Family's First TJ - 2004 X Build

techster82

techster82

Lover of Lifted LJs
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Joined
Jul 20, 2017
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240
Location
Alaska
As a father's day present to myself last year (with the wife's approval) I purchased a 2004 TJ with the 4.0 and 5spd manual. It was a factory X trim level jeep that had some additions made to it by previous owners (the last of which I ended up knowing and was able to speak with about the jeep prior to purchasing). She had 92,000 miles on her when I got it and doesn't have much more as we drove it some through the summer and fall and she's been put up in the garage all winter.

The day we got her:
IMG_2015.jpg


As she sits in the picture (when purchased):

Lift: 3.5" (I'm guessing by my spring measurement) BDS Suspension Lift. Dual front steering stabilizers, aftermarket front lower control arms, newer BDS NX2 front shocks, transfer case drop, quick disconnect front swaybar ends. (Dana 35/30 axle combo with 3.07 gears)

Wheels/Tires: New Mickey Thompson ATZP3 31x10.50r15 tires with Mammoth 8 Beadlock style 15x8 wheels

Flares: 6" Pocket Flares with Rhino Lining

Rock Sliders: OR-Fab Sliders with step bars

Front/Rear Bumpers: Smittybilt XRC front winch bumper and rear bumper with swing out tire mount

Underhood changes: K&N Intake, Airaid throttle bottle spacer

Audio upgrades: Polk dash speakers, Kicker speakers in soundbar, Kenwood aftermarket deck with Bluetooth

The jeep also had the entire inside of the tub, hard top, flares and middle of the hood Rhino Lined as well as a Ziebart rust prevention undercoating applied at some point by a previous owner. The frame, axles and body mounts were essentially rust free which is one reason I ended up pulling the trigger on this jeep. (There ended up being some rust that bubbled up around where the fender flares mounted to the body as well as the rock sliders bolts that I'll cover in another post) I also received a newer full soft-top in addition to the hard-top.

The jeep drove well, no death wobble and tracked very true down the road. I wasn't a fan of the wheels/tires, flares etc but in the end they were all cosmetic things that I will/have addressed after the purchase.

My plan with this jeep is to build it into a capable trail rig as well as something that can be enjoyed by the family (we have two children under six that love the jeep) for drives through horse country here in KY as well as a daily driver if needed.

In the following posts I'll talk about things that I want to change, things I have changed and things that I'd like input on from people much smarter than myself before I alter.
 
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she's been put up in the garage all winter.

You're in the same boat as I am. I bought an 04 last year, already lifted, 33' tires, etc. I'm saving my nickles and dimes (and selling my Valkyrie) to get some stronger axles and some 4.56s first and then I'll get into the details. Keep us updated .
 
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Very cool! I’ve also got two kids under 6, so I can relate entirely. And my TJ is also the same color too! Looks great so far.
 
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Nice Jeep! My boys are 12-10 and are Jeep junkies.
Take it out and see how it does. Think, what will your use for it will be and go from there.
That 35 and 3.07? Yikes
 
The first thing I had to get rid of was the wheel/tire combo that was on the Jeep. Although they were almost brand new tires and wheels, I hate chrome and wanted something bigger than the petite looking 31s. (No offense to folks who have 31" tires, I just didn't like them with this lift etc)

I've been running BFG KO2s on my daily driver F150 for a little while and really like the tires. They wear like iron and do well in most driving conditions while having an aggressive looking sidewall. A friend that owned a TJ previously kept telling me up and down that I needed 35s. I also really wanted 35s because lets face it, they're bigger than 31s or 33s. While the 33" tires would have been the best choice I ended up ordering a set of 35x12.50r15 KO2s along with a set of 5 Mammoth Boulder Black 15x8 wheels. I made a decision pretty quick as I absolutely hated the current setup.

IMG_3103.jpg


While they fit and didn't rub when turning, they were stuffed in there pretty good with the oversize pocket flares and I did get rubbing on the backs of the rear flares when the rearend compressed going over bumps or curbs. All in all they rode well and we put a few miles on them with evening drives.

Not long after I purchased this setup a pretty nice wheel/tire combo for a TJ popped up on Craigslist. It was a set of five BFG KM2 Mud Terrains (305/70R17 with low miles, zero miles on the spare) mounted on Black Rhino Matte Black Ocotillo 17x9 wheels. This size works out to be roughly a 34" tire which I knew would run fine with my current lift and give me a little more room versus the 35s. The price was good enough that I went to check them out and ended up purchasing them as well.

IMG_3118.jpg


After throwing them on the jeep I really liked the fit but was still torn between the two. I mentioned to the wife that I may just keep both sets but that didn't go over so well (she claimed we didn't need to store a set in our "already getting full with other jeep parts" garage). I liked the 35" setup but kind of felt that a 15" rim made the tires look too balloon like. Had I gone with a 16" setup originally I probably would have just kept them. While the 17" rim might be a little big for my taste, I decided to keep the KM2s as they were a little better sized and as little as we drive the jeep I like the idea of having a dedicated mud-terrain tire.

Because I don't want any silver/chrome on this jeep I'm researching the best way to black out the silver plastic bolt heads that are on the Black Rhino rims. I was hoping I could remove them, paint/plastidip them and then reinstall for a completely black rim. Unfortunately they're plastic and pressed or glued to the rim so I don't think removing them is an option, thus I'm going to have to figure out an easy way to mask and paint them on the rim.
 
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One area that I plan to do a lot of changes to is the axle/gearing setup as well as the suspension components. For the last eight months or so I've had a Ford 8.8 sitting in my garage in anticipation of swapping out the stock Dana 35. The 8.8 I picked up is a 4.10 LSD model. Last month I also picked up an HP30 out of a 1995 Cherokee to swap, unsure of the gearing but pretty sure its 3.55.

IMG_3331.jpg


Originally I planned to build out both of these axles with 4.88 gearing and ARB lockers. Recently we've decided to order my wife a new 2018 JLUR in the next few months so some of the funds I was going to put towards the TJ will be diverted to that purchase.

I mention that because I'm thinking of sticking with the factory 4.10 LSD setup in the 8.8 for the time being and either regearing the HP30 to 4.10 as well or wait on the HP30 swap and regear my already installed Dana 30 to 4.10. Ultimately the plan is to run lockers and regear to something like 4.88 but I'm not sure I can dedicate the money to it at this time.

I think the 4.10 setup would be tolerable for awhile, especially as much as we drive this on the road and it being a manual, until I can fix the axles up exactly how I want them.

I was able to snag a new 4.10 Dana 30 Ring and Pinion for really cheap in case I leave my existing Dana 30 in place for the time being. Unfortunately I'd also need to find a new carrier for the 4.10 gears as well since my 3.07 carrier won't work.

IMG_3332.jpg


I know doing it this way I'll end up paying for some labor twice so I'll need to figure out what the best option for me is at this time. For the 8.8 swap I plan to use the Artec truss kit and have a local shop that specializes in Jeeps do the work. I welcome any input from folks that have already been down this road!
 
techster82 said:
The first thing I had to get rid of was the wheel/tire combo that was on the Jeep. Although they were almost brand new tires and wheels, I hate chrome and wanted something bigger than the petite looking 31s. (No offense to folks who have 31" tires, I just didn't like them with this lift etc)

I've been running BFG KO2s on my daily driver F150 for a little while and really like the tires. They wear like iron and do well in most driving conditions while having an aggressive looking sidewall. A friend that owned a TJ previously kept telling me up and down that I needed 35s. I also really wanted 35s because lets face it, they're bigger than 31s or 33s. While the 33" tires would have been the best choice I ended up ordering a set of 35x12.50r15 KO2s along with a set of 5 Mammoth Boulder Black 15x8 wheels. I made a decision pretty quick as I absolutely hated the current setup.

View attachment 35353

While they fit and didn't rub when turning, they were stuffed in there pretty good with the oversize pocket flares and I did get rubbing on the backs of the rear flares when the rearend compressed going over bumps or curbs. All in all they rode well and we put a few miles on them with evening drives.

Not long after I purchased this setup a pretty nice wheel/tire combo for a TJ popped up on Craigslist. It was a set of five BFG KM2 Mud Terrains (305/70R17 with low miles, zero miles on the spare) mounted on Black Rhino Matte Black Ocotillo 17x9 wheels. This size works out to be roughly a 34" tire which I knew would run fine with my current lift and give me a little more room versus the 35s. The price was good enough that I went to check them out and ended up purchasing them as well.

View attachment 35354

After throwing them on the jeep I really liked the fit but was still torn between the two. I mentioned to the wife that I may just keep both sets but that didn't go over so well (she claimed we didn't need to store a set in our "already getting full with other jeep parts" garage). I liked the 35" setup but kind of felt that a 15" rim made the tires look too balloon like. Had I gone with a 16" setup originally I probably would have just kept them. While the 17" rim might be a little big for my taste, I decided to keep the KM2s as they were a little better sized and as little as we drive the jeep I like the idea of having a dedicated mud-terrain tire.

Because I don't want any silver/chrome on this jeep I'm researching the best way to black out the silver plastic bolt heads that are on the Black Rhino rims. I was hoping I could remove them, paint/plastidip them and then reinstall for a completely black rim. Unfortunately they're plastic and pressed or glued to the rim so I don't think removing them is an option, thus I'm going to have to figure out an easy way to mask and paint them on the rim.
Click to expand...
I like the final pic. Looks great! (even with the little chrome plastic buttons on the wheels).
 
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You definitely got some work ahead of you. I plan on upgrading to 4.56 or 4.88 with my 33's, but I plan on doing the work myself. It seems daunting, but it's a challenge I'm willing to take on....as soon as time allows. Good luck with the upgrade!
 
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Chris said:
Damn, I just noticed the huge transfer case drop on that thing!
Click to expand...
Oh yeah, disgusting isn't it! I'll be installing a SYE as well (I think I'm going to go with the super short one from Teraflex) and would also like to do a tummy tuck. (I was actually rereading the how to you posted to price the parts out from Savvy and others)
 
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techster82 said:
Oh yeah, disgusting isn't it! I'll be installing a SYE as well (I think I'm going to go with the super short one from Teraflex) and would also like to do a tummy tuck. (I was actually rereading the how to you posted to price the parts out from Savvy and others)
Click to expand...

Good call! I just ordered all the parts needed to do my tummy tuck, now I just have to wait for them to arrive!
 
So after swapping out the wheels and tires that came on the TJ when I purchased it, the other part that was really bothering me were the pocket flares. I really don't like pocket flares, on any vehicle. No offense to those that do, they just rub me the wrong way so I knew at some point they were going to get swapped. (The wife really liked them so its taken me longer to get her warmed up to the idea of having something else).

I've always thought that the factory TJ flares were one of, if not the best looking option on this body style. I also contemplated flat plastic flares for the extra clearance they can provide over the pocket flares I have but didn't like the prices or many of the styles I found.

Ultimately I'd like to run something like the MetalCloak Overland setup but because of the financial commitment for those parts it may be awhile. (Other areas of the Jeep upgrades are more important right now like axles and suspension)

In the end I found a set of OE style flares for less than $100. I figured because of their price point that I didn't have a lot to lose if I ended up not using them by going with something else.

In addition to not liking the pocket flares, I had an another reason for wanting to pull them off the vehicle.......rust!
IMG_2544.jpg


While a previous owner had applied a rust preventative undercoating to the frame and suspension area, the flares had unfortunately trapped material where the top of them came in contact with the body causing paint to begin to bubble in these areas. I knew that this needed to be remedied before it got worse and it was also a perfect excuse to pull the pocket flares and go with something else for the time being.

So all four flares were removed from the jeep, along with my OR-Fab rock sliders as I was worried what might be trapped behind them as well.
I hoped for the best and set about getting everything off of the TJ.
IMG_2551.jpg


I was actually surprised to find that there wasn't as much wear and rust behind the rock sliders as I thought there might be. In the end I was left with the surface rust around where the top of the fender flares met the body and some slight rust around some of the mounting holes for the rock sliders.

With everything gone the next step was to get the problem areas down to bare metal so I knew exactly what I was dealing with. I pulled out the trusty ole angle grinder and mounted it with a stripping disk. This also came in handy as the rust undercoating that was applied to the jeep some years ago had also been sprayed under the wheel wells and fender flares which left me with a thick, hard, sometimes brittle but definitely stubborn layer of material on all four corners of the body. After trying a heat gun and an eraser wheel I decided that the quickest way to get rid of it was to grind it off.
IMG_3338.jpg


After the stripping wheel I got a good look at the extent of the rust. While it didn't go through any of the metal there were some areas that were more pitted than I had hoped. To make sure that all of it was gone I decided to sandblast all of the rusted areas to make sure I was down to clean metal. Not having access to a commercial sandblaster and wanting to do this out of my garage, I picked up a gravity fed blast gun from Harbor Freight. After a simple modification to open up the feeding tube I loaded it with Black Diamond blasting material from Tractor Supply and gave it a go.
IMG_3334.jpg


This let me get a good look at the metal and have a clean surface to begin the body work and paint. After sandblasting any of the rusted areas over the course of a few nights I took the stripping disk and made sure to remove any areas that had undercoated on the body paint. Once this was done I broke out the DA sander and smoothed my transitions as much as my patience would allow.
IMG_3368.jpg


Once I was satisfied with the rust prep I pulled her in to the garage to begin the process of priming and painting the sides.
IMG_3372.jpg


With everything masked off at the body lines I'd chosen the next step was to apply an epoxy primer I picked up from Eastwood. This is a DTM (direct to metal) primer and is one of the few two part epoxy primers offered in an aerosol can. (I have a 21 gallon compressor and purchased a paint gun but opted to go all aerosol for this project as I'm a beginner)
IMG_3386.jpg


Since this primer can have body filler applied over it I laid it down first to protect the bare metal. The next step was to mix up some body filler (Contour from Eastwood) and apply it to the areas where I had the pitting and depth differences from going to bare metal.
IMG_3388.jpg


After more sanding (man I hate sanding) I arrived a point that I was content with (especially since almost all of these area will be covered) and hit it with another round of primer. After that dried I cleaned the areas and scotch-brited the paint that was left to get ready for our first basecoat. Since I was going to be blending some between the old and new paint I checked my colors to make sure they matched. For the basecoat and clear I ordered aerosol cans from the folks at automotivetouchup.com. They get high marks from people that have used them and once again they offered a two stage paint system that didn't require a spray gun.
IMG_3389.jpg


Three coats of base coat later this is where I'm at. I'm done for the night as I've got to be at work in six hours so the clear coats will have to wait until tomorrow. Once they're on I'll give it a day or two and polish the newly painted areas. Once that is done its on to replacing some nutserts for the fender flares and getting them mounted!
 
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Good stuff man! Looking forward to the final product. The one thing I picked up, probably should have painted the entire fender. That way there is no "seam" between the old and new paint.
 
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Rob5589 said:
Good stuff man! Looking forward to the final product. The one thing I picked up, probably should have painted the entire fender. That way there is no "seam" between the old and new paint.
Click to expand...
I actually ended up blending the new paint up the entire panel to avoid a hard line. Essentially I wanted to paint the entire fender but wanted to minimize the amount of work. Hopefully I achieved the desired outcome when it gets daylight!
 
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