PC1P's 2006 Jeep LJ Build - Brünhilde
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OP
I believe it's the same as the other F650/750 work trucks: 350hp @ 3900 RPM and 468 lb-ft @3900 RPM. Supposedly developed to be peak power and peak efficient at the same RPM, which they (Ford) designed "backwards".
And then they gear it to run 1400 rpm at cruising speed...
OP
OP
As expected, we've been pretty busy with house stuff. Finding furniture, cleaning up and out some areas, unpacking, etc. all takes way, way more time than you think. It's been a tad rainy, which isn't a problem since most of the work we need to do is inside at the moment. The lawn is getting quite long, but luckily I just found a barely-used 42" mower for the time being so once I get a dry spell, I'll have to tackle that at some point. For now, I've been enjoying my walks down to the lake and look forward to getting my PA license and fishing/hunting tags soon.
I took a break from house stuff to work on the LJ some. For the life of me, I could not track down the reason for the DW. Same axles and steering as my TJ and that was butter smooth up to 85 MPH. Now all of a sudden it was hitting the LJ. I figured it had to be something with the factory steering box or steering shaft. It was elusive, but I tracked down the play!
In the image below you can see the u-joint between the intermediate and lower steering shaft. There is a pin and what appears to be some polymer/isolator inside. The inner shaft rotates until the pin bottoms out in the hole of the u-joint. It isn't super obvious as the polymer adds some grip and seems to turn together 99% of the time. It isn't until the tire sees some resistance (say from my foot pressing against it or as I'm guessing, a pothole!) that the lower shaft rotates inside the upper.
Luckily I already have a brand-new Mopar shaft sitting in my tool box. Unfortunately, it is the older style since I am planning on running the PSC XD Big Bore. I've been waiting on that box for sometime and it looks like PSC is out of stock until August now (been ordered since April!). In the meantime, I've just been driving it slow on the backroads, including taking my boy to our local diary for some of the best ice cream around!
I took a break from house stuff to work on the LJ some. For the life of me, I could not track down the reason for the DW. Same axles and steering as my TJ and that was butter smooth up to 85 MPH. Now all of a sudden it was hitting the LJ. I figured it had to be something with the factory steering box or steering shaft. It was elusive, but I tracked down the play!
In the image below you can see the u-joint between the intermediate and lower steering shaft. There is a pin and what appears to be some polymer/isolator inside. The inner shaft rotates until the pin bottoms out in the hole of the u-joint. It isn't super obvious as the polymer adds some grip and seems to turn together 99% of the time. It isn't until the tire sees some resistance (say from my foot pressing against it or as I'm guessing, a pothole!) that the lower shaft rotates inside the upper.
Luckily I already have a brand-new Mopar shaft sitting in my tool box. Unfortunately, it is the older style since I am planning on running the PSC XD Big Bore. I've been waiting on that box for sometime and it looks like PSC is out of stock until August now (been ordered since April!). In the meantime, I've just been driving it slow on the backroads, including taking my boy to our local diary for some of the best ice cream around!
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OP
Whatever it is, it's growing fast!!
I had this pick this thing up before it got out of hand... Should get me through a season or two until I can make a deal and buy the property next door and start my shop/garage (after which I'll have over an acre and will have the place to store a proper zero-turn!)
OP
Getting very frustrated here...
My PSC XD Big Bore finally arrived - been on backorder since April 16th!
I had a quiet Sunday AM so I got it swapped out with little fuss. Thankfully, I already had a brand-new early-year Mopar steering shaft and pre-2003 lines ready to go. The box is a simply bolt-in affair - you just need to make sure you have the required parts available.
Once you get to installing, you can see why the later year pressure lines and steering shaft simply won't work...
I double checked the steering shaft when it was removed and the upper and lower shaft bushing is definitely loose and rotates with just a small screwdriver. The u-joint is fine, just a small amount of slop typical with age. Delighted by the quick and easy install, I was hoping to take the LJ for a spin around the neighborhood and put a few miles on the still relatively new clutch, but much to my surprise - Death Wobble still exists
Kinda stumped at this point... started a new thread to see if someone has any idea what direction to point me in —> https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/death-wobble-losing-my-mind.53620/
My PSC XD Big Bore finally arrived - been on backorder since April 16th!
I had a quiet Sunday AM so I got it swapped out with little fuss. Thankfully, I already had a brand-new early-year Mopar steering shaft and pre-2003 lines ready to go. The box is a simply bolt-in affair - you just need to make sure you have the required parts available.
Once you get to installing, you can see why the later year pressure lines and steering shaft simply won't work...
I double checked the steering shaft when it was removed and the upper and lower shaft bushing is definitely loose and rotates with just a small screwdriver. The u-joint is fine, just a small amount of slop typical with age. Delighted by the quick and easy install, I was hoping to take the LJ for a spin around the neighborhood and put a few miles on the still relatively new clutch, but much to my surprise - Death Wobble still exists
Kinda stumped at this point... started a new thread to see if someone has any idea what direction to point me in —> https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/death-wobble-losing-my-mind.53620/
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OP
Well I finally got my DW figured out! Turned out to be the passenger-side UCA bushing at the axle. The retaining "ring" in the axle bracket was worn and the bushing was able to move side to side. You can see it in the picture below; it wasn't this bad but I was able to pop it out this far with nothing more than light pressure from a screwdriver...
Thanks to Blaine's advice, I tried his trick of using some exhaust tubing to make a "sleeve" for the inside of the factory bracket. Essentially, you're just giving the factory bushing some more surface area to bite into. I went to my local exhaust stop and had them make me a few pieces of tubing that they expanded to the proper diameter.
I cut them to the proper width and tacked them in place, using the old bushing as a guide. Viola! back in action...
The @Quadratec Competition Cat-back Magnaflow exhaust finally arrived (it has been on backorder for a while - I ordered it on 4/20/21!!). Worth the wait thankfully - it has a nice mellow sound that has zero drone and just slightly more tone in the 2400-4400 RPM range. Sure beats the factory rattling muffler...
One of the tangs on the rear most portion of the tailpipe was bent down. The box looked beat up some but it was nothing I couldn't easily straighten out with an adjustable wrench.
Now that I was death wobble free, I have been driving the LJ daily for a few days just to confirm that I'm good to go. I didn't want to hook up my PSC hydroassist before fixing the DW's source and have it cover up the problem. Three days and over 100 miles and I'm confident that my issue has been resolved. I'll be hooking up the PSC ram this week...
Thanks to Blaine's advice, I tried his trick of using some exhaust tubing to make a "sleeve" for the inside of the factory bracket. Essentially, you're just giving the factory bushing some more surface area to bite into. I went to my local exhaust stop and had them make me a few pieces of tubing that they expanded to the proper diameter.
I cut them to the proper width and tacked them in place, using the old bushing as a guide. Viola! back in action...
The @Quadratec Competition Cat-back Magnaflow exhaust finally arrived (it has been on backorder for a while - I ordered it on 4/20/21!!). Worth the wait thankfully - it has a nice mellow sound that has zero drone and just slightly more tone in the 2400-4400 RPM range. Sure beats the factory rattling muffler...
One of the tangs on the rear most portion of the tailpipe was bent down. The box looked beat up some but it was nothing I couldn't easily straighten out with an adjustable wrench.
Now that I was death wobble free, I have been driving the LJ daily for a few days just to confirm that I'm good to go. I didn't want to hook up my PSC hydroassist before fixing the DW's source and have it cover up the problem. Three days and over 100 miles and I'm confident that my issue has been resolved. I'll be hooking up the PSC ram this week...
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OP
For sure!
And thanks - once I get my winch hooked up, I'm gonna tie off a floaty river tube to my winch and soak up some sun
B00mb00m
The Church of Cutting Brakes of Atlas-Front Digs
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OP
I ordered my sliders and GTS from Savvy like 3 weeks ago, so probably sometime in Q3 2024...
Seriously though I'd like to find some milder trails around here to get accustomed to the LJ. I haven't wheeled it at all and barely have driven it, so I'm going to get as much seat-time as possible. It feels a lot like the TJ, so that will shorten the acclimation time some. That said, the hardest thing I'm dealing with is figuring out where to put my arms with full doors and a hard top lol!
Not out the windowI ordered my sliders and GTS from Savvy like 3 weeks ago, so probably sometime in Q3 2024...
Seriously though I'd like to find some milder trails around here to get accustomed to the LJ. I haven't wheeled it at all and barely have driven it, so I'm going to get as much seat-time as possible. It feels a lot like the TJ, so that will shorten the acclimation time some. That said, the hardest thing I'm dealing with is figuring out where to put my arms with full doors and a hard top lol!
OP
That's the part I'm struggling with, I'm used to half-doors... had some rain the other day so I was driving with the windows up and A/C on and I must have banged my left elbow on the window a dozen or so timesNot out the window
Buy half doors?That's the part I'm struggling with, I'm used to half-doors... had some rain the other day so I was driving with the windows up and A/C on and I must have banged my left elbow on the window a dozen or so times
OP
Already on my list...
Sad part is I had a decent set of half doors from my TJ that I sold, not realizing how tight of a squeeze these full doors are. I've been keeping an eye out for set but haven't found any good options yet. I'd love to find some factory beryl green half-doors but that's a rarity from what I can tell, so I'll try to find black or silver and will paint them next spring. In the meantime, I'll get used to driving with the full doors - I need the practice for winter driving anyways!