Jeep Enthusiast Forums banner

Finally! - 2000 TJ Slow Build... (very slow...)

82K views 602 replies 65 participants last post by  kennyboobear 
#1 ·
Finally! - Silverstone 2000 TJ

Well I've been wanting to make a build thread for ages, but haven't really had much going on with the Jeep to showcase other than my "custom" Audio/Visual system as well as a few little interior tweaks, Ie.) The Jeep badge/plaque on my glovebox. But I finally got my first real parts that I can showcase... putting them on this weekend ....
Day I bought it

Since the netbook is now (and has been for a year) in place of the CB, am currently planning to relocate the CB to the inside of the Console.

This is currently mounted on my dash, acts as GPS/Movie/Music/Portable Computer station thing.

Lastly a poser shot for kicks..


New Corner Guards with steel flairs... Can't wait to get them on


Currently: As of July 2012

 
See less See more
6
#3 · (Edited)
Yea, it's a 7" Netbook. I can unplug it all in like 10 seconds to stow it in the console or take it with me. It's wired to a 500gb HD behind the dash and a 600watt 4ch amplifier, which in turn goes to all my speakers & sub. I decided to say to hell with a traditional headunit. I'm a computer geek, I needed something that suited my ways. On that note, I can replace the laptop with anything that accepts a 3.5mm jack, so iPod, PSP, Mobile Phone etcetcetc. It works well for me.

Couple images to better understand... (note the brown JeepForum icon I made for my dock... yea... I'm an addict lol)

And the amplifier under the rear seat, prior to drilling and mounting it (looks messy)
 
#4 ·
Corner guards are more or less done, gotta wait for things to dry up this week so I can paint the hardware holding the flares and also need to get the bolt into the rocker panel (requires I unbolt the seatbelt to get to the other end of the bolt) as well as the 2 bolts on the rear that go through the frame. Need a better drill/bit for that one, so in the mean time I'll leave it as is. Photo time, and yea, it's already dirty thanks to this crappy weather.





I'm happy with how it turned out seeing as yesterday the drivers side corner looked like this...
 
#6 ·
They're Smittybily full corners. Got them for 330 shipped with the flares during 4wd.com's holiday sale, Now you'd be looking at about 365-390 shipped depending on whatever sale 4wd.com has going on.
 
#8 ·
Did you pull any of that damage out before to installed the corners? I crumpled that same corner a few weeks back. If it was not for that stupid stock lic. plate mount the damage might not have been as bad.


Have Rokmen Shorties coming for it. Just wondering how much I need to pull out.
 
#9 ·
I hammered it a bit, and hammered the edges in so the corner would fit around the damage, but most of it was left unpulled, as it was too damaged for me to pull. Your damage looks a lot less than mine, so you should be okay. Just make sure you have a big rubber mallet and you'll be straight.
 
#11 ·
Nope, bought a puller but ended up not even using it. I just hammered any edges that were protruding, restricting the fitment of the corner. I got lucky enough that all of holes for the bolts on the corner guard lined up on spots that were unaffected by the collision with the exception of one, being the lower corner bolt, and that one pulled itself out because the corner was close enough for me to get the bolt to reach the hole I drilled into the body there, so when I began ratcheting it down, the much weaker metal of the factory body just pulled itself tight to the corner guard.

I did, however, have to put the corner guard up and down about 20 times (clamping and un-clamping it etc.) to see what else was causing it to not fit properly until I got everything hammered down which was a royal pain in the ***, especially since it was a 1 man job. My suggestion, have a big heavy rubber mallet, 2 ratchets with all necessary bits, phillips head screwdriver (naturally, for the tail lights), about 4 good clamps, the first 2 I bought were ****, so I made due with the 2 I had that worked well, but an extra 2 that worked properly probably would have made things a bit easier, and a few wooden boards to go between the c clamp and the corner guard.

Also will need a good drill and a step-down bit, unless you want to do it the old fashioned way and use a smaller bit and just work it.... but to hell with that. Lastly make sure you paint all of the holes you drill, I wasn't able to do that yet due to the rain, but when things dry up here in a few days (probably on Monday since it's my day off) I'll be taking them back off to spray all of my bare metal, and sand anything that has any surface rust. Make sure you get a paint that seals itself, and tada! The results are smexehness.
 
#13 ·
Yea, I figure what little of the damage I have is still noticeable (tiny ripple on the edge of the body by the rear door that's only noticeable in the right light, as well as the small gap between the corner guard and body around the top edge of the tub) just qualifies as character, though I prefer it being spotless, like it was the day I got it. Jeep or not, I want it to last as long as humanly possible haha. Next up, covering the rockers with some 3/16" sliders and flat fenders, then 33"s on the stock suspension.... can't wait.
 
#14 ·
I said that about my gmc truck as well... but would you know that all the work you do to it, that the electrical parts would go, like wires.... ticks me off.... now i got to get right down and trace every bit of wiring... thats why i am holding off on the truck till i get the jeep on the road, rather have the truck apart and find that wire giving me the problem!! instead tearing apart and replacing each day
 
#15 ·
Tiny update here:

Hail storm a few weeks back left about 25 golf ball size dings on my hood, cowl, and windshield frame as well as a few holes in the old Soft top. After the deductible, insurance payed out 760$ so I was gonna buy a Sailcloth replace-a-top but then I got a wild hair....

It occurred to me that Dallas isn't all that far of a drive for me, so maybe I'll see what I can find on craigslist there? Well sure enough, I found exactly what I was looking for, a hard top with tinted windows in excellent condition for 650$ Drove out to Dallas Friday afternoon when I got off work and turned right back around (after bsing with a fellow Jeep owner for about 4 hours) and drove back in the same night.

Night of


Decided I didn't like the way the color didn't match my soft uppers though, and ultimately decided to repaint it. Started by doing a little prep work and hitting it with 2 cans of Duplicolor Matte Black.

Finished it off by hitting it with a can of Rust-o-leum textured matte black sealer. Will fill in all the missed spots etc. next weekend.

And where she stands now... Also note the free Rubicon Express and Jeep Jamboree stickers haha




That's about it for the update other than finally choosing a permanent mounting point for my CB.
 
#18 · (Edited)
Thanks mad, compliments are much appreciated haha

Djay, will definitely check it out when I get home from work this afternoon, congrats on getting her back runnin.

Thought I'd add this photo of the state the hard top was in about 5 months ago lol
 
#20 ·
haha not sure, not my Jeep though, that's the guy I bought it off of
 
#22 · (Edited)
#25 · (Edited)
dono why, forgot to throw this one in from the Fathers day run.... a personal favorite lol


Have ultimately decided on the RC 2.5" X-Series lift
Will then throw tubes on the front and run 35's, was originally going to highline with the tube fenders, but I don't think that will even be necessary, at least not right away anyhow.

Should have the lift at the end of August, and the fenders/rock sliders around the end of september, hoping to have the tires by the end of October to mid November.

Also bought Jerry Bransford's rear Savvy Bumper, so that will get thrown on as soon as I get the Jeep back as it's in Dallas until the end of the month having hail damage repaired and a few other little tweaks etc.
 
#27 ·
Santa came early....

So for the past few weeks I've been debating, do my lift first, then tires, then armor? Or... Do I armor it first, then lift, then see how I need to accommodate (if at all) to properly fit my 35s without worrying about rubbing..... Ultimately, I decided to go with the latter.

Without any further or due, today I got off work and bought this...





Savvy rear bumper, courtesy of Jerry Bransford, Smittybilt Stinger Bumper, and on the way from Dallas, Smittybilt full length Rock Sliders w/tube step.

Also picked up 2 sets of grab handles as the one on my drivers side just looks lonely, a 4WD Coffee Mug for those drowsy days at work, and 2 sets of shackles. One black for the front stinger, and one polished for the Savvy rear.

I was initially a bit skeptical of the Smitty Stinger, build quality and welds didn't really look too hot from various other thread I had seen, but then I saw it in person. It seems as though the newer versions of this bumper have

A. a new bed-lining on it that doesn't chip away with ease (tested it out by smacking it with one of the d rings on a corner edge about 12 times, to no avail)
B. The welds around the stinger (the curve in the tube as well as at the base) seem to be of a much higher quality than the older ones.
C. When inspecting behind the scenes, it also appears as though they made it a point to thicken up the welds underneath as well as run longer beads.
D. Another thing I found odd was on the older version, I noticed the base of the tube that makes the stinger, on the underside (or inside?) of the bumper weren't capped, so you basically had access to the inside of the tube. Now though, they've gone ahead and capped the ends of the tube with a steel cap. Has a small hole in it with a rubber grommet to keep it sealed shut.

Overall, it seems like they've made it a point to increase the quality of the bumper, and yet it still doesn't cost any extra. With that said, my only other concern is how the bottom bolt holes line up on the Jeep, but I'll have to wait and see for that one.

Should have the Jeep back sometime early to mid-September, so soon they'll go on. In the mean time, Still waiting on the sliders to arrive as they didn't have them in stock at my local store, interested to see the quality of those.

Will order the tube fenders in a week or two once I get the sliders in and see how I like the build quality. If I'm confident that the Smitty tubes are the way to go after that, then it's likely I'll pick those up and save the extra 450 difference I'd spend on getting Metalcloaks and the matching flare, for my lift/tires/regear.

And some pictures of the build quality of this newly revised Smitty Stinger Bumper.....

Welds connecting the tubes to the base are solid and run full circle




On the previous versions, the welds were spaced here, but now they've gone ahead and run a bead along the full length of these reinforcing plates.


Here's the Cap on the underside.


And lastly a shot of the whole deal from the backside (yea, yea, I know.... That's what she said.)


Can't wait for the sliders and fenders to get in.... then I get to wait until September to get the Jeep back! :highfive:
 
#28 ·
heres the thing... you have these parts... why not just install them when you get time, no matter what order you do them in... I just got some 31 inch yokohamas on jeep rims off a guy, picking them up tomorrow night and installing maybe sunday morning along with my wheel adaptor spacers for a more sturdy stance!! maybe next year ill do a lift and a winch... kinda want to start on the truck asap as well... might be parking the truck for the winter so i can get the parts all set up for it!! Need a real heated garage!!! would be much easier for everything!!!
 
#30 ·
Because my Jeep is 200 miles (about 360km) away, in Dallas, having hail damage removed from the hood/cowl and also being repainted. Windshield and windshield frame is also being replaced. Insurance is covering it so I said ah what the hell, why not.

If I get any scars on the Jeep, I want them to be from the trail, not a thunderstorm haha, but as a result, I won't have her back until early/mid September.

how you like your headligths? very bright compared to the normal bulbs? Im thinking of looking at getting new headlights and sick of dim lights
Love the headlights, though I think I may soon switch to a different housing, as the current housings I'm using aren't projecting the light outwards very well, instead they seem to extend out to the sides more than anything. Gives me a better view of the edge of the road etc, but most of the light provided for my forward viewing is coming from the Hella 500ff driving lamps.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top