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VegasGT's "Clifford The Big Red Unibody"

274K views 3K replies 88 participants last post by  S8NNG8 
#1 ·
EDIT. Current Photos as of 10/31/14:




Not new to XJ's by any means, Ive had several and I had no intent on making a build thread for my latest. I have no extreme plans, as the Jeep is my primary DD. Things never go as planned though, and my original plans of Rubi wheels and no lift were quickly tossed out. However the new XJ is pretty clean (dent and mostly scratch/rust free), so the build will be based around the ideaology of a mild yet capable rig thats easy on the eyes without going all out on spending.

Jeep is a solid '99 XJ, 4.0/AW4 with hp30 and 8.25. Bought it off an old man that took good care of it and stayed up on maintenance for the most part. Has lots of new gaskets and everything is in nice shape in and out.

Heres a few pics to get started from the day I got it.





More to come!
 
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#2,270 ·
Yeah, the more I look at this it's not just one weld that failed, but 3, and two of which look like they're integral to the shackle tab. If that tab had been what gave in that could have easily killed someone.

and x2 on Dirtbound, I've never heard anything bad about them and have been under the impression that they make some quality ****.
 
#2,272 ·
Wow! Daylight pictures make a world of difference. I thought it was just the hoop that had given out. There's no excuse for a bumper tearing at the seam like that... I'd definitely be contacting the company.
 
#2,275 ·
Wow, lots of responses here.

Im going to start by saying I do not fault Dirtbound Offroad. While this particular situation makes it look questionable, they really make a long list of a solid, innovative products. Im not affiliated with them, Im not on their dick, Im not trying to kiss ***. As a man involved in bettering small business myself, I know that things happen, products get put out, lessons are learned, and things are improved upon. I understand that sometimes products fail, especially once your customer base grows. No matter how beefy you make something, there's always someone out there that can tear up an iron wedge with a cotton swab.

That said, my particular bumper was an early production Mojave non winch bumper, back before the days when you could get the hoop on it. I welded on the hoop myself, and one of my welds failed during this incident. The main bumper welded by dirtbound broke the weld on the top plate, and one side of the d ring tab, as Motorcharge noted. I spoke with the shop foreman about this and he told me the employee that welded my bumper is no longer employed. I can confirm this because I know what he (foreman) looks like and I also seen pictures of my bumper mid process and the welder was indeed different.


I will go ahead and say this. I think, personally, the blame should be placed mostly on me for getting wild and calling on the bumper to take 2 types of force at one time. But 2nd, the wing design is pretty poor. The only plate serving as a fore and aft gusset is the top plate. The bottom is completely open, like trying to tug on 3/16" angle iron 10 inches from where its secured. Had it been boxed in on the bottom, this may not have happened. Though it hasnt been addressed publicly, I believe they discovered this potential failure point, as their new winch bumpers are lf much better design.

Thats how a business works, you progress with time. You learn, you improve. Ive got nearly 2 years of smacking, beating, and tugging on my bumper without issue. I got my moneys worth, but I also found a weakness. For me, I see that as an opportunity to rebuild it better and thats what Im going to do.

I would buy Dirtbound again, Im not about to be the guy that ruins a good companys reputation because I tried to jerk a 3 wheeled XJ up a vertical rock ledge, with a strap that snagged and jerked on the bumper wing.
 
#2,277 ·
Wow, lots of responses here.

Im going to start by saying I do not fault Dirtbound Offroad. While this particular situation makes it look questionable, they really make a long list of a solid, innovative products. Im not affiliated with them, Im not on their dick, Im not trying to kiss ***. As a man involved in bettering small business myself, I know that things happen, products get put out, lessons are learned, and things are improved upon. I understand that sometimes products fail, especially once your customer base grows. No matter how beefy you make something, there's always someone out there that can tear up an iron wedge with a cotton swab.

That said, my particular bumper was an early production Mojave non winch bumper, back before the days when you could get the hoop on it. I welded on the hoop myself, and one of my welds failed during this incident. The main bumper welded by dirtbound broke the weld on the top plate, and one side of the d ring tab, as Motorcharge noted. I spoke with the shop foreman about this and he told me the employee that welded my bumper is no longer employed. I can confirm this because I know what he (foreman) looks like and I also seen pictures of my bumper mid process and the welder was indeed different.

I will go ahead and say this. I think, personally, the blame should be placed mostly on me for getting wild and calling on the bumper to take 2 types of force at one time. But 2nd, the wing design is pretty poor. The only plate serving as a fore and aft gusset is the top plate. The bottom is completely open, like trying to tug on 3/16" angle iron 10 inches from where its secured. Had it been boxed in on the bottom, this may not have happened. Though it hasnt been addressed publicly, I believe they discovered this potential failure point, as their new winch bumpers are lf much better design.

Thats how a business works, you progress with time. You learn, you improve. Ive got nearly 2 years of smacking, beating, and tugging on my bumper without issue. I got my moneys worth, but I also found a weakness. For me, I see that as an opportunity to rebuild it better and thats what Im going to do.

I would buy Dirtbound again, Im not about to be the guy that ruins a good companys reputation because I tried to jerk a 3 wheeled XJ up a vertical rock ledge, with a strap that snagged and jerked on the bumper wing.
Glad to hear it. It's true that even a good outfit can spit out a dud every once in a while.

-Scuzz
 
#2,280 ·
Not putting the blame on DB, but if a weld is done right it is the stongest part of the material. With a pull proper penetration the material in question will tear along hte weld not actually at the weld. For the hoop to hold and the bumper to fail at its location it was in fact a manufacturere defect. NOT AT FAULT-things happen and fatigue takes its toll. THat being said a simple "fishplate" weld/repair could esily fix this issue.
 
#2,284 ·
Doesn't change the fact that they put their name on something that failed in a manner that could have killed or seriously injured someone. I wouldn't demand anything of them, but if I knew something that was representing my company failed like that I'd do what I could to make it right regardless of whether it represented my company as a whole.
 
#2,285 ·
Very solid point, and Id do the same if I were in their position, just as an effort to protect my reputation if nothing else. Its just good business policy. That said I dont expect or really even want anything from them.

While I agree that this is a big fail of a scenario, its not a common scenario at all with Dirtbound. ****ting on a good American company over 1 incident is why most of the products we are around today say "Made In China" on the back.

Edit: If the D ring tab completely failed Id be singing a different tune right now, believe that. A real good friend was pulling me, and if he didnt get hurt, Im sure he'd be awful ill if he had a D ring through the back of his JK.
 
#2,290 ·
Probably wont go that far, Id be better off to start from scratch than mod this for a hidden winch.

Balljoint swap mid-trail went smooth, got her on all 4's and drove home.

 
#2,294 ·
Yes stock one. No idea how the hell you bent the draglink on 30's lol, Ive had this thing in a helluva bind before where I couldnt even cut the wheel and havent bent it yet.

That said steering upgrade is in my future, but the factory setup with IRO rod really has been a pretty sturdy setup for me all things considered.
 
#2,295 ·
VegasGT said:
Yes stock one. No idea how the hell you bent the draglink on 30's lol, Ive had this thing in a helluva bind before where I couldnt even cut the wheel and havent bent it yet. That said steering upgrade is in my future, but the factory setup with IRO rod really has been a pretty sturdy setup for me all things considered.
I just read somewhere that he's on 35s now.
 
#2,300 ·
Yes they did! Was VERY glad I had them and the hilift on this occassion.

Glad you got it back together and out of the woods. There is no worse feeling than being broke down way out in the woods.
^^^ Agreed. Been there. Done that. Would hope I never have to be there again.
Thanks guys! I definitely lost some sleep that first night for sure. Glad to have it back home but its still a wreck, still have to swap new shaft in, pick up a new brakeline, then pick up a new drag link (TRE boot torn) and new BJ's for drivers side just to be sure this doesnt happen to me anytime soon.

Was a pretty sketchy trail repair, glad there's so many big trees to tie off to over here. :laugh:

Not to sure how either but one second it was good that it went Chevy on me Yeas thats a winch cable being used to straighten it out
Wow that sucks lol.
 
#2,301 ·
Oh by the way, noticed the passenger side LCA mount on the axle is tweaked. Not terrible, but definitely tweaked a bit, not sure how concerned I should be about that at this point. I think it took a direct hit to the rock ledge when we were still trying to go with the "3 wheels and a tree ski" recovery plan. :laugh:

Also started on reworking the bumper today. Wil definitely be a big changeup from what Ive been so used to but Ive got one side done and its shaping up exactly as I had imagine in my sketches. Ill snag some pics once Im finished.
 
#2,305 ·
I just barely cracked my header panel a couple months ago, spent a minute to wrap some duct tape around it and we're good for now. Stubby bumpers are nice when you need that extra couple of inches, but a pain when you've got no choice but to kiss something large and immovable lol.
 
#2,308 ·
IDIdiesel said:
For that thickness plate a single pass weld should be able to fully penetrate! Get to burning that together now and lets see what you make of it
Except they didn't get 100% penetration so it should have been welded on either side.
 
#2,315 ·
Thanks! Im thinking aesthetically it will have its tradeoffs. I could see some angle looking a bit funky while others itll look badass.

You should sell that to dirtbound :thumbsup:
Haha they make a stubby without the lil wings on the side. Be funny if they started doing em like this lol.

I think the table part is gonna look funky;)
That could pose a few fitment issues lol.

The JF Facebook posted your build. You're famous!

Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S4 using JeepForum
Haha. I dont have a Facebook but that's pretty cool!
 
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