BBailey
Explorer
My life with the JK model Jeep started last year with the build up of my 2009. EVO front bumpers, sliders, and rock guards, OR Fab Rotopax/Tire Carrier, beadlocks and 37's. Great little platform but it became quickly apparent that while the 3.8L is fantastic off-road, it leaves a lot to be desired on-road (and truthfully in certain off-road situations its underpowered as well, even with the axles re-geared).
So I picked up a 2012 JKUR (still have the 2009 and have other plans for her now). She'd already had a little work done to her though nothing I really wanted other than the Bushwhacker Flat Fenders. That's my 2009 JKUR hiding in the background.
We even took her out for some testing as she sat when she was purchased.
With the baseline laid, we started planning. But first, off comes the poor excuse for a front bumper from Smittybuilt as well as the useless Smittybuilt winch. Off comes the XD wheels and 33's the previous owner had installed. And finally off comes the 3" Teraflex lift that was previously installed (though I am holding onto the adjustable track bars and rear trackbar bracket as well as the longer droplinks for now).
My plan for this build was to put together a reliable overlanding platform that could go anywhere I pointed her. She's not built to go around the world, she's built to go anywhere in North, or potentially South, America. Lift height will be kept as low as possible while maximizing wheel travel in order to keep fuel economy at between 15 mpg and 18 mpg. Tire size will be large enough to clear nearly anything put in front of her which means 37's. And the interior will be set up to support a family of 4 (two adults and two kids) on 3 to 10 day camping/exploration trips, and 2 individuals for far longer.
And then I put together the build list:
Front and Rear Poison Spyder BFH Series Bumpers with shackle mounts and their Brawler winch guard
Rigid Dually D2 Driving Lights and a 10" SR2 Hyperspot for the front bumper
Poison Spyder Brawler Rockers
MORE Dual Battery Tray with the Rugged Ridge Wiring Kit
TJM Stealth Series 9000 lbs Winch w/ Factor 55 Prolink Shackle Mount
Spiderweb Shade Bikini Top
Poly Performance On-Board Air Kit
ARM Dual Compressor
Custom Switch Panel and Wiring Harness (Relays and Fuses) for lights and winch
Custom Switch Panel for individual control over front and rear e-lockers (and future ARB lockers)
Synergy Baja Basket for the Rear
Inner C-Gussets on the Front Axle
Control Arm Skids up front
Custom underbody LED's for night-time travel
And for the Suspension
EVO Front Bolt On Coil-Over Mounts with King Remote Reservoir Coilovers
King Remote Reservoir Smoothies in the rear
--Both sets of kinds are custom valved to Garrett Overland's specs (we decided to go this route rather than with EVO's custom valving because of the overlanding nature of this build)
King Hydraulic Bump Stops
Poly Performance Long Travel Upper Shock Mounts
EVO Rockstar Lower Shock Mounts
EVO 4" Plushride Coils
Rokmen upper and lower Control Arms
JE Reel 1310 Driveshafts (these will be upgraded to 1350's when the axles are eventually replaced but I'd rather the driveshafts be the weak link presently)
AEV Pintler Beadlocks with 37" MTRK's (to be replaced with Nitto Trail Grapplers as soon as they show up)
Spyderco Wheel Spacers
At preesent, we'll simply be regearing the front and rear axles with 4.88's and sticking with the stock Rubicon e-lockers, this is a good compromise for a rig that see's a lot of time on the street, though 5.13's would be better for off-road. The plan is to install Dynatrac's ProRock44 front axle and either their Trail60 or ProRock60 rear axle with ARB lockers over the next 3 to 6 months (we're curious to see how the stock axles with basic protections hold up and the best way to find out is to beat on them to their breaking point, so that's what we're going to do).
Ready to roll into the shop:
Parts Laid out and ready to get the install started:
King Remote Reservoir Goodness:
And the prep work begins on the bumpers and rocker guards:
More to come, stay tuned. Garrett Overland will be doing a marathon 96 hour build on this baby in preparations for next week's Ozark Overland Rally.
So I picked up a 2012 JKUR (still have the 2009 and have other plans for her now). She'd already had a little work done to her though nothing I really wanted other than the Bushwhacker Flat Fenders. That's my 2009 JKUR hiding in the background.
We even took her out for some testing as she sat when she was purchased.
With the baseline laid, we started planning. But first, off comes the poor excuse for a front bumper from Smittybuilt as well as the useless Smittybuilt winch. Off comes the XD wheels and 33's the previous owner had installed. And finally off comes the 3" Teraflex lift that was previously installed (though I am holding onto the adjustable track bars and rear trackbar bracket as well as the longer droplinks for now).
My plan for this build was to put together a reliable overlanding platform that could go anywhere I pointed her. She's not built to go around the world, she's built to go anywhere in North, or potentially South, America. Lift height will be kept as low as possible while maximizing wheel travel in order to keep fuel economy at between 15 mpg and 18 mpg. Tire size will be large enough to clear nearly anything put in front of her which means 37's. And the interior will be set up to support a family of 4 (two adults and two kids) on 3 to 10 day camping/exploration trips, and 2 individuals for far longer.
And then I put together the build list:
Front and Rear Poison Spyder BFH Series Bumpers with shackle mounts and their Brawler winch guard
Rigid Dually D2 Driving Lights and a 10" SR2 Hyperspot for the front bumper
Poison Spyder Brawler Rockers
MORE Dual Battery Tray with the Rugged Ridge Wiring Kit
TJM Stealth Series 9000 lbs Winch w/ Factor 55 Prolink Shackle Mount
Spiderweb Shade Bikini Top
Poly Performance On-Board Air Kit
ARM Dual Compressor
Custom Switch Panel and Wiring Harness (Relays and Fuses) for lights and winch
Custom Switch Panel for individual control over front and rear e-lockers (and future ARB lockers)
Synergy Baja Basket for the Rear
Inner C-Gussets on the Front Axle
Control Arm Skids up front
Custom underbody LED's for night-time travel
And for the Suspension
EVO Front Bolt On Coil-Over Mounts with King Remote Reservoir Coilovers
King Remote Reservoir Smoothies in the rear
--Both sets of kinds are custom valved to Garrett Overland's specs (we decided to go this route rather than with EVO's custom valving because of the overlanding nature of this build)
King Hydraulic Bump Stops
Poly Performance Long Travel Upper Shock Mounts
EVO Rockstar Lower Shock Mounts
EVO 4" Plushride Coils
Rokmen upper and lower Control Arms
JE Reel 1310 Driveshafts (these will be upgraded to 1350's when the axles are eventually replaced but I'd rather the driveshafts be the weak link presently)
AEV Pintler Beadlocks with 37" MTRK's (to be replaced with Nitto Trail Grapplers as soon as they show up)
Spyderco Wheel Spacers
At preesent, we'll simply be regearing the front and rear axles with 4.88's and sticking with the stock Rubicon e-lockers, this is a good compromise for a rig that see's a lot of time on the street, though 5.13's would be better for off-road. The plan is to install Dynatrac's ProRock44 front axle and either their Trail60 or ProRock60 rear axle with ARB lockers over the next 3 to 6 months (we're curious to see how the stock axles with basic protections hold up and the best way to find out is to beat on them to their breaking point, so that's what we're going to do).
Ready to roll into the shop:
Parts Laid out and ready to get the install started:
King Remote Reservoir Goodness:
And the prep work begins on the bumpers and rocker guards:
More to come, stay tuned. Garrett Overland will be doing a marathon 96 hour build on this baby in preparations for next week's Ozark Overland Rally.
