I'm just writing this to tell you how much we (my whole family) like Jp Magazine. If you guys wrote the articles any differently, I don't think I would buy it. I haven't ordered a subscription yet, but as soon as I get done with this e-mail, I am. I personally love the way it reads. The comments and jabs sometimes make me feel like I am in the shop with you guys. If you are in your 30s, 40s, or even 50s and work and wheel Jeeps, then you should really appreciate the writing that goes into this magazine. Buy a Jeep and wheel it like they where intended. If it breaks, fix it yourself, and have fun. If you can't take a little constructive criticism, buy a different magazine and get the hell over it.
Matt Shiplett
Via e-mail
About the Apr. '07 Trail Head, thank you for saying that out loud! It sticks in my gut to see some of this overseas junk in the catalogs, yet people spend their money on it. The guys I know buy U-joints, wheel bearings, ball joints, and other trash made in Korea from these discount parts stores, then wonder why the parts fail.
Use your head--you get what you pay for. It's just that simple. The only ones making out on this are the shipping companies getting paid to ship the same part two or three times. You guys take a lot of grief for your little rag you put out, but I just wanted to say thanks for keeping it real, and you're doing a great job.
What are the chances of Dr. Vern hooking up with Dennis Miller and running for office? I'd hit the polls for that ticket!
Paul Conley
Via e-mail
Where did you find this Randy idiot (Randy's Electrical Corner), and why do you let him write a page in your magazine? In the first month, he tried to teach us to solder (Mar. '07), forgot a few things that I had learned before I was 10 (like what tinning is for), how to see if a solder joint is good or bad, proper technique for twisting the wires together with a Western Union splice, and proper solder selection.
Then he goes on to say that heat-shrink will keep water out?! Only if its Marine-grade heat-shrink with the glue inside of it; any other heat-shrink will let water in around it! And in the Apr. '07 issue, he wasted a whole page on a turn signal/horn prank using a Scotchlock connector (for those of you who don't know anything about wiring, those are bad, especially when combined with any kind of moisture).
As your editor's note states in his first column, "We find a lot of previous owners who don't know the first thing about Jeep electrical systems." All these two columns have done is help those people know even less. Proper wiring and connection techniques are important anywhere. However, they are very important in an off-highway vehicle due to the use it gets. I don't mind a little levity once in a while, but this is ridiculous drivel that should not even be considered for printing.Eric Kaiser
New Athens, Illinois
First off, your magazine rocks. Now to the point. I have noticed over the past few years that people with Jeeps seem to whine and complain more that any other 4x4 group. They are never happy.
My wife and I have owned four different Jeeps throughout the years. Even with having owned Jeeps, we don't call ourselves Jeep people because we like other 4x4s and don't get the so-called Jeep Thing; I always thought it was an off-road thing.
To prove my point about the whiners, I don't have to do much digging around. Jeepers have whined throughout the years about everything. They've complained when the CJs came out. Then they complained when the YJ brought square headlights. Then they whined again when the TJ came out because it was too nice inside. Now they complain that the new Wrangler is too big or ugly, even though it wheels better than the TJ. And they complain about the new Jeep models not being Trail Rated. And then there is my favorite type of whiner: the one who gets mad because someone else in a Jeep didn't wave to them.
I like Jeeps. I like off-roading with them (I also wheel my Dodge pickup on 38s), but instead of whining about what shape the headlights are or what year the other Jeep is, how about directing all that whining on your local government officials. Get them to help keep local off-road parks open. After all, Jeepers are the biggest whiners. Let's use it to our advantage.
Dave Evans
Havertown, Pennsylvania