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Slo-Mo Rebuild

92K views 497 replies 65 participants last post by  JohnnyJ 
#1 · (Edited)
A few people asked me to do a build thread so here goes. I skipped through some of the details so if you want them just ask.

The XJ joined my life as a clean 72K mile stocker in January 2003.



Quickly made some changes… long arm lift, tires, wheels, gears, lockers, steering, brakes, etc.



Wheeled it for a few years and had a lot of fun, made bumpers, skids, etc.
Then decided to get more serious.

Out came the rockers, in went sliders.



I also spent a long time researching and designing a hybrid cage. I took my plans to JCR and they agreed to build the cage and some rear doors for me.



Then I put some paint on it - Hemi Orange.






I drove it around and wheeled it like this for a while and started to become unhappy with the “performance” of the 4.slow. I was never impressed with the stroker motors for the gain vs. cost and about this same time a friend put a 5.7L Hemi in his JK and another friend put an LS1 in his XJ. I drove them both and was instantly hooked, I HAD to have a V8.

I could not find an LS1 that was reasonably priced and I wasn’t thrilled about putting a scoop on my hood to cover the LS truck motor intake so I looked and read, looked and read and looked and read some more. Finally, I learned that an LSI intake could be mated to the 5.3l and with some accessory rerouting it would stay below my hood line.

Pick this up from a friend at Premier Auto Parts in Cedar Springs. It’s a 2005 5.3L 45K miles and all accessories, PCM, harness, TAC and pedal.



Found an LS1 intake with injectors and fuel rail on ebay and dropped it on top. That’s when I learned the water pump would be an issue too.



I picked up and LS1 water pump and started playing around with accessories rerouting and came up with this. I was never thrilled that the upper hose was captive, but it worked and I was up against the clock to get something done.



One of the things I really wanted to do was keep the Jeep instrument cluster. I spent a great deal of time searching, reading and experimenting but I was unable to make it work. Edit: The details start on post 95.

Ultimately this is what I ended up with and I am pleased with it.



Somewhere around this time I bumped up to 35’s. So, I was enjoying my new V8 and wheeling with a D30/8.25 with stock shafts. Although I never broke anything, the Internet made me think I would every time I went out.

Picked up a D44/9” from a ’75 F100 for 200 bucks and went to work narrowing and building them. OX/Detroit, alloys, 300M joints, 35 spline rear, 5.13’s, high steer, and hydro-assist. I did a write-up on those and you can find it here.
XJ: Narrowed D44/9" Swap - Great Lakes 4x4. The largest offroad forum in the Midwest


Everything was going great, trails were getting harder and harder and I was having a blast when the Internet again made me think my transfer case would never hold up to the abuse I was giving it. I started researching upgrades and decided to build my 231J into an HD version using a 6 planetary gearset and a wide chain. I did a write-up on that and it can be found here. 231J HD Transfer Case Upgrades - Great Lakes 4x4. The largest offroad forum in the Midwest


So, that pretty much brings it up to date. However this week I came across these babies! 38X12.5X15 Super Swamper SX, thanks Daryl.



So, now I know what I will be doing for my winter project this year…
 
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#308 · (Edited)
Picked up a nice set of H2 wheels including a spare tonight at the right price. Four of the wheels are in good condition and the spare is flawless. They came with a worn out set of 35" Wild Country's and decent BFG AT for the spare. Not that you need to see anymore H2 wheels, but...



Been looking at tires that will work for a combination of street, rocks and sand. Going to go with a 37" and I think I have it narrowed down to two (well three if you count sizes) choices. Cooper STT Pro in 37-12.50/17 or 37-13.50/17 and Maxxis Trepador radial 37-12.50/17. Opinions? If you have an opinion tell me why.

Cooper STT Pro


Maxxis Trepador Radial
 
#311 ·
Maxxis trepador radials! I have a set of the 35s and I don't think I could be more impressed with a tire. They hook in the rocks and they do very well cleaning themselves out in the sand and mud. I don't have a lot of street miles on mine yet but I balanced them with airsoft bbs and they were smooth on the highway up to at least 90. The only downfall is they have a pretty stiff sidewall and need to be ran at a pretty low psi for even treadwear, at least on my light wrangler.

Sent from my SPH-L720 using Tapatalk
 
#328 · (Edited)
Mtrks are made in batches, typically early spring. Then once they are done the molds don't get used again for another year. Typically late fall most mtrk stock runs out. If somebody really wanted a set of 37s, I have a set of 5 damn near new (one is), I might be persuaded to let go of. Less then 1000 miles on the 4, one is new.

My company has 22 37s in stock.
 
#330 ·
I decided on the Cooper STT Pros. I have a friend with a shop and I picked them up at cost, so it was difficult to pass up. They look like an awesome tire and I can't wait to try them out. Although they seem much heavier than my 38" SXs with steel wheels, they weren't too hard to balance out.



With my helper today.

 
#339 ·
I ran into an issue mounting my calipers on the rear axle. When I mounted them I noticed there is no room for the u-bolts and spring plate. So, I have to mount them low and they have a lot of exposure to rocks. I can't think of another way to do it than low. Anyone have any ideas? Seen this before? The issue is because of the width, I am running C&C hubs which narrows it a couple inches.

Mounted on top.



Mounted low to clear the u-bolts and spring plate.



With wheel installed.

 
#351 ·
Holy crap you are better at this than I am, LOL. Thanks!

The brackets I have are from the guy on Pirate you posted in the first link but
the ones from Undercover Fab look like my best chance, I will call them tomorrow.

I need to play around a bit with it, but I may end up welding the brackets I have into the rear/upper position and be done with it. Am I just missing something or is there some great benefit to having the brackets removable?

Thanks everyone for the suggestions, I do appreciate it :beer:
 
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