Here goes my build. Currently I am putting together a 3 link in my daily driver. First I cut a hole in the floor and got the frame side, upper control arm bracket mostly mounted
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Mobile%20Uploads/0705101243.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Mobile%20Uploads/0705101335a.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Mobile%20Uploads/0704101850.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Mobile%20Uploads/0705101335.jpg

here is my winch bumper I recently finished:
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture172.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Mobile%20Uploads/0705101658.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Mobile%20Uploads/0705101659.jpg

3x5 .25 wall tube. I butted up against the pinch seem and welded to it. Eventually these will become air tanks
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture123.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture121.jpg

The current cross member, its 3/8's flat bar and I clocked the 231j transfer case flat by re drilling the trans adapter.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture117.jpg

All that work for a winch bumper, and you left the winch in front of the radiator?

Weird.

All that work for a winch bumper, and you left the winch in front of the radiator?

Weird.
I put it where I wanted, it sits back a little. I like the protection my grill gets, and being able to easily access my free spool lever and solenoid box. Besides its my daily driver, not that it matters. I keep up with most rigs off road.

All that work for a winch bumper, and you left the winch in front of the radiator?

Weird.

Did you mean....grille? :flipoff2:

Mounting it behind the radiator would be impressive.

No, not especially.

The feet on my winch are about even with the centerline of the radiator, and the drum is about a half inch from the balancer.

Did you mean....grille? :flipoff2:

Mounting it behind the radiator would be impressive.

I'd be more impressed if it went behind the grill but not the radiator.

Now that would be squeezing 10lbs of shit into a 5 lb bucket.


Your sliders look familiar :flipoff2:

I'd be more impressed if it went behind the grill but not the radiator.

Now that would be squeezing 10lbs of shit into a 5 lb bucket.


Your sliders look familiar :flipoff2:
Behind the grill, below the radiator... You can only fit 10lbs of shit in a 10lb bucket if your holding the bucket upright :flipoff2:

I did some work on my cargo area today. The plan is to have it completely covered so I can carry groceries and shit back there. Duplicolor bed liner is a bitch to remove. My fuel tanks full, still makes me nervous as hell welding so close to it. I still need a grommet for the fuel injection hoses. Tomorrow I get some lathe time. Steerings getting new, bigger hiems and I am going to build some twisty shackles for my leaves.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture002-5.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture003-2.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture005-2.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture004-4.jpg

pics of my shackle relocation boxes:
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture120.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture119.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture058.jpg

my steering shaft was a bit sloppy. I found it the be the rubber yoke bushings. I burned them out with a torch and welded it solid. I used some key stock in place of the rubber.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture160.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture159.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture161.jpg

find a temp front end yet?

I started filling in the floor, It would be better to wait in tell I finish the control arms, but the hole really freaks out my passengers and allot of heat from the exhaust pipe is coming in the cab.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture012-1.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture014-1.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture015-1.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture026.jpg

done yet?

-Nice work,, gonna have 2 pick ur brain a bit for my build as im always beefin up my XJ!! ESP if i get that front axle from ya!!!! :flipoff2:

I took my xj for a couple hour drive today and picked up a bunch of parts.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture190.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture191.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture192.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture193.jpg

[QUOTE=xj9140;11656963]
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture012-1.jpg
QUOTE]


:flipoff2: AWesome gusset haha, you make that?

Are u buildin those 60's urself??

lo-pinion D60 rear end pumpkin for the front?

lo-pinion D60 rear end pumpkin for the front?

yep

9 with 60 outters would be smokin

Yeah, Sucks though the axle tubes are only 1/4 wall. I may just build a 44 or 9" with the 60 outers. Not sure yet.

You should have told me you where in the market, I can poop in my hand and sale it to ya cheaper than what you paid for that guys poo.:flipoff2:

9 with 60 outters would be smokin

The current plan for the front (because I already have spicer d60 6.17's)
machined up some full length 1/4" wall internal sleeves with seal provisions to press in to the axle tubes.

And for the rear: I was pretty disapointed about the wimpy 30 spline shafts, apparently 60 rears are mostly lame, but because I already have the gear set, most likely I'll run it.

I did the Jeep thing, I guess I didn't understand spending money on something I still had to work on. Rest assured, my new to me FJ60 will be street legal, and will go where you do.

If/when you need a hand give me a call, I've been busy with the baby.

I flexed out the xj some. Not to bad for short arms.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture199.jpg

Is your rear swaybar disco'd? Doesn't look like the drivers side tire is drooping much.

Is your rear swaybar disco'd? Doesn't look like the drivers side tire is drooping much.

sway bars??? who runs them? just excess weight :flipoff2:

Is your rear swaybar disco'd? Doesn't look like the drivers side tire is drooping much.

it's dropping farther than a stock sway bar would allow, my guess would be shock or shackle limited.

shocks were disconnected, its shackle limited

Planning for at least 40" tires. I am going to cut out my inner fenders and make some new ones. In preparation I splurged for Trail Head Offroads cowl intake. I'll relocate my battery to the cargo area as well.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture215.jpg

And A dana60 detroit locker came in the mail:D
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture217.jpg

A what CAME in the mail? I wish I came those.:grinpimp::grinpimp::grinpimp::grinpimp:

Built a bender, its mostly done. Still need to purchase a die.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture243.jpg
And I started on the gear install
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture242.jpg

I think I asked you over on Naxja about that ruffstuff upper link bracket and if you thought it would be able to fit without cutting the floor. Can you give me some physical measurements on it? How tall it is at the front, how long, all that jazz?

Cool build. What were the results of the heim'd shackle?

ed: So I assume you moved the shackle bolt forward for a better angle but it apparently killed downtravel since it is hitting the front of the box. Do you plan to move it back? Maybe Im not understanding something.

I think I asked you over on Naxja about that ruffstuff upper link bracket and if you thought it would be able to fit without cutting the floor. Can you give me some physical measurements on it? How tall it is at the front, how long, all that jazz?

The bracket at the front is 4 1/4" tall, about 9" long front to back and accepts a 2 5/8" wide joint.


Cool build. What were the results of the heim'd shackle?

ed: So I assume you moved the shackle bolt forward for a better angle but it apparently killed downtravel since it is hitting the front of the box. Do you plan to move it back? Maybe Im not understanding something.

I never finished the heim shackles and not sure if I will. Most of my focus is on getting my 60's under the xj.

Gotcha

Some updates:
I relocated the battery to the rear and added some more framework above the fuel tank. I plan for two storage boxes with lids, a removable cover over the fuel pump/filter, ratchet strap tie downs, A woofer in one quarter panel, and possibly a fuel cell in the other, with an extra four or so gallons fuel capacity.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture254.jpg

Here you can see were I drilled into the frame to run the battery cables, I had to drill through two plies of metal the second one was 3" deeper or so, The hole is 1". Its hard to make out in the picture, but I welded in a piece of 1" thin wall tubing about 7 " long to avoid needing a grommet. I ran two #4 welding wires and plan to run another.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture252.jpg

I did the same in the back with the 1" tubing
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture257.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture253.jpg

A shot of the distribution block under the hood
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Picture256.jpg

I started on the gear install and this is were I quit:
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/gear.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/gear2.jpg
Backlash is at .012, I could use some help. Any suggestions??

Try putting a load on the carrier so you can get a better pattern. It looks like the pinion may be too deep but it is hard to tell with the pattern.

thin out your marking compound with a little gear oil too.

I agree not a good enough marking to read.

Ok guys, thanks for the help. I went back and put a load on the gears for a better pattern. I increased the backlash to 04

coast
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/coast.jpg

drive
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/gear-1.jpg

getting closer. What should I try next?

This should help you.

http://www2.dana.com/pdf/5717.pdf

Looks like you may need to adj your pinion shim. That said I always move the backlash all around first for a given pinion shim since the backlash is significantly easier to change. FWIW

I got tired of screwing with the gears. My plastic saw horses have about had it. I built a stand from some scrap to hold the axles. I'm liking these UBE I got from Ruff Stuff.
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/1024101902.jpg
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/1024101907.jpg

I am keeping the rear leafs, but I can't decide If I want/need a truss or not. If, I do, I would want it to span the full width of the axle.

Something along these lines, perhaps
http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/truss.jpg

Started on the truss

Interesting.... wanna help me build a front axle for my XJ??????????

REALLY Wishin u were sellin that axle now cauz i have the dough & i decided to get a 30 spline Ected, chromo shafts, outter seals, & im gonna cryo the 4.88's & truss the sh!t out of it!!!

Lookin good there!!

Interesting.... wanna help me build a front axle for my XJ??????????

REALLY Wishin u were sellin that axle now cauz i have the dough & i decided to get a 30 spline Ected, chromo shafts, outter seals, & im gonna cryo the 4.88's & truss the sh!t out of it!!!

Lookin good there!!

ummm, NO

ummm, NO


:flipoff2:

We stitched the truss in pretty good.

Here is a diagram I liked, simplifies things. I copied it from a Hyster fork lift book

http://i149.photobucket.com/albums/s74/4x4hiker/Barbaras001.jpg

Unexceptionably nobody offers a 6.17 in reverse spiral:(
hence, the front end will be low pinion:grinpimp:
Although lacking the HD60 badging, this casting is my favorite, the extra ribbing is pretty sick. Drivers side drop is the plan.

Increase your BL to .006" and increase your depth shim .003" at a time until you get a centralised pattern. What's your depth shim measure? Everytime you change your depth it changes your BL, so make sure and recheck your BL everytime you adjust depth. Also make sure to seat your bearings before making any measurements.

I have the notoriously week ford knuckles and since replacements are not in my budget. They will be extensively plated. I built a pair of tie rod lift blocks 2" tall from some 1 1/2" round bar. The blocks are tapped to 3/4 fine all the way through. They will be bolted and welded to the knuckles. The heims are 3/4 hole 7/8 and will be double sheer. I still haven't decided on inverted y or t steering?

I only planned to tack these on with my flux core welder, but I was unable to pull my finger from the trigger, so I kept going:homer: The steering knuckles will eventually be compleatly plated with .25 plate

more

I beveld the lift blocks and made some spacers for the top plates so the heims could have more misalignment. I added some more box tubing too.

I know, I know the square tubing seems hack, but it's hell for stout and I think it will look a lot better when everything's plated.

This looks good, and if everything works out I amy be doing something like this to balljoint 60.

Its starting to look better now

Finished building a tie rod. The axle needs narrowing, its the only way I'll be able to clear the knuckles and not be stupid wide. I want to get some Humvee or h2 wheels, run dually hubs and narrow the long side about ten"

I mostly finished the steering knuckle plating.

Those knuckles came out nice, good work.

so are you going to get some better tires or run those POS mallcruisers :flipoff2:


just giving you a hard time

nice work.

what are you using to weld the sheet metal?

so are you going to get some better tires or run those POS mallcruisers :flipoff2:


just giving you a hard time

nice work.

what are you using to weld the sheet metal?

Thanks Ya, I'll get new tires last. I need to buy other stuff first, Ballistic hiems, rims, locker, u joints, axle shaft, ect. I used .030 flux core for welding up the sheet metal. And I like my mall cruiser tires:grinpimp:

The rear of the knuckle got plated too

had to use the rifle drill.... couldn't just use a self tapping zerk :flipoff2:

I had to modify the balistic link bracket / coil spring / shock mount combo so the coils springs would line up correctly with the upper buckets. The coils will be mounted partially on the inner c's and the control arms are getting in boarded to avoid tire rub-age.

A look at new bracket configuration

and does anybody have the measurement form center of coil mount to center of coil mount off a stock dana 30??

I could get it to you tomorrow. I am at work and will not be back to the jeep until much later.

IIRC its right at 36".

Did you give up?

your build looks awesome! do you have any more pictures of your rocker replacement? im planning on cutting out my smashed up rockers soon and i need some ideas for the new ones

Did you give up?

come on now J, you know me better than that.

your build looks awesome! do you have any more pictures of your rocker replacement? im planning on cutting out my smashed up rockers soon and i need some ideas for the new ones

I don't have anymore photos and my camera is a POS. I used 3x5" .25 wall rectangle tube, witch enabled me to keep the pinch seem. The tube sticks out about 1" from the door and butts up against the pinch seem. Because of the doubled up sheet metal of the seem, I could do a pretty good weld to the tubing. 3x5 worked great IMO, others will disagree. I angle the ends at 45* and capped with .25 wall. Once my compressor is mounted the rockers will be plumed for air tanks.

I don't have anymore photos and my camera is a POS. I used 3x5" .25 wall rectangle tube, witch enabled me to keep the pinch seem. The tube sticks out about 1" from the door and butts up against the pinch seem. Because of the doubled up sheet metal of the seem, I could do a pretty good weld to the tubing. 3x5 worked great IMO, others will disagree. I angle the ends at 45* and capped with .25 wall. Once my compressor is mounted the rockers will be plumed for air tanks.

thanks for the info, that helps a lot!

After some motivation from the Jeep - Cherokee section, I went out and cut a hole in my inner fender. Taking the tire off, and putting the inner knuckle on a block of wood made it easier.

CHP pulled me over on Main st. yesterday. Checked my ID and told me I need mud flaps. I apologized and went on my merry friggen way.

mud flaps on a mall crawler ? hahaha j/k

CHP can S my D....


they pulled me over all the fuggin time when i lived in weed....

Cut out the fender some more. Bushooker's will mount up close to hood level.

HF Grinder wheels and 24 TPI sawzall blades are probably cheaper than the gas that was used to cut the fenders and they do a cleaner job.

HF Grinder wheels and 24 TPI sawzall blades are probably cheaper than the gas that was used to cut the fenders and they do a cleaner job.

HF cut off wheels tea bag moose nuts. I have used cut off wheels (I prefer Norton) in the past on my body panels. IMO the heat from oxy torch don't cause any more damage to the paints than do the abrasive wheels. Cuts nice around the corners, is a lot faster, and the soot just washes right off. I almost used my sawszall, but didnt want to piss of the neighbors late at night, that and it shakes the fuck out of the sheet metal. Cost of the gas is a non issue. With my tripple ott tip, I could cut up a dozen Cherokees and still have half full bottles:flipoff2:

Bush Hookers will need some more trimming. I'm going to look into a plastic welder:homer: These are 37's at ride height

Bush Hookers will need some more trimming. I'm going to look into a plastic welder:homer: These are 37's at ride height

:smokin:

Any updates on the axles?

:smokin:

Any updates on the axles?

Unfortunately no. I am hoping for a nice check from uncle Sam in a couple months witch will speed things along.

I ordered hood pins from Poly Performance and some led blinkers. I want to try and eliminate the lower blinker housings and cut down the side markers. I will probably cut the front of my bumper off and move the winch back 6"s too.
I can wait to ditch the dana thirty:barf:

quick.. paint them before anyone sees :flipoff2: nice progress so far. :smokin:

got to have some bling leave them alone

Shopping around for tires and if I buy new, will most likely be one of the these, but if I can find something used I'll do that.


41X14.50R18LT irok radial
41.5X13.50R18LT rocker radial
40x13.50R18LT baja claw radial

what model are the flares ?? are those XJ flares or something else ?? looks great i'd like to do the same thing to my fenders.Unfortunately no. I am hoping for a nice check from uncle Sam in a couple months witch will speed things along.

I ordered hood pins from Poly Performance and some led blinkers. I want to try and eliminate the lower blinker housings and cut down the side markers. I will probably cut the front of my bumper off and move the winch back 6"s too.
I can wait to ditch the dana thirty:barf:

BTW i use a soldering and some plastic from what im working on to weld the plastic. i have one of those gun shaped irons with a flat roundish tip that goes on it . works wonders for welding plastic . little sanding and its good as new ..

bushwacker pop out flares...

also known as:

bushhookers
bushcrackers
pieces of shit.

:flipoff2:

Shopping around for tires and if I buy new, will most likely be one of the these, but if I can find something used I'll do that.


41X14.50R18LT irok radial
41.5X13.50R18LT rocker radial
40x13.50R18LT baja claw radial

Why radials?

And why are you trying to make bush hookers work on a hardcore rig? Your just gonna fukk em up.

Why radials?

And why are you trying to make bush hookers work on a hardcore rig? Your just gonna fukk em up.


I drive the Jeep daily. The hookers will have some protection ....errr tube

Hood pins are on, from the driver seat they look like a sand dollar size erect nipples. Marker lights getting cut down and blinker's are getting relocated.

im doing the same thing with mine for the front signal cut. i dig it. looks good and i like how youre doing all this with it still being a daily haha. i remember those days of having to quick work on it before having to leave for work the next day

Done yet?:flipoff2:

Done yet?:flipoff2:

battery tray is out, everything is all apart.

I cut a lot of strength from the front fascia and it needed some reinforcements I used a couple pieces of bent round bar. I used bondo glass to attach. I had to repair one of the mounting thingys too.

And since I was fooling around with the glass. I repaired one of the flares that was all fucked up. I didnt do a very good job of prepping the plastic, hopefully it stays, time will tell.

Re routed the starter cable. I enlarged the OE upper control arm bolt hole to 3/4 and installed a grommet. The wire goes through the uni frame and to the rear mounted battery.

building corners and saw en holes in the hatch. The bumper is bolted but the damn tail pipe is welded to it:(

now what are you doing?

Did it bend with no problems? I need i borrow one of those rims and see if they Fit to my liking. Let me know when

Did it bend with no problems? I need i borrow one of those rims and see if they Fit to my liking. Let me know when
Piece of cake, yeah come and get a wheel/tire, I'm buying H1's

I added some u bolt mounts to the axle stand, makes setting up easier, I cut the inner knucks back off and rotated them to 6* with the pinion at 17* . Still finishing up the higher steer arms. At this point, I am pretty damn motivated to get this mad project expedited. Parts will start arriving soon.....

When you shortened your axle, did you just slip the C's on? Did you use an allignment bar? Do you plan to?

The reason I ask is because I want to make a new axle...but don't want to source an allignment bar. :flipoff2:

Piece of cake, yeah come and get a wheel/tire, I'm buying H1's.
My H1s are listed in the for sale section :flipoff2:

Indeed. The bar I have, 1 1/2 cold rolled(cheep) although not ideal. fits nicely threw the spindles so long as the inner roller bearings are installed. I like to run the bar through a open carrier with bearings installed as well. Adjustments are made with BFH. Tack, tack, smack, smack. The bar stays in place through out all weldament processes. The bar should spin freely, shit gets out of wack pretty easy. A rose bud, and water is usful for making adjustments as well. After all the brackets are attached I want truss the fuck outa everything.

Thanks for the explanation. I was envisioning a $400 alignment bar. I think I can swing a piece of cold rolled steel. It will be better than noting. :)

Thanks for the explanation. I was envisioning a $400 alignment bar. I think I can swing a piece of cold rolled steel. It will be better than noting. :)

Take it with a grain of salt though, I'm just learning as I go.

Bought a flea bay header. quality is good, stainless, claims to be ceramic coated, but I am not seeing it, Gasket included. 175 shipped. They sanded down the welds inside the tubes. Inside the last collector, there is a lip that will cause some restrictions. Should have been over lapped instead of under. I am going to cut it off see if I can improve on that, but I am happy over all.

The quality of the ebay headers is pretty amazing for the price. I have purchased several of them for different vehicles and if you are will in to tweak them a bit they are a super good deal.

Get the .120 DOM.

its time for tube,almost....... still going to mount the ram

I need to determine the inner axle shaft lengths still. Does anybody know how far into the carrier the splines need to go? Does this look about right? And I need to figure out the axle seal situation too.

It doesn't look like your center pin will clear in that pic. I would probably put in a spider gear for reference.

usually the axle shaft is flush with the inside of the spider gear, not protruding into the carrier. Maybe a little past flush, but not like that..

Do you have the center pin?

I'd put that in and chop the shafts to clear that if you can't get a side gear from anyone.

How about some pictures of the new stang?

How about some pictures of the new stang?

Shitty light but you get the idea. '86 T-top, first year GT got fuel injection and the last year with four headlights, sat a long time, and 80000 original miles:smokin: I am going to Rino line the whole thing....

Nice find, but pleace don't tell me you're going to rhino line the outside...

Nice find, but pleace don't tell me you're going to rhino line the outside...

Yes, with RustOleum truck bed coating rattle can and I already drilled six 1/2" holes into the original hood to mount the cowl and its already coated.:laughing:

Clearanceing the rear wheel wells and welding it up is going to be a bitch. Years ago when I was a teenager I built a woofer encloser out of fiberglass on the passenger side.....and this is how the cookie will crumble, pun intended

Nice rig. Love all the sweet XJ builds on Pirate good solid resurch for my next build. So get busy.

my drill dont look to fuxed up !

Shitty light but you get the idea. '86 T-top, first year GT got fuel injection and the last year with four headlights, sat a long time, and 80000 original miles:smokin: I am going to Rino line the whole thing....

i had one just like that..except it was a 4 cylinder..and it was rusted out from the doors down.....and it sucked..haha

i had one just like that..except it was a 4 cylinder..and it was rusted out from the doors down.....and it sucked..haha

I had to pull the dash and every thing else all the way to the firewall enable to replace the heater core. It was so much fun.

haha looks like its just as fun as the zjs. i never put more than gas into mine. had it for 3 months and put a hole in the bell housing on the transmission and the brakes went out the same day. hated the car but wouldnt mind having a GT!

battery tray

I wont be able and get to the other side for a wile, and not at all looking forward to it.

patty's day parts inventory: synergy track bar bracket/brace, balistic joints, M.O.R.E block mounts, Iron Man 4x4 motor mounts, Precision Auto Injectors, E-bay header, bla,bla,bla

I'll be running high grade Ampco bronze alloy upper king pin bushings

and heavy duty hub covers

what no updates ?????

absolutely fucking nothing

weak :flipoff2: I'm waiting to see how you trim your front clip.

Getting situated at the new property and finally started to get back to the xj. I removed a lip from inside the header back to where the tig weld penetrated and polished it all smooth. So what was once a lip is now a hump and it will get installed now. Wile I am at it the new block and motor mounts will go in. I got to give recognition the Mountain Off Road Enterprise. There block mounts are a work of art and hell for stout.

Installed new injectors, header and a hell of a time with the block and motor mounts. Its seems my frame or something was a bit out of wack. I had to make an adjustment using a bottle jack. Put a dent in the uni rail. Will button everything up in the morning and give a test drive.

don't remember if you've changed anything past the headers, but when I put a new Banks on, it made no difference either.
changed the stock downtube and THAT changed things. not long after that put a cat-back system on and it helped a bit too.

don't remember if you've changed anything past the headers, but when I put a new Banks on, it made no difference either.
changed the stock downtube and THAT changed things. not long after that put a cat-back system on and it helped a bit too.

Thanks yeah, I still have the oem downpipe. I ordered a ball joint and some exhaust pipe to build a replacement.
Took my trans pan off, added a temp sensor bung, and ran new breather hose to both the trans and transfer case.
Torched the winch mount off the bumper. Going to relocate the m8000 back and under the grill.

I love when a build reaches a certain point that everything looks like a hack...

its like, "well, now I have 15 minor things to do, like re-locate the winch that I just torced off" etc...

its when you know you are really in deep and have to git-r-done :flipoff2:

Graveyard shift is a bitch and today, I fell a sleep in my coveralls, under the Jeep, in the grass, for about two ours, but I still managed a wee bit of progress on the bumper. Its going to be nice. I plan to integrate additional bracing for a pillow block mounted bearing attached to the pitman arm nut. Like what Vetteboy did. And considering my stearing assist cylinder mounted to the pitman arm.

graveyard is a bitch been on it for a month and all i do is sleep

I got a lot done today. Only have the one shitty photo of my rad radiator support. I added a bunch of plate and tied it all into the fender supports. Had the front clip on and off several times to see what needed clearance. Bumper is coming together nicely. The winch will spool backward. what would normally be power out, will be power in. I hope it is okay to do it that way.

I got a lot done today. Only have the one shitty photo of my rad radiator support. I added a bunch of plate and tied it all into the fender supports. Had the front clip on and off several times to see what needed clearance. Bumper is coming together nicely, going to take it in to work and put some nice welds on it. the winch will spool backward. what would normaly be power out, will be power in. I hope it is okay to do it that way.

as long as the braking force of the winch is in the same direction as factory.

most winches used a tapered friction pad system inside the drum, its not designed to hold a load in reverse. thats why you can't lower your jeep down an obstacle with the winch..... or so says Warn.

as long as the braking force of the winch is in the same direction as factory.

most winches used a tapered friction pad system inside the drum, its not designed to hold a load in reverse. thats why you can't lower your jeep down an obstacle with the winch..... or so says Warn.

Okay, thanks for that. I looked around and didn't find much. The whole point was better approach angle and mounting the roller fairlead up on the top half of the spool improves that. I don't have any cash for a haws and I like the rollers. So in order for me to do that, will need to flip the winch 180* and offset to the passenger side at least 2" to stay off the steering box. I have seen guys mount their winches on the passenger floor board. I usually prefer symmetry but I think I can live with it.

I just noticed how you routed the exhaust. I was considering the same thing except possibly sleeving the frame rail and running it through.

My phone takes honorable pictures. The lens is all fucked up from being in my pocket all the time. Going to start using a real camera again. And believe it or not that torch cut turned out nice, most the slag chipped off with a chisel. I need a damn argon bottle, flux core is to stupid messy. Going to look into replacing the plastic bushings in the Warn rollers with some real bearings.

Moving on to the front end. I'm starting over with a different housing. That other one was all bent to shit and I hacked to much off the drivers side.. Picked up a fresh 60HD to match the rear. I'm hoping to start bending some tube here real soon. I don't think I posted my finish pics of the rear end yet. Soon as I get gears set up, and rims/tires, its going in. I just need some Humvee wheels and throw away 37's to get me by.

that truss is Ghey.... tie that shit into the spring pates and you will be set.

and if you were really cool you'd continue it all the way to the caliper brackets :flipoff2:

Saw your post in Gen 4x4. If you wanna see some bitchn rear axle truss's search for the "Panty Droppin" thread. Its like 7 or 8 pages deep.

The one action fab built for the stage two xj build was pretty sick. Made me want to redo mine.

Saw your post in Gen 4x4. If you wanna see some bitchn rear axle truss's search for the "Panty Droppin" thread. Its like 7 or 8 pages deep.

Is that where you posted yours?:laughing:

Haa....no. :laughing: I put up in the "sexy front truss" thread.

This is the panty thread..... http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=832590&highlight=panty+droppin

that truss is Ghey.... tie that shit into the spring pates and you will be set.

and if you were really cool you'd continue it all the way to the caliper brackets :flipoff2:

Brilliant, consider it done. I don't know why the F I didnt think of that before. The spindles will get bored out as well for future upgrades.

Haa....no. :laughing: I put up in the "sexy front truss" thread.

This is the panty thread..... http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=832590&highlight=panty+droppin

Oh yeah, know all about that one. Some nice work in that thread...I was being a smart ass and referring to your 14 bolt.

Decided the corners needed a comp cut and adding some 1/2" gussets to protect the rollers. I'm going to put down some ginormous welds on this sucker. Thing should make a solid base for attaching tube.

Half ass update of some progress. I need to spend a entire day just organizing tools and getting my workspace in order. My productivity has been piss poor and mostly because I have shit scattered all over a cant find a damn thing when I need it. I started to cut down the other 60 and my band saw blade broke. The bumper is on. I had to clearance the frame, rad support and cut down my fan shroud. If I can get some transmission hose tomorrow I'll have it back on the roads and I hope to get the winch solenoids mounted somewhere.

Finally finished the bumper. Found a good place for the solenoids, need to relocate the ECM, again and make some longer power cables.

It's pretty pathetic my thread doesn't have any stink-en wheeling pics. Its frustrating, I had the Jeep set up pretty nice and now its been down way to long. I need to go wheeling. A few of my old setup, before I started building one tons.

Shopping around for a tube notcher and even some of the more expensive models seem pretty lame. I think I am going to try and do a home built one. I drew up a sketch, that way I'll have something to look at wile I am building it.

have a look see in the tool forum area, I think there was a build or two in there, some cool designs too.

Was that a lp rubicon 44 with WJ knuckles? IIRC you were running 36's were you breaking alot? Just wondering why you decided to ditch it for tons.

Was that a lp rubicon 44 with WJ knuckles? IIRC you were running 36's were you breaking alot? Just wondering why you decided to ditch it for tons.

'79 ford hp44 combined with a 2wd zj beam, WJ knuckles, and brakes. 36 swampers for a wile and then 37 Toyo's. Sold it for $1000. I never broke anything but the internet made me scared I would. Wheeling without confidence sucks and I wanted the added security of one tons.

That sounds pretty interesting. So you used the zj beam to retube the 44 centersection? An reason you used a 2wd beam vs chopping up a lp30? The reason I ask is I'll have an xj beam kicking around after I finissh my thirty. I was gonna toss it but maybe not now. What did you do for axle shafts? Im really interested in this since I have an empty 79 ford hp44 availible to me for next to nothing. Sorry for all the questions. If you have detailed the build up somewhere I'd love to check it out instead of asking you a shitton of questions.

That sounds pretty interesting. So you used the zj beam to retube the 44 centersection? An reason you used a 2wd beam vs chopping up a lp30? The reason I ask is I'll have an xj beam kicking around after I finissh my thirty. I was gonna toss it but maybe not now. What did you do for axle shafts? Im really interested in this since I have an empty 79 ford hp44 availible to me for next to nothing. Sorry for all the questions. If you have detailed the build up somewhere I'd love to check it out instead of asking you a shitton of questions.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=782186&highlight=

Thanks man. I really like the ingenuity of it and Im in the same boat basically as you were. Some nice 30 parts and a free 79 hp44 housing from a good buddy. I dont want to run the ford radius arms and even if I did the f150 tubes are weak anyway so why not. I'll pm you with some questions at some point for sure but until then keep up the great work.

Dana Spicer wasn't joking when they badged the housing 60hd. I shaved all the ribbing off the bottom with the torch and grinder. Then made it hotter with a rose bud and burned the 3/8" wall tubes on with fluckeds core.

Did you just weld the driver side uca mount to the 44 pumpkin? Better pic of mount?

Did you just weld the driver side uca mount to the 44 pumpkin? Better pic of mount?

:cool2: The upper control arm mounts are just the stock rubber bushings. I ordered the press in housings from Rubicon Express. For the driver side I used a mig, pre heated the housing real hot and burned the mount on with a 440v industrial miller cranked. Mined you the mount was 1"x2" flat cold rolled. Immediately following the welding I peened the fuck out the housing surrounding the welds with a pneumatic scaler and quickly proceeded with a rose bud for post heating operations. Wrapped the turd in a two welding blankets and the weldment was still warm when I came back to the shop eight hours later. I did all the research, spoke to few blacksmiths, and discuss it with several knowledgeable iron workers. I thought for sure the mount would rip off, but wasn't to concerned, the other mounts were hell for stout. Plenty of folk run three links so I didn't sweet it. I hammered on it hard and the bitch held on fine. Lawdodge bought it, he's a member, and had a ARB installed, maybe he will chime in or shoot him a PM to post up photos. I've posted all I got.

And I wouldn't of put it up for sale if I wasn't confident in its durability as far as the housing go's.

I figured as much. Thanks for answering all the ?'s you have got the small wheels in my head rolling. ;)

:)friggen stocked. My bender is functional. Having the means to bend tube is hardcore bad ass. Started on a boner bar. 1 5/8 dom. Got quite a few little thing done here and there. Machined a long nut for my saginaw brace, broke down some rear spindles for boreing and fooled around with the front sixty a bunch. Witch thoroughly pissed me off and motivated me to complete the bender. Started another thread about my front end issues. http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=986064

How much do you have invested in that bender set-up?

How much do you have invested in that bender set-up?

$17.99 got trikes bender plans
190 ebay tube die
20 2" square tubing
36.99 HF drill bit set
5.00 two 6" x 5/8" bolts
30.02 fabrication consumables
free scrap air cylinder rods(pins)
free various scrap steel
free cherry picker hydraulic cylinder
total $300

Its a start and Trail Worthy Fab gave me a pretty good quote on some XOR's and wheels. I don't want to start on the wheel wells without tires.

D pillar. The round tube is welded to the rectangle tubing witch is tacked to the bumper. I am going to remove the tubing and install several mounting tabs. Not sure how I'll tie the round to the rectangle it's just welded on. I'm open for suggestions. The tail boxes will be made lighter and get backup LED's.
Does any body know how to make my tailights work without leaving the stock bulbs in? I have them wired through a trailer harness but when I unplug the factory bulbs the LED's wont work:confused:

Does any body know how to make my tailights work without leaving the stock bulbs in? I have them wired through a trailer harness but when I unplug the factory bulbs the LED's wont work:confused:

sounds like you probably just need to jump that circuit. for some reason the trailer lights must be wired in series with the stock lights so taking the stock lights out kills the circuit.

"Guy told me the other day "you'll never finish your cherokee" that shit pissed me off."

i understand how you feel but is it ever truly done?

for some reason the trailer lights must be wired in series with the stock lights so taking the stock lights out kills the circuit.

If that's the case it needs to be fixed anyways. Having the lights in series would mean you must have the trailer lights working to have tail lights, and then you'd only have 6 volts for each..

If that's the case it needs to be fixed anyways. Having the lights in series would mean you must have the trailer lights working to have tail lights, and then you'd only have 6 volts for each..

yeah, it definitely doesnt make sense for it to be wired that way. maybe another explanation?

You need to splice in LED resistors. This will solve all your problems. Make sure they are LED resistors tho...a standard light resistor from say Home Depot wont work.

"Guy told me the other day "you'll never finish your cherokee" that shit pissed me off."

i understand how you feel but is it ever truly done?

By done I meant trail ready. Getting close, need

1. tires/wheels
2. gear install kits
3. front inner axle shafts
4. link material
5. hydraulic assist box
6. steering/panhard material
7. pitman arm
8. redo drive lines

What are the best joints to use on my pan hard?

normally I would say RuffStuff, but I have noticed from reading and personal experience that you could get your heims/bungs/spacers, or have to wait extended periods of time for one of those and not see your order for a while.

that being said, price is still good, strength isn't an issue and they just plain work. but that's heims in general.

still in the build process on mine, but I am using heims for everything.

What are the best joints to use on my pan hard?

I'd say Heims on the Panhard

Call Ruffstuff. the price is great.

Run a 2.5" johnny joint at the frame end then.

that way if you are lazy you can just buy one of the many aftermarket bolt-on brackets instead of making your own. since nearly all of them are designed for that width.

Run a 2.5" johnny joint at the frame end then.

that way if you are lazy you can just buy one of the many aftermarket bolt-on brackets instead of making your own. since nearly all of them are designed for that width.

I got the synergy suspension trac bar bracket and brace. A nice unit. Thing is though, it uses 1.6 mounting width:confused: guess synerger uses there own special joint:mad3: I'll most likely have to grind off the powder coat and modify it.:shaking: All my 7/8 hiems are 2" wide with the misalignment bushing. The ruffstuff panhard axle mount is as well. Like everybody keeps telling me, I'll just have to get the axle under the Jeep and see. I would prefer the panhard to be as long as possible and straight.

Indeed. The bar I have, 1 1/2 cold rolled(cheep) although not ideal. fits nicely threw the spindles so long as the inner roller bearings are installed. I like to run the bar through a open carrier with bearings installed as well. Adjustments are made with BFH. Tack, tack, smack, smack. The bar stays in place through out all weldament processes. The bar should spin freely, shit gets out of wack pretty easy. A rose bud, and water is usful for making adjustments as well. After all the brackets are attached I want truss the fuck outa everything.

Take it with a gran of salt though, I'm only wing'en it


First time around when I installed the inner c's was getting just a cunt hair of camber. Digital angle finder on the WMS read 89* In order to get a zero camber I had to do a bunch of grinding on the axle tubes and make the c's a loose fit, then with a alignment bar through both spindles I tacked on the c's. I got it all dialed in, but by doing that the alignment bar wasn't centered in the carrier bearings. Fuck, so I scrapped it. I didn't like the loose fitting c's, I wanted the axle a bit wider, and thicker wall tubes.


I wouldn't recommend anybody using this procedure. After further researching the subject its my opinion the inner c forgings should be pressed onto the tubes. Installing them on loosely to to make camber adjustments is just foolish.

Maybe Dana designed them with just a bit of positive camber so that with wheel bearing play and housing flex from having a heavy vehicle on top of them it ends up at zero camber or a bit negative?

I agree with this statement and many others have also posted similar findings. The camber will be greatly exaggerated with the lager tires and I'm shooting for a near 0* I'm exploring other solutions. I don't like the idea of spindle shims or kingpin eccentric adjusters.
I'm going to get a large I beam...and get real creative with tube clamps, heat and hydraulic bottle jacks. Get it all zeroed out and "truss the fuck out of it":D

Apparently my hoist's rated 2tons of power isn't enough, at least with this configuration its not. And I didn't want to blow my cylinder up.

Happy with how this turned out. I used four 3/8" flush mounts. Mostly just so I can take the bumper off. The d pillar will be welded to the halo witch will be fully welded to the rain gutters. That is unless I change my mind.

Radials?

Radials?

Yeah.... is there something wrong, with radials, and one tons, on a SUV?

Tires/wheels are paid for and on their way. 41.5x13.50x16.5 rocker radials. Wheels are humvee's, 7" backspaced, 8 bolts, PVC inserts, and powder coated chrome.

I've collected most the parts for my tube notcher. Roller bearings, 1" chrome shaft and fabricated a tube clamp. Built from mostley just scrap. The shaft needs drilled and tapped to accept 5/8 fine thread for the hole saw arbor and hexagon shaft or something on the opposite side. Going to machine a bearing housing as well and attach everything to a sturdy plate.

No more stink-en flux core as I finally got a shielding gas bottle and regulator. I took my rear 60 to a Tech... to finalize the gears. I think they were pretty close but I was tired of screwing with it. I'll bolt it up when I get it back and start mocking up the front suspension.


R u running dw hubs or wheels spacers to fit the H1 wheels ?

R u running dw hubs or wheels spacers to fit the H1 wheels ?

Pirate4x4 is sweet! I posted a add in the wanted section for DRW hubs. Some found me the same day, 50 bucks and a twenty mile drive. The WMS is 4.5" wider per hub...

Front is custom width 60 with dually hubs. I wanted to use the DRW hubs for two reasons. 1. I hate how the front hubs stick out so far past most wheels. 2. Much improved steering/scrub radius. For the rear IDK if the tires will clear the leaf springs or not. I might need spacers or I might narrow it a bit, and space the wheels out flush with the hubs like the front is. I have to cut the spindles off anyway to install the one's I bored out.

Front is custom width 60 with dually hubs. I wanted to use the DRW hubs for two reasons. 1. I hate how the front hubs stick out so far past most wheels. 2. Much improved steering/scrub radius. For the rear IDK if the tires will clear the leaf springs or not. I might need spacers or I might narrow it a bit, and space the wheels out flush with the hubs like the front is. I have to cut the spindles off anyway to install the one's I bored out.

Thanks good info I have been thinking of trading my sw for dw hubs to do that or just have the wheels re centered to 5" bs

Yeah.... is there something wrong, with radials, and one tons, on a SUV?

No need for a tire argument. I'll keep my opinion to myself. Hope they work well for you. :flipoff2:

No need for a tire argument. I'll keep my opinion to myself. Hope they work well for you. :flipoff2:

Hey I respect your opinion Mr. Greatwhite. If only you would have given it before I dropped two g's:D I did consider the bias versions. They are a little bit lighter and thinner side walls. But awfully wide and my rig see's a lot of street time as I'll be driving it to the trails, that is unless somebody tows it for me. I'm a ways off from fitting a tow rig in the budget, but someday.

It would be cool if I could get this thing into some races/comp later on down the road. I have read a little bit here and there about specific rules regarding cages, vehicle weight and tubing size. Does anybody know the specifics or where I could find the info. Currently I'm using 1 5/8 .120 Might have to change that up:(

Frankenstein notcher is mostley done. The needle bearings are nice.

looks like it will work

Looking good. Keep it up.

nice job mike!i might need to use that notcher bro!:D

nice job mike!i might need to use that notcher bro!:D

Thanks Jeff! Anytime bud.

TRAIL WORTHY FAB KICKS ASS. :D Andy got me these wheels powder coated and to CA in a amazing amount of time. The pvc inserts were custom machined for my specific tire bead width.

A little update on my rear 60 setup. Like I mentioned before I was having one hell of a time getting a acceptable gear pattern. I was tired of screwing with them and took the housing to a tech, he was having the same issues. We concluded the housing was warped :mad3: well....after a closer inspection of the gears, the ring gear teeth are cracked on about 75% of the teeth.. that would make sense about the weird pattern and maybe means the housing is good to go. These were cracked on the coast side inward. I have a new set comming from Currie 6.17 ratio.

Wheels that work....I envy you. :laughing:

Get your tail lights to work yet?

And I honestly really doubt you'll have issues with the radials. But the weaker sidwall was my argument. Besides it seems you'll be doing more payment driving than I thought.

Wheels that work....I envy you. :laughing:

Get your tail lights to work yet?

And I honestly really doubt you'll have issues with the radials. But the weaker sidwall was my argument. Besides it seems you'll be doing more payment driving than I thought.

Yeah, I still drive the XJ daily. The LED's work, they always have. Its just that the stock bulbs are still installed. I have them stuffed in the quarter panel. one went out the other day and I had to replace it.:homer: Its something to do with the burned out bulb indicater:confused: At this point I could care less and have bigger fish to fry. Soon as my tires arrive, I am going to start pulling out the old axles and mocking everything up. I am wanting to be able and cruise at 70 MPH on my way to the trails, with the AC and music.

build specs:

41.5 13.50 16.5 pitbull rocker radials
humvee double beedlocks
front 8" lift 3 link
ballistic joints and hiems
cut down lp dana 60hd (converted to front)
kingpin dana 70 inner C's
springless kingpin covers
AMPCO kingpin bushings
6.17's
detroit (35 spline)
custom length shafts
Dura Solid outers (35 spline)
Bobby Long u joints
custom high steer
7/8" heim steering
hydraulic assist cylinder
dually hubs
plated knuckles(ford)
RPM offroad hub slugs
np231j transfer case
rear leaf springs
lp 60hd rear
6.17
detroit (35 spline)
trussed
disk breaks

Still need to buy:
More cage tubing
steering link material (aluminum)
suspension link material (aluminum)
LH 1.25 tap
conversion u joints
front shafts/ujoints
master cylinder, vacuum or hydro boost
ported steering box
front shocks


A couple thing's I expect that will need addressed:

1.pitman arm: need a longer one I think
2.brakes,I have the huge ford front brakes and chevy 1/2 ton rears
3. drivelines: may need lengthened

I am wanting to step it up and get all this stuff done rather quickly. Its a lot to do and I am open to any advice or help you guys have to offer, thanks.

bore out the wheels.

hey bro those wheels look sick ! i cant wait ta see em in person with the big fatty pit bulls on em :D also your front axle is looking awesome cant wait to see the finished product!:eek::eek:

It's hard working in triple digit heat. I'm plugging away at things, slowly but surly. I added adjustable feet and pinion support to my axle stand, makes it nicer for setting up axles. I am working on the lower control arm frame mounts. I am running parallel lower arms. Tacked the mounts together for mockup on the frame. They will be recessed into the uni frame about 1/2 inch and tied into the frame plating. I would have liked to mount them higher but my upper mount is already welded and I want a descent amount of separation.

Frame mounts are on. Lots of welding/plating/gusseting still to do. Its a not so long arm setup.

Tires

:eek: those are some serious meats...


how well do you think a 30spline Detroit is gonna hold up...

any reason you didn't go with a 35 spline?

These tires take up my whole kitchen:D Got them mounted up. Tossed three golf ball in each tire. The balls typically weigh around two ounces each. I wonder if they will wear out the inside of my tires and or pvc inserts.

These tires take up my whole kitchen:D Got them mounted up. I always use Parker Olube on rubber O rings, good stuff. Tossed three golf ball in each tire. The balls typically weigh around two ounces each. I wonder if they will wear out the inside of my tires and or pvc inserts.

You won't hurt our PVCs. :smokin:

What do you think of the Rockers? They look great! I can't wait to see them on! :grinpimp:

You won't hurt our PVCs. :smokin:

What do you think of the Rockers? They look great! I can't wait to see them on! :grinpimp:

:DThe Rockers are fantastic:D The rubber compound is extremely soft and grippy. Side wall flex is amazing. I'll give them a test ride after my rear end is installed. The width and rim offset is going to work out great for me!! I'm thinking about getting my stearing knuckles chromed to match the wheels:smokin:

Bending tube is hard. Welding to a glued pinch seam sucks. I work slow.

I got lucky and some how managed to keep the factory antenna location.

Relocated ECU, Installed headlights, harness and relays. Front end is out. Rear will get removed and replaced this evening. Pattern looks great:smokin:

Not sure if the 'What is this?' in the last pic has to do with this post, but if so it's your fuel pump ballast resistor. Basically, it makes the Jeep go vroom vroom. Progress looks good, keep it up!

Not sure if the 'What is this?' in the last pic has to do with this post, but if so it's your fuel pump ballast resistor. Basically, it makes the Jeep go vroom vroom. Progress looks good, keep it up!

Yeah thanks bud, it's been bugging me for years.

Its nice to finally get this on, its been collecting a lot of dust:D The powder coat is nice and seems very durable, grade 8 bolts, washers and locknuts included, fitment was good. I had to notch out the holes a cunt hair because of my frame plating. I added a extra brace for the brace. Bushing width is around 1-9/16" same as OEM rubber. Will have to wait and see if that works for my setup.

Rear is in. Haven't flexed it out yet but only about 1" clearance between the leaves and tires.

that will probably be enough... you may want to get some beefy retainers though, if you ever broke one you could end up with a leafspring inside of your tire..

that has happened to a few guys I know.

If you really leave it that narrow that thing isn't gonna turn worth a flip. Prepare to embrace the bumpstop

that will probably be enough... you may want to get some beefy retainers though, if you ever broke one you could end up with a leafspring inside of your tire..

that has happened to a few guys I know.

I need to do that Those thin little retainers have broken on me a few times too. They are actually welded back together.


If you really leave it that narrow that thing isn't gonna turn worth a flip. Prepare to embrace the bumpstop

Ummm yeah.:homer: I don't have rear steer. Not going to lift it higher, if anything will be lowered. The front will be a month out before installed..

I was talking about the front, that's a fairly big tire to be swinging around a fenderwell, even as wide as mine (89") is the tires still nearly rub the control arms at full lock, and everything else at stuff.

I was talking about the front, that's a fairly big tire to be swinging around a fenderwell, even as wide as mine (89") is the tires still nearly rub the control arms at full lock, and everything else at stuff.

If my calculations are correct, I will steer from steering stop to steering stop with zero control arm rubbage. :D Your tires are bigger than mine:p

I need to do that Those thin little retainers have broken on me a few times too. They are actually welded back together.


the ones that came with my RE leaves are actually quite beefy.

that doesn't really help you though...

if you have access to a press you could just bend some 3/16" flat stock into a U and run a bolt through them. thats all the RE ones really are.

the ones that came with my RE leaves are actually quite beefy.

that doesn't really help you though...

if you have access to a press you could just bend some 3/16" flat stock into a U and run a bolt through them. thats all the RE ones really are.

Found some scrap rectangle tube 3/16 wall that will work nicely for my retainers, I don't even have to bend it, just cut the top off. I sliced four 1" wide pieces and I'll try and drill some holes in the springs. I read masonry drill bits work well but haven't tried yet.

That's odd...no sparks wile I was cutting on the new dif cover:eek: Bolted it up and sanded the bottom all smooth. The cover's mounting flange is 3/4" thick. I may have to add another fill hole. With the pinion pointed at the TC, so is the 3" long filler hole.:emb: I liked the drain hole and load bolts is why I ordered it, maybe my little gears will last longer. Chances are I'll paint this black, less conspicuous that way. I just hope it dont shatter into a million pieces. I'll keep the stocker with me just in case.

I'd still like to add onto my truss and extend it up over the springs to the caliper bracket. There is a 1" block under there right now that is going to be removed and I have a additional full military wrap leaf to add to the pack. Still need to add shock and bump mounts.

I took the carrier bearing caps and milled a flat spot on them for the load bolt pads to ride on. The directions say to torque them down at 10 ft lbs and same for the jam nuts. I didn't want gear oil to leak from them so I used some thread sealer and I added a higher fill plug.

Never seen a diff cover like that one. Whats the exact purpose of those "load bolts" & where did u get it from??

Google is hard isn't it. (http://www.moserengineering.com/dana-60.html)

Google is hard isn't it. (http://www.moserengineering.com/dana-60.html)

I went straight to their website & couldnt even find the diff cover there!! Is it so hard to post up a sentence that answers the question rather then be a smart a$$ with a useless comment!!

I like to take it easy wile offroading. The reason I have the 30 spline unit is because I got a good deal on it. I think both detroit's will hold up fine. Everything breaks but chances are shafts or gears would probably go first. A plus is the rear 60 shafts are interchangeable left to right and plentiful at bone yards.

The part that sucks about waiting for a shaft to break, is everything I've always seen says you have a very good chance of taking out gears in the detroit when an axleshaft breaks. It could kinda make for a bad day.

Seniorxj, the load bolts put a preload pressure against the bearing caps as another line of defense against deflection when you have this axle under max torque

The part that sucks about waiting for a shaft to break, is everything I've always seen says you have a very good chance of taking out gears in the detroit when an axleshaft breaks. It could kinda make for a bad day.

Thanks for the input. I honestly don't have a huge amount of "hardcore" wheeling experience, looking forward to it though!! I'll start shopping for some upgraded shafts.

Pointed straight my tires actually fit the flairs a lot better than I was expecting... Does anybody know how long my pitman arm needs to be for full steering with the stock ford knuckles? I am finding a lot of mixed info mostly because of different length high steer arms, but I'm just attaching to the stock position. I bent a extra xj pitman arm and maid it about 1" longer. I have a ZJ one I can get more length out of if needed.

Measure the distance from the imaginary line going through the upper/lower balljoints (and the center of the u-joint) to the steering hole you'll be using. I see about 6 5/8" from center to center on that pitman you modified, I'd bed that would be pretty damn close. It's probably actually a bit too long which will ensure you hit the steering stops on the knuckles, but your taking some of your mechanical advantage away so your steering wont be quite as strong.

Here's the best thread I've found on pirate relating pitman length to steering arm length, with a lot of hard numbers:
http://pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=857210

Its a work in progress but what I am doing here is opening up my spindles to accept larger shafts.

Its a work in progress but what I am trying do here is open up my spindles to accept larger shafts.

I saw a writeup on this somewhere: a guy used one hole saw that fit inside the spindle, and another that was the size he wanted and used an extended drill bit to connect them. he wrapped some canvas or something around the internal hole saw to keep it really tight and keep it from vibrating... I bet if you went really slow it could be pretty effective.

Starrett oops arbor is whats needed to enlarge the hole, I got idea from RCMAN's writeup on NAXJA.

Is 1/4 wall sufficient for steering materiel or should I do 3/8? Was thinking 1-1/2 od.

1.5x.25 should be plenty... if you are gonna hurt that you need a lesson in driving style.

Is 1/4 wall sufficient for steering materiel or should I do 3/8? Was thinking 1-1/2 od.

Ill be running 1.5x.250 DOM. Run it.

I don't think I posted pics up of my Balistic hiems yet. Stainless steel balls, polished, and the heat treatment is what turned them brown. PSC mailed me a re manufactured steering box with cylinder assist provisions, interestingly the cylinder hose output locations are different than the home brew write ups and one of the fittings is welded on. I believe they do some type of internal modifications as well. Rear detroit is upgraded to 35 spline and I'll do double splined 300m's with flanges. I got the UHMW spindle, needle bearing eliminators through Bobby Long along with a pair of his 300m super joints for the front. Shafts I'lll just get 4340 through hardened unless I find a better deal with the 300m. And front hubs get RPM offroad 35 spline drive flanges the fat trucker chick edition.

A look at the d60 and 70 6.17's. Don't look it but the ring gears are centered on each other. I am doing dana 70 gears up front.

For brakes I got a high flow Vanco hydra boost.:smokin: And I have plenty of 3/8 wall 1-1/2 tube for steering. 1/4 would have been plenty sufficient, I went with the 3/8 wall to avoid needing to purchase bungs and I already have the 7/8 right and left hand taps.

A lot of slacking off going on my part, mostly just collecting parts. I installed extra capacity radiator, found some nice ZJ seats for the front and ordered a d70 hd full case detroit locker.

Champion all aluminum? 2 or 3 row?

Champion all aluminum? 2 or 3 row?

The radiator is from Champion and 3 rows.

Did some work with the leaf springs. I replaced two (four total) of the previous leaves with XJ leaves (the one the retainers are bolted to) and main. I cut the smaller spring eye's off and notched the larger to use for a military wrap. For the spring retainers I used 3x4 3/16 wall rectangle tube, 1" wide and bolted in place. Spring retainers made for difficult assembly but worth the effort I think.

Wile the springs were apart I inspected the UHMW liners. To my surprise, they showed very little if any wear, incredible. The holes I drilled, a masonry bit was used.

For twenty bucks, I got me a brand new toaster over, from Wal-Mart, frig-gen bargin "I tell you what" I wanted a double shier pitman arm. I combined a cut down ZJ and flat-end XJ arm. The flattening process phooked up the tapered splines, I corrected that with the BFH and some heavy wall tube. Beat the living shit out of it onto my previous otherwise good Sagina box. After welding I tossed it in the oven for normalization. I considered added additional gussets to the arm. Not sure if its necessary though. Zj arm was drilled to 5/8 and the flat-end arm 9/16 then tapped to 5/8 fine. 2" mounting width to accept 7/8 hiem and misalignment spacers.

Painted some things and you can see the nice grease able preload adjusters I got from North West Fab.

And I painted my mustang with rust-oleum Truck Bed Coating.

Nice work on the pitman arm Mike! I digs!

updates damn you ! Its to hot to go look

Hydra booster is in and I added a transmission cooler. I have a steering cooler on order and all the plumbing still needs done. Steering reservoir is cumming off to add a larger or additional return line. All I got.