"Bruce" the 2014 Jeep JKUR Build Thread

[KlausVanWinkle]

I just got back from a Kokopelli Trial trip with OutdoorX4 Magazine, FunTrek Books and OzTent. 22 hours of highway driving. 3 days of trail driving, including top of the world and about 1.5 days of rock crawling. The recent storms in Utah really wreaked havac on the usually easy to moderate trail. I was the only Jeep to get down Rose Garden Hill without body/fender damage. The rains even washed out Onion Spring Road, turning the usually graded dirt road into a network of wash outs and river crossings.

It was a fun trip. I was pleasantly surprised by all the fall colors.

My drawer and table were a life saver. And I comfortably slept in the Jeep thanks to switching the fridge to the passenger side and adding a plywood sleeping platform on top of the drawer. My skid plates and geo-brackets got a work out on the rocks, and I hit the ARB front diff causing it to break the seal. But all in all, everything worked well. the newer sliders even managed to save my drivers door when a boulder flipped up and smacked them coming down Rose Garden Hill. This is probably the hardest trip the Jeep has gone on and it performed beautifully both on the rocks and on the pavement. It's so much easier to rock crawl than the 100-series was. With careful spotting from FunTrek, my stock tires and 2.5" lift was able to go everywhere the 3" lifted JKUR on 37s went, although slower.

While MCE flat fenders and 37" BFG AT KO2s certainly make a great looking, and tempting low COG build, I think I'll go with 35s. It's cheaper and I'm already geared for it.

The trail conditions slowed us down some. So we ended up with the unexpected surprise of camping at the top of the Top of the World trail.

My Jeep ended up looking like a Utah mud dissection.

 

[Comanche Scott]

What an awesome trip! :beer:
Great driving. I have read it can get very slippery when wet in that area.

 

[KlausVanWinkle]

What an awesome trip! :beer:
Great driving. I have read it can get very slippery when wet in that area.

It rained on us at top of the World on monday morning. But the rocks weren't too slippery. There was a lot of mud on the first day through the Serengeti-like plateaus. Previous storms created a lot of rock slides, and moved the boulders around so there was no discernible line on a lot of the last day of the trail near Moab.

 

[kojackJKU]

Awesome trip. Looks like you had a ball in the jeep.

 

[Captain Texas]

Man your Jeep is ************! I love how overland oriented it is!

Keep it up! Photos were great.

 

[IndyRubicon]

Top of the World trail is very long, but the views at the top are worth the climb up there.

Great example of how much a capable driver with a Rubicon can do without having to resort of a 4" lift and 37" tires. Well done.

 

[KlausVanWinkle]

Thanks guys.

I'm continually impressed with the stock tires. If I had no interest in harder trails, I wouldn't hesitate to keep them. The articulation, lockers and sway bar disconnect make rock crawling about as easy as picking a line and letting the jeep do the work.

Next up is an AEV tire carrier and gas caddy. At 150 miles off road, I was down to the last few gallons.

Then I'll be ready for 35s. Also would like to hardwire my compressor and a small light bar, rear view camera (I backed into a rock) and a reverse light. I can also get a Rhino Rack Backbone system with their pioneer platform for a good price. I don't necessarily need a rack. But I could see it being useful in the future.

Then the build will be done for awhile.

 

[KlausVanWinkle]

My new "kitchen" set up worked pretty well. The fridge is in the second row. My food is at the front of the Tuffy drawer and the cooking equipment and cleaning supplies are at the rear of the drawer. The Springtail Solutions MOLLE table works well as a table since I prep food on cutting boards anyways. And it works well as a drying rack. I was worried about the slats, but they actually makes cleaning it easier since crumbs and liquids just fall through instead of making a mess. I'm still using my $10 Coleman fold out stand for my stove.

The bumper, drawer top and shelf create even more flat surfaces to stash food or drinks.


FAST LUNCH SET UP

FAST DINNER SET UP

 

[MTSN]

Wow that looks like an awesome trip I'm jealous! I'm glad the AEV is working out for you after the last kit you had. You'll definitely appreciate the 35s when you're ready for them after rocking the stockers!

 

[Captain Texas]

What kind of mount are you running for your radio antenna?

 

[KlausVanWinkle]

Wow that looks like an awesome trip I'm jealous! I'm glad the AEV is working out for you after the last kit you had. You'll definitely appreciate the 35s when you're ready for them after rocking the stockers!

Me too. I was a little worried on the first trip out with the wife and dog. I hadn't done the geo brackets or alignment yet and it felt like it was pulling and overloaded. This time it worked great. I'll probably still install some airbags for back up. But I was really impressed with the articulation and comfort on the highway.

What kind of mount are you running for your radio antenna?

Just a basic Teraflex one. That position does trap a lot of RF between the wheel and tailgate. It was making my back up light and dash switch light up whenever I transmit.

 

[Ryanmb21]

Rad trip!

 

[Comanche Scott]

My new "kitchen" set up worked pretty well. The fridge is in the second row. My food is at the front of the Tuffy drawer and the cooking equipment and cleaning supplies are at the rear of the drawer. The Springtail Solutions MOLLE table works well as a table since I prep food on cutting boards anyways. And it works well as a drying rack. I was worried about the slats, but they actually makes cleaning it easier since crumbs and liquids just fall through instead of making a mess. I'm still using my $10 Coleman fold out stand for my stove.

The bumper, drawer top and shelf create even more flat surfaces to stash food or drinks.


FAST LUNCH SET UP

FAST DINNER SET UP

I've been going back and forth about a tailgate table, but that settles it. I'm getting one!
Thanks for the post, that pushed me off the fence! :beer:

 

[Frank]

I've ready through all 53 pages over the course of a few days. Great build for more practical purpose rather than a bunch of 'wants'. Congrats on the marriage and the home, too!

 

[KlausVanWinkle]

I've ready through all 53 pages over the course of a few days. Great build for more practical purpose rather than a bunch of 'wants'. Congrats on the marriage and the home, too!

Thanks Frank! Great name too.

I probably have the most aesthetically boring build. It has all the important stuff like sliders, skids, dual batteries, comms, recovery gear, etc. But none of the flashy stuff. I'd love a fully AEV built JK350 as much as the next guy, but I'd be pretty annoyed if I dented up a $1800 stamped steel bumper.

I've done the build to wants thing before. You end up with a super heavy truck that drains all your money and time and makes no sense anywhere outside of an around the world trip. The more things you mess with, the more things there are to maintain. I was at the point where I was modifying the truck to make my other mods work. Then, I followed MTSN on Hell's Revenge at Cruise Moab and watched a very modestly built Land Cruiser go everywhere my "built to the hilt" truck went. I'd love flat fenders, 37s and stubby bumpers on my build, but not while it's my daily driver. And I doubt you need it for 99% of the places I go.

Thanks for reading! I don't even think I'd read through this thread. It's taken so many tangents.