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Guess it depends how much $50 is worth to you

They kind of look like the lights on the upper cab of a big rig.

Bilstein 5 series is what I run but most of your monotube shocks from from the major players are what I'd consider mid-level. For entry level though, those rancho 5000x shocks were pretty sweet on my TJR. They get great reviews all day long though they do have a few drawbacks. High speeds over washboard or rough roads will benefit more from a monotube or remote reservoir shock design. If you go custom, you can really dial in the ride based on your rig and driving style. PS the Rancho's I'm referring to are not the 5000 series but the new 5000x. The part numbers will have 5 digits vs 4 for the old style which were not so great.

Well, I wasn't on the list but I've never seen one crushed. That is a huge difference between collector and downpipe size there! I run a JBA TJ downpipe which wraps around the front of the oil pan. But my stock 91MJ downpipe didn't have that crush nor did my YJ, TJR, XJ, ZJ or KJ.

This PSA brought to you by Jeep: "It's a Jeep thing, you wouldn't understand"

That sounds about right. I remember reading somewhere that 10 years after the production run ends they no longer produced parts. The 92 sounds like it was just a "lets use up these extra parts" run. So, out of curiosity, how many active members do we have now?

I ran some skyjackers for about 4 years and they were pretty bad compared to Ranch 5000x or the Bilsteins I run now. There are several factors that make a good shock though and it's hard to say that the whole brand is good or bad. If you pickup the wrong valving or shock design for your driving style and rig they will ride horribly regardless of the brand. The opposite is also true. Twin tube vs mono vs rmote reservoir plus the valving and ability to "tune" or rebuild the shocks are all big factors. Accutune will valve the shocks specific to your application. Probably the best bang for the buck for mid-level shocks. They also offer the high end models from the major players.

Thank for the info Pete and everyone else! Man I wonder what the NOS parts supply chain looked like in 98'.

Curious to know the origins of our Comanche Club and couldn’t find the info anywhere. Any care to share the story about how/when things got started, who got things going and a general history?

The Dana 44 should hold up just fine. A driveline brake is actually a really nice setup. Parts Mike had a setup for the NP231 last I checked. Teraflex makes a kit specific to the pre 1990 XJ/MJ Dana 44’s with the correct spacers. You can use stock e brake cables along with the little adapter from Lokar or similar. They fit the ZJ, Wilwood and Explorer e brake levers on the back of the backing plate.

Definitely agree with the u joints being the fuse in the setup. Don’t want a shaft or especially a R&P to be the week point. That being said, the OP already has an HP30 with a leaking pinion seal. Plus he has an 8.25 which has a nicer width and slightly better clearance than the 8.8. The axle he picked up is a used tj d30 which is at least 15 years old and of unknown condition. Being that it’s only a 4.10 gear set, I’d recommend just upgrading gears in his existing axles. Just my $.02

Here is a nice post (not mine) for reference along with a visual: The coast side of the gear is the side that's beveled relative to the base of the gear. The drive side is the other side and it's face is perpindicular to the base of the gear. A low pinion in the front drives on the coast or beveled side of the gear and under higher loads, the pinion teeth are forced out of the contact area into the higher thinner edges of the teeth and that's what tends to destroy the gear teeth. A high pinion on the other hand drives on the flat side of the tooth and the contact pattern tends to remain static regardless of the loads placed on it. High pinion= driven on the drive side of the ring gear teeth. Low pinion= driven on the coast side of the ring gear teeth.

Chrysler also interchanged the Dana 35 throughout the years but that doesn’t mean its the same strength wise as an 8.25. It is interesting that the TJ came with the D35 and LP35 while the XJ was 8.25/HP30 for several years. Wonder if they ran out of HP 30’s toward the end of the XJ run??? The one scenario where a lp 30 would be better is if your wheeling backward up obstacles Just because the HP 30 was replaced with a LP 30 doesn’t mean they are the same strength wise. It’s true neither should grenade while daily driving but while wheeling the HP is more than 7% superior. The pinion clearance, lack of a crush sleeve and gearset engagement where of a far superior design than the LP. LP was made for he rear and HP was made for the front.

It’s nice to have a “fuse” in the axle. U joints can hopefully be that fuse before more serious damage occurs. If you know that LP axle is 100% then maybe that’s best option. I would never “downgrade” something that’s already on the truck though.

Installed my rebuilt e brake unit today. Even the brake light in the dash now works lol. Took out all the trim and seat from the drivers side and pulled the carpet to give a thorough cleaning. Everything cleaned up very well but I’m going to replace my floor pans in the next few weeks. I seriously want everything perfect which is almost impossible on a 30yo Jeep but I’m doing my best. Welded in a new seat stud as well that had been stripped out a long time ago.

Here are some pics of the unit. I can keep the welder, grinder, consumables, helmet and accessories in one sealed storage box. Love the portability. Welded some 1/4” today with ease on a single pass.

I now have a good supply of cores and should be able to start producing a prototype shortly. Will try to update everyone in a week or so.

Just wanted to post up about a little welder I picked up recently. I have a full Lincoln welding rig I left at my folks place but needed some small welder I could use for smaller repairs and fab work. Picked up a Century flux mig welder from Home Depot and it is awesome. It’s made by Lincoln but probably not in the US I imagine (all my literature says Lincoln in Georgia but not sure if that’s where it was made). It weighs just a few pounds and is upper compact. You can see where they saved money especially with the spool holder but man does it have it where it counts. Never seen such a nice bead and weld penetration on such an economical machine. Has a full electrical and mechanical diagram as well as part numbers for any replacement pieces so it’s really put together like a mini professional unit. Only down side is no provision for shielding gas but since i have no indoor area to weld here, flux core is all I can use anyways. Just thought I’d share.

Quite true

Had one of those for about 8 years. Loved it but off-roading with big tires can load up and shock your axles much more than even spirited daily driving would. However, the OP already has an HP D30. Can’t see swapping in a LP axle just to change gears especially if it’s going to be a weekend warrior. A reverse rotation front axle has significantly superior gear engagement.

Agreed. I eventually bought my own tools to do it myself after building several axles but had a shop fo it for 4 axles and it was about $250/axle. That was about 4 years ago

Fun project there!

I know it’s been some time but are you mostly finished up with the build yet?

For future reference, when you have a parking brake that tries to smash your fingers when releasing it, you are missing the bumper that acts as a stop. Unless you find the replacement part, you’ll need a bumper approx 1” in diameter and 1/2” thick. I used a plastic spacer and button head 5/16 bolt for this but will track down the correct bumper eventually.