UCF transfer case skid upgrade

MountaineerTom

MountaineerTom

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I’m starting to consider some upgrades to my ‘06 Unlimited but I’m not sure I want to get into a ton of cost to do it. First, I know the old saying every Jeep is different. I have an Old Man Emu 2 inch lift (got about 2.5 inches with HD springs). I’ve been thinking about the UCF extra clearance skid (not the ultra high-clearance), a MML and a Savvy BL.

Can the longer Unlimited’s use that skid/MML/BL combo without absolutely having to get a SYE and/or DC driveshaft? I understand Control Arms may be required as well, but possibly just the uppers to correct pinion angles. Is that correct?

Don’t get me wrong, I’d like to have all the goodies, but I just can’t spend that much money all at once.

I guess what I’m really asking is, can the NP231 and factory rear drive shaft, as it sits in my Jeep right now, work with that combo as long as I don’t have vibrations?

I don’t know enough about that part of it to know if the OEM driveshaft would be too short too long or whatever
 
I'd at least look at the Barnes, allot more bang for your buck. I didn't even have to do a body lift so that's a big savings if you aren't going with bigger tires. I have a 1" lift and am not even close to having drive line issues. I can measure my angles if you are remotely interested in going that route.
 
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I say go for it. You may be fine with the BL + MML. If you do get vibes and don't want to get a SYE you could try UCF's LOPRO mount, which lets the tcase sit lower in the skid (I have this because I didn't want a body lift yet). It's ~$150 though, so it may make more sense at that point to drop the some with washers and save up for a SYE instead.
 
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pagrey said:
I'd at least look at the Barnes, allot more bang for your buck. I didn't even have to do a body lift so that's a big savings if you aren't going with bigger tires. I have a 1" lift and am not even close to having drive line issues. I can measure my angles if you are remotely interested in going that route.
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Thank you, I’ve looked at the Barnes, and have not completely ruled it out, but I’d like to get a little more clearance and lose a little weight versus adding more weight. I feel that my Jeep is heavy already with the choice of bumpers I went with. I don’t regret my bumpers, but was thinking of compensating weight in other places.

From my research, the OEM skid is 40 lbs, UCF extra clearance is 27 lbs and the Barnes 65 lbs. The clearance gains are 1” over OEM with Barnes and 2-1/2” UCF extra clearance.

Moving up to 33’s sometime in the future is not out of the question, but not likely to happen soon.
 
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I have the extra clearance skid from UCF. I gained 2.5 inches over stock, IIRC. You could always try spacing the T-case up that much off the factory skid and see what happens...before you buy anything. A couple small plywood spacers and some longer bolts. As long as it fits without the body lift anyway. Easy way to check to see how deep the rabbit hole will be!
 
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Mobusaki said:
I say go for it. You may be fine with the BL + MML. If you do get vibes and don't want to get a SYE you could try UCF's LOPRO mount, which lets the tcase sit lower in the skid (I have this because I didn't want a body lift yet). It's ~$150 though, so it may make more sense at that point to drop the some with washers and save up for a SYE instead.
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I was thinking about getting the skid and trying it out, but didn‘t want to get it and have bad vibes and then find out that you HAVE to do a SYE, driveshaft or even something else I may not even know about. LOL
 
Mike_H said:
I have the extra clearance skid from UCF. I gained 2.5 inches over stock, IIRC. You could always try spacing the T-case up that much off the factory skid and see what happens...before you buy anything. A couple small plywood spacers and some longer bolts. As long as it fits without the body lift anyway. Easy way to check to see how deep the rabbit hole will be!
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That’s surely a possibility I never though of doing. Thank you. (y)

I have the BL and MML in the shop already, so I guess I could go ahead and install those and see.
 
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With a simple skid remember weight is strength, if you never bent stock don't worry. If you did beware. What I've learned over the years is most people don't hit their skids much or as hard as I do. The UCF skid ain't one of Blaine's designs that leverages aluminum, it's just the steel one in a different color.
 
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pagrey said:
With a simple skid remember weight is strength, if you never bent stock don't worry. If you did beware. What I've learned over the years is most people don't hit their skids much or as hard as I do. The UCF skid ain't one of Blaine's designs that leverages aluminum, it's just the steel one in a different color.
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Good points.

I have put a bend in the OEM one. There was a rock sticking up like a shark fin that I didn’t see. It’s the only time I’ve hit it like that. I’ve slid the skid a lot, and I’m sure the flat Barnes would be better at that than the OEM rippled one.

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I think you'll be okay with a 2.5" lift and the UCF extra clearance skid. You'll be right on the cusp, but my LJ didn't get vibes till I had a 4" lift. MML, and the extra clearance skid. I did the whole SYE, DC driveshaft and adjustable arms to get rid of them.

If you go for it and end up getting vibes, you could always temporarily add spacer washers between the skid and frame. That would give you the time to get the other parts you would need.

Even with spacers, you'll still get rid of your shovel, and you'll also gain at least 2" of belly height. 🍻
 
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I have an LJ with UCF extra clearance, super short SYE and 4" lift. My driveshaft angle is around 14-15 degrees above horizontal. You have less lift but a shorter shaft, so may end up near the same angle. It's more angle than I would expect to run without vibrations.

You may get away with it, but based on my own experience, I would fully expect to end up emergency-spending the cost of an SYE within a few days of completing the install, because that's what happens every time I try to go cheap on something.
 
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DuncLJ said:
I think you'll be okay with a 2.5" lift and the UCF extra clearance skid. You'll be right on the cusp, but my LJ didn't get vibes till I had a 4" lift. MML, and the extra clearance skid. I did the whole SYE, DC driveshaft and adjustable arms to get rid of them.

If you go for it and end up getting vibes, you could always temporarily add spacer washers between the skid and frame. That would give you the time to get the other parts you would need.

Even with spacers, you'll still get rid of your shovel, and you'll also gain at least 2" of belly height. 🍻
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That sounds promising. (y)

I‘m certainly not opposed to a SYE or DC driveshaft, I just can’t do it all at once.
 
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freedom_in_4low said:
I have an LJ with UCF extra clearance, super short SYE and 4" lift. My driveshaft angle is around 14-15 degrees above horizontal. You have less lift but a shorter shaft, so may end up near the same angle. It's more angle than I would expect to run without vibrations.

You may get away with it, but based on my own experience, I would fully expect to end up emergency-spending the cost of an SYE within a few days of completing the install, because that's what happens every time I try to go cheap on something.
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Thank you.

LOL, I know what you mean. Nothing seems simple.
 
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