anyone camp or hunt? how have you modified your xj for camping or hunting??

 

I built mine just for late season elk and wolf hunting. But hunting is a very broad subject. In my case, I needed something that can get up a mountain without worrying about a couple feet of snowfall over night. I don't like hunting from snowmobiles.

So I put an RE XD 5.5 LA, locked front and rear with Aussies, Thule roof rack, front and rear hitch receivers, 35" Toyos and 4:88 gears. Now I need a winch but I do have just about every other piece of recovery equipment out there.



This is a 6 point bull elk in my roof rack when I had 31s on it




This is in about 3.5 feet of snow

 

This is why i bought my XJ. Its an 89, rusted out piece of crap that had zero suspension left in it when i bought it. The coil springs were in 3 and 5 pieces. I am putting an RE 3.5" into it, and won't really fix the body at all. I need something i don't feel bad about takin on deactivated logging roads, through the brush, over the mountains to where the animals are.

I might build a fluid-proof tray in the back of it to throw dead animals on, and be able to hose it out after. I thought about the roof rack, but i don't like the idea of having that much weight up high on sone o the roads/trails i expect to be on.

 

You can check out my build "camping buddy". I didn't do a whole lot of suspension/recovery equipment it's more of an Ireland vehicle. Five gallon Jerry can for fuel and two five gallon cans for water. Wooden boxes on the floor of the hatch. Homemade awning. All sorts of neat home-brew mods that make it kind of a bug out vehicle.

 

I don't take my XJ hunting, but for fishing and camping. Aside from everything I normally carry with me, I throw a tent and camp stove in it, and my fishing poles, and go. I have slept in the Jeep before while camping, but that was when the carpet was still in it, and I didn't carry near as much recovery gear and tools with me. The back of my Jeep stays fulls of stuff now.

 

very nice!! got any pics with it on the 35s??

 

The second pic is on 35s. But here's two more on 35s:

 

Mine is on 6.5 Rusties LA lift and 33s with 4.56 gears. It's been down for the LP to HP 30 axle swap so I haven't been able to use it for what I intended. Eventually I will add CB radio, GPS, and roof rack. The one thing I have really been wanting is a way to have pressurized water. Its fine for just about all my hunting but need a trailer for Deer and my Goose decoys.

I do like what you did there schirm.

 

Thank you. You reminded me about GPS. I forgot to include that. I have a Garmin mounted to my lower driver side windshield, very helpful, it has about 90% of forest service roads on it so it works out in the sticks better then one might think. I also have a radio shack CB. I also put a HP dana 30 in.

 

Hunting is what started the whole cherokee obsession for me. We hunt hard for both archery and rifle season, and wanted something with four doors that has a tight turning radius, good mpg(comparatively speaking), and something capable. So I would go with enough lift to clear 33's, and one that rides nicely, but I focus on being able to get out also. Winch on a receiver mount so I can use it front or back, tire chains, shovel, and towrope. We have hauled more animals out of the woods on a Cherokee than you can shake a stick at. Everything else you can do is a bonus, lockers, long arm etc.

 

Proof that great minds think alike!

 

Well I don't hunt but I go camping and fishing. That was the original reason I bought my XJ. I bought it completely stock and have been modifying to my needs. I now have a brush guard, roof rack, recovery hooks, full size spare, fishing pole holders, MOLLE gear, surefire mount, hatchet, saws, machete, water purification, fuel can, CB, tools, and recovery strap. I want more lighting and a power inverter. Here's a few pictures, might be more in my build.

 

Funny thing is now my brother has one, my best friend locally has one, and half the guys I know have me looking for one for them! Best hunting/camping rig I've ever had and I've had em all, blazers, broncos(early and late), suburbans, CJ7, trucks, four wheelers, and now I've had over ten Cherokees and the Cherokee rules

 

The xj many mods ago. Looks a bit different now but we still use the camping gear most weekends.

 

It depends more on the terrain you expect to encounter. Like up at our deer camp it's wet and mucky most years so my old XJ was lifted a little bit and 31s were thrown on. I just got back from a camping trip yesterday and I would suggest a roof rack if you plan on taking more than 2 people. I had the cargo area piled high.

Some guys above said they bought the crappy jeeps, that's what my first one was. Rust, primer, general lack of metal. My friends in high school with nicer truck were a little jealous of it cause I didn't worry about it. Then I painted it, rattle can white and hurculiner.




Here's the new one and I'm sure it will do just about everything I did with the old one. My dad has the lifted one, that's a hunting rig too.