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Wicked WJ Build: One Tons, Claytons and ORIs

24K views 61 replies 21 participants last post by  WJChris 
#1 ·
Hey guys! So I haven't been around too much lately, been off teaching myself the ins and outs of everything chassis and suspension related over the past few years, doing fun stuff nowadays over at the shop. I do still take on WJ projects when I get a chance though! And here is one of them :D. This WJ got dropped off recently for the full treatment, should be straight beast mode when it's complete.

Currently it has the stock D44a rear and D30 front, Claytons longarms with 4.5" springs, along with a protofab front bumper + winch.

The upgrades will be: front HP D60 plus sterling 10.5" rear from a 2005+ F-250 or F-350 Super Duty. 5.13 gears (could vary), OX lockers w/electric solenoids, ORI struts on all 4 corners as well as a NP241 tcase, new driveshafts, gas tank tuck, and some small odds and ends that I'm surely forgetting.

Here's a pic of it before pulling it into the shop (right), on a day I decided to drive my WJ in for fun (left) :laugh:


Though today was the first big day...backed it in for work to commence


Popped the bumper cover off, managed to not break a single clip lol! Also pulled the hitch off to look at the first problem area: The gas tank


Yep, that thing


Problem being solved haha. Had my fiberglass welding blanket over the carpet just to keep as much fab dust off things as possible


Now this gas tank raise isn't going as high as the one I did on my own WJ, that one had the lines going over the floor plus a box to seal from any fumes. This one is going through the rail, though I will be reinforcing the heck out of it as to not create a potential weak point for things to buckle later on. Check this out, an oval exhaust piece one of my shopmates had on hand that will be perfect for the frame rail. 2.5" tall, 4" wide so I can pass both lines through without worry about chafing the lines. Then I'll be firing up the torchmate to plate the rails around the hole, and call it good :D


So over the next few days the gast tank tuck should take shape. I still have to grab the axles from a junkyard, but all the local places have them so that should be soon. ORI's, we will have to see what comes up used soon, otherwise we might end up going new which sucks due to the wait period. Either way, great product though. So until next time! Let me know what else you guys would like to see in detail
 
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#3 ·
Axles are my favorite thing to do, just let me know :D. The owners goal is 37's, and he will have enough axle to go straight to 40's if he ever decides to go that route. Ride height will be pretty close to how Marc's WJ ended up, around 6" lift with 6+" uptravel.
 
#5 ·
I'm expecting to reuse a good bit of the Claytons kit if possible, though I might make a deal with him to keep the springs for myself :D. You can never have enough springs around, and I know a WJ that could use 'em haha. Another 5 speed swap would be absolutely awesome, though I want to finally get the dakota PCM into mine and check engine light eliminated before I go doing it to anyone elses jeep. Fine for me with it registered in a smog free county, not for most though.
 
#7 ·
Haha yeah thankfully I don't have to worry about it, but I tried to do everything smog legal anyways just to be familiar with the process. I even have that Dodge Dakota computer sitting around for the proper swap. Only error I made back then was plugging the new Dakota computer in, while my jeeps old SKIM module was still plugged in. The Dakota's computer was a non-skim model, but got upset when it saw mine plugged in. That's the only thing that stopped me from having everything wrapped up with no check engine light, something I still want to revisit :D
 
#8 ·
So you are driving with the stock wj pcm?

While my zj was driveable with the stock pcm, it drives much better with the manual pcm flash. Just the way the Rpms act when decelerating and downshifting, the auto trans pcm doesn't know exactly what to do so it's weird. Not sure if you are experiencing any weirdness but if so id bet on the auto pcm
 
#9 ·
My WJ has some minor quirks running on the stock PCM, but decent for the most part. I could see the 5 speed trans cleaning everything up though, just another reason to get it wrapped up once and for all haha.

Only had a few hours for the WJ today, but progress is progress :D. Cut the hole in the frame rail, and made the insert


Welded it all in, and smoothed the seams so there is nothing sharp for the lines to rub against


Mmm gotta love the stuff you find between the gas tank and skid plate haha


Should have it fully up and installed tomorrow, then get to hunt down a replacement charcoal canister as the old one was cracked. Oops! Guess I know where that evap leak was coming from haha.
 
#11 ·
Haha thanks! I wrapped up the fuel tank tuck today except for some sealer around the floor

Here's the height I wanted the floor to be raised to


So I stretched some sheetmetal and brought things together so I could stitch weld it back in. I didn't take a picture of it, but I cut a trap door for easy fuel pump replacements and then welded it all in place


Before dropping the floor in for the final time I got the skid plate all cut to length and buzzed up too. Next on the list I need to source that charcoal canister it needs, and the axles. The good stuff :D
 
#12 ·
Yo dude! Love the progress pics! It's weird seeing my Jeep cut up and whatnot while I'm on the other side of the world, but it's going to be great to come home to what will basically be a completely different jeep! I'm reading the thread while sipping a beer on a bullet train from Seoul to Busan in South Korea. Also a pretty bizarre experience. Can't wait to see more progress pics!
 
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#13 ·
Glad to see you back, AP! Subbing for future updates!

:highfive:
 
#15 ·
Heck yeah Rusty, glad you're liking everything man! I can't wait to really plunge into the heart of the build, I'm going to be extremely proud of the final product :D.

Good to see ya still around as well Chris! The forum has a whole new look to it these days though haha.

Muddy, my shop is up in Rancho Cordova near highway 50, let me know if you're ever in the area!

Spent a few days on a TJ rear bumper, the owner had one he liked except for the fact it had a tire carrier. So he had me build similar without carrier. After a long evening getting it wrapped up for him haha


Today I got to spend a little time back on this thing, went around and stitch welded the tub back in, working the final few air gaps to nothing. This material is so finicky and thin to begin with, trying to weld any sort of gap is next to impossible :D. Tomorrow is seam sealer and everything gets reinstalled for the final time (except some evap stuff)
 
#16 ·
Sooo.......this build just got kicked up another notch :D. Building custom outers, 9" center sections with the 1 ton outers. So the front will be a 60-9, and the rear will be a 10.5-9" :D. pretty much all the strength, way more clearance and less weight. 35 spline goodness, ARB lockers, yeah! I've finally got myself a two post lift on the way to hopefully save my body, rolling around on the ground has started taking its toll on me haha, but this build should have some seriously exciting pictures here soon!
 
#18 ·
Haha that sounds good to me Chris! There will be plenty of detail here, but this is going to seriously turn out to be one heck of a capable WJ,. Rusty has really let me loose on this build, no holds barred so it's time to go. I've got the new rockers going in right now, should be in tomorrow. Should have all the parts to build the 9" 3rd members tomorrow, and I already have one 9" axle housing. The local junkyards have a nice supply of the donor 60 and 10.5 so those will be coming up shortly as well, then things should honestly fall together pretty fast.

With that being said, here are some pics from the rocker replacement! First I cut the pinch seam off the bottom to separate the 3 layers of rocker panel, then cut the outer layer off to the correct height. Did I mention how much I HATE the foam jeep used in these things? haha. And we don't even have the rust problem out here (you can see a hint of rust starting where water was trapped between the rocker and foam), but just doing fab work around it is no fun.


So I usually score around all the edges, and break it out in the biggest chunks I can manage. Sometimes requires smaller bits, but sure makes life easy. Here are some general pics of the rocker construction with the multiple layers. Outer is gone in this pic, looking at the middle layer plus B pillar


B pillar structure itself, full of foam


Both the inner and outer layers removed, just the middle layer and B pillar remaining


And here it is with the middle panel and B pillar trimmed up. In the middle of removing foam haha


Then the good stuff, 2x6" .188 wall rectangle tube. Protrudes by about an inch, perfect as it is or for additional extension bars later


From the bottom. I left all the original box rocker reinforcement structures in tact, they'll still be providing strength in addition to the supports I'll add


And here's from the inside looking out. I left just a bit under 2" of the inner rocker panel I will be able to notch for the additional supports and then stitch weld the remainder to the box tube. Nice and high clearance :D
 
#20 ·
Rockers are looking good, man! I'm pleasantly surprised how little rust you found under there. I was a little worried about that just based on the amount of beach wheeling I did back in south Texas. Guess all that time spent cleaning and painting the underside paid off after all! Also super stoked about the change to the hybrid 9" axles we decided on. Can't wait to see more progress. Living my Jeep life vicariously through this thread right now!
 
#24 ·
Haha glad you guys are liking everything so far! Rusty I couldn't believe how clean they were, a great sign for all the other places you might wonder about but can never see. Your jeep definitely has a solid shell with no rot anywhere! So thankful to be out here in CA and not dealing with rust issues like yours Tymaoaretae, I could see why a rocker replacement becomes a necessity out east :D.

And yep Josh, still around along with the WJ though she's a bit haggard these days. Actually in the market for a fresh set of tires right now so I can get it ready for wheelin season, I haven't been out in a while due to tire problems haha.

So let's see here....knocking the paint off things, getting the fitment as tight as I wanted it to be.


Now instead of the traditional box tube supports we always use I've come up with a sweet solution :D. I'm boxing in all the original sheetmetal supports in 3/16" plate off the Torchmate, and creating another frame tie in for a total of 4 extremely high clearance supports, that could be skinned flat across if desired. So here's the factory support, reinforced


A couple of them in place along one rail. They'll also be getting laminations to spread the loading across the unibody instead of directly landing on it


Then, an upgrade for the shop arrived. One that I've been waiting ENTIRELY too long for. Hopefully it'll lessen the aches and pains at the end of the day :D


MMMMMmmmmmm


OH YEAH. I've got to reorganize my space to get things operating smooth with the new addition, but my capabilities just went through the roof...literally :D. Handling the axle work for this project will be much easier to manage now that it won't be done on the floor!
 
#27 ·
Haha Davy I will say you're definitely not the first person interested in those brackets, that might be something I end up doing

Chris I can hardly contain my excitement! Having a lift is YEARS overdue for me, and I'm too young to be saying rolling around on the ground has been taking its toll on me haha. Everything should be multiple times faster and smoother now, I literally don't even know what to think about the fact that I'll be doing axle swaps without ever lifting/wrangling an axle into position again...huge sigh of relief :D
 
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