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and is any one eaven reading this thread? no one ever posts anything

 

 

 

YUP I AM

 

Some great reading. Even your set backs are encouraging cause they happen often to me. Been trying to buy the parts to build my lift and that's when something more important than the MJ needs it.

 

Love the ideas and I am sure to use some of them. Still studying your build and will PM with some questions. Unless I think others would need the info then I will post them. Thanks again for taking the few minutes to document your work after all the busted knuckles!

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So ill start off with the axle since thats where i left off. I finaly got the unit bearings, ball joints and drilled brake rotors in so i slaped it all together an finaly finished. the ball joints were a little bit of a beotch but there now happy in there new home

After completing the axle i dove head first in to geting the stroker buttoned up so that i could get it in to the mj I piched up a 99 intake from a friend of mine on a traid for a freshly rebult renix head and i allso got the newer style valve cover that has the better intenal baffeling system :brows: no cash needed jamminz.gif

I ordered the hisco tps adapter but i forgot to get a picture of it but i have to say that i feel a little raped as for under a 5$ peice of aluminum and a little machining..... 158 dollars later and my tps is where it needs to be I got the head installed on the short block and after torquing the head bolts down it seemed likt the motor came together quite quicly here's the old cranky motor coming out of the truck

here's the beauty about to go in to place

the last pic is right before i stuffed it in the truck I power washed the engine bay and cleaned the heater core before i put her home

here's the the naked engine bay.

I got the motor back in the engine bay and put the front end back together

After geting the the front end back together i tried to start the truck but after two atemps i quickly realised that i had no fuel presure to the furl rail and after investigating it a little deeper i relised that i had adapeded the puel lines on the truck backwards. once that was complete i started the truck and followed the procedures in breaking in the cam 1800k rpm to 2000 rpms for about 20 miniutes. shuting the motor back down i continued to finish the long arm install and get the truck back on its own its own wheels and get that axel that i have been working on where it belongs... a few hours worth of work and here's some pics

SO here's a parts list of the front suspenttion parts...

NEW: roughf country xj long arm upgrade, Roughf country sway bar disconects, crown steel braded extended brake lines and roughf country shocks, Roughf country sway bar drop bracket

Slightly used: rugged ridge HD cross over stering, RK bomb proof 6.5" to 8.0" track bar and bracket, M.O.R.E stering box brace and skyjacker 8" coils, ZJ stering box and zj pitman arm

I also installed a ford power stering cooler to heep the pump happy when I'm dowing some slow 4 wheeling with the 33 that are curently on there... Theres also a ford trans cooler that i installed to keep the trans happy in the same situations.

comanche.gif

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I still have yet to show you guys what i have done with the interior so here it is... I ripped the bench seat out and installed some buckets out of a 99 xj and the center consoul out of a 95 xj country I also robbed the wood grain dash bezel and door trim for my truck. While i was at the junk yard i came across a rear speaker pod out of a 95 xj and it got me thinking on how i could mould it in to the head liner of the mj to get the spakers over head instead of behind the seats I have in stalled a 12" Kicker comp behind the passanger seat with a rockford fosgate 800W amp on the backer board. I installed my 12volt guy dual battery and winch pannel in the cab on the consoul where the parking brake in the xj would be. I also installed switches for the upcoming acessories in the front tray of the comsoul, I found the switch pannel in a conversion van that was in the junk yars and it has carlisle rockers in it and with with the heading at the top of the swich pannel i thought it would be a perfect fit. I will be installing a set of KC on the front bumper and front and rear rock lights, a york 210 air coperssor, under bed rail led lights the first switch on the pannel is a double throw switch so on position will control the kc lights and the other position will controll all of the rock lights. I also liquid nailed a peice of 1/2" ply wood to the roof and after i installed the head liner thats what i used to secure the CB. here's some pictures :clapping:

I did get the truck partialy back together so i pulled it out of under the car port and took some pictures with it semi together, I still need to install the winch bumper back on to the truck. Before all of that i am going to have the paint finished, Its going to stay jet black on top and a dark gun metal metalic on the botom witha burgandy metalic center deviding stripe. I got the truck on to a trailor and over to the exzhaust shop to get a new wxzhaust backed up to the borella header. I have yet to get pics of that but i will soon i promase. after the exzhaust i decided that i was going to drive it home ( i still have no insurance papres on it or any kind of reg but i i don't mind riding dirty 2 miles home). I do have a problem with the ignition system or something. If I'm driving i can get the motor to wrap up to about 2000 rpms but then it stimbles and backfires prity bad. I'm a little dissapointed once agian but whats new, its allways something with this truck so it doesent suprise me. I tested all fo the sensors except the knock sensor and the 02 sensor and every thing test with in range so?????? :grrrr: I bought a new o2 sensor and knock sensor that I'm going to install but i suspect that the distributor may be at fault as i used the origonal one that was in the truck so it may have a bad pick up coil or may be out of spec on the play so :wall: I droped it off at a friends shop that has a DRBII scan tool so hes going to check it out and see if he can find the problem. I should note that it sits about 2" higher in the front than the back and lind of looks like a pre runner but i kind of like the look of it. I did order 2" AAL for the rear so if i decide to get it sitting leavle atleast i have the leafes around but I'm going to wait on that till after ive driven it for a bit. Here some pics of the truck as it sits right at the molment

I'm loving it but i know ill love it more once i have a bit of time in the drivers seat..... jamminz.gif

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Has any ne bult a gas tank skid for there mj? If you have please post a pic or 2 here so i can get some ideas on how I'm going to aproach that....

I am also going on a road trip in this truck as soon as its done and i will be going from here (el paso TX) to Las vegas nevada, then straight to seattle and then back down to moab ut and then back home so if your anywhere near where I'm going to be and have time to show a fello mj owner som off the beaten trail trails I AM SO IN pm me and let me know Ill be leaving here next month around the 16th and I'm going to take a month trip out of it.

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keep it up! Looking good and with some nice ideas and upgrades.

 

I loved the addition of the sound bar in my Comanche. When the doors are off I can still hear the tunes!

 

Can't wait to hear how the motor is working on the street and off road.

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honestly I didn't use anything to hold it up. I probably should have. It is wedged in really tight and through all the mud and trails it still hasn't moved I thought about puting a thin metal sheet above the head liner so that I could use some light screws to hold it up in the center. I might do that if I install a center light fixture.

 

It's raining cats and dogs right now or I would snap a picture of it. Maybe if it lets up I will give it a shot.

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I don't have any pic of what i did but i liquid nailed a peice of plywood to the top before i put my head liner in and as well as weging the speaker pod in the sides like the factory i also screwed in through the light to the ply wood to secure the center if that makes any sence :dunno:

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  • 1 month later...

So its been a little while since i poasted any thing so i thought id update this to where my mj now sits. I realy havent done to much wrenching on the mj, just wheeling it and having fun with it. I did get around to installing the 1/4 guards and i finaly threw the front bumper back on the truck. I still need to have a windsheild installed and finish the paint job, and bed line the bed.

so last weekend a few friends brought there crawlers and we went wheeling just outside las cruses nm in the robleto mtns. i decided to follow them up the tabasco twister ans on our way up to one of the main obsticales i fell off a bolder and nailed the passanger cab corner and bed side :mad: :wall: :doh:

after geting to the first waterfall i ended up jumping in a friends buggie to finish all of the HUGE waterfalls.

 

Ive also been working on my cj and a friends MJ project "slick rick" so time wrenching on my comanche has been a little thin. Ill be fabing up some sliders in the near future to kee that from hapening agian... o well...

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  • 2 months later...

So I thought Id update this thread :wrench:

I did get the bed lined and a new tool box in the bed of the truck, I don't have any pictures at the molment but I'm gonna be taking a @$$ load tomorow as i am bulding an on boars air system so ill definatly show youguys what i did.

 

My main goal with the oba is of corse to air up my tires but ive had a secondary plan in the back of my head for a while and after i finish the oba i am going to be bulding a in cab misting system for the truck since i have never had ac in the truck.... I am thinking of running 2 to 4 nossles in the cab with a 2 1/2 gallon presure tank that is presurised by a line that comes off of my oba tank to a regulator that will be set at 90 psi.....

 

for the presure tank i found something super cool and that will work perfect.... youll just have to stay tuned to see my new little side project....

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Well First thanks for reading my rant but i feel this needs to be said to help other people stay away from rock krawler....

 

Now I know some of you will probably bash this tread but thats fine with me and i am in no way trying to be rude or blast a company, and for all I know the products that you guys have may be better quality but rock krawler almost killed me.....

 

 

 

So I have an 88 jeep comanche, here's the buld tread on Comanche club if you care to look...

 

viewtopic.php?f=7&t=24845

 

 

 

But so yesterday i was driving down I-10 and all of a suden i heard a loud snap and then all hell broke loose, i shot off over in to the fast land almost coliding with a semi and then over to the emergancy lane in a super wild fit of deth wobble. Now every thing on my jeep is brand new and maticusly mantained. Two days ago I got under the jeep and greased every thing and tightended every thing back down in anticipation for a trip to bridgeport ca that I'm about to take.......

After leaving skidmarks in my seat i got out of the truck to see what had broken sending me in to the worst and i mean worst deth wobble ive ever experianced.... Well as soon as i looked at the front end it came aparent what had failed. the only part that i have on my truck made by rock krawler is there bomb proof track bar, well aparently its not verry bomb proof. Now what happened is the threads in side the track bar and the treads on the shank of the hime joint failed and riped completly out of the track bar..... now I know what your thinkin, the jam nut wasent tight.... well your wrong I have personaly tightened the jam nut down on three seprate ocasions since the 4 months i have had the jeep done. including two days ago..... so after geting the jeep home i decided that i would give rock krawler a call and see if i couldent get it waranteed. After geting on the phone with a tech at rock krawler it became aparent to me that they have the rudest and most unprofessional tech staff ive ever incountered. I explained to the tech what happened and the reply i got was "well its not our fault that you dident tighten down the jam nut".... as you can probably imagine that realy offended me as i buld rock crawlers I'm no dumb a$$, I curently own 6 jeeps and saying that i dident tighten down the jam nut after i explaned that the jeep has been mticulously matained and I PERSONALY MADE SURE that the jam nut was tight 3 times in the last 4 months..... Realy now what kind of busness are they trying to run?

 

Say what you want but I'm just trying to help other people keep on living and trying to help other fourm members stay away from there $hittY customer service.......

 

so long story short I am fex exing them back there crap that they call bomb proof and chalking it up as a learning experiance, and buying some one elses track bar......

 

any sugestions?

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  • 4 months later...

So I finaly returned back home from my work detail at the mountian warfare traning center just out side of Reno NV. I spent most of the summer up there working and can I just say the eastern seirra nevadas and can i just say that that is gods country! I was able to drag the comanche along with me and while I was up there I got to run the Rubicon Trail, I had a blast and the jeep performed almost flawlessly. I ended up slicing a side wall coming back up the big sluce box and in turnds landed the comanche on its passanger ides on to a boulder. I dident get any pictures as it was an expedited recovery. but becides loosing a tire and smashing the side :( the comanche wheels like a champ... here's some pictures of the rubicon. I spent three days on the rubicon the weekend before the jeep jamboree in july....

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I was also able to make it to the NAXJA fall fling in Moab UT on my way back to Texas. Ive never been to moab (or the rubicon for that matter) sothis work trip was more of a wheeling vacation than any thing else.... ill post up pics as soon as i upload them to photo bucket... jamminz.gif

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  • 2 weeks later...

As promased here some pictures of my trip to moab UT... I went and joined in with NAXJA on this run and it was the Fall Fling. I realy has a great time running with toes guys and i can say that i will be back in moab for next years fall fling. There were aproaxamently 20 XJ's but as usual I was the only manche on the trails. we ran rusty nail on wedensday, and broke a front output shaft for the 231 half way through the trail. Can I just say it sucks being pullde back to camp. Luckly a fellow XJer has the input shaft i needed so i spent the cold night puting it back together. thursday we ran the pickle and mashed potato, friday we ran cliff hanger ans saturday we ran hells revenge.... the only other brakage i had was on friday on hells revenge, Right before getting to the escalator i could head a clicking from my front passanger side. I lost a cap for the u joint and it began to wollow out the stub shaft. I had a spare so i replaced that shaft and continued on to the escalator. last place i hit satirday was potato sallad hill and i am impressed out of 9 xjs that atempted potato sallad hill my mj and one other xj on tons made it up.... thoes extra 9 or 10 inches helps. but enoughf :typing:

Potato salad hill. ( it was up on two wheels just before this pic was taken....)

going in the car wash

comming out of Carwash on hells revenge

beggining of rusty nail

my broken output shaft ( it sheared right off) :fs2:

just before pic above on potato salad hill

Climbing a watter fall on the pickle

This was on mashed potato comming out of the gravy bowl on the left line, my jeep just wouldent climb the right line like the xjs ( that extra 10 in hurt me here) but as you come out on the line that i took you get extreemly close to a 500' vertical cliff and the worst thing is your way off camburg to the cliff face. I honestly had my a$$ clinched so tight here that there is still a mark in the seat :chillin:

here's the gravy bowl if you look close youll notice the right line that i just couldent make it up...

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here i am fixing my broken axel shaft. Ive got it down to a sience..... 15 min and I'm ready to rock some more.....

here i am on the eseclator, It had just rained a bit before we got to this obstical so it was realy slick i made it up the first ledge but....

I had to be pullde up the second ledge, I sliped off the side and when atempting the climp agian i ended up resting it on the top of the rear passanger bed rail....

 

all in all i had a great time..................

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  • 1 year later...

So Its been way to long since ive posted on this fourm and i thought id update to where the comanche has been since last post and the things that have been done to it. Ive been doing lots of wheeling around El Paso and even got the comanche back up to moab UT for this years fall fling (2012) the truck performed flawlessly and luckly i dident break any thing this year.

Realy the only thing that ive added to the comanche are rock lights for the night itme wheeling we do here. I am curently looking for a new to me short box so that i can replace the crunched coke can i have in the back. I have how ever found the Drivers side b pillar and cab corner so all i need now is the Pasanger side b pillar, short bed and rocker pannels, Does any one make NEW MJ spacific rocker pannels? So if any one knows where there is a short bed, passanger side b piller/cab corner or a whole comanche that has been smashed from the front any where with in 5hrs from my house id love to hear from you (please)

 

I also just recently bought another MJ (87 shortbed 2.5 2WD) that i got for 250$ as a roller as the motor had blown up and been yanked a long time ago. I origonaly bought it for the bed but ive decided to start a 99 swap on this one and ill be starting a build thread on that one soon.

 

I have been bulding a 98 XJ for as my crawler so when i have aquired all of the rest of the sheet metal for redzilla ( don't realy know why i call it redzilla cuse its realy black, I'm kinda dumb like that) Ill be striping her back down and re skinning her to her origonal glory. But i can allready see thats going to be a ways down the road.

 

The only problem i had after this years trip to moab ut was i wasted ( bent ) the rear drive shaft on the mj but I had it resleaved at U-Joints of El Paso...

 

Now on to some pictures of the El Paso wheeling and this years fall fling.... and ill throw one in of the 99 XJ that i have been building to smash up...

 

here's a video of the xj ive been working on, Ive gotten progresivly bigger balls and this is why i don't wana crawl the mj any more

 

 

And my trip to this years fall fling, and ive had a certan Girl from the fall fling grow on me so fall fling was definatly a FALL FLING for me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hells gates and mickeys hot tub were definatly the high light of this trip. I made it through both with out a hitch or line i should say. I was kind of intimidated by mickeys hot tub because ive seen videos of buggies that got in and couldent make it back out, Its alot deeper that it looks in the pictures but the trick is momentum...

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