Saskatchewanian Apex

Little late to starting my “build” (hardly a build) thread but better late than never right?

2002 Jeep TJ Sport
Bright silver metallic
4.0L, NV3550
Dana 30/Dana 35 combo 3.07 gears
Zone 4” suspension lift
(Came w/ 33x12.5R15 Duratracs, now replaced)

Dec 2018: Purchased in British Columbia

(Day of purchase)


Jan 2019: Failed Saskatchewan inspection

Jan 2019:
-Ball joints
-Front brake calipers, pads, rotors
-Rear brake shoes
-Front wheel bearings
-Rear outer axle seal
-Rear diff fluid

July 2019:
-Engine oil/filter changed

Oct 2019:
-Coolant flush/change
-Thermostat replaced
-Front diff fluid changed

***At this point progress slowed drastically due to certain circumstances at the time.
Little did I know that I would somehow make a months worth of work take me an incredibly long 4 years (as of May 2022 and still not re-brought through safety).

April 2021:
-Trailhead Customs rear bumper w/ swingout tire carrier

August 2021:
-Engine oil/filter changed

Oct 2021:
-Found out my TJ is actually an Apex edition, not terribly special but cool to know
-Added the needed (Rampage) 3rd brake light

April 2022:
-New tires (BFGoodrich KO2 33x10.5R15) *33x12.5’s had too much tire poke to pass inspection

May 2022:
-Replaced missing ash tray
-Replaced missing rear seat belt buckle
-Restored hardtop (magic erasers, cleaner wax)
-Restored flares (Rustoleum Wipe-New)

(Half magic eraser, half no-work)


(Final result ~ magic erasers & Maguiar’s #50 Cleaner Wax)


(Flares before Rustoleum Wipe-New)


(Flares immediately after applying Rustoleum Wipe-New trim restoration)
Much glossier than I like, should matte up a bit after some time

Not terribly interesting at this point but wanted to finally make my own build thread anyways, I’m sure there’s small things I missed as well so I may edit as I remember.
I’ll have to post up some current pics for y’all interested one day.

At this point, I’ve decided to focus more on the restoration/“form over function” kind of stuff with it, just getting it looking real nice since it’s getting more and more rare to see a clean TJ these days.
Also I’m not building an offroad rig, this is a backwoods-trail capable daily driver.
Until my next update… here’s a pretty sweet shot I got of it the other day.



(Update) Today:
-Removed half-chipped off old Flowmaster sticker seen on window in above pic

bobthetj03 said:

Looks clean! I like the direction you are going with it.

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Thanks! Yup I’m wanting to keep it clean and very factory looking.

Only real mods I have planned is…
-Get rid of t-case drop (adjustable CA’s, SYE, DC driveshaft)
-ZJ tie-rod upgrade
-Regear
-Hopefully throw a TrueTrac and
1541H shafts in the Dana 35 at the
same time
-Aftermarket front bumper

Everything else I have planned is really just restoration stuff, plus things like LED headlights.

Set of used OEM side steps I scooped off kijiji arrived today, just gotta pick up some bolts and paint up the arms, maaaaybe paint the steps themselves (but probably not).

Re-painted my tailgate latch cover w/ Rust-Oleum 2X satin canyon black, bolted it back on today.



Also got some Rugged Ridge entry guards and a new liftgate glass retainer/weatherstrip.
So current things on the to-do list:
-Prep/paint side step arms
-Entry guards
-Liftgate glass retainer & weatherstrip
-Pull off the drivers door panel and fix the broken door latch (which broke a couple weeks ago )
-Change t-case and tranny fluid
-Install mud flaps

Mike_H said:

budget for a regear if you plan on staying with 33's. Those 3.07 gears are terrible with 29" tires, let alone with 33's!

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Yup that’s already on the list
3.07 is absolutely horrendous, runs 2250rpm @ 80km/hr in 3rd, so 5th is basically unusable.
I know the recommended for my setup is 4.56 but I’m gonna be going 4.10, just think it’ll suit my driving better.

IDEALLY I’d love to find a Rubi (or non-Rubi) Dana 44 to swap in but they’re nearly impossible to find out here so might swap in a 4.10 Dana 35/Dana 30 out of a 4cyl TJ and hopefully put a TrueTrac LSD and some 1541H shafts in the rear.

Saturday:
Took off old liftgate glass retainer. Originally I was going to install the new one with the recommended 3M Window-Weld, then I decided it was just too pricey so I decided on J-B epoxy. Went to the hardware store to pick some up and ended up walking out with clear gorilla glue haha.
Kinda decided that if I ever needed to replace it again I’d have a BEAR of a time getting it off with epoxy. So I figured worst comes to worst the gorilla glue won’t hold up so if that happens I’ll go the epoxy route.
Weatherstrip that came with the retainer (Crown kit 55175042K) is looking like a defect or a crappy re-design of the OEM so waiting to hear back before I put that on, might pick up some 3M tape and put the old one on.

Also sprayed my (once-again) squeaky tailgate hinges with white lithium grease. Gonna spray em a few more times over the next few days.

Got in a spare tire cover I ordered today (Rugged Ridge RUG12803.35). Was a very on-the-whim purchase I made and unfortunately I’m not really digging the look. Came across 303 Aerospace afterwards and really wish I would’ve found that before ordering the cover (was wanting some UV protection for the spare).
Even more unfortunately is that shipping is non-refundable so not worth it to return to 4WP.
Option 1: Take off the cover, keep it for whatever, get some 303 to spray on (can also use for my apex seats and kayak).
Option 2: Try and sell the cover.

Few comments on the cover itself…
-The black diamond pattern and material quality is actually really nice, not near as thin as I expected
-Kind of crappy fit for 33”
-Crappy drawstring closure, not elastic like I expected

Ended up putting on the old weatherstrip for the liftgate, decided to try Gorilla mounting tape.
Also installed the passenger side entry guard.

Last Saturday: Got some ugly as crap mud flaps on

Well… today’s the day. Goin in for inspection.

Tuesday: Failed…

Decided to pay to get the shop to do the necessary work rather than do it myself just so I could get it done already.

Today: Work is done, got ‘er insured and on my way to pick it up.
Feels SO good to finally have it done.

taylormade73 said:

What all failed?

Click to expand...

Oh just a couple of stupid small stuff that really doesn’t affect the “safety” of it at all… all stuff I easily could’ve done on my own but I figured I’d just pay the shop to do it so I could be done with it and get it on the road.
Having it going is a huge checkmark off the old to-do list haha.

More pics coming one day

Got my tranny fluid changed, put in Royal Purple Synchromax. 2nd is still a little clunky but so far no more popping out of reverse. Was expecting the drain plug to have more shavings but I didn’t think it looked too bad.

Also finally got the drivers side entry guard on.