hey guys
new to the forum but not new to jeeps when i was shopping for a new rig i couldnt find a rubicon anywhere in my area for sale looked for a couple months and nothing
ended up settling on an 18 jku sport and decided to start building from there just wondering what everyone else has done to thier sports to get them weekend worrior ready
my list is on going but getting smaller little by little here is a short list of how far down the rabbit hole ive gotten lol

yukon 456 gears
eaton tru trac s front and rear
ten factory axle shafts front and rear
barnes 1 ton steering
35 in kenda klever m/t s
jks adjustable front track bar
steer smarts frame side track bar mount support bracket
adams driveshafts
smittybuilt skid plates
raceline wheels

so as u can see its never ending anybody else turned thier sport into a weekend warrior ?? if so what all have u done to it ??
mine is a great rig it wheels like a champ and has great road manners not much i would change about it would make it much better for what i do with it

 

IMO, You can build a better offroad rig out of a non-rubi and that is primarily due to the eventual issue that a rubi locker will give you (either not engaging or not disengaging) at which point people realize there ain't no real replacement options other than another 32-spline rubi locker. The only thing that I think is nice about a rubicon is the TC, but I have NEVER seen that be the difference between successfully navigating an obstacle or not. The one reason I'd prefer to have the rubi TC is cuz it allows you to gear it more for the road. With my Sport TC, I had to lean more aggressive on gearing for the offroad benefits, living with a slightly more aggressive pavement RPM.

In general, looks like you're on the right path. I'd personally consider 4.88 gearing, but that is just me. IDK if the TT comes in 35-spline rear, but if it does I'd opt for that since you're planning on new shafts anyhow......rather than sticking with the 30-spline you currently have.

 

Welcome to JKF. Wow,, Major upgrades. Congrats on tacking all those! What Lift did you install or did it come lifted.

 

Welcome. What diameter tires you intend going to?

 

You know, it's been forever since I've been in the skidplate market. I didn't even realize Smitty was pumping skid plates out these days. Very strange that it doesn't look like they offer a gas skid, but I certainly would not forgo a gas tank skid as that factory "hanger" is not adequate for real wheeling AND that is a very common area of scrapping/banging on the 4dr. It DOES NOT need to be a fancy unit by any means as about every one simply overlays the factory. Rubicon Express makes a pretty inexpensive one that works fine.

While I'm on the topic of armor, do yourself a favor and include an HD cross-member cuz lining skids up on a factory cross-member that is mangled ain't fun, and even when you have skids there that thing will get mangled. I'd say the cross-member is just as important as skids on the 4dr wheelbase. Again....it's the area you're hitting a lot if you're in the rocks.

 

I have a 18 JKU Sport S, and it's my daily driver and weekend toy. Not running JV trails with it but i run all the black diamond trails here in Socal.
I have the basics, 3.5" lift with 35's, steel bumpers with winch, Rockhard rock sliders, Smitty belly skid, RE gas tank skid, G2 welded C's with front lower control arms skids, Rockhard rear lower control arm skids, Synergy steering, Full Clayton control arms, TB, TF HD BJ's, Drivelines custom front DS, 4.56 gears with Eaton rear locker etc. Still on factory axels and shafts, i have the front D30 so not looking to do any type of "send it" type of thing with it
I bought the Jeep used in 2021 and it'll be paid off in almost 3 years so after that it'll be my dedicated offroad toy and i'll have more flexibility to beef up the axels with aftermarket, PSC, front locker, bigger tires etc etc.

 

This right here is pretty typical for a 4dr gas skid.....good example of why you should include it.

 

I think you're on the right track. I started with a 2014 Willys ("I'll never need or even want that crazy low crawl ratio of the 4:1 Rubicon" ) and by 2016 was going to Moab from Atlanta for 2-3 weeks at a time every spring and sometimes fall.

My choice was first to regear and lock the existing diffs, but wound up selling the D30 axle after my first trip and buying a complete G2 D44 front, and G2 halfshafts for the stock D44 rear. I went with Eaton E-lockers, 4.56 gears. I also replaced the 2.72 t-case with a Rubi takeoff (from a V8 swap Jeep), and that was probably the most important thing I did for using it in the rocks.

I've had 5 sets of tires in the Jeep's 45,000 miles so I'm always messing around. My current setup that I'll stick with forever unless somebody else comes out with a skinny 35 I like better, is... you guessed it... Kenda Klever RT601 35x10.5. That's my street and mild offroading around Georgia tire. When I go out west I trailer a set of 5 Interco Super Swampers in size Q78-16, which is a skinny 37x11" bias ply that I can run at 8 pounds without beadlocks. But I keep those on the whole time I'm in Moab so a lot of road driving also, and I sure wouldn't run 37s with 4.56 gears. But when I put the 35" Kendas back on I'm very glad I went 4.56.

I only did 2.5" lift, plus the flat fenders. I like to keep CofG as low as possible while still clearing big tires. Did all 8 control arms and some other stuff down there to allow for the right alignment geometry. Brakes are stock.

I never needed to do anything to the steering, no problems there. And to be honest, I replaced the D30 up front out of caution; I had no trouble with it in 2016, doing Metal Masher and Goldmine and Steel Bender and some other gnarly trails that were as severe as I'd want to go (turned back on Cliffhanger ) But I feel like the D44 gives peace of mind up front.

A few shots on the 37s and 16" steelies:








And with the 35" Kendas on the 17" version of the same wheel: