TNT

On my XJ they checked bumper hieght once. They measured at the outer corner instead of the center... It was 29.5" and 30" is max. It sits at 32" on the MJ now. I'm not to worried about it, other then the fact that I work within a mile of thier sub station at I-94 and Hwy 20.

I agree with you. If you put POR-15 on it if it starts to rust you won't know until its too late... With paint you can keep it in check. I cut my carpet under my seat mounts and console so I can remove it for muddy wheeling and clean it easy. I can also keep an eye out for rust this way.

I agree with you, it would be an expensive turd... In my other post about my 1 ton axles everyone seems to think the D30/D44 combo would be better.... :nuts: It's that or this... I have a HP D60 from about a '87 F350 DRW with 4.10 gears in great shape on hold for me at a nice price. It's about 76" wide with the DRW hubs that are on it. For the rear I can get D70's or a 14 bolt's thats either 72" wide or 67" wide. I can also get a C&C DRW 63" wide 14 bolt. Choice #1 Swap the hubs to SRW ones it is about 69" wide, then shorten the long side 5" so it would be 64" wide. This would be a great match for the C&C DRW 14 bolt. With this combo I would run 8" rims with about 4" of backspacing. It would wind up about 75"-76" wide with the tires. Choice #2 Narrow the long side 5" so the axle is 71" wide. Then use a 72" D70 or a 14 bolt rear axle. For this combo I would run Hummer wheels. Overall width would be about 75"-77" wide with tires also. Choice #3 Buy the HP D60, resell it and use the money to help build my non-disconnect D30 and rear D44. What to do? This is my problem..... I don't really wheel hard enough to need the one ton axles anymore but they would be sweet and they won't break. I have a bad back so ride quaility is a big concern of mine. I'm trying to stay at about 6" of lift and am happy with 33x10.5's for street use for ride quaility. With ther one tons I would run a 37x12.50 or so and could live with the ride once the suspesion is dialed in. I plan on reworking the front suspension either way. If I stick with my D30 and my D44 my 33's will be my street tires and Q78X15's TSL's would be my trail tires. If I run 1 ton axles I'll run 37"" tires on the trail and on the street. Cutting the fenders more to fit 37's with 6" of lift isn't a problem. I'm kind of concerned about tickets thou. The lift law here is 5" so I'm already over that and the tires by law can be 4" in radius larger. That means about 35"-37" tires are max. The tires can stick out 2" max by law, so I would need some extra coverage if I go with the one tons. It would cost me as much if not more to build up my D30 and D44. They would still be weaker and have little brakes. So tell me what you think now... :cheers:

If I sell my front HP D60 I will need to set-up my D30. Here is my plan: Non-disconnect HP D30 Spicer 4.10 gears with a TrueTrac(I will be using a 242 transfer case) Beef the front cover Truss the housing Raise the upper and lower control arm mounts 3"(nothing below the axle tube)(improved angles-no drop brackets required) Raised trackbar mount Relocate/redesigned steering damper mount WJ front brake/knuckle swap Rotate the inner C's for proper caster/pinion angles Weld braces one the inner C"s U-bolt style yoke Relocate/reinforce the spring mounts(moving the axle forward 1")(might be raised slightly) HD spring retainers 3.5" bumpstops that bolt to the lower sping perch Custom lower shock mounts located as low as possible(no BPE's) Alloy axle shafts and HD u-joints Axle tube seals to keep out dirt How does this sound? Did I miss anything?

My 33's will be my street tires and Q78X15's TSL's would be my trail tires. If I run those axles I'll run 37"-39.5" tires. I'm just concerned about tickets. The lift law here is 5" so I'm already over that and tires can be 4" in radius larger. That means about 35"-36" tires are max. It would cost me as much if not more to build up a Super D30 and a Super D44. They would still be weaker and have little brakes. I also have a good line on a HP D44 and a 9" combo. I will probably just regear my current axles, truss them, raise the front control arm mounts 3" and swap larger brakes on front, and put a Truetrac with alloy axles up front. In the rear I'll use a Detroit locker or spool. Then I'll just buy the HP D60 and resell it.

I have a HP D60 from about a '87 F350 DRW with 4.10 gears in great shape on hold for me at a nice price. It's about 76" wide with the DRW hubs that are on it. For the rear I can get a D70 or a 14 bolt thats either 72" wide or 67" wide. I can also get a C&C DRW 63" wide 14 bolt. Choice #1 Swap the hubs to SRW ones it is about 69" wide, then shorten the long side 5" so it would be 64" wide. This would be a great match for the C&C DRW 14 bolt. With this combo I would run 8" rims with about 4" of backspacing. It would wind up about 75"-76" wide with the tires. Choice #2 Narrow the long side 5" so the axle is 71" wide. Then use a 72" D70 or a 14 bolt rear axle. For this combo I would run Hummer wheels. Overall width would be about 75"-76" wide with tires also. Choice #3 Buy the HP D60, resell it and use the money to help build my non-disconnect D30 and rear D44. I don't really wheel hard enough to need the one ton axles anymore but they would be sweet. I have a bad back so ride quaility is a big concern of mine. I'm trying to stay at about 6" of lift and am happy with 33x10.5's for street use for ride quaility. I plan on reworking the front suspension either way. What to do? This is my problem..... I have a ton of othe work to do from boxsides, to swapping the 4.0HO AW-4/242 transfer case in, to a interior swap and parting out 2 XJ's. If I sell the HP D60 I would make be a great deal for a member here. I know the D30 and D44 should hold up to how I will use them for the most part. The ride will be the best this way. But I know the bigger axles wouldn't break, but would also cause me to get on it more. I would probably have problem with the law about lift and tires with them also. So whats your thoughts???

X2 Why would anyone do that......

Your thermostat determines how cold it runs. A solid mounted fan will probably eat up about 3-5hp more then a stock one will.

But on the other hand ... the mother and step-father of a Jeeping friend of mine recently bought a Dodge diesel crew cab to haul their 30-foot 5th wheel trailer. Then they discovered that the Dodge 2500 isn't rated to carry/tow that much weight, so they sold the Dodge and bought a Ford. According to my friend, the Ford carries a much higher load capacity than a Dodge of "comparable" series. Anybody know if this is true? The 2500 Dodge trucks max weight rating is determined by the tires. They are what sets the limit. Ford uses a bigger tire that can haul more weight. Why didn't they buy a dually 1 ton? They bought the heavest combo they could(a crew cab diesel) which lowers its ratings. Ford F-250 and F-350 both use the same rear springs, it's all about the tires and how much the truck wieghs. The Ford/International engine is light when compared to the Dodge/Cummins combo. A 30-foot 5th wheel trailer is meant to be pulled with a DRW 1 ton.

Since I didn't post a pic here is one. Image Not Found

If you want to keep your gas tank build a 3 link with an asymmetrical upper link like the TRD's truck uses. Here's a pic Image Not Found

I'll have to check it out. It's still going to need a bunch of sandblasting. At least I found some spraypaint in the right color.

I work for an International dealer and not one tech would buy a Ford pick-up with the VT-365 diesel engine. They would buy the old 7.3, but the new engines are junk. They all say a Dodge with the Cummins is the way to go. The Chevy rates second and the Ford is a no go... whats so bad about them? only thing i've heard is the whole flame-shooting incident. They eat turbos, blow head gaskets and are just under built. They aren't a real medium duty engine. They are pushing the engine to the max stock.

The boxsides are rusted badly I have pin holes within an inch of the top of the box sides after checking it closely. Every bubble is a hole.... The sides need to get cut off so the outside of the box panels behind the fenders can be sandblasted and prepped to stop the rust. Within a year it will rust threw to the inside of the box otherwise. I should be able to bend up some new boxsides and build inner fender no problem. It's just a ton of work. I will be trying out my sheetmetal brake very soon.

I would run 4.10's in a heartbeat. They are great with up to 31" tires and work good up to 33" tires. 4.56 gears are great with 32's or 33's. As long as you have an overdrive or a 5 speed get 4.10's you won't be sorry. You are probably going to buy taller tires anyway.

second, with TJ flares, you could fit 35's now :brows: i bet with TJ flares you could fit 33's at the stock height. i have TJ flares, and am currently sitting at about 6" of lift and i bet i could fit 37's. mind you, if my manche was as clean and rust free as yours, i'd kick guys like me in the shins just for suggesting cutting the fenders. anyway, nice find man. u suck. :D I have TJ flares in the garage but I won't use them since I rework my stockers for more clearance and better looks then the TJ flares have. I did run 33's with no lift on my XJ with cut fenders and relocated stock flares. The rear of my MJ would fit 38" tires and the front would fit 37" tires right now with only 3" of bumpstop or so. I have 6" of front lift(since swapping bumpers) and 4.5" of rear lift. BTW I would cut the fenders on a clean MJ within the first week of owning it. Before I cut my fenders I could make my front 33's rub with 6.5" of lift. I would have needed at least 4" of bumpstop extention to keep the tires off the fender flares. My 11" travel front shocks allow for a ton of flex. With shorter shocks 6" of lift and 33's should fit with enough bumpstop.

The rearend might be better because of its ratio and I believe it has no c-clips. It won't bolt in, it needs spring perches and shock mounts. It isn't worth the effort, theres better axles to swap in then that one. The seats should be fine on MJ bucket seat frames. Front flares are the same, the rear ones are smaller and won't fit. Welcome aboard :cheers:

There is no need to get crazy with the flares I just heat them with a heat gun to reshape the lower part that wraps under the fender. Here some pictures of the front flares when they were on my '95 XJ. I filled the gap and the reformed flare still extends all the way to the bottom of the fender. Image Not Found When I add the rock rails I might move the flares 2" higher so they end at the weld in rock rails and replace them with new ones so the front will still extend down to the bumper.

The plan is to cut out the frame where the shackle mounts and plate the area. from about 12" in front of the shackle and to the rear of the frame. I plan on plating the rest of the frame anyway. I might add a cross member also. I plan on incorporating new bumper mounts. I like the idea of the multiple mounting locations. If I mounted the shackle up even higher I could design some angled skids into the new bumper mounts to help protect the springs from getting bent. I'm getting very close to just truggying it. The more I look at the box the more I want to build a bed for it and exo cage it.

I work for an International dealer and not one tech would buy a Ford pick-up with the VT-365 diesel engine. They would buy the old 7.3, but the new engines are junk. They all say a Dodge with the Cummins is the way to go. The Chevy rates second and the Ford is a no go...

Thanks. I don't understand why more people don't rework the stock flares. They can fit bigger tires then TJ flares if they are tweaked correctly. A heat gun and a sawzall are your friends. I'm going to use some front flares in the rear. They will be put on backwards. Once the box is cut off at the rear body line, the rear flares will look even better. They will fit the body perfectly to the rock rails and the gap will be filled just like the front gap is filled. I'm probably going to use some 36" tall Q78 TSL's for trail use and run my 33"x10.5" BFG's for street use.

I wish my XJ was that rust-free. Good score. 8) With some fender trimming I could make 33's fit at that ride height. With 6" of lift 35's will fit with some trimming. :chillin: Want to find me a clean MJ like yours? :D It doesn't even need to run...

Here an update. The cap is back on for now. :roll: The stripes are off and so are the emblems. The header and grill are from my 95 XJ has been installed. The fenders are cut and I swapped my bumper on. I cut a bunch on the back but there is still more rust.... The other side is even worse. :cry: It needs replacement panels and the inner panels sand blasted and treated before it rusts threw to the inside of the box. Fenders cut with bumper installed Image Not Found Flares clamped on to show how they will look Image Not Found Bumper (front view) Image Not Found Now I can measure for the 2"x6" weld in rock rails that will replace the rockers and extend to the rear wheel opening. The rear of the box will be cut off at the bodyline and a bumper will be built to wrap around to protect it. The flares also still need to be mounted. I still might just truggy it. The rusty box sucks.... :headpop:

What size tube, and what radius of bends? Something between 1.5"-2" tube and whatever radius is available

Relocating the shackles will change the pinion angle, but that will be done before the new spring perch are welded on. The relocated shackles will only cause the springs to sit 1/4" higher then where stock springs sit, so the pinion angle change from stock won't be noticeable. I plan on using 11" travel shocks and need the long shackles for proper shackle angles and full flex. Raising the shackles will also get the springs back out of harms way. I going to try some other MJ springs also. 6" of lift would be perfect.