Project Uncompahgre - 1989/1999 MJ

[ghetdjc320]

10 hours ago, natander2ksometime said:

You should bring it out to Moab in September for the MJ Takeover! I'm planning it this year.

Tell me more! There’s going to be an MJ takeover? 

[natander2ksometime]

12 hours ago, ghetdjc320 said:

Tell me more! There’s going to be an MJ takeover? 

There absolutely is! PM me for details. Don't want to muddy up this amazing build thread.

[USN_JeepMJ]

On 5/26/2022 at 12:11 PM, natander2ksometime said:

You should bring it out to Moab in September for the MJ Takeover! I'm planning it this year.

 

I'm not sure if I'll make it out this year but definitely next year!

 

I finally go to test it offroad in Ouray Colorado! But first, some protection:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I prepped my car hauler trailer with new lights all around, new tires, Ram trailer TPMS sensors, and a quick rinse:

 

 

My first time towing with a HD truck... All I can say is wow. It pulled the trailer with such ease that I'd honestly forget I had it back there. The Cummins got about 50% better fuel economy than my previous Ram 1500 hemi pulling a similar load:

 

 

Unfortunately I didn't really take too many pictures. My best friend met us out there with his brand new Sahara 4xe so we kept it to trails that he could get through without damage. This was meant to be a shakedown run for the Comanche so the Mineral Creek trail (beginning of Engineer Pass / Alpine Loop) was about as difficult as we did. Here's a few pictures from somewhere on that trail:

 

 

 

 

 

As I do every year, we decorated for the Ouray 4th of July Jeep parade of lights:

 

 

It rained a lot so that put a little damper on the trip and we ended up only getting a few days of wheeling but the Comanche did so with only 2 issues. First I had an annoying belt squeak which ended up being due to the wrong belt (slightly too long) and second I had a heat-soak issue (high intake temps and high altitude. Water and oil temp did not go up) at the top of one of the passes which lead to the Manifold Absolute Pressure sensor "failing". A quick reset of the code with my scanner and a few minutes to let it cool down and I was back on the trail. I think an oil cooler and some intake shielding will be in the future. Heading home:

 

[USN_JeepMJ]

No updates on the MJ... Unfortunately. I'll probably put the MJ under its cover for the winter. I think its wheels will be going on the WK so it'll definitely need some new wheels and tires before next year! In the meantime I'm up to 3 V8 Jeeps:

 

[Joeyv12503]

Any updates on this gorgeous MJ?

[USN_JeepMJ]

On 6/9/2023 at 8:25 AM, Joeyv12503 said:

Any updates on this gorgeous MJ?

 

Haha, I guess there are a few! 

 

I had been running JK spec Gorilla Lug nuts on my JK axles with JL wheels... while JL wheels have the same bolt pattern, they're made for the JL's M14 studs and larger lug nuts. The JK lugs were digging into the JL wheel seat and causing damage. I found a solution! Lug Nut Guys JK to JL lug nuts. They have a larger seat for using JL wheels on a JK. 

 

 

Before:

 

 

After:

 

I also purchased a set of Key Parts MJ tail lights (they offer the entire assembly now not just the lens). Overall they I'd say excellent finish with an OK fit. Nothing is going to fit as well as the factory original lenses that have warped with the body over the years... but overall not a terrible fit. I'll run them and save my originals for someday if I sell it. I also have a set of the smoked Oracle LED MJ tails on pre-order (Aug delivery) so we'll see which ones I like better:

 

 

Factory original on the left (sanded and cleared) and Key Parts on the right:

 

 

Makes it look so new!

 

 

 

In future news, I do have plans for more protection (gas tank skid and rear bed rock rails), new guage cluster (Dakota Digital HDX TJ/XJ cluster), and beadlocks with some 38 Nitto Trail Grapplers. Ufortunately for the Comanche, I've been focusing on my new project, an '08 WK that I've modified the body to fit 37's at 3" of lift plus the SRT8 6.1L Hemi and Brembos. The WK build: 2008 Limited Build - Project Yankee Boy

 

 

The Comanche has been getting used though. Recent trip to Bridgeport OHV Park (30 minutes away!):

 

 

 

 

[boxyjeep]

That's awesome.  Great to see it getting some solid use.  What sliders are those?

[Ωhm]

38 minutes ago, USN_JeepMJ said:

 

 

 

 

I'm not sure which way to go here, but this guy made me think about this.

 

 

[USN_JeepMJ]

26 minutes ago, boxyjeep said:

That's awesome.  Great to see it getting some solid use.  What sliders are those?

 

They're JCR sliders

 

6 minutes ago, Ωhm said:

 

I'm not sure which way to go here, but this guy made me think about this.

 

 

Interesting. The reason I've always x-strapped is that on long trips (TX to CO) I tend to get the vehicle moving side to side on my steel deck trailer and thats been my primary concern (other than emergency braking of course). But I'll be honest, I've never considered what Bleeping is talking about with a strap breaking. I've never had a strap break (especially now that I'm running an amazing set of Bulldog 3335 lbs straps) and on my last trip to CO I had a huge emergency stop from 80+ with my 2500 Ram and MJ in tow... Jeep didn't move an inch! 

 

I used to do both... On my old trailer I'd straight strap the axles and x-strap the body. Those were generic straps and I was just learning about towing so it was definitely overkill. There are definitely benefits to either way but the most important thing you can do regardless of which you choose, is checking every strap every time you stop and continually monitoring the vehicle position. My new Ram has some amazing tools for that including multiple camera angles which allows me to frequently monitor for load shift while in motion.

 

My old Denali and Yas Marina Blue XJ:

 

 

 

[Bomberjeep]

What an incredible build!!  Thank you for sharing.  It has definitely motivated me to get back out into the garage.

 

Keep up the great work.