Third Time's the Charm LJ

After several folks told me to skip 33s and go right to 35s, I decided to do some more research. The cost associated with going to 35s wasn't all that much more than my original plan for 33s. I've decided I may as well go for broke and do this in one shot. The build plan has been updated to reflect this revelation.

Hell yeah - I think that's a good decision. I really regret not jumping to 35's right away especially since I've got a currie connectlync in my basement that needs a new joint before getting installed.

Although with the tummy tuck I'm doing in the spring (I've got the UCF ultra high but in steel) it will more than make up the ground clearance I'm losing by only rockin 33's. If you go 35's with a tummy tick that thing is going to be awesome.

I want this rig to be at least as capable as my JK Rubicon was. More capable would be nice.

Some new hotness...



I picked up a Genright rear crossmember bumper from Clay with frame tie ins and rock lights for $100! Thanks again Clay!


I also have my CB setup now. Cobra 19 Ultra III, rugged ridge dash mount, and firestik 3' antenna with all necessary mounts and wiring.


I have decided to keep the stock front bumper. I will add a RC winch plate and most likely an Engo winch with syn line. I'm all about keep the weight reasonable.

Nice! You'll have to document the rock light install well, I'd love to see that!

Really like that rear bumper. One of my favorite builds on JF is NYGLT56's TJ, he had/has a similar build it looks real clean and has great departure angle.

You gonna trim the front bumper and cap it or keep full length?

I will need a hand with the rock lights, as I am not great with wiring. 

I really like this style of bumper and with the Exogate it will look very clean.

The front bumper will just have the milk jugs removed.

Headlight Upgrade Stage 1

Yesterday marked stage 1 of my two stage headlight upgrade. This stage included H4 conversion housings and a BiXenon HID kit all from DDM Tuning. The reasoning behind the cheap H4 housing will be apparent in stage 2.

Right off the bat things didn't go smoothly. The bulb bases didn't want to seat in the housings flush. Nothing a light sanding with the dremel couldn't fix:


Like a glove:


One nice touch were the supplied boots. These will do the job of keeping crud and moisture out quite well:


Next up was sorting through the wiring. Looks like it is all there:


Out with the old:


And not so quickly on in with the new. As you can see in the next pic the locating tabs were no clocked properly on the new housings (they are marked with masking tape):


This left me with two options. Either bake the lights and reclock the (which is what I should have done) or use the aforementioned dremel and make new locating holes on the headlight buckets (which I did because I like to do such things). I transferred the approximate location of the mounting tabs using the previously mentioned masking tape as a guide and a sharpie:


I did this in increment as to not remove to much material and make for a loose fitting headlight:



Eventually I removed enough material to allow the headlights to locate and sit flush in the buckets. I waited for it to get dark before aiming everything. I did this at 25ft using my other car with properly aimed HIDs as a reference. Normally would use the horizontal centerline measurement at the headlight to do this, but the glare made me uncomfortable. Our other car is a Prius C and thus the headlights were at a much more bearable level for oncoming traffic.

I nearly forgot to mention, the little lady even got involved in this project. I was blessed with neither three nor small hands. Therefore, her assistance in holding the lights in place and fishing wires through small spaces was greatly appreciated.

The high beam on the driver side currently is inoperable. This was determined to be a harness issue and DDM Tuning is sending out a replacement as we speak. I have to say this is the first time I have ever received a defective unit from them. I will update this when the replacement harness arrives.

I will say this. If I were to do this again, I would spend the extra couple of dollars on Hella ECode housings. This would eliminate two issues: mounting alignment and excessive glare. However, stage 2 of the build with remedy the glare issue all together. For now, my wife can see better at night without blinding the bejebus out of everyone. Therefore, I am content for now. I will post pics later of the overall light output and the craptastic pattern .

As promised, output and pattern pics.

Output is great, but the pattern leaves a lot to be desired:


These will be very nice after stage 2 is complete:


As you can see the pattern is quite scattered:


The LED flood lights are less obnoxious:


On the road:




While I would not recommend people who drive a lot in the dark do this, it is a start. We do very little night driving right now. By the time we are ready to drive the LJ more often (good weather), stage 2 will completed.

The LJ will look beast on 35s, i wish i had waited and saved the money to build my rig up for 35s. Looking forward to seeing stage 2 of your headlight upgrade!

Boy are those lights bright or what! great job Shaun.

Thanks guys. The headlights will be very nice and not obnoxious once stage 2 gets completed.

I keep waffling on 35s. There are so many more things to consider to run them. I may just build everything other than the tires and lift in anticipation of the 35s.

Today's Jeeping

Genright Rear Crossmember Bumper

First things first. This rig has had a rear end collision on the drivers side courtesy of the previous owner. What did that mean in terms of this install? It means it was a total pain in my ass....that's what it means! :brickwall

Now that we have a basis for the install, here is how it went down.

Rust sucks and it will not be tolerated:



The entire crossmember was cleaned up with a wire brush followed by cleaning with mineral spirits:



Then the entire thing was given a nice shellacking with Rustoleum:


Mmmm so clean:


Too bad it didn't stay that way. I allowed the surface to dry for several hours before attempting to fit the bumper. That's when things got interesting. The entire crossmember was out of square and the bumper didn't not want to go over the drivers side end at all.

After much massaging with a cornucopia of hammers, vice grips, pliers, and c clamps I got the damn thing on. I threw in a couple of bolt and nuts I had laying around to keep things in place and called it a night. Sorry there are no pics of this amazing fun process as it was dark and work was done by flashlight at this point.

I have to give a big thanks to my lovely little lady for her help. She was very patient through the whole fitting process. She was an extra pair of hands, a light holder, and even a tool wielding helper at points. I could not have finished this project without her help. She will be rewarded for her hard work don't you worry :kiss:

With all that being said, I went out today to get the necessary hardware. I drilled the four holes in the center section of the crossmember for 3/8" hardware (mostly because my crappy drill won't accept my 7/16" drill bit). The outer holes were predrilled for 7/16" hardware. All grade 8 hardware was used to secure the bumper. As you may have guessed not all of the holes lined up perfectly. No worries a quick hit with the Dremel and grinding stone make quick work of any offending holes.

I made sure to spray behind the bumper to recoat any areas rubbed off during the fitting process. Then I hit the bumper with a quick coat of black wrinkle finish paint. Unfortunately it got really windy after the first coat, so I will have to wait until another day to finish off the paint work.

Here is the end result:


I will eventually make a bike carrier that mounts to the brackets normally used for a tire carrier. I think that monstrous D Ring will do the job when I eventually get myself stuck. The only stinker is I could not use the frame tie ins due to the crossmember being so out of square. I may try to tackle that's somewhere down the road.

Today's Jeeping

Removed the HIDs. I had Ddm Tuning send me a return label for the H4 conversion housings. I couldn't deal with the glare I was throwing at people. Phase 2 should be right around to the corner, as I can't deal with the stock lights for too long

I have a confession to make. I'm a sucker for a great product at a great price...I ordered TruckLites today from NAPA for $320.

Best part is its in NH so no sales tax or shipping costs. I love me a bargain.

I pilfered the 55w ballasts from the Jeep's now defunct HID kit and put them in the Prius C. I wasn't happy with the 35w output and was going to upgrade them anyways. The only waste from the HID kit will be the bulbs, which I can always pass on to someone else.

I was considering trucklites a couple weeks ago, then I saw the price... My stock headlights work great anyways, maybe someday down the road. They are going to look sweet!

BTW, the Genright rear bumper looks great! Clean look

Thanks Andrew. I need to throw another coat of paint on it. I'm pretty bummed the frame tie ins won't work. Maybe my body guy can get them in next week.

Today's Jeeping

I put together a Useful Things Kit today. This is not to be confused with the mythical Girly Things Kit. However, it is no less awesome to have on hand. Jenny isn't high maintenance and has a purse full of the few things she could ever need. It is, however, a good idea to be prepared for some of life's curveballs.

Size constraints are ever present in the Jeep. I made sure to keep it compact:


What's inside:


A little of this and a little of that. There are a few categories.

-Hygiene-
Waterless tooth brush x2
Travel size toothpaste
Floss sticks
Chap stick x2
Hair ties
Nail clippers
Nail files x2
QTips

-First Aid-
Coban
Transpore
Micropore
Nitrile Gloves
Band Aids
Alcohol wipes
Gauze Pads
Scissors
Naproxen

I'm sure there are things in the future I may add or delete, but this is a solid start.

Today's Jeeping

-CB Install-

I used the Rugged Ridge CB mount. Went it very easily. Nice snug fit for the CB so it doesn't bounce all around and rattle.



The CB mount also came with a mic mount that attaches slightly below and to the right of the steering column.



I used an add-a-lead that tapped into the radio fuse. I used a 5amp fuse and the provided 2amp inline fuse to protect everything. I used one of the the bolts from the now removed radio security bar for the ground. I ran all of the wiring under the upper dash panel so it is nice and clean looking. Then I ran the coax to the back following the wiring harness on the underside of the tub rail. I zip tied everything to keep it tight and clean looking. Installed the Teraflex CB mount, wiring and antenna.



Overall it was a very straightforward and easy install. I will tune the antenna before my trip next weekend.

Thats a great CB mount!

Yeah I really like the location. Does anyone have a SWR meter they can bring Sunday?

Today's Jeeping

The Trucklites are in. Took all of 5 minutes to take out the old and put in the new. Waiting for it to get darker to aim them and get some output shots.

I also ordered one of these today:
http://www.moparamerica.com/oe-mopar/5166003ab?search_str=5166003ab

I am slowly going through the rig to find all of the little issues that need my attention.

Finally, I wanted to post some pics of the 550 cord grab handles and zipper pulls a buddy of mine made up for me.

550 Cord Porn:

Trucklite Install and First Impressions

Install almost isn't even worth noting as it is that simple. If you have replaced a stock sealed beam, you have essentially done the most difficult part of this install. The reason I say this is because aiming them is far easier than a sealed beam headlight. Why you ask? Ultra crisp cutoff that's why silly:



I seriously think it took me 1 minute to aim both sides. I always cover one light and aim the other to eliminate bleed over from the other light.

The beam pattern on these things is friggin WIDE!


The high beam has a very nice fill and controlled cutoff:


And look at that beautifully wide light spread:


Low beams + LED Flood Lights:




LED Flood Lights alone:




Some road shots (a little blurry sorry):




And a shot of the output in a completely unlit area:


Now for my first impressions:

-They are adequately bright but nowhere near the output of a HID projector.
-They have a stepped pattern as can be seen in the road pics.
-They have the X artifact you have most likely read about (I don't believe this will be a showstopper though).
-They have a very wide pattern which allows you to see the shoulders of the road.
-The color is good. Not really sure how to describe it. They are not pure white but a mixture of colors (easy on the eyes).

For the money spent, the warranty, the ease of installation, and the performance I feel these are a good not great investment. For my budget and needs, they are all I can expect and then some. If you are looking for maximum output and pattern, you should look into JW Speakers (LED projector) or some form of HID Projector retrofit (many sources).

Wow, looks seriously bright in those pictures!

The camera really picks up the light well.  Honestly, there was too much ambient lighting for me to really have to rely on the headlights.  I cant wait to see them on a completely unlit back road!