thecodemonk

woohoo!! Can't wait to see this in action!

That'd be interesting. Novak mounts require a lift, so you might need to make your own mounts (unless you do the custom A-Arm and front crossmember route like @Awinski

To convert to 4x4, the main items you'll need are: - 4x4 Transmission (tailhousing is different, to mate to the transfer case...AW4 if auto, AX15 is preferred if manual, but AX5 works too if it's a 4x4 transmission) - Transfer case - Front and rear driveshafts - Front axle If swapping the trans to a different kind than what you have, you MAY need a different transmission mount and cross member.

Note to self: Stop planning specific days to post because, inevitably, it will rain or work will slam you until you have no time left to go out and grab pictures. That said, this weekend was nice and I had a little bit of time, so here's some updates: Overall, it drives great! The power and the brakes work wonderfully and were very apparent when I had to move my 20ft dovetail trailer (about 2k lbs) but didn't have a brake controller. I didn't move it far, but the truck acts like it's not even there. Easy to move with plenty of torque and easy to stop with the one ton brakes. I didn't exactly move it far, but I remember it taking more throttle and feeling it push more on the XJ when I had to move it in the past. First off, a front straight on picture. It's definitely wide, but full widths aren't as bad as I thought they might be. Starting with the rear axle: I realized that I had grabbed a front axle shot but not a rear shot of it on the ground, so this is where everything lines up to at ride height. I had never gotten around to fixing and lengthening the rear parking brake cables on the Dana 44, so it's nice to have that back on the new axle. It's not as "needed" with an automatic, but it's nice to have the extra assurance. The new springs ride PERFECT. It's stiff enough not to squat under 1000lbs of playground sand, but soft enough to flex with the bumps in the road while driving. I couldn't be happier with the General Springs metric ton leafs. With those leafs and the 35's, I did put the little 0.75" rubber spacers/isolators in the front to give it a hair more lift, which evened out the ride so it didn't have TOO much rake. I like a little, but not silly amounts. :) For the front axle: With the artec truss, the front springs sit a little wider than the body, but it seems to even out when flexing, so I'm not going to worry much about it. The 3 link works great and doesn't bind. HOWEVER, it can droop a lot since it never binds up like a 4-link eventually does (or at least the one I had on the XJ did), so the driveline does eventually bind. We got the pinion angled up as high as we could without cutting and turning the C's and while making sure the jeep was still drivable, but it still binds. Eventually, I'll have to cut/turn the C's or put some limit straps on there (probably both), but for now, it drives great and will be great for some trail riding with the wife. I did notice the old bump stop locations on the inner C's of the front axle rub on the front spring. I'm not sure what to do about that for now as I don't want to cut into it yet. It doesn't make noise or seem to be causing any problems yet but something to keep an eye on. The front steering setup with the weld-on high steer works GREAT! Artec's setup hooks to the knuckle a bit inside and I think it gives me a little extra steering angle than I would otherwise get (since the steering box only turns so far). I actually get BETTER turning radius on the big axle than I did on the old dana 30, I suspect because of the superduty dana 60 being able to turn the knuckles at a sharper angle). When I did some measurements while turning in a circle, it was about 10" tighter, which makes taking a u-turn a lot easier than it used to be. In the picture below, you can see how the drag link actually comes back a little. I thought about hooking up the sway bar, but looking at it above and in the picture below, I'm not sure I actually have enough room to connect the lower link to the bracket (and what room there is, only gets worse when turning). I haven't really needed it, especially with the refreshed rear leafs, but I would like to have the option in the future. Perhaps a bracket that hooks to the existing spot and comes up and out will solve it for me. I'll have to do some thinking on that. The other upgrade we did was the boostwerks hidden winch and steering box support. I don't have a winch that fits in there right now (I had a Zeon 8S but that's too bulky to squeeze in there, so I sold it and will keep an eye out for a sale on a winch after I get a new front bumper). That whole bracket is a really cool setup, though. I feel a lot more comfortable with the added support on the steering box. My wife really likes the jeep the way it is right now too and wants our daughter to be able to ride in it more. With the new safety laws, however, that means a childseat or booster seat for many years to come while on the road, so that's going to be on the priority list. There's no way our current baby seats (the one she's about to outgrow already) will fit in the middle position and the shifter, but I suspect those seats will fit fine if I didn't have the back of the current bench there. So...we'll be converting from the bench to some bucket seats in the future and seeing if there's a way to fit a securely mounted baby-seat in the middle. I've been working on clearing the shop of old parts and the old jeep to make room to start working on things a bit more at home too. Hopefully, once I get the XJ shell out of there, there'll be a bit more simple fab going on.

I definitely prefer the 8 and 10 slot. I have a 21 slot sitting in my garage and it just doesn't fit my current truck.

Loving the maytag that we got a few years ago.

A new heart and new legs...I mean new engine/trans and axles that ended up in the jeep that hauled it home.

...do you need more reason than that? Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk

Woo! Another step closer! Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk

That is awesome!

I like some of the others alright, but my wife only likes the M-MAX in the pictures. I'm really curious how easy they are to install or how much tweaking they take.

I'm extra interested to hear what you think of the Notch flares when you get those going!

Video appears to have been taken down

Definitely...every thread needs more pictures!

This thing is looking AWESOME!

Will do! No rush. :)

That's what I get for not checking all the forums regularly. In the meantime...next run to the post office, I'd love a CC decal to put on the truck! :)

A dedicated subforum would probably mean some reorganization of the existing site to save all the information stored there...but it's doable I think. :)

Heck yeah!

Yikes, that sucks. Either family visiting or delivery infection of some kind? (package driver, uber eats, etc)

Nobody commenting on how you just happen to have a forklift AT YOUR HOUSE?! Am I the only one without that and I didn't know it?

More build and tech info tomorrow, but for now... I got to go hang out with@JordanTMiller and my MJ is now as tall as his! There was only so much room in the driveway so that's as much Comanche as I could fit into the shot haha. Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk

As a note...if you heear really really low, make sure your brakes are in good shape. Multiplying torque can make it hard for the brakes to overcome the power and stop your truck :) Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk

I used one on my XJ. It helped stabilize the track bar mount on the frame and spread the load across both rails, letting it flex much less. That said, track bar supports are usually meant to tie into a matching track bar mount by the same vendor. Otherwise, you'll just have to drill your own holes and hope you have enough room for it. Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk

Drop brackets also tend to move the sway bar a little forward toward the bumper. This can help match with your axle as most lifts also move the axle forward a little (which helps center the wheels in the wheel well at ride height). Sent from my Pixel 4 using Tapatalk