jeeper_chiefb

Before I packed it away for my 9 month trip to Iraq I experimented with some street tires/wheels. I tried to find the lightest aluminum wheels possible, as well as light duty all terrains. 32x9.50 Maxxis Liberty tires and 15x7 American Racing wheels

Thank you. I appreciate the recognition. Unfortunately the MJ will be static for the next 9 months while I'm in Iraq.

Still working on tire clearance in the front. I trimmed the inner fender and flare at the rear but the 35s continued to grabbed the plastic when compressed. So I traced the flare with my plasma and removed the entire inner fender. No more plastic but now some clean up to do, so I ordered some Notch Customs flares for the front. The fender trimming was Friday and I made the trip to Holy Cross trail Saturday. Outgunned in my group of buggies and Jeeps on 40s but I was there and made it to the top. Rained all day so a couple winch pulls were required and happily my custom winch mount didn't pull apart.

I got the ARB compressor mounted under hood and added switches in place of the ashtray with a printed piece. I've also been adding to the flatbed with accessories and whatnot. So far I've added a fuel and water jug, a Pelican 1630 for tools and recovery gear, fluid storage for 2 gallon jugs and 4 quart containers, a 3 ton offroad jack and cooler. All of it is temporary as I want to maintain the ability to haul dirt bikes or an ATV on the flatbed.

I had a flat tire one morning about a week ago and found the 33s had a dry rot and cracking leading to leaks. I have some leftover 5 lug beadlocks from my YJ project after going to 8 lug, so I searched for 17" tires for the MJ. I found these 35x12.50r17 Yokohama Geolander X-MTs on marketplace and the seller really wanted garage space so I got them for 400. After a night of mounting in the garage I put them on the MJ and found the 35s need more lift and fender clearance.

I trying hard to minimize weight but the corners of the lights are definitely exposed. I'll probably add a flat plate under the turn signals for protection.

The key to making this winch mount work behind the grill, while keeping the stock radiator mount, is this short drum Warn 9.0 winch. It's also possible because there is no A/C condenser. I chopped up the bumper to get it around MJ parts, but added gussets on the inside for support and XJ brackets to the outside for bolt on.

The bumper is a stubby YJ/TJ bumper, which I used as a frame chop winch mount behind the grill on the MJ. I previously had a JCR Vanguard and didn't like how far it stuck out reducing approach angle. .new bumper concept Making space by relocating wires and cutting out sheet metal.

I spent my labor day weekend working on the winch mount. I started with a Barnes4wd bumper for a YJ/TJ, replacement steering box spacer, front frame stiffener kit and XJ universal bumper brackets. The steering box spacer is simple replacement and adds an additional bolt to the spacer. It's the black piece pictured, which is steel replacing the aluminum minimal 3 hole stock piece, as well as new grade 8 hardware.

Address the overheating issue... replace everything that's 30 years old and start over. New water pump, thermostat and housing, hoses, fan clutch and also radiator. I ordered this low-budget plastic tank radiator from Rock Auto- ...and what showed up was much more impressive-

I took it out for a shakedown run the other day. Didn’t have a compressor for lockers but wanted to test a bit. Some tire rub on the inner fenders, need coil spring retainers, trans didn’t leak, 4:1 low range is great but I need to adjust the shift linkage, and address the cooling system as it overheated 1 mile into the trail.

I want lower gears to help the anemic 2.5 and one solution is a 4:1 low range transfer case. I found a TeraLow231 on marketplace, which has a 21 spline input gear, so it was a deal ($100). However I have a problem with the transmission output seal. The early model AX5 has a deep inset seal and the NP207 has an extra long snout to reach it. Here is the difference. The AX5 shaft sticks out to 0.12" short of the mating surface, so there is plenty of spline engagement, but the seal is set very deep in the trans. My attempt at a solution is to chop up an old 3 gear planetary to get a 1" piece of 21 spline t-case input. I then slid it on the trans output before putting the NP231 in, then JB Weld them together. Time will tell if it works to seal the trans.

I drove it around the block and I still have brake issues, but judging by the fluid around the master I'll be looking at other options for a booster/master upgrade.

The rear disc brake kit that I purchased from Quick Performance has taken years off my life. First , I wanted the weld-on kit, but it's not available with rotors with 5x5.5, so I bought the more expensive bolt-on kit. The bolt-on kit replaces the bearing/seal retainer on the 9", so I had to cut off the stock ones from the axle shafts. Axle seals will probably leak and I'll have to press them off in the future. Next, the rotors don't fit my axle shafts. Bolt pattern correct but the shaft flange OD is too big. I installed my brand new 58" CV driveshaft and idled the truck in 1st. Grinder to the axle shafts until the rotors fit. Also, the ID of the rotors don't fit over the the axle flange. I mounted the rotors flipped with washers and again idled the truck in reverse while I used my die grinder on the rotor ID. Finally, the "kit" WITH HOSE KIT EXTRA PURCHASE! didn't come with caliper hoses, so I ordered some I hoped would work with the mystery calipers. Finally together and plumbed. Still need a center limit strap.

I realized over half of the front wheel studs were not tightly pressed into the hubs. So I pulled them apart and tack welded the back side of each stud. A little setback but also a good reason to inspect and repack the wheel bearings. Got them all back together with brakes installed.

I specifically choose the short drum winch for packaging, because I intend to put it behind the grill. I have an 80' rope extension, as well as a 12k winch with 100' rope mounted in the rear, for recovery options.

Seems like now is a good time to show some more parts I bought for the truck.

I need to replace my MJ leaf springs and I'm considering going with F150 springs for availability, cost and capacity. Do they lift more than stock MJ springs?

Hmm, help me understand. Am I the fool spending too much on this truck?

Well done! I admire this build and the changes you've made.

The used package included complete axles, steering, driveshafts, ARB pump and worn 33x12.50 on 15x8 steel wheels; $3000. They were built to be stock XJ width. I also bought new rear disc brakes ($558), both axle trusses(128), leaf spring perches/u-bolts(115), low pinion skid plate(47), steering box brace(108), track bar bracket(97) and will be ordering a rear driveshaft(~400). Plus I'm using marketplace-used lift coils(50), shocks(50), adjustable control arms and track bar(80). $1633 for additional extras.

Have you considered adding a trackbar bracket crossmember under the oil pan? One small tube from passenger frame to low-as-possible on the track bar mount would help a lot with the leverage during steering.

The front is 60% installed with some nuts/bolts needed, brake calipers, air line hook up and shocks to be installed. It also might need more lift to match the SOA.

Thank you for the encouragement. I'm really looking forward to using it for whatever. For now it will have the Teraflex short arms, but I will some day get to the Barnes4wd long arm kit. The 33s are also temporary, but they are mostly a result of power and gearing constraints.

I tried a CavFab track bar I had in stock and it doesn't have enough S bend to work at ride height, so I flipped the axle side joint on the Iron Rock track bar and it should work. Time and flex will tell. I also swapped the Iron Rock 3" coils for Skyjacker 4" coils, but I fear it's still not enough lift to match the rear SOA.