Triple-purpose JK Build

[gasman]

When 4.56 gears finally become available for the front D44, I'll be changing my gears. The 4.10s are barely tolerable on 33s, and a PITA on 35s with the trailer. And that's with a Superchips on 94 octane, upgraded exhaust and air filter. Most people go with 4.88s with 35s, but I switch between 33s and 35s, so I'll be going with 4.56 instead.

The Superchips is worth it, but the biggest difference is with 94 octane, which is not easy to find when you're on the road. As a consequence, I'm tuned to 91 and tank with 94 when I can (lessens the chance of pinging when hauling the trailer).

If I was running 35s all the time, I'd probably do 4.88s first.

js.

hmmn ? not really the answer i was looking for.. i was hoping you were gonna say it was perfect and wouldnt change a thing, i run 4.88's in my cherokee on 35's and its got balls, but on the top end it kinda screams a little and says slow down, im new to the wrangler thing and the 3.8 , i only have 1,600 kms on it and im thinking that i may have issues pulling the trailer on 35's and 4.10's maybe 33's will be enough , i first have to figure out my priorities ,how much lift will i really need ? vs, how much lift i really want ? bumpers, racks and all the other goodies, thanks for the info my friend , it is much apreciated

 

[lbarcher]

You'll be ok with 4.10 and 33" tires.
If I'm not mistaken, that would put your actual ratio near the 3.7 that comes with the factory tow package on non-Rubicons.

 

[jsmoriss]

2LO Installed

Yesterday I took the day off to have the Teraflex 2LO shifter plate installed in the t-case. The plate costs $250 and the install was 3 1/2 hours, though without skid plates, it's easily do-able under 3 hours. The install isn't complicated, but since this is my first vehicle, I still feel more comfortable seeing someone tear apart the larger pieces for me.

The shift from 2LO to 4LO is quite short, and can (should) be shifted while moving (since the gear ratio is the same).

I installed the 2LO adapter for 3 reasons:

- When backing up the trailer up a hill, the engine is not strong enough -- I had to let the clutch slip and rev the engine. I had no choice but to heat the clutch, though it didn't smoke. A 4:1 2LO will be a perfect fix for this.

- In tight forest trails, 2LO will be useful to get a tighter turning radius.

- I can resell my 2LO equipped t-case for a bit more next year when I upgrade to a 4-speed Atlas, so shouldn't loose much on the upgrade.

js.

 

[jsmoriss]

We're back from the Bethel ME Jeep Jamboree! The day before driving down, I went to the garage for an oil change (diffs and engine), upgrade the brake rotors & pads, and swap out the rear axle shafts. I've had the rear axle shafts on the shelf for a good long while now (maybe 2 years), so it was about time I put them in.

I chose the DBA slotted rotors and Hawk HPS pads.

They make a subtle but important difference -- braking force is a lot more linear / proportional now. And in an emergency, should stop a whole lot quicker then the old OEM setup.

While the truck was on the lift, I greased what I could and found a problem with the rear lower control arm Heim joints. The kevlar cloth is coming out of the joint.

I plan on replacing the front lower, rear upper and rear lower control arms by Rock Krawler control arms. Their joints have a much better seal, and can be oiled.

Here's a video of friday's Way Point trail at the 2010 Jeep Jamboree in Bethel ME. It had been raining all week, so Melanie decided to do an easier trail this year. The Interco LTBs sure made the mud a whole lot easier than in years past.



I was planning on driving a more challenging trail (Ridgeline) on Saturday, but we had to drive back on Friday afternoon -- my father-in-law had called to tell us the sewer was backed up and firemen were pumping out the basement! So after a day on the trail, we had to drive back another 5 hours to manage the situation. Thankfully (compared to the alternative) the problem was caused by the city breaking our sewer pipe a little over a month ago, so the flood was mostly rain water. Still, sewer-type contamination means a serious amount of work to the basement. The contractors should be finished in another week or two...

js.

 

[leman]

looked like some sloppy stuff.

how are you liking the new brake set up?

 

[jsmoriss]

Small issues after 3+ years...

As the truck gets older, I expect a few issues, and two have cropped up recently...

The first is the head unit. The right front and rear speakers (both sides) cut out. Usually it's after 20 mins or so, and it doesn't come back until a day or more later. I suspect a loose connection behind the HU. I'll have to pop the HU out and have a look. Another possibility could be a defective CHTO-03 adapter.

And just this morning, I went to put the winch cover on, and the controller blinks 6 times. I've been able to find error messages for 4 and 5 blinks, but not 6. I'm hoping it's nothing major and I don't have to remove the winch... Anyone have a list of blink codes for the Warn 9.5si (or 9.5ti) winch?

js.

 

[jsmoriss]

With wheeling season about to start, I figure a small update was due...

Over the winter my father-in-law and I installed a second battery on the trailer and fitted some ARB awnings (two sides and front). I'll have to get some pics -- both the installs look real sharp.

Last time I wrote about some problems with the head-unit and winch. The HU problem was indeed due to the CHTO-03 adapter. I replaced it with a new one, and everything's good now. I had to remove the plastic case to fit it within the switch panel under the HU, so got to compare the old and new pcboards. They've made some changes, so hopefully this new CHTO-03 adapter will last a bit longer. ;-) As for the winch, as I suspected, it was just a low voltage problem. The winch works fine now.

A while back I may have written about my frustration with the Full Traction control arms on my jeep. They tend to squeak, even with the correct grease, added zerks, etc. And recently the non-greasable and non-serviceable joints on the rear lower control arms (axle side) started falling apart -- literally -- the kevlar cloth came out and the joint was loose. So I finally replaced the front lower, rear upper, rear lower, and front trackbar with Rock Krawler arms. I'm super happy with the result. I'd already switched the front uppers for Poly Performance arms, and love these as well -- it was very easy to adjust the caster (which is about 6-7 degrees at the moment). The Rock Krawler rear trackbar was a bit short -- they assume you use their rear trackbar bracket, but because I already have a weld-on bracket from JKS, I couldn't use theirs. JKS said they're coming out with an add-on to raise the mount point, so I'm hopeful I'll be able to remove the last Full Traction component in another 2-3 weeks. ;-)

The Rock Krawler arms also move the rear axle back by about 1" from stock to fit 37" tires. That was a bit of a surprise. I cut about 1/4" from the rear lowers, so in the end, my rear axle moved back about 3/8" from it's current position (the front axle also moved forward by about 3/8"). The frame-side trackbar mount came down on the bumpstop, so I had to cut & relocate the bumpstop extension. I'm going to the garage on Monday to remove the rear coils and articulate the rear axle while on the lift -- I have to check the rear pinion & gas tank skid clearance, trackbar clearance, swaybar link clearance, etc. Maybe with taller coils and bumpstops you could push the axle back further, but with my current coils (OME XHD 620s I think, which is about 3") and bumpstops (2 1/2" I think) I just don't see how it could be farther back...

I just put on the 35" LTBs yesterday for a trail next week-end (the first of the season). Last year this same trail, at the same time, still had a good 1-2 feet of snow. We were on 33" MTs and I'd forgotten to bring the chains. The chains don't fit the LTBs, but LTBs being what they are, I'm hoping it won't matter. :-D

js.

 

[mmccurdy]

A while back I may have written about my frustration with the Full Traction control arms on my jeep. They tend to squeak, even with the correct grease, added zerks, etc. And recently the non-greasable and non-serviceable joints on the rear lower control arms (axle side) started falling apart -- literally -- the kevlar cloth came out and the joint was loose. So I finally replaced the front lower, rear upper, rear lower, and front trackbar with Rock Krawler arms. I'm super happy with the result. I'd already switched the front uppers for Poly Performance arms, and love these as well -- it was very easy to adjust the caster (which is about 6-7 degrees at the moment). The Rock Krawler rear trackbar was a bit short -- they assume you use their rear trackbar bracket, but because I already have a weld-on bracket from JKS, I couldn't use theirs. JKS said they're coming out with an add-on to raise the mount point, so I'm hopeful I'll be able to remove the last Full Traction component in another 2-3 weeks. ;-)

I had the same exact issues with the Full Traction arms that use the poly bushings.... went through several sets of bushings even with diligent greasing, etc. A little while ago they completely redesigned the bushings to use OEM-style rubber instead of poly (among other changes) and I upgraded mine about a month ago. This design is more in keeping with most of the other kits on the market, and I'm also super happy with the result.

As far as trackbars go, I've been very happy with the Teraflex "Monster" bars -- they're fully adjustable (even while mounted on the rig) and they're some of the beefiest I've seen. I've been running their front for almost a year and just mounted up their rear tonight. It was no problem at all to match the length of the Full Traction bar I was replacing. Something to consider anyway.

 

[jsmoriss]

Handbrake & rust issue...

Over the winter I noticed a squeak coming from my brakes - as if the pads were rusted to the rotors, except it took several stops to go away. I also noticed my fuel economy getting worse (got up to 22l/100km). I tracked it down to the handbrake shoes on the rear driver's side. Finally yesterday, while at the garage for somethings else, we took apart that parking brake assembly. The parking brake "actuator" (part #68003601AA) and the parking brake "lever" (part #68003591AA) were completely fused with rust. The only way to grease these (kinda properly) is to remove the brake assembly and rotor, and spray some grease on the lever/actuator assembly. The handbrake shoes were completely worn (on that side), so we changed both sides and greased that lever/actuator assembly (taking it apart and brushing off the rust, etc.) on both sides.

js.

 

[DETN8R]

Really hate to dig up old threads but yours is totally worth it. Where have all your pics gone? BTW, I've been following your build for awhile now and have always been impressed.

 

[OverlandChronicles]

really hate to dig up old threads but yours is totally worth it. Where have all your pics gone? Btw, i've been following your build for awhile now and have always been impressed.

x2

 

[jsmoriss]

RRT woes - Night from hell w/ no-see-ums...

My g/f and I just came back from 9 days on Cape Breton, two of them spent in a backwoods camp we named "Bug Camp" - on the last night, the no-see-ums (biting midges) got so bad, we had to sleep in our bug-shirts! A few nights earlier, we were camping at Meat Cove, where the wind was so strong, we had to re-position the trailer a second time (so the RTT faced into the wind), and around midnight I packed it up and we slept in the truck. I should mention we were also camped a few feet from a cliff, which made it even more exciting.

The RTT we're using is an an Autohome OverZone - they made (in my opinion) some really odd design choices... The mosquito net is just that, for mosquitos - the no-see-ums aren't even slowed down by it. ;-) The bottom of the doors/windows front and back also have no zippers at the bottom. You have to tuck them under the mattress. And for some reason, when you close the tent, the edges have a tendency to cut the net. I have a few cuts that need sewing. The roof material also isn't sewed above the doors/windows, so it just rests on the supports and lifts up with a good wind.

I'm not sure what to do with this tent... I just bought a new mattress for it, and a winter hood (expensive, and the manufacturer basically told me to take a hike after it got damaged during shipping). I can replace it, or get it altered... If you have some suggestions, let me know, especially if you know of specialty shops that could replace the mosquito net and make a few improvements...

I'll post some pics when we get back (still in the maritimes) - the new ARB awnings worked out great and the second battery on the trailer was just perfect. Aside form the RTT, everything was perfect.

Thanks,

js.

 

[jsmoriss]

Just found this in another thread - worth a try I guess...

The screen on the AutoHome tents is quite fine but not no-see-um netting.

Two problems with no-see-um netting, first, the good stuff is very fine, almost like a loose weave fabric, and can restrict air passing through, exactly when you need air the most. Second, it is really fragile and wouldn't hold up well.

So, here is what you do. Get some Avon "Skin so Soft" or a non toxic bug repellant. Spray your screens, doesn't need much. The No-see-ums can't fly through the fine mesh on the AutoHome tents so they have to land. They will not land because of the repellant so they will not bother you. Yes, it has been tested, I'm here in Florida in the Mangrove swamps and no problems here.

You will want a fan for circulation if you are in no-see-um territory. Makes life a little more bearable.

Rich

 

[DKM]

Interesting build, but what happened to all of the photos?

 

[codename607]

Just found this in another thread - worth a try I guess...

x2!