Tworley build

[tworley]

I thought I would document my build thread here. I am a member over on WF and JF but was told this is a pretty active and technical place. I hope you dont mind seeing things twice.

As it is today (7/17/25):
4" Currie Coils
1.25" Savvy body lift
Savvy Midarm
Savvy UA
Currie Currectlync (4340 version)
Currie Antirock
5.13s
ARB Air Lockers
Dana 44 rear axle with 3/16" axle brackets
High pinion Dana 30 with 3/16" axle brackets
Fox Remote Reservoir 12" travel shocks outboarded in the rear
10.7" Rancho shocks in the front
Sanden OBA
Custom Savvy/Genright-inspired Sliders

 

[jjvw]

There are quite a few smart and interested people over here.

 

[Chris]

I look forward to it!

 

[tworley]

I purchased this 97 Wrangler in July of 2014. I have always wanted a jeep and when I moved to CO several years ago I thought it would be the perfect place to start. I sold my 2011 Cummins due to sheer size and it being an inappropriate vehicle for downtown Denver. So far I think I made the right decision. This was a 2 owner vehicle. First being an older gentleman who only put 30k miles on. Second owner being a man in his late 40s who threw the 4" lift on and 35s. Purely for looks. When I looked at it there wasn't an ounce of rust anywhere nor a scratch to be found. It had 69k on the odometer, a Dana 35 in the rear with 3.55 gearing, and a transfercase drop, not ideal but it was too clean to pass up.

 

[bobthetj03]

Clean rig, and half doors to boot! Nice!

 

[tworley]

First change was getting rid of the 35" tires. They were over 6 years old and clearly not meant to be on the jeep just yet. I opted to downsize to 33" duratracs

I drove around like this for a few months, doing research and planning the next stages of my build. I figured if I wanted to do any rock crawling here in CO, I would need to upgrade the dana 35. At that time I was looking for a Super 35 but they were pretty much non existent (RG&A hadn't come into the market yet, Superior had been shut down for quite awhile already). I kept an eye on the forums, craigslist, ebay and scoured daily. I finally found a member on WF who mentioned he was selling his Rubi Dana 44 with an OEM locker in a few weeks. It was a subtle comment that nobody really jumped at since it wasn't in a FS thread, or WTB. I messaged him, found out he was only 45 min from me, and made a deal. He even helped me out with the install.

In order to lose the transfer case drop (I was more excited about that then the actual axle) I needed a set of control arms, track bar, and an SYE. He referred me to metalcloak and I made the jump for a set up uppers, lowers, and long travel track bar. I also had an Advance Adapters SYE Installed.

 

[Chris]

What happened to the rear disc brakes on the Rubicon Dana 44 axle? Did you swap them out for drums instead?

Good choice on the 33" Duratracs as well, that's what I've been running for years. I love them!

 

[tworley]

My first time ever wheeling! Chinamen gulch in Beauna Vista, CO. It was a heck of a trail for a noob like myself.

After that it has snowballed. Guanella Pass

The recently closed Twin Cone

Wheeler Lake

 

[tworley]

What happened to the rear disc brakes on the Rubicon Dana 44 axle? Did you swap them out for drums instead?

Good choice on the 33" Duratracs as well, that's what I've been running for years. I love them!

I swapped my drums over from my Dana 35 to lower the price on the axle as a whole, along with running the stock 44 shafts. He was building a new 44 with brackets clocked to accommodate a 241 tcase.

 

[jjvw]

I haven't had the courage to do the v-notch on Wheeler yet. My first time out, I watched Chad fall in and drive up it sideways.

 

[Chris]

The recently closed Twin Cone
View attachment 41979

This is an awesome photo!

 

[jjvw]

This is an awesome photo!

It was one of the better trails out here. A good challenge with wonderful scenery. The second half, the best half, was closed off about 2 years ago.

 

[Chris]

Quick question for you @tworley. Are those factory roll bar pads or are the aftermarket ones?

 

[glwood]

Nice TJ, awesome pics! Be sure to post those in TJs in beautiful places

https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/tjs-in-beautiful-places.7408/

 

[tworley]

Wheeler Lake trail finally did my current superlift shocks in. They had no rebound or resistance whatsoever. The bar pin bushings had disintegrated and the shock eyes were rattling around the bar pin like crazy. I put in a set of Bilstien 5100s based on 4" lift. Had I known then what I know now, I would have done that differently. I would have bought shocks based on my bumpstops, interference issues, coil bind, etc... But they work for now. The purchase of new shocks motivated me to get the front axle dialed in. New goodies from Metalcloak

In 2016 I made a big purchase and dove deeper into the world of modifications. I purchased the Savvy Under Armor and gas tank skid. The old OE skid had me hung up plenty of times. With this purchase came the UA, GTS, JKS 1.25 BL, and 1" JKS MML. This stage taught me how everything works in unison and how bumpstops play a major role in everything. This was an obvious issue after the tuck:

My axle was rotated so far back that my shocks were contacting my coil springs. My driveshaft was also binding at full droop.

 

[tworley]

Quick question for you @tworley. Are those factory roll bar pads or are the aftermarket ones?

OE. They might look a little different in one of those shots because I have a fire extinguisher mounted.

 

[tworley]

I made a few phone calls back and forth with Hosejockey (WF Member), we decided to shave the axle completely, and install 3/16" brackets clocked to accommodate the new pinion angle along with performing a rear spring perch relocation. I had help from Hosejockey, UnlimitedLJ04, jjvw, and CO_HOLLIDAY (all WF Members). A very, very long weekend.

My favorite part, free labor.

The dana 44 ready for new brackets

 

[Rob5589]

Great stuff! That WL pic looks like a nasty but fun section.

 

[tworley]

I went with Rubicon Express axle 3/16" brackets as the replacements. They were not the cheapest, but they fit the tubes well, and mounted to the CAs and trackbar perfectly.

After all this work the only issue that remained was my driveshaft was barely binding with the axle at full droop. The only way to resolve it was to opt for a JB conversions super short SYE and have my current DC shaft lengthened. That install was easy following the directions from Stu Offroad.

Advanced Adapters SYE on the left, JB Conversions Super Short on the right.

And my old DC shaft lengthened to 19"

 

[tworley]

I was leaving work one day and when I shifted into 3rd, my thumb knocked the locker switch and I engaged the rubi locker around 35-40 mph. Since this was a transplant axle, I did not have any sensors or protection other than the on/off switch to activate the locker. I quickly shut it back off but did not hear anything that alarmed me. Later that night, I started making slow maneuvers around the neighborhood and could feel and hear a hard jolt, and pop coming from the rear. Something was binding inside the diff. I cracked open the cover and found this

Several teeth were at the bottom of the case. Likely the inner helical gears of the limited slip. Though I never confirmed this. Obviously the stock locker wasn't working.