At age 34 (I'm 40 now), I bought my first and only new vehicle ever - a 2005 LJ - as a spring/summer/fall daily-driver. I have always stored it in the winters, and driven a cheap "winter bomb" to keep the LJ out of the salt. I love the thing, and have pretty much babied it, to say the least (until more recently...read on).
Here's a stock shot of my LJ. Looking back, it looked pretty "wussy" on those stock-sized tires (not that it's huge now, but...).
A couple years ago, when the Wrangler GS-As were starting to get a little slippery (plenty of tread left, but the compound got kind of hard/slippery), I sprung for some 31" BFG KM2s and a budget boost. It's a great set-up. The handling is still great, and the tires aren't horribly loud for being a mud-terrain design.
Enter a Fall 2010 visit to Rocks and Valleys with my daughters (met up there with Crawler and his wife). One word...ADDICTED! So were my daughters. Mira was begging me to get a locker so we could do the Black Diamond trails. :grinpimp:
Current Plans/Status (updated 4/2/2012):
I want to give a H-U-G-E thanks to RockSolid Performance for all of the guidance, custom work, and great service. Thanks guys!
I installed a Currie Anti-Rock up front...
I picked up a CJ-10a Dana 70U for the rear. It's W-I-D-E (75") in stock form. The Dana 70U has a nodular iron center section, a smooth bottom (see photo below), 4.88 gears, and a Power-Lok limited-slip.
It's not a high-pinion axle, but the pinion is just below the center line of the axle, so it's not really a low-pinion, either.
Post-Anti-Rock install "playing" pic. I couldn't get any further up the rock with the open front diff.
I picked up 3 different sets of H2 wheels to get the 5 best for my own Jeep. Here's a shot on my friend Harry's Bridgeport mill, which he used to machine out the centers.
Here's a stock shot of my LJ. Looking back, it looked pretty "wussy" on those stock-sized tires (not that it's huge now, but...).
A couple years ago, when the Wrangler GS-As were starting to get a little slippery (plenty of tread left, but the compound got kind of hard/slippery), I sprung for some 31" BFG KM2s and a budget boost. It's a great set-up. The handling is still great, and the tires aren't horribly loud for being a mud-terrain design.
Enter a Fall 2010 visit to Rocks and Valleys with my daughters (met up there with Crawler and his wife). One word...ADDICTED! So were my daughters. Mira was begging me to get a locker so we could do the Black Diamond trails. :grinpimp:
Current Plans/Status (updated 4/2/2012):
- AEV Highline Hood & Fenders
- Front Bumper TBD
- Warn 8274 Winch & Winch Plate
- Rokmen Rear Bumper
- OEM LJ Rubicon Rocker Guards
- Rokmen Gas Tank Skid Plate
- Warn Steering Box Skid Plate (used...thanks JCR Offroad)
- Rokmen 1/2" Body Lift
- PSC Hydro-Assist Steering
- OME springs (~2 3/4" lift)
- Rokmen Rear Coil Spring Relocation Kit
- Full-Traction long-arm suspension & skid plate
- Custom Steering & Track Bar built by RockSolid Performance
- Currie Dana 60 front axle, 4.88 gears w/Grizzly Locker. My stock Dana 30 will end up in Mira's 1993 XJ 2-dr. project.
- Dana 70U rear axle, 4.88 gears w/Powr-Lok L/S: Narrowed by Sinister Fabrication/Unlimited Offroad Centers
- Hummer H2 wheels: OEM silver H2 wheels with centers machined out to clear Dana 70U hubs (thanks itselliott)
- 37" BFG KM2 tires.
- Advance Adapters SYE
- Parts Mike Pinion-Mount Parking Brake
- Currie Antirock front sway bar
I want to give a H-U-G-E thanks to RockSolid Performance for all of the guidance, custom work, and great service. Thanks guys!
I installed a Currie Anti-Rock up front...
I picked up a CJ-10a Dana 70U for the rear. It's W-I-D-E (75") in stock form. The Dana 70U has a nodular iron center section, a smooth bottom (see photo below), 4.88 gears, and a Power-Lok limited-slip.
It's not a high-pinion axle, but the pinion is just below the center line of the axle, so it's not really a low-pinion, either.
Post-Anti-Rock install "playing" pic. I couldn't get any further up the rock with the open front diff.
I picked up 3 different sets of H2 wheels to get the 5 best for my own Jeep. Here's a shot on my friend Harry's Bridgeport mill, which he used to machine out the centers.