Old Square Eyes Gets a Makeover

[roamingaz]

I finally have time to start a build thread on my old Jeep, I have been working on it for the last year so I have a lot of info all at once for you all and will continue to update as I progress into the detail work. Since buying it about 3 years ago I have gone through several phases of build ups and I think I have finally found what works for me. At one point I was trying to sell it but it proved impossible to get the money I wanted out of it because most folks that buy old YJ's want them for rock crawling and rarely willing to spend more then a couple grand tops. I was at the local Jeep dealer last year ready to trade it in on a new Jeep but the idea of another car payment and I just really liked the old classic Jeep compared to the newer stuff so I mentioned to my wife that if I keep this Jeep and use the $6k we were going to hand over for a down payment I could have a really nice Jeep and no extra payment. My wife seemed a bit relieved at the idea and gave me the go ahead to do it so we left the dealership with the sales person literately following us to the parking lot pleading with me to finish the paperwork we had started, leaving him standing there I actually felt bad for a couple minutes but then started the daydreaming process of a epic build up.
So a little back story on my Jeep, it is a 1994 Wrangler that I bought from snowbirds that towed it behind their RV. I don't know if the miles on the odometer is from towing or actual driving but when I got it, it had 149K miles and today has around 191K miles and amazingly reliable but I am very meticulous with maintaining it and have been using Mobile1 high mileage since the day I got it. It had a smittybilt winch on it and the only thing I did to it when I first got it was remove the old Procomp lights from the fenders and installed some LightForce lights (ugly and bad place for lights).
Here it is when I bought it.

The only thing I did to it before my build was put on a soft top and half doors, installed a snorkel and put in some old cheap used suspension seats .

The hardest part about building a Jeep is everyone I talked to about it wanted to build it bigger and only for rockcrawling. 35's 1 ton axles, 2 tons of armor etc. I know Jeeps are not the best platform for an overlanding type vehicle but it's what I had to work with and I don't mind being different then everyone else. My goal was to make this a comfortable daily driver that was capable of moderate off road and be able to carry all my gear without a trailer, I know that's not an easy task and I definitely have struggled a few times to get things just right.
I got online and started ordering parts and first thing I replaced was the most annoying thing, those lights mounted on the fender! I found a 50" led light bar and even being a china made light it is insanely bright, eventually I will upgrade to a better quality.

Next up was a custom made roof rack that would attach to the factory roll bar, here are some pics of it when I first had it done. I will add more pics later with details of attaching it with a full soft top.

About this time parts started showing up and things were about to get crazy....and yes my UPS guy hates me!

 

[roamingaz]

One thing that bugged me about Jeep is the fuel tanks are plastic and mine only holding 15 gallons was just not going to work. I did a lot of online searching and decided that a Gen-Right aluminum 20 gallon enduro tank would be perfect, it came with a new fuel pump and a heavy skid plate.

I was waiting on more parts to arrive so I replaced and upgraded where I could, one big improvement was the steering wheel. My original had leather wrap at some point but it was now gone and very uncomfortable for any long distant drives. I found a Grant steering wheel that is a huge improvement but still looking for a more comfortable one.

Another interior improvement that needed to be done was the seats. I had found some old suspension seats on craigslist and since they bolted right in I used them for about a year but even the 30 minute drive to work was horrible, the seats were worn out and to narrow for me to fit in. I spent a couple weeks sitting in every aftermarket seat I could find and soon as I tried out the Corbeau Baja XRS suspension seats I was instantly sold, they fit me and were the most comfortable seats I had tried and I tried every major brand and several different models.

I was collecting parts and waiting for a time that I could have the Jeep down for a few days to do some major work since this is my daily driver. One easy upgrade was the front bumper, there are endless bumpers for Jeeps available. Mine was stock with a smittybilt winch and I wanted something better. I decided on an ARB simply because I liked the way it looked compared to tube bumpers. I also replaced the smittybilt with a Warn M8000. I also replaced the old fender flares with Bushwacker flat flares and though I think they look a bit goofy with the smaller tires I put on I really like not having mud or rocks hitting me when I drive with the doors off so the goofy looking fenders are staying. I then replaced the worn out Rampage soft top with a Bestop, it has a better frame and better zippers then Rampage but still not the quality they used to be.

 

[roamingaz]

While I was building this I changed jobs and started working night shift so I had to wait for several months before I was able to take some time off and really do some surgery on this thing.
The suspension lift was put on in 1997 and needed to be upgraded so I searched online and found Old Man Emu make the best springs for these old Jeeps, the dilemma was I wanted to also use OME nitro shocks but they would only fit up to 2" lift and I currently had 4" with 1.5" shackles. I really didn't need the 33" tires and to honest it was horrible to drive with big wide tires, a smaller lift would work so I committed to downsizing to 31's and 2 inch lift. I have to say that having Sierra Expeditions as a local store is pretty awesome and Wil is always helpful in getting me the parts I need, probably because I always spend a lot of money there lol. So off with the old and on with the new and amazing the difference, I am very pleased with this setup. Handling has improved and did my fuel mileage and with this being a manual transmission I now have a useable 5th gear!
Here is the old suspension, my neighbor has 2 old YJ Jeeps that rarely stay running for a week at a time and he thought it was Christmas when I gave him this pile of parts. He actually installed them on his wife's jeep.

While I had the front end apart my brakes needed some serious attention and of course I needed something different then normal stock brakes. I went back online and discovered Disc Brake Australia and honestly don't know if they are any different then regular slotted rotors but I found a great sale so I ordered up a set of rotors and Hawk pads. Huge improvement to say the least and so far I feel the slotted rotors really do make a difference.

Up to this point here is how it looks, a lot more to come.

 

[roamingaz]

With the suspension, brakes and a few other maintenance things done it was time to move on to the back. I wanted a different swing out tire carrier and I also wanted to have an ARB fridge in back while still keeping the back seat in place:Wow1:.
After a lot of brainstorming, mostly with myself and my wife would humor me and try helping out with ideas. No one I would talk to about it could get an idea what I was trying to do or why I was putting a fridge in my Jeep anyway. Originally was going to have a custom tool box built but the box would weigh 90 pounds! so I decided the best way to do it was build an extension in place of the tailgate. I found a local fab company that would build it out of aluminum even though they never really grasped the idea what I was trying to do and it took a couple tries for them to build what I wanted. The end result wasn't exactly pretty but it worked for what I needed and I knew I would cover the ugly parts up later. For the rear bumper I installed a Garvin ATS and had the shop modify (for free because they messed up the tailgate cover so bad)
Here is the old smittybilt bumper that was on it.

Here is some brainstorming ideas trying to figure out how to fit a fridge in the back.

As I mentioned the welds were ugly and the aluminum had warped pretty bad but I already had plans to cover it. I wanted a fold down table not only for cooking at camp but while I'm out shooting I will have a nice table for ammo and my handguns. Outback Trailgator was the perfect solution so thanks to Rebel Offroad and a great sale I got one for a bit less and a free t-shirt (USA made too) I know these are made to bolt on to the inside of a JK tailgate but I tend to think outside the box.

This table is very well built and perfect height for my daughter to eat from....yeah my 6 year old uses chop sticks better then me lol.

We took a trip on New Years day to see how everything worked, first offroad with new suspension. A lot of mud due to the snow melt but fender flares really work to keep mud off the doors or in the cab and I had eager help to clean it off.

 

[jscusmcvet]

Nice work on that YJ. I put a suspension on a friend's YJ a couple years ago and was amazed at how easy they are to work on in comparison to the TJ. I like that you are building your jeep for how you use it. Is your tailgate extension removable? Is there a cover for it in case of rain?

John

 

[locrwln]

Nice work.

Jack

 

[roamingaz]

Update

I spent most of this weekend working on the rear cargo area and swing out and finished most of it. The extended cargo area is removable if I need to, it is held in place by 6 screws. The rear soft top still fits and zips completely closed so it does keep most of the dust and rain out and considering I drove all of last year with no top this is a big improvement over no top, in the summer I remove the windows.

My cargo area fits a water can and the fridge well with no rattles but I needed a way to carry extra fuel. As much as I like things symmetrical I didn't want two fuel cans hanging off the swing out so I came up with an idea to carry one can that fit perfect and was low profile. I ordered a Frontrunner single can holder ( I would have ordered a AT fuel holder but nothing in stock for Scepter cans) and enlisted the help of a friend to fab up a mount for behind the tire.

I had to modify the Frontrunner to hold the Scepter can as it is made to hold a Wedco. I needed to relocate the hold down strap to center and once finished it is rock solid with no rattles.

Here is a pic to show how useful the table is and offers a lot of space, the cutting board will slide out either direction.

More updates coming!

 

[Deleted member 9101]

Definitely one of my favorite builds... why.. because you are building what you want!

 

[KLT88YJ]

Wow! Awesome build. Like you initially stated everyone wants to build YOUR jeep. I really wish I stayed with 31's instead of going to 34's (swamped LTB's) it's just not as fun to me. Really liking your build though.


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[tommudd]

Good job on everything

 

[jscusmcvet]

Thanks for the detail on the rear rack. Looks awesome, and great work on the fuel carrying addition as well.

 

[HAFICON]

Man that Jeep looks great. Makes me miss my old YJ they ride like a brick but was so much fun.

 

[Ranger Steve]

Looking good but many of your pictures are gone already?

 

[swift7777]

Great build, looking forward to seeing how you attach the roof rack with the soft top. Good job not trading in a perfectly good jeep for something new.

 

[cshontz]

This is awesome. Thank you for sharing!