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UCFJEEP's Project Mutt build thread!
Well the reason for the name is self explanatory once you thumb through the pages.....:D
This build thread is going to start from when I first purchased the Jeep a couple of years back: Well I purchased my first Jeep Wrangler!:cheers2: I come from a background of drag racing and had never owned and off road capable vehicle before. Here is the proof: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-76pkOUcpM Here is my jeep when I first purchased it. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...oadpics018.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...oadpics016.jpg I was tired of looking like a mail carrier...so I purchased 15x8" Cragar Soft 8's w/ 32X11.5 Wild Country XTX Tires. Unfortunately, I do not have any driveway pics to show just the wheels and tires. Only wheeling pics...LOL I use my jeep! http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...s/101_6557.jpg By the way, this is at a State Forest.....so not ilegal. LOL http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...cs/Jeepmud.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2.../MuddyJeep.jpg And for the aftermath of a nice day of wheeling! http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...s/100_0773.jpg After going on another little wheeling trip some more ground clearance was needed. As a result, I decided to purchase a Rough Country 2.5" Series II BB Lift Kit. It was fairly simple to install with a friend on this site with our basic tools. The advanced Auto spring compressor made the install even easier and I recommend it to anyone. The kit comes with everything needed for a decent price. 2.5" spacers for the front, 2" spacers for the rear, brake line ext, sway bar links, shock ext, and a rear trackbar bracket. After lift: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...s/100_0785.jpg |
First white knuckle ride. Trust me the hill was pretty steep. And a long way down. LOL My back wheel was a good couple of feet off of the ground. Jeep was doing some nice teetering back and forth. After all said was done, a lot of fun!
My uncle with the cig hanging out! LOL He owns a nice WJ with long arms and lockers. http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/...1/DSC02317.jpg This kind of shows how steep the hill was. http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/...1/DSC02322.jpg |
Next on the mod list was Hella Black Magic Driving Lights mounted on the windshield using Rugged Ridge mounts.
I later pulled the spacers and shock extensions put in Rough Country 2.5" lift coil springs and Skyjacker shocks to gain more articulation. Note: to anyone planning on running Skyjacker shocks please order shocks based off of extended and collapsed legnths. Not by what the company deems a 2-3" lift shock. I found out the hard way. The first set of shocks I ordered for 2-3.5" lift JK's. When I mounted them to my Jeep, the front shock only extended past the lower mounting location by about 1".......=not good. I called the company and they advised the shock was the correct part number. I then turned around and ordered the 6" lift shock which has an expanded length of 26.75" and collapsed 15.5". Come to find out the so called 2-3.5" lift shock has a expanded length of 22.xx" and collapsed length of 13.xx". All in all, basically my suspension now does this! http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_1470.jpg The other side on the same obstacle. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_1471.jpg Then I added a K&N Air Filter. Superchips Programmer. THis was one of my favorite mods. There was a definite gain in power and throttle response. Helped my Jeep a lot with the horrible 3.21 gears it had. AFE High Tuck Exhaust,. I really like the sound of this exhaust and get a lot of compliments. It has a deeper sound then others I have heard and does not drone too bad. I did have an issue about 500 milea fter installation with the evap canister line touching the pipe. End result was a melted line. After replacing the line and adjusting the length of one of the pipes a bit longer. All is fine now. I hated the look of the stock bumper so I chopped it and put on VDP caps. A very easy mod to do. Angry Eyes were added. (These are no longer on the Jeep), SOme little interior mods were done: ie Floor mats etc. (Boring and probably nobody cares lol) Playing at Hardrock http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ockJeepin1.jpg |
As the build continues it was time for some larger tires.
I attempted to go with 15" MB72 wheels and Goodyear MT/R Kevlar tires but received a call from the shop advising it would take many months before I received the order. The shop advised me it was there fault and they would make it right. As a result, they gave me a great deal on 35" Duratrac tires and 16" MB72 Matte Black wheels. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2084.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2078.jpg Well my Uncle and I worked on chopping my fenders to gain some clearance for the 35s. I did this because when I had the 32's, I always disconected the front sway bar. I want to be able to still do so with the 35s. Overall it took us about 4-5 hours. We were taking our time to do it right. Fenders are still very stable. I will be spraying bed liner tonight on the rear wheel wells for some added strength against rocks, etc. This was completed with a dremel, sawzall, drill, sanding. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2127.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2132.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2129.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2130.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2134.jpg As you can see below, we cut the inner liner to fit and secured it to the body using a bolt. Then spray paint to hide it. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2136.jpg This is before the spray bed liner: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2137.jpg I gained almost 3" in the front wheel well, and 2.5" in the rear. |
Went to test clearance of the rear tires. Next I will be disconnecting the front sway bar to see if I will need some more bumpstop.
http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ns8/Jeepp7.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ens8/jeep8.jpg Fenders work great and I am still running them today. I have added LED lights drilled into the body underneath the fender for side marker lights using the stock wiring. Works great and the Jeep is still legal. |
New mods include the following:
Detriot trutracs front and rear. 4.56 ring and pinions. USA standard gears were purchased. When they were being installed one of the pinions would not fit. (Can't remember if it was the D30 or D44 one.) I searched the internet and discovered this has also been a problem for some other members. As a result, Project Mutt was gaining it's name! The Jeep has USA standard gears in one axle and G2 ring and pinion in the other. Tereflex D30 axle sleeves. These were plug welded. Evo C-gussets. Cobra 75 CB, Firestick CB antenna, Cooltech LLC mount for antenna and CB. I love this setup. Since I have put it in, many members in our club have purchased it. Very easy to install and did not require anything extra. River Raider spare tire delete cover. I hate the spare tire carrier. My spare rides in the back cargo area strapped down with ratchet straps. Spider web shade trailmesh cover for some time now. Have put this mesh to the test through many sharp tree limbs etc. It is still going strong with no signs of wear. By the way, all of the installations have been done by me except for the gears, sleeves, gussets, and trutracs.....when the shop had my Jeep, I was a nervous wreck LOL....I like to have work on my Jeep done right! I must say, the install shop did a fantastic job!:2thumbsup: Here are some photos: Hardrock Ocala http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/IMG_0723.jpg Testing out flex with the swaybar disco'd: very slight rubbing but nothing that will damage anything. I need to order some longer bumpstops one of these days. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/IMG_0725.jpg Back in the swamp. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l24/saleens8/jr3.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/IMG_0729.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/IMG_0792.jpg And with more mods, I think I become more invincible. Until you meet a mud hole that has two very deep ruts that cause you to sit on your axles with tires spinning freely like paddle wheels and everyone else enjoying the moment..LOL Not to mention friends racing to be the one to pull me out...so they can say they without me you'd be ****** haha! http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...ckinOcala1.jpg Cooltech LLC license plate mount. Overall, it was very easy to install. Just a little bit of modifying the license plate bracket and done. I like the factory look as the only thing visible is the antenna. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2531.jpg Here is the Cooltech LLC CB mount. It bolts to a screw that holds the radio onto the dash. Again, I liked the factory appearance. The only wire visible is the one attached to the CB. A very clean install. Oh and yes, those are fuzzy dice hanging from the rear view mirror. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2532.jpg This is a picture of the following day from wheelin in Ocala National Forest. Jeep was pretty much covered with orange mud. A great trip overall. Just got done waxing and putting back to black on the fenders. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2530.jpg On our last ride to the Ocala National Forest, to our luck there were two fighter jets practicing bombing runs on the range. We opened the top and watched as they flew right over us practiced doing what ever they were doing and throttled back up doing as my wife called "tricks" and back to do it again. It was an awesome sight and sound! This photo was hard to get as they were obviously traveling very fast. And by the time you heard them, they were already past you. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2523.jpg And because of the washing I always do to my Jeep when we get done wheelin, the Clermont Jeep Club loves to make fun of me LOL. |
Well I got side tracked after visiting a junk yard. Found an old DJ (Postal Jeep) from probably 198X. Maybe someone could chime in with a better guess. The grill was very rusted but straight. I thought it would be a cool (man Cave) item. So after myself and my uncle pulled it 20 bucks later it was at the house. I spent a good amount of time sanding it all down and re-painting it. Turned out pretty cool. So who else has an old original Jeep grill hanging in there garage?
Before: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...psc4b8d8e2.jpg After: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...pscf2c1a39.jpg I sanded and sprayed the backside too but don't have a photo. By the way, the grill was not hacked up or modded in anyway. I would not have changed it in case this was a piece another would need for a restore down the road. On the wall: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...psbef34691.jpg I might move it later to a higher spot in the back of the garage. But this works for now. |
A Rancho steering stabilizer was added as I destroyed the stock one on a tree root. (I would not suggest this stabilizer to anyone as I will explain later.
In order to protect my large investment in gearing and as it was time to change fluid after 500 miles. D30/D44 Riddler covers were installed. These things are tough! I have every bit of confidence that these things will take a hard hit from a rock, and punish that rock for being in their way! http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2581.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2582.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2584.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...8/100_2583.jpg |
Ok bought the bumper from Northridge4x4 and as always they had great customer service!:)
The brown santa brought me the bumper and two days later it was go time. Overall, the build quality of the bumper is great. The welds are a thing of beauty. The bumper appeared solid and stinger braced well. I went to a friends house (Basically his garage is Ace Hardware:bounce:) And it began: Removing the crash bar: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0167.jpg More removal of the crash bar-now with long sleeves and gloves: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0168.jpg After removing and grinding down the welds from the crash bar and trimming some of the frame horns, my buddy had the most amazing cutting tool (Besides a plasma cutter of course). This thing was awesome, it made very clean and straight cuts. Note: in order to use the tool we had to trim some of the flat frame horns in order to fit it over the frame rails. A Plasma cutter would have made the job much quicker. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0171.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0172.jpg Bumper primed: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0174.jpg Frame cut 2" and crash bar removed w/ welds ground down. http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0173.jpg First coat of spray on bed liner: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0177.jpg Primed and painted the frame rails to keep rust away: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0176.jpg Second coat done: Frame rails drilled: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0178.jpg Bumper mounted and bolted down: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/108_0179.jpg Ok, we noticed when we were torquing the nuts on the bottom to 85 ft/lbs the frame began to cave a little.........so I remembered reading how others on this site have created a bracket to help distribute the torque. So we took the factory bumper brackets and cut them down and welded. It worked perfectly and provided a much stronger platform on the bottom of the frame. I highly suggest this to everyone running this bumper. Here is the photo of the bracket: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/100_2730.jpg |
and here is some photos of the finished product.:)
http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/100_2727.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/100_2725.jpg http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/100_2729.jpg Driver's view: http://i92.photobucket.com/albums/l2...l/100_2733.jpg |
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