean? Like, close enough, is
going to be good enough in this situation. And you guys
are going, we can make it better.
I think, you know, what you're alluding to is, is we
take our partnerships with with the shops and remanufactures
and whoever it is, very seriously, right? Because it
is a partnership. And I think when you start looking
away from that, don't feel it's a partnership. That's, that's
kind of when things can fall apart. So we try to stay humble.
You know, I always say this, you know, I'm pretty positive
now, as of in the last year, we are the only aftermarket
gear company that's still family owned and operated,
which is huge today, right? I think that plays in
the morals and a lot of different things. We're
also better known and operated. So I think we
take those, those core values and really put it
into our customer service and obviously the product
itself. Absolutely. So speaking of that, that ownership
and operation, where is headquarters? Where is
distribution? You know, what some of those logistics?
Yes. So headquarters is in the suburbs of Chicago, about
30 miles west of the city. And that's what I'm at
headquarters. And then our second location is just
outside of Los Angeles, Santa Fe Springs, California. So
those would be our two offices and warehouse space,
distribution spaces. Then obviously we have a ton,
pretty much all the main players and with WDs or
warehouse distribution. So, and you know, that's,
that's nice, right? Because, you know, in the
beginning, when you have, like you said, an
oversaturated space, which I feel like 10 years ago
was very oversaturated, just a ton of brands and
gear companies, not necessarily all making
their gears, but they had a brand at least, right?
Yes. And it was hard, obviously, just to get even
into the shops, but let alone then go to some of the
big auto parts distributors and say, Hey, you know,
we'd like for you to, you know, be a distributor of
our product. And they kind of look at you and
like, well, why, why should we bring on a
seventh gear company? Right. So that was, that was,
that was a struggle. But again, kind of in,
like I said, about the last three years is really
when, when everything just kind of the, the, the
light switch was flipped on and everything just
kind of fallen into place. What would you
attribute that to? I think a lot of different
things. I think, you know, focusing on what
we're doing, I think just staying the course with
our, with what we believe in, like I said, as
far as how we want to go to market and that's
not reboxing, I think hiring the right people
along the way, adding to our team, growing to our
team. But again, picking those, those, those
right people, but it starts, you know, you
know, listen, I take it back to my military,
guys, I was on an aircraft carrier and, you
know, we used to a lot of the guys in the
skin of the ship. And what I mean by that
is on the inside, that does all the little
tedious, maniacal, um. Oh, don't worry. If you
haven't watched our program, Scott can't speech
worth a darn. There's a disconnection between
here and here. That's between his brain and his
mouth. And so I, you know, you fit right in.
Don't worry about it. And honestly, you can,
you can just blow it through the word. We
will know what it is. We'll smirk. We'll
probably make fun of you, but you just keep
going. And our listeners will understand.
Yeah, I'm speaking their language. That's
right. They've listened this far. They're
going to keep going. Yeah. Yeah. So what I
was getting at was a quick story is, you
know, there's a lot of support, support
cast or support team for, for whatever
you, whatever company you work for,
organization. And in my instance, I
worked on the flight deck, right? And a
lot of those guys, especially when I
was in, you know, was at kind of the
height of the war over there. And a lot
of those guys would get down because,
you know, they're scrubbing decks or
they're cooking the food or they're kind
of buried in a small compartment and
they're not, you know, unfortunately
get to see the sunlight or get, feel
that breeze and, you know, just camaraderie
can get down at times. You know, for
us, I had a high intensity job on a
flight deck, launching and recovering
aircraft, right? So there's different
ways to, to, to bring about that
camaraderie. And, and I think kind of
to sum this up is, is one, I think we
have really good camaraderie. We have
the right people. So that is
leadership down. But we tried to show
that we're a family and everyone
works together. So my point is, is like
the guys and admin here and just the
simple stuff, right? And then not so
simple stuff. Think about the
warehouse guys. Those guys really
bust their humps. And if they're not
working at max capacity and we can't
ship the product, I don't care how good
the product is. So, you know, I think
guys like myself and my sales team
sometimes, you know, we're the face
if you will, because we get to do cool
things like this podcast. We've done a
number of TV shows. We've got a couple
TV episodes coming out soon. You see
us at SEMA. You see it as all the,
all the cool shows like Jeep Beach
and Smokey Mountain Invasion and all
that stuff, right? But there's so
much support supporting cast that just
kind of don't get the kudos, the
pat on the back. We, obviously, we do
that and try to do it and tell them,
hey man, every cog in the wheel is
important. So, you know, just to kind
of sum that up, you know, those are
the types of things where it's
sometimes the guys that you can't
see, you don't see or don't think
about that really play a huge factor
in a brand like ourselves and growing
that brand and staying relevant and
just keep pushing, pushing that
threshold. So, we have a commenter
saying that they're about to have a
8-8 and put into their 92 and we're
making them think of everything that
they need to ask the shop about
gears. With that being said, are
there questions that you would
recommend a general Jeep or ask
their local shop before getting new
gears? Yeah, I mean, yes, I would.
You know, if it's not a shop that you've
been to multiple times, let's say, you
know, I would ask questions. You know,
is the physical work of installing
a gear maybe might not be overly hard,
meaning just the, you know, unbolting
stuff? Yeah, that's probably not that
overly difficult, but as you guys
well aware, there's specialty tools,
right? There's no one how to use those
specialty tools and how to read the
backlash gauge. My point is, it's
complicated because of all the steps
that you need to take and all the
fine potential adjustments that you
need to do, right? So, you know, if I
were going into a shop that I don't
know well and I don't have that
relationship, it would be, you know,
in relations to my product would be,
do you have a dedicated gear guy
and how maybe how long has the guy
been installing gears? And then as
far as the product goes, I, you
know, I think for the most part, but
I'm sure there's quite a bit of
install kits out there that aren't
using quality bearings and maybe
quality small parts. I think a lot of
times that stuff could be overlooked.
But listen, if you're not using a
reputable brand for bearings, I
don't care how good the gear is
manufactured. You have a bearing
failure and it's either getting
redone or, you know, these things
is people don't necessarily know
this, you know, you can't just
simply replace a ring gear or you
can't just simply replace opinion
if one of the, if part of that gear
set fails, right? Those gears are
lapped together during the
manufacturing process and so think
of them as they're married together,
right? So, if one goes bad, you
got to replace both or there is
instances where if you have a bad
bearing and you wear a bad pattern
into the gear, you might not
necessarily have a bad gear, but
for the life of that gear set,
you're going to have maybe some
wine or some noise and that can
be annoying to the consumer,
right? So, to my point, those
small parts are just as
important as the gear set and if
you're not using, you know, I
would say obviously the top two
would be Tempkin and Coio in
our space. That's not to say
there's not other good
bearings, right? National SKF
just a few that come to mind,
but if you're not using a really
good bearing, that gear set up
is, you know, I'm not saying it's
going to fail, but I think you
definitely have a greater chance
of having a noisy gear set.
How we look at bearings here as
we first started looking at
what the OEs were using and
Tempkin and Coio were pretty
much the standard and if they're
willing to put a vehicle out at
the price they cost and with
the warranty they elaborate and
they're willing to put their name
on a Tempkin or a Coio then we
feel the same way.
Quick question going back a
little bit before we get too
far about the two cut or one
cut versus five cut. Does it
matter on the gear ratio which
cut you get or is it pretty
much an axle like JK44 is going
to be the one way JL44 is
going to be another way or is it
when you get off into the deeper
cuts I know for back in the
olden days when we would do TJs
and you get like a 488 and the
gears were very, opinion had was
very small and you're in almost
a different world. Does that
when cuts make a difference?
I mean it probably doesn't hurt
that's and that's a great
question but no it's not
necessarily a five cut versus
two cut as far as the deeper
ratios you get. Like I said it
probably doesn't hurt but it's
not necessarily when we go to
market we're like alright 410s
456s and 488s we're going to
make a five cut and then 513s
and numerically higher we're
going to go to a two cut.
That's not how we
necessarily go about that so
that's a great question though
that very good question.
But is it then JL actual
versus JK axle? Is that what I
was understanding from you?
I think it's our JKs are five
cut. That's what I thought.
Your JKs are five cut JLs are
two cut then.
Yeah we started off when we
first we were actually the
first aftermarket company to
release JL gears and I think
again that was kind of at
the start of that turning
point so we were like we
just rushed not rushed like
where we made mistakes we
just we want to get a
product out there we want
we want to be front and
center that we got this new
model the new models was just
released but we made it
because it was the easiest to
make in a five cut right
and then as time went on we
were like you know we like to
do we like to keep our standard
at an OE level right and so if
the OE is going to is making
something we kind of have
that mindset that we want to
be at least as good I mean if
you can be better that's
great but that's kind of
where our mindset was and we
do you know we've had we had
such great success on the
other axle family in the two
cut and that was really the
only reason you know we saw
an opening to where it was
like nobody else is doing
this other than OE so again
we we want to be in that
conversation. Absolutely. Now
kind of hopscotching around
on the eight eight level one
of the things that I and
kind of goes to my
conversation about brands and
who and how I'll put on blast
and arguably my contention is
not to kind of lump brands
into good and bad but basically
product offerings and you know
kind of general expectations
that a company can make certain
lines very very good and other
production lines you know not
so good or they don't care
about right it's a pursuit
that they're not fully
invested in so oftentimes I'll
be critical of in a suspension
you know I there's a particular
rough country suspension that
I absolutely abhor that is
sold but we do in fact sell
rough country and so my
intention is not necessarily to
say that rough country is a
bad company because they're
not they're actually a very
good company but that there
are product lines that they
offer that I don't think
that are worth our customers
time energy and resources and
so with that said about
Yukon and I was putting them
you know out there earlier
and I want them to be you know
fulfill the integrity and to
just simply do what they said
they're going to do so with
that and the 88 that's being
built one of the things that
I still use from Yukon would
be their 88 big bearing
on the C Clip Eliminator kit
is that a kit or a product that
revolution also has available
for the market are you familiar
with that yeah yeah I'm
familiar with it we don't
you know that's that kind of
goes back to where you know I
definitely would say we have a
full line of axle offerings
because we do but there's
there's some little niche
things where we don't have
that and I think that also
plays into where and I have
no clue if if they make it
or they source it right and
I'm not even speculating but I
think that just at least on our
end kind of comes into play
where we're over the last
two three years in that growth
that's when we're starting to
look at some of that that more
niche stuff and saying all right
we need to have an offering for
it so I hate using the term
playing catch up on that stuff
but we just decided to focus in
different areas and growing in
different ways but we're always
I mean it is it's daily I mean
and that's what I love about
our sales reps I mean it's
it's five ten twenty times a
day where they're like we
need to come out with this
and we need to come out
with tickets because I have a
spreadsheet and we discuss it
at in our weekly sales
meetings we discuss it in our
management meetings and you know
I think we got some really cool
exciting stuff coming out but to
your point where it's the
growth has been so rapid over
those three years something
like you know the 88 you know
Eliminator kit where you're
just like it's there it's on a
list it's just you know we
where it is on the list it's
one of those situations to
we've had to actually kind of
rain in some customers that when
you own a TJ the TJ stuff seems
very valid and appropriate and
then when you have a CJ owner
that stuff is very appropriate to
him and you have to kind of
remind them like well how many
CJ owners nationwide are
regearing their axles how many
TJs now nationwide are
putting eight eights in at one
time it was very common we'd
have two or three a month and
at this point once a year yeah
I was gonna say TJs and the
eight eights for specifically
yes I mean have gone down I
mean we just recently but we
were actually rebuilding
refreshing and eight eight that
we had done without this kit a
few years prior you know and
that's we're not even doing
fresh eight eight builds
necessarily right so that's
something that you kind of
always need to be cognizant
of the market is what sells
every day is JL and JT kits
correct JKs will probably
flank right after that and
then the others will follow
suit and that is primarily
the people are looking to
upgrade not maintenance their
vehicles obviously older
vehicles will need maintenance
but then they're going to want
to go back with what they
have and around here
explorers are not on the
road anymore right so that
accessing an eight eight in
that in that regard is
harder than ever it's a
depreciating asset that's a
great point I mean it's we
kind of decided what we're
going to do you know what
what the market dictates
right and I would love to
have everything but again
that will also then goes
against because the fastest
way to do that is to then
maybe look outside to fill
those those voids and you
know it's just not something
we're willing to come we
just call it we won't
compromise our quality
quality control but to your
point if there's still a
market that doesn't mean that
we don't come up with stuff
that on some of the older
models right we do you know
we launched a dry shaft line
probably about two years ago
now and we just did it for
the JLJT's and JK's because
we're kind of feeling it out
and then about probably
just three four months ago
we went back you know we
did XJ's and and and
TJ's and LJ's so that doesn't
mean you know if a if a
product category is going
well and we see you know in a
dry shaft maybe not a
perfect example right you
know a driveline is in a
sense a driveline right you
know you just as long as
you're taking measurements
and and you're using a
good quality tubing and and
slip yolks and you know you
joints and and the
balancing is done correctly
but my point is is if we
see a whole or we see that
we were getting on traction
on something then that's
something where we can go
back and fit some of those
older vehicles just because
you brought it up and I feel
like I'm the technical guy
here for this conversation
for some reason on your dry
shafts do you come with
yolks that need to be
swapped on the axles or
they made with flanges
for like specifically the
JK and the JL where they
will bolt in place of the
original bolt in place I
mean you can do what we have
to you can do the bolt in
place of the flange or you
can do a yoke you know
obviously somebody that's
you know going to try to you
know force if we're selling
direct to a consumer and
they want to just do it on
their back in their driveway
the flange is the way to
go absolutely you know
first something that's a
little bit stronger that
that pinion yoke is the
way to is the way to go
now that's something that
they're going to have to
go like that you're
guys shopping in my opinion
because now you're talking
about crushed leave and
in all kinds of things now
that's more of a technical
thing right because you
got to make sure you get
your pinion very preloads
correct and so on and so
forth we've seen it very
often where the consumer
just doesn't understand
that detail and their
buddy will grab their
impact like I'll get it
done and next thing they
know their axle is
compromised for a
multitude of reasons so we
have not only educated but
rebuilt those axles in
those situations to the point
that we have literally
brought that up to a
conversation when people
are doing axles what dry
shafts are you going to use
now and in six months
into a year because some
things need to go together
one time right
right yeah absolutely so
Matt what how did you
personally get involved
you know so you spoke a
little bit on your
military service which is
you know admirable and we
appreciate that thanks but
how do you make that
transition and you yourself
get into gears and
axle gears and internals
yeah I mean that's it's kind
of a try not to be super
long-winded it's kind of
been a I guess in the
beginning was a weird
voyage but I got out
I got out what's called
January 1st 2008 from
military and I was a jet
mechanic in the Navy so I
got out and worked at the
airport did that for about
a year that was right when
that the great recession
if you want to call that
and fortunately I didn't
lose my job but they
basically came in
management came in one
day and was and basically
was like we're not going
to lay anyone off but
everyone's taken a 30%
pay cut and I was I mean
30% is 30% so I that
paired with I didn't love
aviation as a civilian
compared to military and I
think it was just solely
because like I said I was
fortunate to work on a
flight deck I mean you want
to talk about organized
chaos it was always
exciting you know the
danger element to it too
and then you know you're
working on a flight line
at an airport and you're
just like wow this I
realized it was probably
less about being the
mechanic but just the
environment I was a
mechanic in right so
after that that that
they came in and said you're
going to take you're going
to take a pay decrease
I started looking elsewhere
long story short
I had a buddy I was put
a lot of fuelers out there
and he's and he said I
think you'd be you know
you're a very personal
dude I think you I think
you do well in sales
so my first sales job was
liquor sales I did that
for about a year and then
kind of the same effect
with the economy was still
terrible and that was union
so I was just low man on
the totem pole so they
furloughed like 200 employees
so I wasn't fired per se
but I was let go and I
reached out to my uncle
and my uncle had been in
the automotive industry for
God 30 years and you
know he was like listen
I'll put fuelers out there
chances are if I can get you
something it's not industry
related I so I don't I don't
really care necessarily
what industry it is but I
really do enjoy sales
but I did I wasn't treated
the automotive industry
because I had a mechanical
background right so
long story short I said
that I think that's the
second or third time I said
long story short hey you
know what you're talking
to us and again right
there nobody's going to be
surprised about this not
one bit all right good
so maybe six weeks later
uncle calls me up says
you're not going to believe
this he goes the people
keep this job just because
it's fun and it's you know
the company you work for
paid fairly well anyways
got me a job I was there
for just shy of a decade
and I was I was a territory
sales manager so I was
in charge of a large
part of the Chicago
metropolitan area five
actual individual part
stores and two warehouses
and I just called on on shops
you know and then and kind
of territory sales manager
was like a liaison between
the shops and the stores
and the distribution centers
we had and then
overall really good company
that I worked for enjoyed my
time there was some things
that towards the end is
when I kind of started
looking to maybe do something
else and the owner of
revolution our company was
looking at the time for
an outside salesperson
because the company had
had an outside salesperson
and it was just a few years
after the branding right
so still very new
and still very fresh
and I got to tell you
just you know he sold me
on the idea of being a part
of a startup more or less
in growing a brand
and then that just sounded
that sounded sexy
it's it sounded super
intriguing and you know
and we had a lot we could
relate on he was also
he was a naval officer
who had just gotten out
maybe the year prior
so we kind of connected
on that level as well
and I took a leap of faith
and here we are
very cool years later I believe
you know we definitely understand
yeah we again
we understand that all too well
we are you know
kind of the clock is ticking on us
is there anything that
you would have liked to have shared
with us or with our listeners
you know that maybe
there wasn't an opportune time
no listen I love the open forum
you know format where
you know sometimes it's
you know it's always good to be prepared
but I think you know you guys
are running an awesome show here
and it's super laid back
kind of Wayne's World Vibes
which I love
I'm not
OK
OK I don't know that I felt that one
but you know we'll take it
I think it's more a grandma's couch
like you said right
and I mean that
I love Wayne's World
it holds a special place
on my heart that's
actually they filmed it in Los Angeles
but it's supposed to take place
in a parent's basement in Chicago
so
no I think we cover a lot of things
I mean I obviously
you know
we talked about our core values
we talked about
you know
you know it's
what we manufacture
we didn't really touch on axles
I think
you know we sell a ton of axles
so just you know just to throw that out there
you know we have
a great axle program
as far as axle shafts go
you know just touched on the
the drive shafts
and we're
we're looking at the expand
I mean you know
what I mean by that is coming out with maybe
ratios that we have holes
where the industry has holes
some new axle kits
that we want to come out with
because the 40 through 40
chromolies are a hit
obviously in the Jeep community
we're always looking to expand
different axle families
you know doesn't necessarily
speak to Jeep
but we're always looking at
what the vehicle
what vehicles are popular and off-roading right
the Colorado
there was a competitor of ours that went out of business
last year and I think they were about
the only one in the market with a gear for it
and then so we were like
all right there's a hole there
and there's a demand there
because we started getting phone call after phone call
so we came out with the
the late model Colorado and
Canyon gears and they've been selling great
but no I think
we touched on a lot of things keeping it
light and and just just a fun
conversation to have with the gentlemen
but you know you go to
revolutiongear.com at any time
anything that we have new
or that's either coming out or we just
released will be you know
spotlighted on the home screen
you know
I
all the success that our company has had
over the last few years it's not lost on me
or anyone within the company
you know it's fun doing stuff like this right
you know like I said we just did a TV show
that's going to be coming out in
December and January I believe the
that's three episodes
but being asked to do those
television shows being asked to do
podcasts like this that's where I
what I mean more it's not lost on
me in revolution right because
you know there was a time we were
being asked to do this stuff so that's
really what kind of showcases
our grassroots
approach to it and
you know the work the hard work
is paying off now awesome
absolutely and congratulations to you guys for
that and appreciate your
approach you know years ago when you first
you know solicited me
and and and kind of look where we're at
now and and you know our opportunity
to kind of continue to grow our brands
together I hope that our
listeners all enjoyed
this this conversation with Matt
from revolution gear and axle and
as you mentioned there is a a ton of other
product offerings that they do have
you know that they
themselves under the branding of revolution
but also their parent company
from inter from
internals of transmission transfer
cases to obviously now drive shafts
and you know gears
and axles not just bring opinions despite
fact that that's kind of where their
stronghold of market relevancy
comes from
with that said if our listeners
have any you know further questions
or information maybe as an opportunity
we'll be able to follow up with them in the future
as far as with revolution
and Matt if you have any
questions you can always reach us at our
text only number 440-855-2100
or
email us at
contact c-o-n-t-a-c-t
at sfj4by4.com
additionally we are still looking for those
people to leave us a review
screenshot it you need to leave a review
on your favorite streaming platform
Spotify audible itunes
so on so forth but maybe specifically
itunes because
that is what helps
this program get suggested
to your friends family and greater
members of the Jeep and off-road
community and more importantly
than you do that take a screenshot send
the Jeff so you can get the best
shortest purple strap you ever possibly
could use when your gear set fails because
they're not revolutions until next time
until next time folks
Matt staying in with us while our
weekend updates I think is happening
I thought that's what I overheard
so my weekend update was kind of a crash
and burn and then
tafting to soothe my
soreness by calling
more junk home so
we tried to
dig
with a backhoe in a round hole
and even though the 24 inches sound so big
it's not quite big enough to use
the backhoe to do that
so we tried for an hour
and then we tried to
cattywampus think of how we're going to make
something to do it and then I
heard you in my head and I just
was like oh no I'm going to wave in the white flag
I'm going to message the professional
and I'm going to be like please
come save my
save me so
after that kind of just wallowed in self pity
and then fair
the next day went to a class
and then afterwards went and hauled home
a 317
Lincoln
Y block
because it was going to get scrapped and I can't
let that happen
are you freaking kidding me
it is the first Y block Ford made
and it is a big
Y block which means it shares no parts
with any other Y block as such for the
big truck Y blocks so this is a perfect
thing for Scott the Horde
why I don't know
why it is a boat anchor
let it become a boat anchor
that's fair let it I mean
China would love to make a pop can out of it right now
this thing weighs
enough you could probably make three hundais out of it
I just can't help myself
ironically even though it is a Ford product
it has an AC delco
fuel pump and it has a
hydromatic GM transmission
which is a four speed automatic
in 1953
really so I'm intrigued
especially out of Lincoln and that's what they would have
you know and the other
thing that is really interesting is the flex plate
is actually
the front part of the torque converter
so in order to separate the two
there is no short
11,100 bolts
that bolts to the main
shell and then when you take that apart
you actually see the turbine
inside the torque converter
really it's interesting
and
I have so many questions
was this removed out of a vehicle
was this somebody else's garage
one man's junk is another man's treasure
so this is a Lincoln
that someone purchased
that was in a state it's set for a long time
old man
was going out and tinkering with it
they don't really know
what was going on with it
other than had way too much oil in it
so maybe he had just kind of gotten
some memory issues and kept putting oil
in the motor
didn't run
and instead of
big scary world for parts
and that kind of stuff people will make
a bigger mountain out of a mo-hill
and they decided just pull
a drive train and put
an LS
in the car
the LS the 53 Lincoln
is what I hear
well the sad part is as projects go
they remove the engine and transmission
with intent to put an LS in it
and then they haven't
so I got told afterwards
once I got the motor home if I wanted the car too
I could but I'm not going to do that
I'm going to play with the motor
learn some stuff
next weeks
I'm a hands on kind of guy
I can't learn unless I'm touching stuff
so
look into it tear it apart
see if it's
a viable motor
and go from there it's cool regardless
valve covers
have the Lincoln insignia
back when we actually made stuff
with purpose and care
and it bossed into it
like I told my wife you could probably
or cast iron skillets
out of the bell housing off the transmission
it's just amazing
again how they didn't care about
efficiency and lightness
and that kind of stuff it was just how can we hit it
with a bigger sledgehammer
how robust can we make something
that was my fun
I figured you wouldn't expect
yeah it was not obviously nobody
was expecting that
the cubic inch 317 that speaks right to Neil
oh it's so weird
so good
my own
my own peculiarities
of course I'm continuing
my six weeks tie rate of
kind of welcoming
sports balls back into my life
in a semi professional manner
I was probably
nothing shy of
six or seven different contests over the weekend
between friends and family
and what not getting myself overly
involved in the
lose ball
and so had a nice time
with that in general
so scheduling my weekend around
you know those types of things
but then I did
manage to prioritize some time
to try and service my tractor
which of course I know is a peculiarity
for both of you because you guys
you don't need to service the tractor
you don't need to service anything as far as you two are concerned
when it comes to those agra implements
absolutely
so my
because I had a whopping like 10 hours
on my backhoe I needed to
grease
and service every 10 hours
so
yes I figured you guys would appreciate
so
I found myself
in the most
old man
fashion
trying desperately to pump grease into
zerk fittings and configurations
so I could
contort myself and said grease gun
into position
to sufficiently grease them
then when it spilled over
I was grabbing it on my finger
and again in most old man
fashion possible
just randomly wiping it on things
that seemingly
would benefit from having grease on them
oh dear
so now my tractor is a big greasy mess
I feel pretty good about that
the only reason mine gets greased at all
is because I have a Milwaukee grease gun
that I don't have to pump I just pull the trigger
well I mean that really
does is a game changer
unquestionably but the ones that
between the deck and the tractor
that doesn't exist
mine doesn't have grease fitting
smith
just kind of keep
beating it into the shape of
implement for you to use
I get it when you got a deer
you don't have to maintain it
yeah that's right
Matt what about you do you
have any fun stories over the weekend
or projects that you're working on
what did I do
getting my hot tub
ready for the winter
that is a thing
you're not going to use it for the winter
you're not a winter hot tubber
I'm a winter hot tubber big time
I just don't use it in the summer
oh you're readying it
to use for winter
exactly I'm getting that ready
so that wasn't fun
but I did it
my son had his last baseball game of the season
he had a good game
unfortunately the team kind of collapsed
and we lost in the last inning
fall ball is this fall ball
or is this a continuation from summer ball
it's fall ball
our fall ball continues for another
enduring three weeks
so yeah
we're going to be playing in the snow here
yeah for sure
and then a lot of
so I'm a big hunter
my son started hunting with me
he's 11 so he started
about two years ago
just getting the bows out
and getting a lot of archery practice
so that was my weekend
that's awesome
America wrapped up in a nutshell there
a little bit of leisure
and a little bit of provision
yeah
you want to bring us home?
well other than going to Scott's house
trying to help him with the building
we were all going home until I realized
that he collapsed into two of the holes
and I was like nope
Scott himself collapsed into two of the holes
so what happened was
I thought it was helping
because I took the front bucket
and just scooped off top
because the skid steer was having a problem
because five feet is a lot
so he was running into the ground
and because it was all
mounted over
I thought I'll just scoop that off and if something falls
in the hole no big deal
until the skid steer doesn't show back up
that's the problem
that's the worst part is I had nobody to blame
but myself making it more challenging
so you weren't back dragging it
I had heard that you back dragged it
it looked like back dragging because of the way
so you scooped over the hole is what I think I heard
what the heck was going through your head
I understood
back dragging I kind of thought
oh that makes sense that's a good idea
I had to take the backhoe off and I didn't want to do that
that's what I thought you took the backhoe off
and I was like oh man I'm definitely not doing that
anytime soon
I think my backhoe is attached forever
I bought a box blade that's now just a paperweight
pretty look at
other than that though
I spent some time
getting caught up on non-profit things
for the non-profit
obviously have a lot of
administrative work accounting work to do
post-event
trying to get all that cleaned up
back on track having a week of
being sick didn't help
didn't really get much done on non-profit
front so
a lot of time on the weekend doing that
that was pretty much the weekend
100%
well I again
appreciate Matt you prioritizing this time
for participating in this
and being so forthcoming with
our listeners
would love to have you back
on in the future at some point in time
and ideally we'll be able to hook up
and touch base at SEMA
coming up in about a month or so and that will be good
you'll be out there I'm assuming
excellent I'll look for you
and our listeners
thank you for hanging in there
with us and again prioritizing this
as your infotainment
a lot of jeeps to build
a lot of good things to be done here
so until next time jeep on
jeep on
About this episode
Matt from Revolution Gear and Axle joins the conversation to discuss the company's commitment to quality, their unique approach to manufacturing without reboxing, and their focus on precise gear cuts like the two-cut ring and pinion. The discussion covers Revolution's growth in the aftermarket, their family-owned values, and the importance of partnering with knowledgeable shops for gear installations. Matt also shares his personal journey from military service to automotive sales and highlights upcoming product expansions beyond Jeep gears. The episode wraps with casual weekend updates from the hosts, blending technical insights with laid-back camaraderie.
In this episode, Matt from revolution gear and axle joins in remotely to talk gears with Neil, Scott, and Jeff. Find out more about Revolution and how they are taking the market by storm. Learn a little more about gears for your Jeep and talk about quality and why you should understand the brand you choose as well as the shop you choose for doing your gear install.
Thanks for listening, give us a review and check us out on YouTube -SFJ4x4 and visit our website to grab some great gear or products for your Jeep, SFJ4x4.com. Don't forget, you can email [email protected] for special content requests, blind react videos, suggestions, special guests, or general questions. Check out our Patreon patreon.com/ISpeakJeep