yet another V8 stretched one ton TJ build (copied from my build thread on pirate4x4)
- Thread starter knobby97
- Start date
Tacked the new tube inside the frame rails to get an idea of how everything is going to go together. Then supported the front and clamped the winch plate onto the front. I will end up just cutting the winch plate even with the center line radius of the tube and then burn it on. Looks like the cross brace that I had planned on putting between the tube rails is going to end up needing to be a bent piece versus a straight tube. The bottom of the tube is higher than the body mount on the front clip, so a little bending and a trick tab and I should have a body mount again and also end up with a little protection for the bottom tank of the radiator, which is probably a good thing. Now I just have to figure out where the heck the dual rate sway bar is going to go. Might end up on the rear at this rate . . .
Here's what she looks like as of this afternoon.
Also finished welding my swag DIY HD brake kit together so I can start bending some sheet steel to cover the holes in the rear part of the tub where the hoops are coming through.
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Here's what she looks like as of this afternoon.
Also finished welding my swag DIY HD brake kit together so I can start bending some sheet steel to cover the holes in the rear part of the tub where the hoops are coming through.
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Had some more goods show up, so the work bench is starting to fill up with stuff to hang again. Picked up a twin handle cutting brake off of a vendor on pirate, then managed to snag a set of new artec high steer arms, with outer knuckle bolts, that were already drilled by artec for reid knuckles from another guy on pirate.
So it looks like the front axle will be coming out again soon so the full hydro can get installed and figure out where I'm going to put the orbital valve. Will also be disabling the airbag system, or might just remove it all together.
So it looks like the front axle will be coming out again soon so the full hydro can get installed and figure out where I'm going to put the orbital valve. Will also be disabling the airbag system, or might just remove it all together.
Well the front axle got pulled this weekend and I also got some work done on the new tubed part of the front frame. Ended up cutting more off of the bottom side of the front frame rails in order to remove a natural hum in the fame, while also making some access to the inside of the frame so it can be welded from that angle too. Cut some 3/8s plate to cap the end of the frame rails, then took the 1.75 hole saw to in it so the last 1.5 or so inches of tube would pass through the plate. Then, for extra measure, tigged the plate to the tube on both the front and back. Will more than likely be adding in a gusset of two between the tube and plate on both sides, and then probably figure out some other way to overkill the project.
Got the new artec high steer arms hung and the hydro mount and supports tacked on so I can figure out the exact positioning of the DE ram. Also still waiting on my other set of ram clamps to come in, figured 4 clamps on the ram is a bit much but it easier to do the extra clamps now instead of down the road. So here is what the axle is currently looking like.
Also pretty sure that the weight loss from loosing the steering gearbox and frame was just added to the front axle, as that hp60 is going to be a heavy biznitch once everything is said and done.
Got the new artec high steer arms hung and the hydro mount and supports tacked on so I can figure out the exact positioning of the DE ram. Also still waiting on my other set of ram clamps to come in, figured 4 clamps on the ram is a bit much but it easier to do the extra clamps now instead of down the road. So here is what the axle is currently looking like.
Also pretty sure that the weight loss from loosing the steering gearbox and frame was just added to the front axle, as that hp60 is going to be a heavy biznitch once everything is said and done.
Decided to do a little mocking up of the front frame section since the new dual pull winch plate showed up from barnes4wd today, and being stuffed up in the house trying to finish this semester's grad school crap up is getting old. Haven't decided wether to skin the front clip so I can play around with the radiator mounting in order to get the bottom tank out of the way as it is the lowest point without that front chunk of frame being there. So here is basically what I'm looking at going with for the moment. The winch plate will be cut to the center line of the tube to follow the lines, radiator hoop will have to have an inch or two cut off to lower it, and the winch hoop is probably going to have to be bent in a few more degrees on the ends to match up with the tube frame piece. Should hopefully have this part wrapped up this weekend considering I will actually be able to work on the jeep as long as the weather is decent.
New beadlocks came in today. Got one mounted up, then started dismounting the next tire and them it got cold. Treps are hard enough to get off of a wheel due to their thick a$$ beads, but the cold definitely makes it more of a PITA. Hoping to get some actual work completed tomorrow and over the weekend, as grad school is finished until January.
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Yeah that would be nice, I already feel that I pay too much to go there in the first place.
So I got the last of the parts from artec at the end of the week, so I spent Saturday and Sunday trying to get the front axle finished up. So I had to break the tack welds and clock the ram mount more in order for the bridge to work. So after everything was lined up and the ram rings were mocked in place, spent the rest of the afternoon welding everything up and then giving it a coat of flat black. Today I got the DE ram mounted up and the bridge and diff skid reinstalled. Then moved on to cutting the knuckle bolt spacers and tie rods. Ends up that the two pieces of equal length tube PSC supplies with their kit is 1.25 x .120 DOM, and ended up being too short for one side. So I managed to find some scrap pieces of 1.5 x .250 DOM that fit the bill, so I went the overkill route and got the tie rods mocked up.
Will start tacking the front frame pieces in place tomorrow so I can get that finished up and hopefully get the front axle back under the jeep in the coming week or so.
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So I got the last of the parts from artec at the end of the week, so I spent Saturday and Sunday trying to get the front axle finished up. So I had to break the tack welds and clock the ram mount more in order for the bridge to work. So after everything was lined up and the ram rings were mocked in place, spent the rest of the afternoon welding everything up and then giving it a coat of flat black. Today I got the DE ram mounted up and the bridge and diff skid reinstalled. Then moved on to cutting the knuckle bolt spacers and tie rods. Ends up that the two pieces of equal length tube PSC supplies with their kit is 1.25 x .120 DOM, and ended up being too short for one side. So I managed to find some scrap pieces of 1.5 x .250 DOM that fit the bill, so I went the overkill route and got the tie rods mocked up.
Will start tacking the front frame pieces in place tomorrow so I can get that finished up and hopefully get the front axle back under the jeep in the coming week or so.
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Thanks Nick.
I've basically done away with using the chop saw nowadays and make almost all of my straight cuts with my Milwaukee Porto band. It's a crap load faster, you can tend to keep the cut straighter, and you don't have to worry about shooting sparks 10 ft away. I measured the mounting width of my heims at a little shy of 7/8", I think they were like .89 something according to the digital calipers. Just figure where you want the upper edge of your heim to be, cut that length off of one end of the spacer, then cut off the width of the heim from the end of the spacer that you just cut off. Since you're running the draglink to the knuckle bolt too, I would run some high misalignment spacers on the draglink to ensure that nothing binds up at the pitman arm or knuckle end.
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I've basically done away with using the chop saw nowadays and make almost all of my straight cuts with my Milwaukee Porto band. It's a crap load faster, you can tend to keep the cut straighter, and you don't have to worry about shooting sparks 10 ft away. I measured the mounting width of my heims at a little shy of 7/8", I think they were like .89 something according to the digital calipers. Just figure where you want the upper edge of your heim to be, cut that length off of one end of the spacer, then cut off the width of the heim from the end of the spacer that you just cut off. Since you're running the draglink to the knuckle bolt too, I would run some high misalignment spacers on the draglink to ensure that nothing binds up at the pitman arm or knuckle end.
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Well change of build plans number 378 . . ., needed some longer front coilovers. So after a phone call, and trip to Carolina Truggies, I came home with these:
Fun fact that was learned while revalving the shocks today. The 16" foxes are destroked with 2 x 1" spacers, so they can be adjusted to 18"s of travel with ease.
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Fun fact that was learned while revalving the shocks today. The 16" foxes are destroked with 2 x 1" spacers, so they can be adjusted to 18"s of travel with ease.
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Got the genright front frame side link mounts cut out yesterday. Was a bit of a PITA trying to remove them without cutting into the frame, so the plasma set on low amperage was instrumental to getting the welds out of the way and then split with a cold chisel.
So out with the old:
And in with the new, which will hopefully be tacked up today:
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So out with the old:
And in with the new, which will hopefully be tacked up today:
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Finally got a little time this afternoon to try and finish up the repositioned front coilover mounts so I could get the jeep back on 4 tires and move on to some other stuff.
So here is how she sat as of this evening:
Current wheelbase is 108"s, which is with all of the links at the shortest settings. Plan is probably to end up at either 110" or 112" depending on how things fit.
The front was swapped from 14" coilovers to 16" remote resis, while swapping the spring rate from 12" 200/ 14" 250 eibachs to 16" 150/ 16" 200 PAC springs. Went with lighter coil rates after doing to some research on a newer pirate thread on spring rates and how to use the lightest coil possible, while using longer length springs and preload. With the new spring rate in the front i've got 1.25"s of preload with 6.5"s of up travel (9.5" down). Also got my new aluminum crossflow radiator in, as my current radiator is the lowest point on the front of the jeep at the moment.
Tomorrow, if all goes well, will consist of fabbing and mocking up the new front trac bar set up, and also perhaps reworking the rear upper coilover mount since I don't have to worry about tire contact with the new wheels. This will allow me to switch from the current 12" rear coil overs back to the 14" that I had on there originally. Also ordered the remote resi upgrade for which ever set of coil overs I end up with on the rear.
So here is how she sat as of this evening:
Current wheelbase is 108"s, which is with all of the links at the shortest settings. Plan is probably to end up at either 110" or 112" depending on how things fit.
The front was swapped from 14" coilovers to 16" remote resis, while swapping the spring rate from 12" 200/ 14" 250 eibachs to 16" 150/ 16" 200 PAC springs. Went with lighter coil rates after doing to some research on a newer pirate thread on spring rates and how to use the lightest coil possible, while using longer length springs and preload. With the new spring rate in the front i've got 1.25"s of preload with 6.5"s of up travel (9.5" down). Also got my new aluminum crossflow radiator in, as my current radiator is the lowest point on the front of the jeep at the moment.
Tomorrow, if all goes well, will consist of fabbing and mocking up the new front trac bar set up, and also perhaps reworking the rear upper coilover mount since I don't have to worry about tire contact with the new wheels. This will allow me to switch from the current 12" rear coil overs back to the 14" that I had on there originally. Also ordered the remote resi upgrade for which ever set of coil overs I end up with on the rear.