tj

[robert j. yates]

I ran the 'Con once on 33's and frankly, I don't consider it to be a 4 rated trail if you take the bypass around Little Sluice and stick to the slabs around Old Sluice. Running the trail that way means 33's are more than sufficient.

As for running 33's vs. 35's..... I am personally of the opinion that you need just as much suspension, axle and steering beef with the 33's as you do with the 35's. 37's on the other hand require at least a set of Rubicon axles front and rear if not better. The stock 30 won't cut it even with a hub conversion and alloy shafts....its the ball joints and axle tubes that are the weak points for anything bigger than 35's.

 

[DaveInDenver]

I am personally of the opinion that you need just as much suspension, axle and steering beef with the 33's as you do with the 35's.

That's pretty true in general, there's really no hard-fast rule that you are OK at 33 and not 35. Seems a lot of that is driver dependent. Some guys can destroy a truck even on 31" tires and other guys will be OK at 35. It does seem that >35" is a more of guarantee of problems with trucks (be that a Wrangler, 4Runner, Xterra or most light duty pickups) designed around 28"~31" tires stock.

 

[BigAl]

I did this to increase storage, it is bolted to the cage with muffler clamp u-bolts, I can take it out in ~10 minutes.

 

[BigAl]

A View attachment 12332

Below the shelf is a large cooler, 5 gallon water container, large tent, 2 burner stove, folding picnic bench, lawn chairs, cooking stuff, minimal recovery stuff, etc. On the shelf are lighter clothes and food but this week long trip the gas grill, 10 Lb propane tank and a rolled-up whitewater raft were on there too. The roof box has paddling gear in it when we're between places but that tends to spread out when we camp somewhere for a couple of days.

Cheers,
Graham

Where are you? I'd like to swing by for some packing lessons

 

[maximumrob]

Since you're looking for opinions, here goes one.

Put on a 1" body lift, a tummy tuck to get rid of that shovel Jeep calls a skid plate, a locker in the rear, and some skinny 31" mud tires. If you wish to travel many miles of washboard dirt roads, invest in some top dollar shocks. Spend no money on a lift in order to make it as reliable as possible and keep parts available if you do break in some remote corner of the world.

Spend the rest of your cash on smart packing solutions, like a roof rack and a tire carrier with racks and jerry can platforms.

...but that's just me.

 

[grahamfitter]

Where are you? I'd like to swing by for some packing lessons

And the kitchen sink!

View attachment 12354

A few minutes later we ran out of yard guard and retired to the safety of the tent to eat a nice steak.

Cheers,
Graham

 

[newimage]

Well being spoiled by an 05 Rubicon Unlimited the question is still what lift?
I do this all the time...
On a stock TJ go with 2 inch Spacer kit with a Belly Up (Tummy Tuck) find a set of Rubicon Springs swap them out front and rear. SYE drive shaft, Bilstein 5100 on all corners Get some Rubicon Moab Rims w/ 265/75/16 tires and a set of JKS quick Disconnects. Invest in a electric Locker. Thats on the suspension end. It will be driveable just enough lift to go places and keep you out of trouble and dont forget to invest in a winch!
Over head rack is nice and a basic rear rack also to carry tire hi lift etc.
Get a Genright www.genright.com Enduro tank 24.5 gallons will get you places and no need to carry gerry cans.
Now you have a nice expedition Vehicle but longer is better if you can save and look for a deal on a LJ you will not be disappointed. The added space when we go to Loreto Baja is nice but I also have a 31.5 gallon tank.
Thats real nice but thats my 2 cents...:shakin:

 

[Mayne]

I'm running an 05 TJ, I had to acquire a trailer and a roof rack, to fit my needs. I ca put all of my needs, and my wife and K9 in the jeep, but it becomes really top heavy. The jeep also likes to ride on the bump stops at this point. Personally I'm looking into an AirLift assist even with the trailer. These are just a few of the things that I've had to deal with, but all in all, I love my jeep.

Mayne

 

[86cj]

ok so keeping my options open i am venturing into the jeep market for a new rig. i have slowly been realizing that a jeep may be a better decision for what i want to do. here is my criteria.

1. easy to work on.
2. capable. (not just for exploring on dirt roads, i want it to do trails as well.
3. parts availibility (my parents have run jeeps for about 20 years and there is alot less work.
4. aftermarket.
5. flexability. (i want it to be, for lack of a better term, a transformer. it needs to be able to do a weekend trip and a milti day, week expedition.

now so far i like the tj for my platform. its small, great aftermarket, decent performance on and off road, and its alot less work than a toyota.

the reason i am leaning away from toyotas is because of the work. dont get me wrong i love being a grease monkey and a fabricator. but i dont want to have to alter the whole truck to get it where i want. i have an 84 toyota now and i woud get a early 90s truck and do a solid axel swap... this seems rather pointless and a lot of money sunk into only half the suspension. with a tj i can get an entire 4link for 3k. plus even if i break a u joint its a quick fix, birfields are $100 a pop and i cant really fix it. long fields are $500, just doesnt seem worth it to me at this point. i really dont like the scary ness of being SOL in the middle of no where with a busted axel that i cant fix extremely easily on the trail.

long story short, dependable, easy to maintain, and decnt parts , aftermarket or otherwise, availibilty.

what do you guys think? i would like to see some pics and hear some pros and cons.

i have been doing research for about 6 years on these things and helping my friend build up his TJ. i like the rubicon express lifts and i only need 35s for what i want to do. anyway, give me your thoughts.

I started traveling the US with a SWB Jeep CJ and moved up to a RV and back down to a JEEP again. You need to live out of the SWB TJ for a while and grow the Jeep bug...(your doomed).
Then when a used LJ for a good deal comes around you could swing it later,and most all your TJ stuff would bolt on......

The 15" is really a big deal inside and the 10" wheelbase is very noticeable on the HWY,(especially when carrying the stuff a TJ puts on its roof inside the LJ!!) .............

 

[toyrunner95]

well as for a lift, i wasnt thinking fabtech or skyjacker or superlift, i was thinking more along the lines of rubicon express, nth deg mobility, or rock krawler (but i heard bad things about them) for the most part i really dont know what i want to do with it. go camping obviously and do multi day trips. i figure i can fit 75-80% of what i need in the jeep. no problems. i stuffed my friends jeep with a mock run of the bags and what not i would be taking with a cooler and camp kitchen and it did alright i was missing extra fuel and water. but those can go on the back bumper. a few things were really crammed but it did alright.

i plan on doing trails. set up camp, go wheeling, come home. a roof rack is an option but it believe that it would be rather top heavy.

the 35s are BFG mudders, i have run them on a few different rigs none a jeep personally, but i know a guy who has been running them for about 5 years with no probs. to run them, i plan on rebuilding both front and rear axels with yukon parts, they are reliable and can withstand a locker fairly well. i would rather have a U joint be a weak link than a birfield or an axel. put a detroit in the rear and an E locker or ARB up front and im set.