Just.Thorne's Tank Green LJ Build

Just.Thorne71

Just.Thorne71

Member
Joined
Dec 16, 2022
Messages
79
Location
Syracuse, NY
You can skip most of this if you followed my previous thread Another Slow Going 31's Project

Okay, second times the Charm. I bought my first TJ in 2022, right after I turned 17, It was a 1998 SE with the automatic, which was perfectly fine for driving around town and to high school, but as soon as I needed to get on the highway it was sketchy. I was able to get a few creature comforts into it like speakers and some other small stuff, But on Superbowl Sunday I got rear ended about three weeks before I was going to lift it and put new tires on it. That was really upsetting at the time, however since I has been saving up money for the lift, and State farm valued my jeep at more than I payed for it i was able to get something a lot nicer than my 98'

After about three-ish weeks of looking on the whole east coast I found a 04' LJ an hour from home at a small dealer that specializes in TJ/LJs

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Specs as it was when I got it from the dealer:
04 LJ, Auto, painted tank green from a JK, Inside has been professionally sprayed with Linex
Bushwacker flares
Rubicon Express 3.5" short Arm
Transfer case skid drop
Cheap bumpers
Tactik winch
33' Falken Wildpeak AT3w's

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There is some kind of leak, as the carpet was fully soaked, And since it had sat on the lot with water in the carpet, they had started to get moldy. I'm gonna run it without carpet for the summer and eventually get Bedrug when winter comes.

As soon as I got home the interior was stripped out, hosed down and scrubbed. No signs of rust besides the typical NYS surface rust on the frame which will be wire wheeled off and repainted. The body is rust free, although the paint does have a fair few spots that will need resprayed or at the very least touched up.

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The rear bumper is going to stay for a bit. it is going to be removed and resprayed black this week, I'm on spring break for the next two weeks so I have the time to get most of what I want done
 
Bush-wacker flares are off, to soon be replaced with OEM flares (Omix-ada Repros) Once I get the Jeep polished and waxed. I did find a small bit of trail damage. the back driver side wheel well is crunched in a little, it looks to be from the tire flexing up into the body. Luckily its nothing major, I'll post a picture tommorow morning, but it seems like it is hidden behind the flare.

Also If anybody has a OEM front bumper in the CNY area, let me know because I can't stand looking at this bumper for much longer, It's not the worst thing it the world, but its just not my style.

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Rear fender lines are out to get the flares switched so I did some light rust removal with a wire wheel. its nothing major and only going to last until I do the full frame over the summer.
Before and after

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Nice looking LJ, with potential to be great. Have fun with it.

I've got to ask: how is the INSIDE of the frame, particularly in the bottom of the main long section?
 
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OldBuzzard said:
Nice looking LJ, with potential to be great. Have fun with it.

I've got to ask: how is the INSIDE of the frame, particularly in the bottom of the main long section
Click to expand...

Its not perfect, I can definitely feel that there is some dirt or junk in it. I'm gonna drill some extra drain holes and try to flush as much of it out as I can, Its not perfect, But for NY its pretty good compared to the vast majority of the market.
 
Got the interior mostly buttoned up. Still have to do the center console sub/amp, as well as the soundbar speakers. I got the old dash speakers out, and didn't realize that the connectors in the 97-02 dash speakers are different than the 03-06, so I rewired them so the connectors still work.

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Also got the new fender flares on, the only problem is that the bushwhackers were slightly bigger, and rubbed away some of the green paint. revealing the silver beneath. that something that will get repainted later. I'm starting to get a long list of "ill do that later" projects.

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Got a few things done today, mostly spent my time with the front end / steering components, new tie rod and drag link, sway bar and end links from the 98, cleaned the stupid undercoating off the track bar, and resprayed the front axle. The front end is all done for now, besides an alignment, and the steering stabilizer, which was missing some hardware for, and need to pick up tomorrow morning.

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Also got the soft top on, which spent some time as it was starting to snow when I put it on. The only other minor thing I did was remove the "GI-JOE" Stickers from the side. The jeep is going tomorrow to get the wheels switched over, I'm really excited to get those Black rock wheels off and have something a little more classic. (sorry for the terrible pics, I'll try and get some better ones tomorrow morning)

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I brought the Jeep over this morning to get the wheels swapped around, then they had me drive around to different shops for about a hour to try and find someone who could take the locking lug nuts off (dealer didn't have the key) once I got them off, they refused to put the 33x12.5r15 tires on the 15x7 wheels. I'm considering weather I should find a shop that will put them on anyways, or if I should buy some new, wider wheels.

On a happier note I was able to do a alignment and get the steering stabilizer on, and don't have any front wobble so that's a plus.

- Also the drivers side door lock mechanism doesn't work, I don't know how I missed that at the dealer, but I gotta fix that too.

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I got the wheels finally switched around today, I decided to just stay with the AR767s that I already had, and I'm glad I did, I noticed that the axles are a little off center which I believe is a alignment issue and due to the lift.

I also got the rear bumper painted and on, But I didn't realize that I was out of grease though so I gotta go pick some up tomorrow morning before the guy comes to replace the cracked windshield.

Rancho RS5000x's are ordered and should be here and on this weekend.

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Just.Thorne71 said:
I got the wheels finally switched around today, I decided to just stay with the AR767s that I already had, and I'm glad I did, I noticed that the axles are a little off center which I believe is a alignment issue and due to the lift.

I also got the rear bumper painted and on, But I didn't realize that I was out of grease though so I gotta go pick some up tomorrow morning before the guy comes to replace the cracked windshield.

Rancho RS5000x's are ordered and should be here and on this weekend.

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Looking good!

Rubbing alcohol and elbow grease should remove the red & blue pin-striping on those wells if you're leaning into the green/black 'tank' look. ;)
 
FarFire70 said:
Looking good!

Rubbing alcohol and elbow grease should remove the red & blue pin-striping on those wells if you're leaning into the green/black 'tank' look. ;)
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Thank you, I'm not trying to lean too hard into the 'tank' look, I do like the the old school look of the stripes, I'm probably gonna keep them until my ADHD tells me I need to change something.

I'm also thinking of replacing the "UNLIMITED" decals with "SCRAMBLER" in the same font, to make a sort-of modern scrambler. I'm not gonna do a full stripe kit or anything, just keep it subtle, "if you know, you know" kinda style. I also like the look of these emblems on the rear

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Ive started down the slippery slope of "might as well" so far Ive ordered the following:

Rancho RS5000x's
UCF aluminum front bumper + winch plate
Polk DB652 speakers
Ring style 3rd brake light
Cheap aluminum Fair lead

Also got the tire carrier finished and mounted.

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Spent most of the day polishing and waxing the Jeep, My speakers arrived and a found that the 6.5'' speakers don't fit in the 03-06 speaker pods without some cutting, so I returned those and exchanged them for 5.25" speakers. I spent the morning pulling apart the drivers door to fix the broken lock, turns out it was a simple as the mechanism being seized. (forgot to take photos again, my bad).

I also took some measurements and got the "Scrambler" Decals made up for the sides, I'm still working on the back, But the sides are cut out and ready to go on, I just ran out of daylight.

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