Any tips for my build?

[NolandTJ]

First post hopefully this goes well lol I've been reading on here non stop for about 2 months now. Cant seem to find exactly what I need for all of my build. I have a stock 2000 se trying to buy all of my parts now so when im back from deployment ill be ready to get to work. I have so many questions but my main one would be the lift. Im willing to pay for quality but some are crazy expensive. I want a 3 in suspension lift for 33's. ive been looking at the teraflex lift but for 3 inches would I need upper and lower control arms? most people seem to go back and forth just wondering about that lift specifically or any other options. Also I just ordered a JCR Offroad dagger front stinger and plan on ordering a warn vr8-s gen ll winch tomorrow, would having that up front make it sit lower than the rear? Maybe I should get spacers too? It comes with quick disconnects too but I was wanting to get a anti rock im thinking ill be alright with either. And im regearing, armor all the way around, maybe 1 in body lift, lunchbox locker in the front, bolt in roll cage, and a bunch of smaller things. Any tips for a guy just starting a build would be appreciated!! Thanks ahead of time!! Picture for a little before action

 

[tomtaylz]

I’d recommend in your case for what you want possibly looking at the DPG Offroad Ultimate Kit, it sort of has everything you need from a lift perspective and can fit 33s. You’ll need to give them a call and then based upon how much weight in the front/rear he’ll get you the right springs.

Regearing will be a big thing with the 2.4L (I believe the SE has that) and it might still not run great with 33s

 

[JMT]

Good plan. You’ve been doing your research. With the lift, the main thing for ride quality is going to be your shocks. TeraFlex used to be king many years ago but now there are better lifts for not much more money. At 3 inches, there’s always the 2.5 OME with a spacer to get you up to 3 inches. It’s probably not necessary though. A 1 inch body lift with 2.5 OME would work well with 33’s. I’d go with the Currie which is aluminum. I think you also would want a 1 inch motor mount lift to avoid vibes. No, you won’t need control arms. After the bumper and winch it will sit lower in the front. TJs have a 1” factory take. Some people can’t stand it. Some don’t care. I’d say do the lift, bumper and winch and see where you are. You can always add a spacer later. If it’s too much of a pain and you want to try to level it without going in twice, add a 0.75” spacer up front when you do the lift. Well thought out plan.

 

[NolandTJ]

I’d recommend in your case for what you want possibly looking at the DPG Offroad Ultimate Kit, it sort of has everything you need from a lift perspective and can fit 33s. You’ll need to give them a call and then based upon how much weight in the front/rear he’ll get you the right springs.

Regearing will be a big thing with the 2.4L (I believe the SE has that) and it might still not run great with 33s

Thanks gou

I’d recommend in your case for what you want possibly looking at the DPG Offroad Ultimate Kit, it sort of has everything you need from a lift perspective and can fit 33s. You’ll need to give them a call and then based upon how much weight in the front/rear he’ll get you the right springs.

Regearing will be a big thing with the 2.4L (I believe the SE has that) and it might still not run great with 33s

Yeah I have the 2.5L im hoping not to lose too much power going to do exhaust, intake and maybe the 4.0 throttle body if shes a dog but way later down the road I plan on swapping the 2.5 so I can run 35's but I also only have a dana 30 and 35 so thatll be a whole other thing just way down the road. thanks for the suggestion ill look into them for sure!

 

[NolandTJ]

Good plan. You’ve been doing your research. With the lift, the main thing for ride quality is going to be your shocks. TeraFlex used to be king many years ago but now there are better lifts for not much more money. At 3 inches, there’s always the 2.5 OME with a spacer to get you up to 3 inches. It’s probably not necessary though. A 1 inch body lift with 2.5 OME would work well with 33’s. I’d go with the Currie which is aluminum. I think you also would want a 1 inch motor mount lift to avoid vibes. No, you won’t need control arms. After the bumper and winch it will sit lower in the front. TJs have a 1” factory take. Some people can’t stand it. Some don’t care. I’d say do the lift, bumper and winch and see where you are. You can always add a spacer later. If it’s too much of a pain and you want to try to level it without going in twice, add a 0.75” spacer up front when you do the lift. Well thought out plan.

I have looked into OME a little my friend only runs their stuff nut I was just going to get the teraflex without shocks anf get Rancho RS9000XL shocks ive been seeing that everybody likes them. Ill just go without the spacers on whatever I do and see what it looks like and maybe go in twice if I need to.

 

[JMT]

I have looked into OME a little my friend only runs their stuff nut I was just going to get the teraflex without shocks anf get Rancho RS9000XL shocks ive been seeing that everybody likes them. Ill just go without the spacers on whatever I do and see what it looks like and maybe go in twice if I need to.

That’s a good plan, especially with the Rancho 9000X paired. You might consider Savvy 3” springs if you can find them without a full kit. Then get a JKS front trackbar and go ahead with the rest of your build.

Here’s the link:
https://savvyoffroad.com/product/ce-9133s/

 

[tomtaylz]

That’s a good plan, especially with the Rancho 9000X paired. You might consider Savvy 3” springs if you can find them without a full kit. Then get a JKS front trackbar and go ahead with the rest of your build.

Here’s the link:
https://savvyoffroad.com/product/ce-9133s/

I’d go with the RS5000x rather than 9000. Those + springs linked above + trackbars you’re not looking at a terrible price probably around $1200

Then you could buy a BL + MML separately if you want/need them for around $250ish, quick disconnects I think around $100 or antirock $400.

The DPG Offroad still probably squeaks in just a spec cheaper but you could argue that the pieced together kit would be slightly better quality.

 

[Chris]

The absolute best suggestion I can give you is to think about where you want to end up. So many TJ owners (myself included) are blindsided when we start our builds. We think that we'll only stay with 33s and never upgraded to 35s. We figure we'll just cheap out and go with the lower quality parts, only to realize down the road that it was a mistake, and we should have went with the higher end, more expensive parts (which are that way for a reason).

So 5 years from now, do you picture your TJ as being just a mostly on-road vehicle with occasional light trail use, or do you imagine your TJ as being a very capable rock crawler that can do all the tough runs at Moab and similar?

Do you think you'll ever upgrade to 35s or larger?

 

[JMT]

I’d go with the RS5000x rather than 9000. Those + springs linked above + trackbars you’re not looking at a terrible price probably around $1200

He’d save a lot of coin doing that. Some people like that adjustability of the 9000x but I agree, it’s hard to be the 5000x. It is just set up right for our TJs. He could put that extra coin toward getting a better lift in my humble opinion.

 

[Boinked]

Best tip on parts for the jeep. "Buy once cry once."

Best tip for your deployment. They will provide you with everything you need. Don't buy anything. All the things that people want to sell you will go to waste. Just save your money for jeep parts & guns.

 

[tomtaylz]

We think that we'll only stay with 33s

Or even stay with 31s

 

[Boinked]

Do you think you'll ever upgrade to 35s or larger?

Im never gonna do it NEVER......... (starts looking at pictures of 35's) well maybe.....

 

[JMT]

Here’s an idea, and it can be done because I’m doing it. Build with room to grow up to 35’s. Or stay happy with 31’s. There are always ways, and the real break is between 35’s and 37’s. To do it right 37’s are a lot more money

 

[NolandTJ]

seems like I have a lot more research to do! I Definitely want to make this a trail only rig on 35's one day but don't plan on that for awhile. I was going to do a 4 in long arm but decided to stick with short arm for clearance purposes not sure if that's the right call. I am on a budget because of all the different stuff im trying to do at once. ill have 2 weeks off of work just dedicating all that time to the build most of the time I wont have free time to spend doing long projects on it. and yes im trying to save as much as possible while im out here for sure! So I guess ill start with looking up these different companies and trying to build my own kit and compare that price/quality to pre built kits.

 

[NolandTJ]

That’s a good plan, especially with the Rancho 9000X paired. You might consider Savvy 3” springs if you can find them without a full kit. Then get a JKS front trackbar and go ahead with the rest of your build.

Here’s the link:
https://savvyoffroad.com/product/ce-9133s/

I think I read something about modifying the stock trackbar to work with lifts under 4" is that a bad move most of the time?

 

[Boinked]

I think I read something about modifying the stock trackbar to work with lifts under 4" is that a bad move most of the time?

The PO used the factory trackbar. And redrilled a new hole in the stock bracket.i have not had problems with it. But i will replace it with a adjustable one. Just not until it causes problems.

 

[JMT]

seems like I have a lot more research to do! I Definitely want to make this a trail only rig on 35's one day but don't plan on that for awhile. I was going to do a 4 in long arm but decided to stick with short arm for clearance purposes not sure if that's the right call. I am on a budget because of all the different stuff im trying to do at once. ill have 2 weeks off of work just dedicating all that time to the build most of the time I wont have free time to spend doing long projects on it. and yes im trying to save as much as possible while im out here for sure! So I guess ill start with looking up these different companies and trying to build my own kit and compare that price/quality to pre built kits.

Definitely stick with a short arm. There is a great thread on here by @jjvw that explains the specifics and uses a couple of videos to demonstrate why you would be wasting your money by doing a long arm, and also losing clearance. You won’t be accomplishing anything except throwing money away.

IF you’re ultimate goal is 35’s, but you’re not ready to go there yet, and want to go to 33’s now, then consider a 4” Suspension Lift, SYE, DC adjustable track bars, anti-rock, 17” wheels, black magic brake pads. I may be missing something. Then, later, when you want to bump up, do a small BL and MML. My opinion, but this would work for a build that grows without much growing pains.

 

[NolandTJ]

Definitely stick with a short arm. There is a great thread on here by @jjvw that explains the specifics and uses a couple of videos to demonstrate why you would be wasting your money by doing a long arm, and also losing clearance. You won’t be accomplishing anything except throwing money away.

IF you’re ultimate goal is 35’s, but you’re not ready to go there yet, and want to go to 33’s now, then consider a 4” Suspension Lift, SYE, DC adjustable track bars, anti-rock, 17” wheels, black magic brake pads. I may be missing something. Then, later, when you want to bump up, do a small BL and MML. My opinion, but this would work for a build that grows without much growing pains.

whats the reasoning for 17" wheels over 15's?
I had new wheels on my list but only for looks and figured I wanted to put that money else where for now.

 

[JMT]

I think I read something about modifying the stock trackbar to work with lifts under 4" is that a bad move most of the time?

Meh, I’m not impressed with that modification. The function of the trackbar is to center the wheels under the Jeep. When you lift the Jeep the angle increases between the frame and the axle, pulling the axle toward the driver’s side. It’s not fatal, but you’ll have more tire on one side than the other. To re-center the stock trackbar and axle you’d have to drill a new hole for the axle side to mount to, effectively lengthening the trackbar. To me it’s a no brainer to eventually get an adjustable trackbar so you can be spot on.

 

[Boinked]

Remember one thing. You can put 31s under a 4 inch lift. You can not put 35s under a 2 inch lift.
The most expensive thing is the regear and axle upgrade. IE lockers. Crome axles. Super 35 kit..... ect ect.
You can easily spend over 6k just there if you get carried away. (Like most people do)