Project Piss Off My Neighbors and Set My Condo on Fire

[EricsGreen98Tj]

So its Tuesday. Did you make it wheelin or what?

[AlxJ64]

Originally Posted by EricsGreen98Tj

So its Tuesday. Did you make it wheelin or what?

He said Tuesday - Thursday and its Wednesday with no reply so far... I'm going to take that as a yes and good news!

[gtxracer]

Originally Posted by barnumb

I like the fact you built most of the stuff yourself and still have a Jeep.
The tube buggies are kool but not in the winter.
You are definitely getting the welding skills honed on this project!
Way to go!!

Thank you!

Originally Posted by EricsGreen98Tj

So its Tuesday. Did you make it wheelin or what?

Yeah I made it up there, update to follow.

Originally Posted by AlxJ64

He said Tuesday - Thursday and its Wednesday with no reply so far... I'm going to take that as a yes and good news!

Thanks for the faith

[gtxracer]

Alright here's the update...


I picked up a HF tow bar and magnetic light kit then made my own mounts that bolt to the factory bumper mounts. It's all 3/8".



Here's the total pain in the ass 2 piece shaft


The couple days before the wheeling trip are a blur. I was in the shop no less than 14 hours each day, throwing things together, drilling, welding, etc. I got most of it finished to go to the shake down run but didn't get to test the front shaft. Then the front locker wouldn't disengage So I had to pull the shaft from one side in order to flat tow.

Filled up and heading out


Had to take the pass in order to get to the trail


After settling in I tore apart the front end to see why the lockwrong was acting up


I had the damn thing apart for 5 hours and rebuilt the diff but it still won't unlock. Springs are pretty fresh, I replaced them a few runs before the rebuild.

[gtxracer]

Side shot, the wheelbase felt great



Onto the wheeling...

Couple things to note - I didn't have FWD. Front driveshaft wouldn't stop moving, more specifically, the carrier bearing wouldn't stop moving inside it's mount. I couldn't get the damn thing to stay in one spot and the angle was too much. I wish I would have had more time to test it but the front locker put me out of the game anyway. It's hard as shit to drive a spooled front end - unless you have twin sticks. Wanna guess which cable shifter broke the other day? Yeah, the front stick.

So, screw it, I'll wheel in RWD. Air'ed down to 6psi and hit the trails. Only ONE hill denied me and I almost made it! I got it on video, I need to do some editing though. I also got a GoPro Hero 2 from my fantastic girlfriend so I got footage there too.





I'll get the vids uploaded as soon as I can. Overall the Jeep kicked ass! The suspension felt MUCH better than the stock junk. I didn't get a chance to really test flex but I need longer shocks up front for sure. I knew this already since they're only 9" travel but I'll need to have a lot more seat time to know if it's really needed. The np435 was great, low gear is great to have. The D300 is actually a good case despite it's inability to hold fluid

I'll be redesigning a few things and hopefully have a regular CV shaft up front instead of the time consuming 2 piece and the heavy mount. I'm also ditching the cables and converting to a regular linkage shift for the D300.

[EricsGreen98Tj]

Pics of said girlfriend who buys GoPro's, posters for garage, AND drills holes for corner guards???

AND, does she have a sister(s)? Or like minded friends???

How much do you figure that you pushed the rear axle back? The rear tire looks like it sets PERFECT in the tub IMO....I cant stand a comp-cut.

And how did your steering work out?

[EricsGreen98Tj]

OH and how was wheelin while in second gear in the 435? Both high and low range?

[gtxracer]

Originally Posted by EricsGreen98Tj

Pics of said girlfriend who buys GoPro's, posters for garage, AND drills holes for corner guards???

AND, does she have a sister(s)? Or like minded friends???

How much do you figure that you pushed the rear axle back? The rear tire looks like it sets PERFECT in the tub IMO....I cant stand a comp-cut.

And how did your steering work out?

Originally Posted by EricsGreen98Tj

OH and how was wheelin while in second gear in the 435? Both high and low range?

She's in the video but she's camera shy She has friends but they're up here

Rear axle is pushed 4-4.5" front is 3". Wheelbase is about 100". If I put a fuel cell in the rear I can push it out to 102". With some mods up front I could push it out to 103" but that's more time than I'd like to put in. 102" on 37s would be pretty good and 100" on 35s seems perfect.

I actually designed the add on armor to cover up the gap left after the stretch. With more trimming it could easily fit 40s. The steering worked great all weekend, no trouble but it does rub a little bit. I think I need to adjust the stops and it should be good to go.

2nd gear is the same as normal 1st gear in ax15, I did most of the driving in this video in 3rd. If the guy behind me had waited to go up the hill I would have had more room to shift to 4th and would have made it up haven't had it in high range yet due to failed cable

2wd TJ trying hard to get up a dry hill - YouTube

[SLOWPOKE693]

Did you end up using that billet steel pitman arm on your steering box?



BTW Looks sweet!

[AlxJ64]

The first runs after a complete build are always the problem trips... You'll get it de-bugged and get it working right. Glad you got the thing out there. It looks stable and low while you were climbing that hill. What are your thoughts on the 1st gear thats lower in high range than your old 1st gear in low range?

[gtxracer]

Originally Posted by SLOWPOKE693

Did you end up using that billet steel pitman arm on your steering box?



BTW Looks sweet!

Yes and it works great! Thank you

Originally Posted by AlxJ64

The first runs after a complete build are always the problem trips... You'll get it de-bugged and get it working right. Glad you got the thing out there. It looks stable and low while you were climbing that hill. What are your thoughts on the 1st gear thats lower in high range than your old 1st gear in low range?

Thanks Alex It felt VERY stable. If you notice at the end of the video I went toward the edge and that got me puckered up a bit So next things are rockers and corners once I get it debugged.

The first gear is it's sick!

[Deadman 94 xj]

Niiice! glad you got it out for a shake down run. If these things were every complete, what fun would that be?

Jeep looks great man! Thanks for the feedback on the 435 as well.

[Necromancer_tat]

I'm glad to see it finally hit the trail! Good luck getting all the bugs worked out!

[Gravy]

Thanks for sharing. Keep working on it.

inner C gussets. do them.

['05TJLWBRUBY]

Nice to see you up and running! Can't wait to get mine rolling again, summer is here!!!

May I ask where that was?

Best of Luck,

Mike

[gtxracer]

Originally Posted by Deadman 94 xj

Niiice! glad you got it out for a shake down run. If these things were every complete, what fun would that be?

Jeep looks great man! Thanks for the feedback on the 435 as well.

Thanks Deadman! I am starting to really like the 435, although this one is a bit noisy. I'm taking it out of the TJ later on to reseal some things and try to find out what's making noise but overall it's a fun transmission.

Originally Posted by Necromancer_tat

I'm glad to see it finally hit the trail! Good luck getting all the bugs worked out!

Thanks tat

Originally Posted by Gravy

Thanks for sharing. Keep working on it.

inner C gussets. do them.

gotcha, thanks, I plan on adding them if I stick with the hp30. I have the truss still and that will go on as well. I don't see this axle breaking much after what I've put it through in the past. *knock on wood!*

Originally Posted by '05TJLWBRUBY

Nice to see you up and running! Can't wait to get mine rolling again, summer is here!!!

May I ask where that was?

Best of Luck,

Mike

Thanks Mike! That was Naches. I ran Ardvark hill in 2 lo And the huge hill before that is in the video, almost made it. These Krawlers are like cheating



Update: Looks like I can go to a 1 piece shaft if I redesign and fabricate a new clutch release arm and go with a Stak D300 replace a case.

[pennsylvaniaboy]

Originally Posted by gtxracer

Yes and it works great! Thank you



Thanks Alex It felt VERY stable. If you notice at the end of the video I went toward the edge and that got me puckered up a bit So next things are rockers and corners once I get it debugged.

The first gear is it's sick!

And people wonder what we run 465s and 435s haha ....auto's suck

[Treeclimber]

Looks good.

[Optiskate]

Dude! You should have let me know you were going to be in Naches. I was about 15 miles down the road. I would have swung by and showed you how well 4wd works as opposed to 2wd. LOL

[EricsGreen98Tj]

Originally Posted by pennsylvaniaboy

And people wonder what we run 465s and 435s haha ....auto's suck

For a trail rig a manual will ALWAYS be my go to tranny. Now if I were racing or doing some crawler comps then an auto would probably be a better combo. Alot more challenging trying to use 3 pedals with 2 feet.

[gtxracer]

Wow, sorry for the lack of updates!!!



I've been driving this to work and school and I am VERY impressed. It corners better than any 4wd vehicle I've ever driven. The front shocks are a little stiff and it likes to push a little bit in gravel under power. Still in 2wd, I'm waiting to pull the trigger on an Atlas or Stak. Hopefully next week I'll be ordering something along those lines

Slight rattle in the trans, from the shift forks or shifter itself. Some slight vibes from the driveshaft too but I didn't balance it at all. I get a lot of thumbs ups, waves, and shout outs while I drive. Quite a few people slow down and stare while they walk by. I might even take it to the local car show tomorrow...my little jeep rat rod

[gtxracer]

edit: see post 500

[climbit]

atlas.

[Necromancer_tat]

Originally Posted by gtxracer

Well apparently Stak doesn't want business. I've been calling them for months now checking up every week on the Dana 300 RAC. I call today and the guy asks me to call him back in 15 minutes to get the shipping quote, etc.

I call back 5 times with no answer. Guess they went home. I've never had problems with them until now, right when I had my card out to order. I guess this is the shady bullshit people always talk about from Stak. I'll be extremely surprised if I get a call back.

I once considered Staks, but I've heard so much negativity about them I'd never spend the money on them when the Atlas cases are only a few hundred more, and have 10 times the reputation.

[gtxracer]

I'm looking at the D300 replace a case, not an entire aftermarket case + guts. Big difference since Stak is the only company to offer such a product.

Stak called me this morning and I guess they had gone home and it was just mis-communication, albeit on their part. So I'm willing to give them a second chance and ordered what was said to be the last remaining driver drop D300 replace a case. Should ship by next week and be here the week after. I'm stoked but wish it would ship sooner.

Now I probably should buy a set of new bearings and a replacement cable for my shifters. Running this new case should let me clock the case lower without interfering with the crossmember and thus allowing me to run a 1 piece driveshaft. It's also convenient that I'll be able to use my blingin front shaft that is already the correct length.