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GTX's low rider TJ build

122K views 687 replies 82 participants last post by  offroader80 
#1 ·
GTX's low rider TJ build - now 4500 Ultra4 wannabe

***updated Dec 2015 - This has turned into a nearly full blown 4500 Ultra4 wannabe build!

The 1/2 ton version of the build is complete (I broke my D30 in half at the dunes) and moving onto one tons, see page 39 for 1 ton Eaton hybrid
***


For the fastest updates, follow me on Instagram: @jeeps4Trevin

I'm nearly finished with the first "phase" of things. I know a few of my buddies on here have wanted to see it so I'm posting up.

First up, background-

'97 TJ Sport
4.0/AX-15/NP231
LP D30 with 3.55s
D35 with 4.10s
Smittybuilt bumper
chrome EVERYWHERE
sagging 4" Skyjackoff lift
3" bodylift...yeah, wow

The good stuff:

Full banks stainless exhaust, the good kind of header and flowmaster
came with a HP30 with 4.10s
got a great deal on it
swapped in 4.0 with less miles and all is good
Alpine deck and 6.5s, Kicker 5 1/4s
Came with 35 MTRs in good shape on black steelies
Sold some of the crap for cash
hard top
hard doors too

The plan (old, see last pages)
long arms - done, with stretch
0-1" suspension lift, 1" body lift done
cage
8.8 swap done
HP30 swap done
4.10s done
locked on both ends done
RCV shafts done
SYE + CV done
35" Krawlers on alum rims done
warn upright winch done
high line fenders done
sliders
rear corner armor done
front and rear bumpers

I'll add more to the list and update as time and build goes on.

This belonged to a guy's wife. She just liked having a lifted Jeep to ride around in, didn't care about 4wd or anything like that. Can't blame her, it's a cool Jeep. The sound of the full exhaust is awesome!

Pics when I got her


Euro tails :laughing:


Pics now, page 45-



 
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#284 ·
Coil bucket bump stop bolts :eek:



coil bucket angle not so good, nearly 45*


section out some material to blend it into the frame


angle is a lot better, 20*, tack in place


gets you this


Needs quite a bit of trimming in the rear...but it's progress. Gotta pull the corner armor off and trim some sheet metal on the passenger's side before I can mount up the last tire but at least it's sitting on it's own.
 
#289 ·
thank you

Any plans to notch the frame for the coil bucket?

That looks horrendous
thanks and no

Make those coil buckets flat/centered and you'll have a much better ride quality.
Werd, I forgot to mention I needed to move the Jeep around so I am using these temporarily. I was hoping I could notch these to achieve a perfectly flat surface but I don't think it's possible with a 4" stretch. I have a new design for a coil bucket and it will be flat. Thanks for the advice.

I would notch the frame back there is something
Not really looking to do that much work. It's easier to fab some coil buckets from 10g or 1/4" plate but thank you for the advice.

Cables came in


I've been babbling about a couple of new tools in the shop




It's a JMR Sportsman bender with a Pro Tools 1.75 240* 6 CLR die. I bought the bender directly from JMR and the die from TMR Customs. Overall I'm satisfied with both purchases so far and they were shipped in a timely manner for the most part. I'll be converting the bender to air over hydraulic with some homemade brackets and a HF 8 ton jack.
 
#287 ·
Make those coil buckets flat/centered and you'll have a much better ride quality.
 
#290 ·
Now that you say your just doing that for temporary purposes.. Thats fine. Haha. But ya. Flat and custom will be nice.

Im pretty sure you can get away with a 4in stretch and not notch the frame while keeping the coil spring mount the same height as factory and not giving extra lift

Builds Lookin good so far. Keep it up :thumbsup:

I just could not stand to see you leave
That coil mount Lookin like that when you put all this time into everything else
 
#294 ·
Now that you say your just doing that for temporary purposes.. Thats fine. Haha. But ya. Flat and custom will be nice.

Im pretty sure you can get away with a 4in stretch and not notch the frame while keeping the coil spring mount the same height as factory and not giving extra lift

Builds Lookin good so far. Keep it up :thumbsup:

I just could not stand to see you leave
That coil mount Lookin like that when you put all this time into everything else
Thanks! I will be making them flat but simple.

Nice build ive seen your jeep at elbe before. I ran with Dog pound offroad and that cut up willys before he breaks alot lol I was neigbors with his buddy with the red cj7 red beard
Feel free to stop by and say hi, we're a friendly bunch.

Look at how Clayton does thier stretch coil buckets. That's basically what I was going to do before I decided to backhalf it.
I checked them out, forgot about those. I would love to backhalf my jeep, especially since I have the bender now, but that's a lot of work and I need most of the factory brackets back there so it has to stay.

Where do you plan to run your front shocks on the axle?

With as much stretch as you got, will you have to mount them to your control arms?
Front shocks will go down to the axle side coil bucket mounts. Might even just weld a bolt there if it's the easiest route. They cannot be mounted to the control arms as they're 4130 heat treated and that would alter the (chemical) properties of the metal. They would have to be TIG'ed properly to do it right and that's not needed anyway.
 
#292 ·
Look at how Clayton does thier stretch coil buckets. That's basically what I was going to do before I decided to backhalf it.
 
#298 ·
Had to work all weekend so only got a little bit done last night. Cut the tub a little bit, yanked off some of the armor and tailgate, then set her down on all four tires. In order to steer her around she needs a track bar.







Yes, the track bar is longer than the current steering setup because I am anticipating a WJ knuckle swap and only want to do the track bar once. I'll live with a little bump steer for a short time before the swap. Don't be jealous of my camo frame mount.


 
#303 ·
Tacked in the axle side mount


cut these out


holes drilled, mocked up, frame sleeve. Hopefully this gives me enough adjustment to account for the WJ knuckle swap. Track bar is 32.75" right now, plenty of adjustment left. I may end up having to redo the frame side mount but if this design works then It should just be a simple unbolt and move.


everything is tight, clearance is low, but this is at stock height. I've been thinking of running some 2" coils. It will make more clearance for when I run 37s anyway. That's still a while down the road but a 1-2" lift could make things easier down there. As of right now there is 4.5" uptravel at the coils. Actual clearance is more like 3". The axle side track bar mount will get into the frame if the passenger side is fully articulated. I'm not sure if I'll be able to clearance it or if I'll have to notch the frame.



Here you can see that it's not exactly the angle it should be with the factory steering. It's already ~6" too long (factory drag link length is about 26.5" for reference).

 
#304 ·
I'll be rolling out the TJ this weekend to do some maintenance on my XJ and the girlfriend's civic. I'll be sure to snap some pics in the sun daylight. Track bar is tacked in for now but I already know I want to move it back an inch or more on the frame. No big deal, just need to trim the coil bucket mount.

Put a tape measure under the rig. Went from the back of the rear axle tube to the back of the front axle tube...102".
 
#308 ·
They shouldn't rub, it's almost exactly the same as the stock location. They're ~10" travel shocks, so shouldn't be a problem.

A single bolt will be welded underneath the coil bucket in the corner nearest the tire. Easy, effective, and will break off if it ever has stress on it instead of killing a shock. The stock bump stop buckets aren't exactly bulletproof so I would rather have it this way for now until I get a better setup...like coilovers.

Thanks for the props. Unfortunately the shocks won't get mounted until the very end of this build since it's an item that needs to be done after the suspension is finalized and burned in.
 
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