Well my jeep has changed a lot in the past year, i realized where all my money has been going..:crying2: With that being said i have decided to make a build thread Here is the current specs that i am running.
-4 inch BDS springs
-Front stretch 2 inch
-Currie Trackbar
-Rear 4 link (in process) just finished the 3 link and got her going gonna wait till the first of the year before i start the 4 link build in the rear. In the meantime i am running Iron Rock short arms in the rear on 4 inch BDS springs
Wheels / Tires:
-15x8 Cragar Steelies (cant see myself scratching a set of $1000 rims)
-35x12.5r15 BF Goodrich KM2's
Exterior
-Custom front stinger, all 1/4 steel plating with .120 wall DOM
-Front flat fenders
-Rock sliders
-Custom sport cage front and rear
-SELO LED headlights
-4" LED rear tail lights with aftermarket flasher
-Jeep Backbone
Recovery:
-Smittybilt XRC8 9500k winch with steel cable
-Steel fairlead
Few weeks back i built a sport roll cage off the stock one. All tubing is 1.75 .120 wall DOM
In the rear i added a rear spreader bar, seat belt harness bar and some more bars on the side.
For the front my buddy had some old dash tie ins he gave me(couldn't tell you what brand). made a basic box around the windshield and connected it back to the rear cage close to how it was stock. didn't get too crazy with it
Not bad for some angle grinder notches.
Color matched chili pepper red with duplicolor perfect match paint.
I ended up bending the hell out of my frame lower control arm brackets, the thin metal and rocks didn't mix well.
I wasn't a fan of any of the long arm kits on the market and for the prices they go for i figured i could build something cheaper. My buddy Donovan up at CavFab did a fabulous job designing me a set of brackets to use. We ended up making the top link vertical due to clearance issues with the johnny joint on the tub. I am not running a body lift so there is minimal clearance above the frame. Realistically the only way we could fit both joints up there was to make the bottom joint horizontal and the upper mount vertical.
And off to the laser cutter they go! all 1/4 steel
all welded together. you could kill someone with these things, super beefy and heavy
The front axle was stretched forward 3 inches, not much but that is all that the stock track bar mount on the frame allows for before its starts to bind. The only issue i am running into is that my steering wheel is off due to a lack of adjustment in the drag link. The little bit of adjustment i had is now gone due to the axle being close to the pit man arm. The tie rod aligns fine, just not enough adjustment on the drag link to straighten the steering wheel. Not sure how i am going to address that issue yet, its the least of my concerns
for the link arms we ended up using .250 wall DOM
the lower mounts we used a solid poly bushings
the upper mount on the frame side are all johhny joints
Ended up making some high clearance arms so i didnt get hung up
The lower A pillar dash pieces are from an old fab shop in Flowery Branch that went by Cheese Works. That's why they have the swiss cheese pattern. They have been closed for a long time.
The lower A pillar dash pieces are from an old fab shop in Flowery Branch that went by Cheese Works. That's why they have the swiss cheese pattern. They have been closed for a long time.
Can never get a break! Finally got her road worthy this weekend and the clutch decided to go. The parts came in today to reubild, gonna pull that this week. Decided to rebuild the tranny while it was out.
looking good... i just had to rebuild the tranny on mine the other day but don't have the knowhow to do it myself. definitely set back the upgrade from my zone shocks... which Fox's did you end up with?
The Fox 2.0 Performance series. I have run bilstein on everything i have ever owned. These fox look too nice and got them for too good of a deal to pass up
Lookin good! Make sure you run it through all the gears and spin everything BEFORE you put the transmission back in the Jeep. Made that mistake before, and will never make it again. Jeep looks good. You can take on a lot more than you think when you are willing to give it a try.
its going in this weekend hopefully, it passed the bench test. It shifted and spun in every gear, so im going with it. Im suprised how easy it really was
Finally getting some time to work on the jeep, been a busy few months. This will be the last time you see a short arm system under this bad boy.
Decided to go with TMR rear 4 link brackets, didn't have time to get some made and the 4 link setup from TMR is dummy proof. the geometry is already there with some minor adjustment.
With this setup ill be running a single triangulated link system with Johnny joints on all ends, control arms are made of 2 inch .250 wall, and I use the Barnes hex head tube adapters (makes it easier to tighten jam nut). The brackets come with different adjustment holes so I can adjust squat, and they are super beefy.
I know these lines will need to be rerouted, just test fit.
Plans to stretch the rear as much as the stock gas tank will allow. I am hoping for 2-3 inches, looks like there is room for it. if someone has done this with a stock gas tank, let me know what you can get out of it. I know its not much, but for now until I run a fuel cell I am not going to chop up the back. Shooting for 100" on wheelbase, but think I might fall a little short at the moment, front is already maxed out.
Been sitting since August I am ready to get this thing back on the road.
Couldnt be more happy with how the 4 link went in this weekend. One step closer, still have to cut off the old uppers on the axle, get some new hardware and remove the rear trackbar. Was pretty disappointed i couldnt shift my axle back more than an inch, i had already pushed it back a little after i did my SYE and adjusted my pinion angle. With the stock gas tank there just is not any room, i have plans for that later.
Had to chop the corner of the skid plate to clear the bracket, took more off probably than i should have, but gonna look into a flat skid.
Had to cut off an inch of the TMR brackets for the axle tower. Was running into some clearance issues with the upper links.
So much room for activities now, it really cleared up a lot of space. gained some extra ground clearance
My only concern is getting a skid plate and getting it to fit correctly at this point. One thing i didnt know is the Pre-2003 Tj skid plates are not straight at the back side. The last bolt is off centered by a couple inches.
I had to cut out a corner of the stock skid to make the link mount fit with the correct geometry.
Ive been looking at the barnes kit but am worried i am going to have to hack at it a bit to make it work with my setup.
There isnt but 2 inches from the center of the bolt to the start of the link bracket
The red blocks are where the frame brackets are for the links and the blue is what i cut off.
Also i will have to drill holes for the tranny mount. wondering if i should start from scratch or if anyone has experience with the barnes kit or something similar?
I have heard good things about the Barns skid on the YJ side. Not sure about how the TJ guys like it but it's the same principle. It's simple and solid. Not a whole lot more to it.
On that same note, it's simple enough that anyone with a welder and a way to bend steel could make their own. Even easier if you have a plasma cutter.
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