SJ’s TJ

Sj's TJ

TJ Enthusiast
Supporting Member
Joined
Jun 2, 2018
Messages
955
Location
Vienna, VA
I’ve been on here since summer and have done a ton to the TJ since I got her at the beginning of August. So my neighbor was moving overseas and gave me his 2000 SE for free. Bone stock with 212k miles:
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I have have done a lot of maintenance and upgrades. I replaced all fluids, new plugs, distributor cap, cables and head gasket under the hood. I took it to a shop to make sure the frame was ok and they said it looked good though it needs to be cleaned out and Eastwood’s coating applied. Here is what she looks like now:
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I will add all my mods in the next entry. It’s been a fun ride so far and have enjoyed this forum greatly.


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Here is the last of all the mods so far:
- Rancho 5000x Shocks
- BDS 3” lift springs
- RE quick discos (free from a work buddy)
- Canyon wheels painted black with worn out 31’s I got of Craigslist for $100
- RC front adjustable track bar
- RC rear track bar relocation bracket
- Browndog 1” MML
- JKS 1.25” BL
- Sold Hardtop and replaces with Rampage frameless soft top
- New muffler and tailpipe
- Used Smittybuild rear bumper with hitch

I’m sure I’m missing something, but that’s most of it. I’ve been lucky with the rear upper shock bolts coming out easy and the transfer case skids bolts coming out easy as well. Overall it’s been a great experience and super fun to work on.


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Forgot that I put on 1” wheel spacers as the rear tires were like 1/2” from the upper spring perch’s. I also did the ZJ upgrade to the tie rod. Some more pics:
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Frame looks scary from afar but if you got the upper shock bolts out and the tcase skids out just fine it must be bad surface rust. Free is never a bad thing!
 
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Frame looks scary from afar but if you got the upper shock bolts out and the tcase skids out just fine it must be bad surface rust. Free is never a bad thing!

Yeah, I also drilled 1/4” drain holes behind the front lower control arm brackets and in front of the rear lower control arm brackets and it was solid steel. I went through and banged everything with a hammer and it was solid. I to was very surprised by its looks and expected everything to break off, but it’s good to go. Just need to pretty it up.


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Talk about a budget build! Impressive sir! Looks like you're priming for 33's?

Exactly. I’m going 33’s in the spring. Since this isn’t a daily driver I’m going with MTs. Now to figure out out which ones [emoji1].

A couple of additional details. It’s an SE so it’s a 4 banger with a manual transmission and 4.10 gears.


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It's gonna be a bit of a slug with 33's and that gearing, but the 5 speed will make it manageable.
It won't spend much time on the highway so I'll live with for now. When I look to add lockers, it might make sense to re-gear and add stronger axles. We shall see. My thoughts are start with a front lunchbox locker and go from there.
 
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Good deal! Free TJ frees up a lot of cash for upgrades, congratulations. Looking great so far.
Thanks, I haven't started on the outside appearance yet. I've kicked my daily drive (2017 Cherokee Trailhawk) out of the garage in favor of the TJ. So much more space in there now :)
 
Looking like the start of a nice little budget project. I’m right up the road from you in Winchester.

Thanks. She’s coming along nicely. Just ordered some new shoes. I should have them on next week. Where do you usually wheel? I’ve only ever done Flagpole Knob outside of Harrisonburg.


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I just bought mine back after about 2.5yrs so I haven’t had it out yet but I only ever took it to the National Forest in Edinburg and a couple private places. I’d like to hit the Cove and maybe Rausch Creek this year.
 
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I just bought mine back after about 2.5yrs so I haven’t had it out yet but I only ever took it to the National Forest in Edinburg and a couple private places. I’d like to hit the Cove and maybe Rausch Creek this year.
I would love to hit Rausch Creek this year for sure. I think Chaos Fab Shop out there in Winchester has a privite Off-road park in WV as well. Any experience with those guys?
 
Great looking build so far! I also have BDS 3" coils and the RS5000x shocks, it rides pretty good with that set up! Looking forward to the pics with the new shoes :)
 
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Great looking build so far! I also have BDS 3" coils and the RS5000x shocks, it rides pretty good with that set up! Looking forward to the pics with the new shoes :)

Thanks @KCNoDots, it does ride pretty well. I’m looking forward to having some fresh tread. Are you running an SYE? I’m thinking of a hack n tap in the future, but I don’t have vibes with the MML and BL.


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Now that I have the new tires and picked up some new to me JKS adjustable control arms I was able to cycle the suspension to set the bump stops.

While I was in there I also installed some new bump stop cups to replace the old crusty ones. I ended up just needing 1” upper extensions for the bump stops all the way around.

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