Pete M

by "long-arm", I'm referring to the lifts that use arms that are much much longer than the stock arms and mount further back on the frame. when you lift up an MJ on stock control arms, the arms will angle down and the tire will be pulled backwards in the wheelwell (as well as mess up the caster of the front axle) as the assembly rotates. a "short arm lift" uses arms that are just a bit longer than stock, which pushes the tire back into the center of the wheelwell and fixes the caster. but the arms are still pointed down at a steep angle (a stock MJ's arms are pretty much level with the ground) and the impact forces of hitting bumps are harsher to your butt. Long-arms have a less steep angle and the benefits are a smoother ride (and generally more flex). the downsides are that they are more expensive and harder to install. with a 4.5" lift, you should be fine with a short-arm lift. :thumbsup: above that though, you'd want to seriously look into longarms. Mostly I just wanted to make you aware that you had a choice. :cheers: short arms: long arms:

talk to HellCreek. he makes some 4.5" SUA leafs and mates them with appropriate front kits. Rough Country I think? not entirely sure, but his leafs have gotten nothing but good reviews. :thumbsup: given any thought to long arms? I'm not sure what sort of budget you're contemplating.

that's a real shame. :( any chance you grabbed the sunvisor clips? rear speed sensors? :brows:

Get yourself a decent lift kit then. :thumbsup: given any thought to SUA vs SOA yet?

x2. along with that, you can try cleaning up the ground behind the drivers side taillight. that's where my fuel pump grounds.

Thanks, I keep going back and fourth in my mind on what I am going to do. I can easily find a mid 90s Isuzu Rodeo in a local junk yard. and I can easily order a TNT Customs Truss for my front D44. If I do this can you post a few other upgrades I'll need? My friend at the shop that's helping me do it pointed to the control arms and told me I'll need to get new ones, more heavy duty ones, and he also asked me if I knew if the Truss came with control arm brackets, idk how else they would attach but I am still curious. I'll spend tomorrow looking stuff up. Thanks again, Casey What all are you planning to do with the truck?

x2 on the XJ front axle. for a rear axle that matches this new front one of yours, you can go with a mid-90s v6 Isuzu Rodeo rear Dana 44. it has disk brakes and a 4.10 or 4.30 gear ratio and is the same width and bolt pattern as the Wagoneer axle. you just need to swap the flange for a U-joint version.

:wavey: can't wait for photos.

My guess is master. but if you're planning swap anyway, why not just go for it. :thumbsup:

me neither. might be a junkyard-only item.

it might just need the shifter aligned.

no prob. I'll send more out next chance I get. :thumbsup:

4wd is useful in locations that have this thing called "winter". :yes:

mine stick out that far because of the extra wide axles I used. but my rims have 4" of backspacing so they still pivot pretty much on their center. if you tried to replicate the look but using the Jeep axles, the tires would then pivot on the inside edge and the outside edge of the tire would sweep around in a wide arc, smacking your fenders up pretty bad. just about any aftermarket 15x8 rim will make the tires stick out a bit more than they are now. Problem is that the tires will then rub on the flares. not as bad as the rims you were contemplating, but rub none the less. 30x9.5s or some 31x10.5s will fit with the stock rims on a stock Jeep. 31s will rub a bit on the control arm. WJ lower control arms will fix this. (they have a bend in them) if it's just the rear that bugs you, a pair of quality hub-centric wheel spacers (like the spidertrax) will help the rear tires poke out to match the front.

15.50?!? I wouldn't do it. you'll have nothing but problems getting them to work on a stockish MJ. them's some wiiiiiiide tires you're contemplating.

plenty o' lack-of-airflow over the tiny radiator opening... :yes:

can't find anything on ebay?

x2 on both accounts. why use something that's halfass when it's not hard to get something actually designed to do the task at hand? heck, a 2"x20' tow strap is only $25 and it's not likely to kill or maim anyone. this is the absolute bare minimum I would use (and it's not really designed for hard recoveries): http://www.walmart.com/ip/SmartStraps-2 ... k/14493271 remember to clean them after use. mud and dirt particles are abrasive and will weaken the strap over time. For years I used a 3"x30' strap until someone I loaned it to didn't notice that they had a knot in it when tension was applied. the knot is permanent now. :fs1: and I don't loan those out anymore. :no:

Hi Rick!! :waving: I moved this over to the pub for a bit so the rest of the guys would see it.

just be careful about further blocking the radiator of a 4.0. cooling can be sketchy at best already. :yes:

90 then. :thumbsup: when dealing with my memory, accuracy is a luxury. :yes: but now that I think of it, that bench I got did come from that 90 not the 88 (neither I owned so I feel less bad about remembering it wrong. :D ) either way, benchseats without headrests still suck. :fs1:

as long as it's in 2wd, you can do it anyway you'd like. :thumbsup: if the splines aren't perfectly aligned, you can simply rotate the front driveshaft to turn the inner shaft.

off the top of my head, 1988 brought us the Eliminator package, the fuel pump ballast resistor, and headrests became standard on the benches. maybe it's just my crappy computer, but I can't seem to recognize much of any identifying characteristics on that truck. :(

There's no way I'd bend the factory hard lines on my truck. the rear ones I've dealt with are scary fragile. :ack: but then I live in Michigan, land of ice and salt.

just make sure it has headrests. :thumbsup: