Tiffster
03-22-2001, 11:51 PM
Home from the dealer with 12 miles on the ticker:
http://www.ilovejeeps.com/art/stocky/stocky_home.jpg
The obligatory flex shot:
http://www.ilovejeeps.com/art/stocky/grizzlyflex.jpg
New MT/Rs:
http://www.ilovejeeps.com/art/stocky/new_mtrs_pave.jpg
Rock Garden on Spring Creek:
http://www.ilovejeeps.com/art/stocky/sc_82601.jpg
The inital build up of Project Blackout was great, I got all the parts I wanted, and built up a rig to be reconed with. There was just one problem....all the tinkering and fiddlin' caused a ton of problems. The off-road prowess was there, but Stocky is my daily driver and that is where things really suffered.
Stocky rode horrible on the road, jarring is being nice. I dealt with this for the duration of my pregnancy, even having friends swap out the suspension for me while I was pregnant in the hopes it would help...it made things worse. So I decided that as soon as I was able, I would do one of two things: Either fix Stocky or sell him.
I came very close to selling Stocky for a Ford Expedition, but in the end the tried and true Jeeper in me came out and Stocky will always have a home with me. So this meant I had to fix the nagging issues. After a lot of research and thought, it was determined that the best course of action was to start from scratch and rebuild Stocky. Not piece by piece over time, but all at once.
I had most of the key parts I needed, but made the decision to go back to the Rubicon Express suspension parts as they provided the best ride of all the parts I tried. As luck would have it, the couple I had sold my RE stuf to stil had it sitting around so I was able to grab my original RE leaf springs. I ordered a new set of the 4.5" ZJ coils and a .75" spacer to get the front level with the rear.
Also picked up a set of the RE control arm relocation brakets and braces. No one could have told me how difficult the install of these brackets would be...but they were worth it, Stocky rides beter than he did when I drove him off te lot with 2 miles on the ticker. No more feeling like my kidneys are going to leave my body and my kids don't look like bobblehead dolls in the back seat.
The drop brackets moved the mounting locations for the control arms forward so I ended up getting a set of RE LCAs, swapping out my Rusty's Offroad set. Once everything is dialed in and Stocky gets professionally aligned I know I will be very happy with what I have, heck I am happy as a lamb with the ride now wihtout the alignment. I am even going to take that leap and move up to 35s. I am still trying to figure out what wheels I want to run, but once I do I will make the move up.
Also plan on swapping out the stock steering for ZJ steering. A direct bolt-in replacement and much beefier than the XJ stuff. And you can get all the parts at CarQuest.
Here is what I have done since I started this modification craze:
Added the RE control arm drop brackets. They were a nightmare to install, but the payoff is in the smooth ride.
Had my CV driveshaft rebuilt. Front Range Drive Line Specialist in Denver did an awesome job of repairng my CV shaft. I had come down hard on a rock on a trail ride and since that time had horrible vibes. They had the shaft for a littel over 8 hours and when i got it back it looked brand new. Once I bolted it up and took a spin, I was vibe free. Great work!!!
Most recently upgraded to 33x12.50 Goodyear MT/R tires. The MT/Rs have become one of the top tires out there for rockcrawling and are a very street-friendly tire as well. I have the MT/Rs mounted on my Eagle Alloy 589 wheels in a 15x7. These rims have 4" of backspacing and look really clean on Project Blackout. There was a lot of conversation about sticking with the 15x7 wheel, but so far it is working out great and has saved me from once again having to buy new wheels.
I installed a set of Rocky Road Outfitters StepRails on Project Blackout. These rails are amazingly strong and sturdy. I have already had a chance to test them out and the can withstand a beating. My kids love them since they can now get in the XJ unassisted.
Had 4.56 gears installed to help get some of the power back after the addition of the 33s. Also threw a Powertrax No-Slip locker in the rear. I left the front open due to money constaints and the desire to see what a rear locker will do for me.
I have 4.5" ZJ coils which net me a a little more than 7" with the stock isolator in place. I recently added a 1" spacer to make up for the weight of the bumper to place the front end squarely at 7.5" of lift.
Installed Rubicon Express' 1462 4.5" leaf springs. The leafs gave me much more than the advertised 4.5" of lift!!! The rear, right after install, was sitting pretty close to 9" with the extended shackles. I swapped those out for some MJ shackles and that brought it back down to about 8". It has since settled to a comfortable 7.5".
Went with Rusty's Offroad LCAs and adjustable UCAs. Prior to installing these I had Death Wobble so bad I almost couldn't drive Stocky. The LCAs and UCAs have fixed the DW problems and made the front end much tighter
Installed Rancho 9000 adjustable shocks. I went with the 9010 all around using JKS bar pin eliminators and my own custom made stud eliminators in the front. I have since changed to the Rancho RSX shocks for the front. It's a huge improvement over the 9000s and a great riding shock on and off-road. Once I find the right length for the rear I will probably switch to the RSXs for the rear as well.
Installed Rubicon Express' Slip Yoke Eliminator kit and a double cardon (CV) drive shaft from Englewood Driveshaft in Denver.
More info can be found on the main site at I Love Jeeps.com (http://www.ilovejeeps.com/) Check the Projects Section
http://www.ilovejeeps.com/art/stocky/stocky_home.jpg
The obligatory flex shot:
http://www.ilovejeeps.com/art/stocky/grizzlyflex.jpg
New MT/Rs:
http://www.ilovejeeps.com/art/stocky/new_mtrs_pave.jpg
Rock Garden on Spring Creek:
http://www.ilovejeeps.com/art/stocky/sc_82601.jpg
The inital build up of Project Blackout was great, I got all the parts I wanted, and built up a rig to be reconed with. There was just one problem....all the tinkering and fiddlin' caused a ton of problems. The off-road prowess was there, but Stocky is my daily driver and that is where things really suffered.
Stocky rode horrible on the road, jarring is being nice. I dealt with this for the duration of my pregnancy, even having friends swap out the suspension for me while I was pregnant in the hopes it would help...it made things worse. So I decided that as soon as I was able, I would do one of two things: Either fix Stocky or sell him.
I came very close to selling Stocky for a Ford Expedition, but in the end the tried and true Jeeper in me came out and Stocky will always have a home with me. So this meant I had to fix the nagging issues. After a lot of research and thought, it was determined that the best course of action was to start from scratch and rebuild Stocky. Not piece by piece over time, but all at once.
I had most of the key parts I needed, but made the decision to go back to the Rubicon Express suspension parts as they provided the best ride of all the parts I tried. As luck would have it, the couple I had sold my RE stuf to stil had it sitting around so I was able to grab my original RE leaf springs. I ordered a new set of the 4.5" ZJ coils and a .75" spacer to get the front level with the rear.
Also picked up a set of the RE control arm relocation brakets and braces. No one could have told me how difficult the install of these brackets would be...but they were worth it, Stocky rides beter than he did when I drove him off te lot with 2 miles on the ticker. No more feeling like my kidneys are going to leave my body and my kids don't look like bobblehead dolls in the back seat.
The drop brackets moved the mounting locations for the control arms forward so I ended up getting a set of RE LCAs, swapping out my Rusty's Offroad set. Once everything is dialed in and Stocky gets professionally aligned I know I will be very happy with what I have, heck I am happy as a lamb with the ride now wihtout the alignment. I am even going to take that leap and move up to 35s. I am still trying to figure out what wheels I want to run, but once I do I will make the move up.
Also plan on swapping out the stock steering for ZJ steering. A direct bolt-in replacement and much beefier than the XJ stuff. And you can get all the parts at CarQuest.
Here is what I have done since I started this modification craze:
Added the RE control arm drop brackets. They were a nightmare to install, but the payoff is in the smooth ride.
Had my CV driveshaft rebuilt. Front Range Drive Line Specialist in Denver did an awesome job of repairng my CV shaft. I had come down hard on a rock on a trail ride and since that time had horrible vibes. They had the shaft for a littel over 8 hours and when i got it back it looked brand new. Once I bolted it up and took a spin, I was vibe free. Great work!!!
Most recently upgraded to 33x12.50 Goodyear MT/R tires. The MT/Rs have become one of the top tires out there for rockcrawling and are a very street-friendly tire as well. I have the MT/Rs mounted on my Eagle Alloy 589 wheels in a 15x7. These rims have 4" of backspacing and look really clean on Project Blackout. There was a lot of conversation about sticking with the 15x7 wheel, but so far it is working out great and has saved me from once again having to buy new wheels.
I installed a set of Rocky Road Outfitters StepRails on Project Blackout. These rails are amazingly strong and sturdy. I have already had a chance to test them out and the can withstand a beating. My kids love them since they can now get in the XJ unassisted.
Had 4.56 gears installed to help get some of the power back after the addition of the 33s. Also threw a Powertrax No-Slip locker in the rear. I left the front open due to money constaints and the desire to see what a rear locker will do for me.
I have 4.5" ZJ coils which net me a a little more than 7" with the stock isolator in place. I recently added a 1" spacer to make up for the weight of the bumper to place the front end squarely at 7.5" of lift.
Installed Rubicon Express' 1462 4.5" leaf springs. The leafs gave me much more than the advertised 4.5" of lift!!! The rear, right after install, was sitting pretty close to 9" with the extended shackles. I swapped those out for some MJ shackles and that brought it back down to about 8". It has since settled to a comfortable 7.5".
Went with Rusty's Offroad LCAs and adjustable UCAs. Prior to installing these I had Death Wobble so bad I almost couldn't drive Stocky. The LCAs and UCAs have fixed the DW problems and made the front end much tighter
Installed Rancho 9000 adjustable shocks. I went with the 9010 all around using JKS bar pin eliminators and my own custom made stud eliminators in the front. I have since changed to the Rancho RSX shocks for the front. It's a huge improvement over the 9000s and a great riding shock on and off-road. Once I find the right length for the rear I will probably switch to the RSXs for the rear as well.
Installed Rubicon Express' Slip Yoke Eliminator kit and a double cardon (CV) drive shaft from Englewood Driveshaft in Denver.
More info can be found on the main site at I Love Jeeps.com (http://www.ilovejeeps.com/) Check the Projects Section