SJ’s TJ

That’s a great question. I had to clearance both ends on that driver side motor mount. The furthest back side a fair amount. What I did was added 1/4” plate to that mount to strengthen it as that side of the mount also is the support for my engine skid.

Ahhh. Thanks so much! Love the build and ill be following it pretty attentively now lol.
 
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Oh man, this thing is going to be nuts when you're done. Keep me in mind when you're looking to sale parts. I'm just up the road in Herndon, your gas tank skid gets a lot of use.

For sure. I'll have a long list of take offs that I'll let you know about when I pull them off.
 
I have really enjoyed my rig setup with the 5” rear stretch, mid-arm on 35s. It’s a very capable rig that can handle most trails I point it at. With that being said, I find myself wanting more and doing harder trails. I will share a couple pics that should explain what’s to come in the next year:
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Tons of fun to come. I found these 08 super duty axles in great shape for a great price. I have huge plans for the front as I’ll need more wheelbase for bigger tires. I plan to build these axles throughout the year and get them in next winter. Should be exciting!

Sarkis

Very cool. What’s the WMS on those monsters?
 
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A couple small updates. I’ve begun work on the front Dana 60. It’s now torn down and ready for the annoying task of cutting all the brackets and some casting:
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More parts of started rolling in. This pallet from Crawltek came yesterday:
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I found a place to store these bad boys until it’s time to get them in when I do the axles/stretch and LS swap. More to come.
 
A couple small updates. I’ve begun work on the front Dana 60. It’s now torn down and ready for the annoying task of cutting all the brackets and some casting:
View attachment 389569
More parts of started rolling in. This pallet from Crawltek came yesterday:
View attachment 389570
I found a place to store these bad boys until it’s time to get them in when I do the axles/stretch and LS swap. More to come.

I’ve heard cutting off that driver’s side control arm mount is no fun…
 
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I’ve heard cutting off that driver’s side control arm mount is no fun…

Yeah, I've watch some videos and it's no picnic for sure. My plan of attack is using a 7" angle grinder with cutoff wheel and a Sawzall to get all the big bits off and then using small tools to do the finish work. I'm going to take my time and tackle it a little at a time. No need for me to spend all day trying to get it done when I'm not in a rush.
 
I found a place to store these bad boys until it’s time to get them in when I do the axles/stretch and LS swap. More to come.

This is always my issue, I have stuff arriving that I need to find a place for where it's out of the weather but where I'm not tripping over it also.

OK I had read about the 1 tons and the stretch but I'd missed the LS swap I guess. I was curious to see how your 4 angry squirrels did pushing those large axles. Good luck and will be watching.
 
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This is always my issue, I have stuff arriving that I need to find a place for where it's out of the weather but where I'm not tripping over it also.

OK I had read about the 1 tons and the stretch but I'd missed the LS swap I guess. I was curious to see how your 4 angry squirrels did pushing those large axles. Good luck and will be watching.

I'm not sure if I mentioned it before, but I will be doing an LS swap as part of all this. I thought about keeping the 4 banger in there at first, maybe I will, but it's not making a lot of sense with the front half kit I'll be doing since I'm going full hydro. Not sure the AX5 would do very well.

Having to re-do the power steering pump, drive shafts, and radiator and stuff I just think it might be better to do the swap at the same time. Maybe put the axles in to get proper ride height and such, then swap it in. Still figuring out.
 
I took a break from cutting and grinding on the Dana 60 to tackle a quick side step job. These steps are longer than I needed, so I cut them down and added sleeves to keep them strong:
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And here is how it looked welded to my existing rocker guard:
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These will serve as a step and a pivot point for rocks to stay off the tub.
 
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For those interested in the Dana 60 cutting/grinding, here is where I stand at the moment:
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Still need to finish the driver side, but I started with that side since it’s the biggest pain in the ass. This took about 3 hours total. I did about an hour each time. Slow and methodical. No rush, but want to make progress as well. More to come!
 
One of my favorite builds! So much in 10 pages.

Kudos on making your own mid arm. I'd like to do the same at some point.i'll be refering to this thread when the time comes.

Do you know which engine/trans yet?

40's?

Keep up the good work!
 
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One of my favorite builds! So much in 10 pages.

Kudos on making your own mid arm. I'd like to do the same at some point.i'll be refering to this thread when the time comes.

Do you know which engine/trans yet?

40's?

Keep up the good work!

Thanks for the kind words @Rickyd It's been a fun evolution for sure. I'm happy to answer any questions you may have. So i found a great deal on a TH400 trans, which is pretty awesome since they are so bullet proof. Just a little clean up and she'll look good as new:

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I came with a 2000 stall torque converter and everything shifts great, so I got lucky with this. I'm planning on 99-02 LS either 5.3 or 6.0. Leaning towards the 5.3 since I'm not looking for monster HP and the 5.3 offers a little better low end torque.
 
Makes sense. Cheaper to build than newer autos. Then just build a harness for a manual trans LS.be careful about front driveshaft clearance though
I've used this guys pinouts a couple times to make my own harnesses https://www.lt1swap.com/

You can't go wrong with either motor. 5.3 having the advantage of being cheaper. Everyone thinks their lq4/9 is worth its weight in gold
 
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Makes sense. Cheaper to build than newer autos. Then just build a harness for a manual trans LS.be careful about front driveshaft clearance though
I've used this guys pinouts a couple times to make my own harnesses https://www.lt1swap.com/

You can't go wrong with either motor. 5.3 having the advantage of being cheaper. Everyone thinks their lq4/9 is worth its weight in gold

Yeah, I'm researching what to do about the harness. At the moment, my plan is a stand alone harness for a manual trans from someone like Painless. I've seen PCMs available already setup for the motor type and manual trans for swaps. I'm still doing a bunch of research, but that seems the simplest for sure. I'll take any advice from those who have done LS swaps in our TJs.
 
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I have the truss, hydro mount and track bar mount welded up to the 60:

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I heated the whole axle up to 450* before I got to welding using a torch attached to a propane tank. So now the 60 is almost ready for gears. Next on the list in the rear 10.5. Should be a lot easier than the front 60.