2014 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon HeliNomad Build

waterboy222

waterboy222

Adventurer
I have the 10th anniversary rubicon, 2013. My evap plate has been moved but that doesn't require a new driveshaft, just a quick drill and bolt of the plate. I'm going to replace my front shaft this winter because I got hung up on a rock and dang near cut the shaft in half because I didn't realize the weight of the jeep was being held up on the shaft against a rock. But I don't see any reason to replace the rear.


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H

HeliNomad

Adventurer
waterboy222 said:
I have the 10th anniversary rubicon, 2013. My evap plate has been moved but that doesn't require a new driveshaft, just a quick drill and bolt of the plate. I'm going to replace my front shaft this winter because I got hung up on a rock and dang near cut the shaft in half because I didn't realize the weight of the jeep was being held up on the shaft against a rock. But I don't see any reason to replace the rear.


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Click to expand...

You are right...the rear drive shaft is perfectly fine if you had the foresight to move the evap tray. I read on the inter web that you couldn't order the rear plastic boot and that you would need to replace the entire drive shaft. Well a quick call to my dealer right now confirmed that I am in fact a moron and that you can order just the plastic boot and replace it. So that is what I will do. I'm all for keeping things stock when possible. So forget everything I said about a 1310 rear drive shaft. ....learning process.
 
dstock

dstock

Explorer
HeliNomad said:
Yea you just undo a couple bolts on the roll cage bracket and lift the entire rack off with the hard top. I'd say it adds 3 minutes to the process. It's obviously not compatible with a soft top which I don't have anyway. If you are going to be removing the roof a lot I'd go with a different roof rack system like from Gobi.
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There is a thread on the AEV forum that suggests it is not easy to remove at all. Access to the bolts is very limited. For sure not the rack to go with for frequent hard top removals.
 
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HeliNomad

Adventurer
dstock said:
There is a thread on the AEV forum that suggests it is not easy to remove at all. Access to the bolts is very limited. For sure not the rack to go with for frequent hard top removals.
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Man so I just did it. Forget 3 minutes...add like 30 minutes. I can see getting better at this but it's time consuming. Still though it's the best rack in my opinion. This exoskeleton system from other companies is super heavy.
 
dstock

dstock

Explorer
HeliNomad said:
Man so I just did it. Forget 3 minutes...add like 30 minutes. I can see getting better at this but it's time consuming. Still though it's the best rack in my opinion. This exoskeleton system from other companies is super heavy.
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Having drilled my roof on my last JK to install Yakima tracks, I decided not to go this route again, and chose to go with Gobi instead. The full length of the Gobi and the ease of removal without drilling my roof were deciding factors. I don't have to run it all the time, so the added weight isn't really much of an issue (at least not with the new 3.6), the ability to easily add lights, the ladder access to the roof and the ability to use a Yakima cargo box with ease all added up to going with the Gobi for me. I also looked at the Frontrunner rack but the amount and size of the holes drilled was even worse than the AEV.

Luckily, there are lots of options out there to keep us all happy!! That's one nice looking JK you have there.

For sure check out some of the other Jeep forums, things like the driveshaft issues when lifting over 2.5" and the Rubicon rail mod with 35's are well documented.

The JK platform is a blast, welcome to the addiction!
 
H

HeliNomad

Adventurer
dstock said:
Having drilled my roof on my last JK to install Yakima tracks, I decided not to go this route again, and chose to go with Gobi instead. The full length of the Gobi and the ease of removal without drilling my roof were deciding factors. I don't have to run it all the time, so the added weight isn't really much of an issue (at least not with the new 3.6), the ability to easily add lights, the ladder access to the roof and the ability to use a Yakima cargo box with ease all added up to going with the Gobi for me. I also looked at the Frontrunner rack but the amount and size of the holes drilled was even worse than the AEV.

Luckily, there are lots of options out there to keep us all happy!! That's one nice looking JK you have there.

For sure check out some of the other Jeep forums, things like the driveshaft issues when lifting over 2.5" and the Rubicon rail mod with 35's are well documented.

The JK platform is a blast, welcome to the addiction!
Click to expand...

Good info thanks. What's the best Wrangler forum?
 
dstock

dstock

Explorer
HeliNomad said:
Good info thanks. What's the best Wrangler forum?
Click to expand...

Alot of the JK forums are geared more towards serious off-roading, rock crawling, etc. but you can still get lots of info from them.

JK-Forum.com is probably the most even tempered these days now that it is run by a large internet company. JKowners spun off of JK-forum back when it was privately owned and people didn't like the way it was being run, but it can be very opinionated and has some serious sponser fanboys. JeepForum.com has been around for ever and has a JK section and is also pretty even tempered.

I've met some really great people on JK-Forum so I'd have to say it's probably my preferred site. When I am looking for information, I usually check all 3 to see peoples experiences with different products.

Anyway, those are my preferred 3, there are many more out there. Hope this helps, sometimes I know it's almost too much information!!
 
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HeliNomad

Adventurer
So I decided to cancel my order for the Ace Sliders and go with something a little more minimalistic. I'm thinking about going with the MORE Hide-a-step but haven't really found any long term reviews. Also I am wondering about someone's experience installing them on the rear doors of a 4 door truck.
 
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HeliNomad

Adventurer
So today I installed the Hide-a-steps from MORE and I have to say I really like them. I was a little on the fence about the concept but the build quality is impressive. These things are tough. Removing the step is really easy with the pin. All in all the installation took me about 1 hour but the second one goes faster. The instructions have a lot of lacking information but for the most part it's pretty obvious. My only advise is to use a heavy duty tie wrap to compress the spring while you are working with the pry bar. Also it may not seem like it will line up but once everything is tight it ends up perfect so I don't kill your self trying to hammer it straight before the bolts go on. Getting in and out and "finding" it with your foot is really easy. Wife is happy so...mission accomplished.
 
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