AlphaQup

So I live in the Bay Area. I have a 99 xj that I have been slowly putting together. It's a 4.0 with an aw4 and hp 30 in front and 29 spline c8.25 3.55 gears. I want to build it to survive the rubicon trail, fordyce and so on. I am not new to wheeling, but this is my first build. I thought I would post here to get the locals to chime in.

Current mods:
3" front lift via 4" currie progressive tj springs seems to lift more than 3"
3" ish rear via iron man 4x4 adjustable shackles and rc shackle relocators
Jk spring all around
Jks upper shock mount crossmember
Ruffstuff lower shock mounts 3" above stock location
Ruffstuff chassis stiffener cut at lca bracket
Yj soft brace lines
Rear sway bar was removed
Home made front sway bay disconnects
Hesco high flow water pump and thermostat housing 195 degree thermostat
Putco headlight harness
100 watt bulbs in h4 reflectors
Pro comp track bar that I wish was an iron rock

Parts I have but not yet installed:
Jks steering box brace (both sides)
Durango steering box
Ford Taurus fan and shroud
Bushwhacker cut out flares
8" wide 15" wagon wheels with 4" bs
Iron rock off-road critical path long arm upgrade (in the mail)
Rugged ridge sye (in the mail)
Front drive shaft for rear of sye

I may have missed a few in there. I am planning on 33" tires, dura tracks or mtr's. I need help deciding on lockers, skids and sliders. Do you guys think 3" of lift on 33" inch tires is enuf? What do you think of lunch box lockers? I don't want to spend a bunch on them but I want lockers front and rear. I don't daily drive it, but I don't have a truck end trailer to tow it to the rocks. Some advise on steering would be helpful as well, I know stock won't last long. I don't know if I need skids right away, opinions needed. I have been looking at the rc trail bumper as well I like the plate style and the hidden winch, thoughts? Any help is appreciated.

Sorry mods if you have to move this, just thought the locals would have better input.

Brandon77

Nice build. Post a pic
I think 3" is not enough clearance unless you cut fenders and bump stop it for 33" tires; but you'll get by on the street like that. If you stay at 3" lift i would look into belly skids.
I have the Dodge Durango steering box, its nice and smooth. But make sure you give it the right spacing from the frame, i had to use thick washers.
I have a Spartan insert locker in my Dana 30, no issues yet and installed it myself.
Good luck on the improvements.

AlphaQup

I got the box from Atmos here on the forums he included the washers and suggested a wagoner pitman arm for better throw. As for the fenders, I have the bushwacker cut out flares, so I have to trim for them aprox 2". I just ordered the daystar extended bumps front and rear, will add some hockey pucks up front and some sort of leaf spring plate lower bump pad.

pioneerhighsteer

Go 5.5 lift! That's what I'm running with 33 and long arms and 5100 and rides so smooth!
Rubicon Express RE1345 5.5" Coil Spring for Jeep XJ
http://amzn.com/B006GJK8MY

Brandon77

Agree, I have the 5.5 inch RE springs w/ 33" tires and love them. I do need better shocks though, got the Skyjacker Nitros.

Nice steering set up!

AlphaQup

I had a feeling I should be closer to 5" of lift. The thing I like about being at 3" inches with the stock rear leafs and my fun key shackle setup is the amount of flex in the back. With the sway bar disconnected in the front and no bar in the back I get more flex from the rear than I get from the front. Probably due to the stock control arms and nearly flat leafs and 45ish degree shackle angle. The only problem is that the leaf eyes are limiting my departure angle. My plan is to do a bastard pack and get shorter shackles. Anyone interested in a set of iron man 4x4 8.25" to 10" adjustable shackles? The are really nice and beefy, and come in handy for keeping it level while building a lift one piece at a time like I am. Shackel relocators are a must, no lift relocatirs probably work much better with them.

AlphaQup

Wow $88 for springs? What am I looking at on your steering setup? Are those wj knuckles? I would definitely need more lift for that.

pioneerhighsteer

http://www.rocky-road.com/xj-high-steer.html
It's a lot but no DW and I can do 90 on the freeway just fine! Haha

SeriousOffroad

http://www.seriousoffroadproducts.co...keyword=RE1345

AlphaQup

I only installed my springs a month or so ago. I will keep them in mind if I decide to go up. I need to wheel on my current setup some more before deciding where I need to be. The rocky road kit looks good, I have been looking at the wj knuckle kit as well because it is a brake upgrade at the same time. Ultimately the waggy 44 axle would be ideal. But at that point I feel I should just go to a Dana 60. I am sure we all go through this juggling of the budget vs ideal setup with a little bit of go big / dont do it all again when we decide to go big later.

I wish jeep would have put long arms and tons under it from the factory.

I was also thinking of going with one ton steering with inverted T and just drilling my knuckle arms i think ruffstuff has a diy kit. With a drop pitman arm and maybe a double sheer track bar bracket. Or just ditching my pro comp track bar for the iron rock double sheer bar and bracket. But I also like the synergy track bar bracket with brace. I have a little wobble at the moment and I have herd that the stock track bar bracket or the pro comp bar could be the source. I was thinking that my control arm bushings could be the source as well. Or it could just be a ball joint. I will dive deeper into that when I get the long arms on there. Hopefully it just the control arm bushings.

pioneerhighsteer

Just put a ford 8.8 in the rear! It has disc brakes and boy does it make my Xj stop! I was thinking of doing the wj swap but then you have to remember what part it is for replacement and what not! The rocky mountain just take stock tie rods so it's easy to replace!
I also just run 33x10.5 not 12.5 so I don't have to worry too much about braking an axle in the dana 30 with an air locker in it

Atmos

oh hey hows it going man

you could make it through the rubicon trail as your build is now, but Fordyce is a different story..
the biggest mistake I made with my jeep was not having proper body armor (bumper, sliders, HD control arm mounts, etc)
for a Fordyce rig it's gonna be 35" tires, fully polished axles (and I still broke my D30), belly protection, and gears. be prepared to get wet. watch the flow charts. if you're going without lockers be prepared to be winched left and right. nothing wrong with being at 3 or 4" of lift though. I was at 4.5" and it was perfect

come hang out with the sierra guys some time
http://www.naxja.org/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=23

AlphaQup

What did you break on the d30? Did you run a gas tank skid? I have been throwing around the idea of clocking the t case when I get in there to do the sye. I wish I would have read the directions when I welded my ruffstuff chassis plates on. Couldn't figure out why they included 4 nuts with the plates. Now I know they were for bolting up a flat belly skid. Doh

AlphaQup

I don't like the 8.8. I just don't feel it's much of an upgrade from the c8.25. Other than the brakes. And I don't like the idea of keeping c clips with an upgrade. I'd rather put tons together if I were to swap something in.

pioneerhighsteer

My Xj is a 88 so I had a d35 so for 200 getting a 8.8 disc brakes limited slip and 4.10 gears it was worth it for my build. But I will get the super 88 kits one day to get rid of the c clip