Finally back in a LJ build thread

kbarwall

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Ohio
Hello All! Last July I sold my JKU to get back into an LJ. The LJ in question was gifted to me from my Dad (I know Lucky). Unfortunately, my first trip out with it under my ownership, well, we broke some things. The jeep overall looks decent from the outside but is a rust belt jeep and needs work overall! The floor is gone but surprisingly the frame is is good shape with the exception of the upper springs buckets in the rear. I've been spending the last few weeks cleaning it up, converting what rust is there and painting it while waiting on some other parts for the front end.

Old JK Bought stock in 2016:
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How Jeep Jamboree Gateway to the Cumberlands Started:


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How It Ended (Lots of Oil Leaks, lost two U-Joint caps on the front Axles Shafts, but she never let me down):
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During:

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Needless to say, the jeep needed some work, my dad hadn't driven it in quite sometime and was focusing on his YJ trail rig.

So I formulated a tentative plan and started disassembly.

The Plan:
Pull Front Axle and completely Disassemble and ready for Powder Coat
  • Order all necessary components for rebuild (master Install kit, 5.13's and strengthening components
I just got the Front Axle back - needs cleaned out and prepped for the rebuild which i hope to get to this weekend:
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I am also in the middle of installing the PSC steering box/Pump and a cooler - no pics of that at the moment.

Earlier this summer I removed the Oil pan and replaced the rear main seal, while I was in there I replaced largest source of the leaking early, the front crank seal/timing cover gasket......to say the crank seal was bad was an under statement. We found some more previous owner handy work...not my dad...
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I think that mostly catches us up to current day.

Next on the list is control arms, SAAVY Double adjustable. Then it will be time to pull the rear axle out, replace the upper spring buckets, outboard my shocks and re-gear the rear. I also forgot to mention, I am convert to WJ knuckles....lots of work to get done! I tend to be terrible at taking photos while working, I get in the zone and away we go - I'll try and be better.

Kevin

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I almost forgot, last spring I scored some JK AEV Pintler Beadlocks and reworked them. Also went to 37's.

As Recieved:
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After stripped and re-coated and new tires installed.
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Nice build progress! You move quickly!

Not that Fast! I started this in March-ish and Have been doing my best to work on the jeep - buttttt I am coaching my kids baseball and football teams so the time I thought I would have to work on this is very small...im doing my best. In the thick of it now.
 
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All, what are you through on upgrading Radiators? When I disassembled the jeep to do the above mentioned work, there was NOT a problem with the cooling system - I am torn between upgrading and putting it back as it was since there was not an issue. Beyond that - in my past I ran Mishimoto in the JKU, and it was great, is that the go to brand or is there a go to cheaper alternative?
 
All, what are you through on upgrading Radiators? When I disassembled the jeep to do the above mentioned work, there was NOT a problem with the cooling system - I am torn between upgrading and putting it back as it was since there was not an issue. Beyond that - in my past I ran Mishimoto in the JKU, and it was great, is that the go to brand or is there a go to cheaper alternative?

Factory Mopar is recommended radiator. No radiator upgrades needed for a 4.0.
 
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Well its been a minute. I have been building a house and had to put this on pause for a while. Just jumping back on this during weekends between house work and kids sports. Currently waiting on my control arms to arrive as well as my front Brakes for my WJ knuckle upgrade. The jeep looks very much like the prior pictures with the exception of the gear job being complete and I have taken time here and there to clean up and paint the frame.
 
Here are some photos from this past couple of weeks.

I am in the process of test fitting the steering linkage and checking angles - waiting for axle side bracket so I can fabricate and raise the track bar to get proper angle.

Once the geometry is corrected I can finalize the linkages and move onto the PSC system and re-installing the radiator and button up the engine bay. After that, hopefully a simple re-gear of the rear axle and back on the road she goes! We will see when I get in there.

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Looks like I might need to move my axle a bit more forward. for those wondering, I don't normally let the calipers hang - my zip ties broke. Good news is, i have no brake lines on order since these are about 6-8 years old or so. This is the WJ knuckle swap for those wondering. I did intentionally mount the tie rod on top to gain clearance - all clears, but I will need to shorten the shank on the drag link rod end, as of not I only have about 1/16" of clearance while operating. For piece of mind, I would like a bit more clearance.
 
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well...my intent wasn't necessarily to change steering linkage type. My initial push to do the WJ knuckle swap was to get the larger Brakes and twin piston calipers. Hi-Steer was a secondary benefit for me. Never had issues with the Y-link in my past but I have had numerous occasions where the OEM TJ braking was not sufficient.
 
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well...my intent wasn't necessarily to change steering linkage type. My initial push to do the WJ knuckle swap was to get the larger Brakes and twin piston calipers. Hi-Steer was a secondary benefit for me. Never had issues with the Y-link in my past but I have had numerous occasions where the OEM TJ braking was not sufficient.

Oh that makes sense, the WJ knuckle swap blew over my head!

Do you mind sharing roughly how much this swap costs, as compared to a BMB big brake kit?
 
I got the knuckles and the spacer plates for 50 bucks from a friend.. Brakes I ordered off Amazon, I think I have around 250-300 dollars in the calipers and Rotors/Pads - would have to double check. Obviously there are some ancillary cost associate with the steering changes. I don't think it is any cheaper so it comes down to preference and if the associated changes are worth it to you, in this case the steering geometry change. In complete transparency, I started this project with out full researching where it would lead me lol - but here we are.
 
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https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/diy-big-brake.68658/#post-1280437

There is another way too, but read through as mrblaine points out the knuckles are weaker than stock knuckles.

Yea - I don't know that I agree with those statements. I guess it depends on what you consider a "huge amount of work" to get it right. Being that this is not my DD, I don't have pressure to get this done under any specific timeline. I haven't felt that anything has been overly tough... In terms of the off-sets being weak, I guess time will tell. Worst case Ill go to Heims - but as always - the weak link is just moved to somewhere else. In my experience, doing a similar type of steering modification to my JK, I ran with a drilled out knuckle for 5+ years at this point without an issue and regular wheeling, with that said, I am not super hard on things.
 
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Yea - I don't know that I agree with those statements. I guess it depends on what you consider a "huge amount of work" to get it right. Being that this is not my DD, I don't have pressure to get this done under any specific timeline. I haven't felt that anything has been overly tough... In terms of the off-sets being weak, I guess time will tell. Worst case Ill go to Heims - but as always - the weak link is just moved to somewhere else. In my experience, doing a similar type of steering modification to my JK, I ran with a drilled out knuckle for 5+ years at this point without an issue and regular wheeling, with that said, I am not super hard on things.

I was speaking to my thread with the older XJ/YJ knuckles. I don't think the WJ knuckles you used are any worse than the TJ in terms of strength but I do not know.
 
You’ll love those Akebono brakes. Installed WJ steering knuckles with Akebono calipers on my YJ. Easy install and excellent braking.

Yea - now my dad wants me to do this swap to his YJ. Any pointers before I get started again? I don't know that I would change anything yet - since not having driven it yet.