Enthusiast III
Enthusiast III
Update!
The vents from Germany came in as well as the drake offroad handle inserts and weathertech guards. Sadly I am being plagued by Quadratecs lies about things being "in stock" when they are really not and the kargo master flip down door steps didn't make it in.
A short stubby antenna got ordered as I hate that it keeps catching on the brush down the Byways, Trails that are legal here are mostly for motorbike but even the ones wide enough for the Jeep are tight as they are used to accommodating Land Rovers. Long story short, my paints fucked so at least I got that outa the way now I don't really have to worry about keeping it nice but also the stock antenna is whipping around and catching on everything.
Also in the order is a HiLift for the hood. (However it seems to have suffered the same fate of the door steps). It should in a pinch winch me out of a bad spot albeit with significant time and effort or fix a high center by allowing me to stuff some more earth under the tires. I picked up some of the metal grabbars for the new girlfriend as well as the stock cloth ones just are not cutting it for getting her up in the rig and it is not even lifted yet.
By the end of the month the Jeep could really look a lot different. I am attempting to USPS in the Defender rear bumper and tire carrier from LOD, having the Front Runner rack mounted, hopefully taking delivery of my Expedition 3 tent and mounting it. and maybe even squeezing in enough cash to mount the ARB Front Bumper! Once all this is added the next priority will likley go to an SPOD and dual battery setup to get ready for a National Luna in the rear, some solar on the RTT, and maybe even some lights! I will keep posting photos of my adventures around England and Europe between upgrades!
The vents from Germany came in as well as the drake offroad handle inserts and weathertech guards. Sadly I am being plagued by Quadratecs lies about things being "in stock" when they are really not and the kargo master flip down door steps didn't make it in.
A short stubby antenna got ordered as I hate that it keeps catching on the brush down the Byways, Trails that are legal here are mostly for motorbike but even the ones wide enough for the Jeep are tight as they are used to accommodating Land Rovers. Long story short, my paints fucked so at least I got that outa the way now I don't really have to worry about keeping it nice but also the stock antenna is whipping around and catching on everything.
Also in the order is a HiLift for the hood. (However it seems to have suffered the same fate of the door steps). It should in a pinch winch me out of a bad spot albeit with significant time and effort or fix a high center by allowing me to stuff some more earth under the tires. I picked up some of the metal grabbars for the new girlfriend as well as the stock cloth ones just are not cutting it for getting her up in the rig and it is not even lifted yet.
By the end of the month the Jeep could really look a lot different. I am attempting to USPS in the Defender rear bumper and tire carrier from LOD, having the Front Runner rack mounted, hopefully taking delivery of my Expedition 3 tent and mounting it. and maybe even squeezing in enough cash to mount the ARB Front Bumper! Once all this is added the next priority will likley go to an SPOD and dual battery setup to get ready for a National Luna in the rear, some solar on the RTT, and maybe even some lights! I will keep posting photos of my adventures around England and Europe between upgrades!
I like your build plans except for your lift. Since you're looking to move up to 35's and are/were on the fence regarding a 2" lift over a 4" lift, let me give you some advice that might help make your decision.
First, you definitely don't need 4" of lift to clear 35's. 2" is plenty.
Second, if you go over 3" of lift, you will exceed the usable angle of your front driveshaft. That means that you are at the max limit of angle it can handle just at stock ride height. Do any wheeling and you're likely to destroy the CV joint. You will want to upgrade to a new front driveshaft using standard 1310 or 1350 u-joints to accommodate this. (Remember, this won't be needed if you keep it at 3" of lift or less.)
Third, it's really advisable to replace your front lower control arms with adjustable arms that can allow you to return your caster to the stock angle. This will keep nasty driveline vibrations out and keep your transfer case happy.
Fourth, you absolutely do not need to replace your stock track bars. They are plenty strong from the factory. You simply need to raise them up on the axle side using a relocation bracket. This will save you $$$.
My suggestion is to look at the Offroad Evolution Enforcer 3" lift kit. You can pick out your own shocks with this one. If you want any recommendations, let me know.
First, you definitely don't need 4" of lift to clear 35's. 2" is plenty.
Second, if you go over 3" of lift, you will exceed the usable angle of your front driveshaft. That means that you are at the max limit of angle it can handle just at stock ride height. Do any wheeling and you're likely to destroy the CV joint. You will want to upgrade to a new front driveshaft using standard 1310 or 1350 u-joints to accommodate this. (Remember, this won't be needed if you keep it at 3" of lift or less.)
Third, it's really advisable to replace your front lower control arms with adjustable arms that can allow you to return your caster to the stock angle. This will keep nasty driveline vibrations out and keep your transfer case happy.
Fourth, you absolutely do not need to replace your stock track bars. They are plenty strong from the factory. You simply need to raise them up on the axle side using a relocation bracket. This will save you $$$.
My suggestion is to look at the Offroad Evolution Enforcer 3" lift kit. You can pick out your own shocks with this one. If you want any recommendations, let me know.
Enthusiast III
Appreciate it, Have also been looking to JKS they have some really well filled out setups. The lift is far enough down the road that I am not set on anything or really putting a lot of thought into it so I am sure when the time comes I will be picking everyone's brain! The other kicker to staying below 3 is that I am already going to be top heavy due to the RTT so driveability could come into play as well.
Enthusiast III
Stubby Antenna came in from AMI. No signal loss and now the stock one isn't there to whip around on the trail!
Sadly the roof mounts and locking piece came in but they look really stupid without the lift. (stupid backorder) Should not be long however until more things arrive in!
Enthusiast III
Whewww some updates with more to follow shortly! Finally sourced a jack for the hood mount.
Installed some RECON LED turn signals. Need to put in the load resistors still though!
I also got some grab bars and the Vector Offroad Dock in to mount pretty much anything across the dash.
Installed some RECON LED turn signals. Need to put in the load resistors still though!
I also got some grab bars and the Vector Offroad Dock in to mount pretty much anything across the dash.
Nice Rig! That vector dock is very cool, I need to look into it. Good luck with your lift search, like everything Jeep, there so many options and It's just a matter of matching your intended use and vision of your Jeep with the rights parts. I'm running the AEV 2.5 which was a good fit for me.
Enthusiast III
Did some driving through Southern Wales, Jeep is now in the shop for its overhaul while I hit Texas for some training!
Enthusiast III
I have been busy to say the least.. Me and another OB member with a wicked Disco knocked out the North 500. Just spent a week and a half living outa the Jeep. Awesome experience and obviously some serious upgrades have been done! Finishing photos and will update you guys!
Enthusiast III
Alright so whats been done while I have been away..
Picked up an Ipad Pro 12" and mounted it to the doc on the passenger side for topo nav and tunes
ARB Full coverage bumper
Front Runner Slimline II Rack
AluCab Expedition 3
Slats for the top of the tent
Blue Ridge Overland visor pouches/wraps
O and I spent 4 days in the Lake District and another week up in Scotland doing the North Coast 500 with another Overland Bound member who has a real nice Discovery! I will post shots of the Rig here and then another post for scenery! Any questions about the travels, how living in the Jeep for a week and a half was, or any of the parts feel free to fire away!
I am already planning a weekend to Snowdonia next weekend due to missing my morning wakeup views..
Hardknott pass and Bealach na Bà were cake although we did get some interesting weather on Bealach na Bà!
The Lake District had some incredible views and I loved that I got to squeeze it in at the beginning of the expedition, however Scotland was on another level..
Thanks for coming along Kenny, look forward to doing this again soon!
Picked up an Ipad Pro 12" and mounted it to the doc on the passenger side for topo nav and tunes
ARB Full coverage bumper
Front Runner Slimline II Rack
AluCab Expedition 3
Slats for the top of the tent
Blue Ridge Overland visor pouches/wraps
O and I spent 4 days in the Lake District and another week up in Scotland doing the North Coast 500 with another Overland Bound member who has a real nice Discovery! I will post shots of the Rig here and then another post for scenery! Any questions about the travels, how living in the Jeep for a week and a half was, or any of the parts feel free to fire away!
I am already planning a weekend to Snowdonia next weekend due to missing my morning wakeup views..
Hardknott pass and Bealach na Bà were cake although we did get some interesting weather on Bealach na Bà!
The Lake District had some incredible views and I loved that I got to squeeze it in at the beginning of the expedition, however Scotland was on another level..
Thanks for coming along Kenny, look forward to doing this again soon!
Enthusiast III
Enthusiast III
Enthusiast III
Nice! Glad to see another Fuji shooter here as well. I'm an XPro2 shooter with an X100t backup. Your build is coming along nicely.
Enthusiast III
Enthusiast III
Toms friends managed to have a GoPro while we were hitting the lanes in the snow Sunday, figured I would share here!
Enthusiast III
More to come but did manage to get a few of the shots edited from the big snow storm! I ended up camping in Snowdonia while it hit and then Sunday I did a bit of byway driving with another OB member with a nice disco and some of his buddies from Bugoutnorthwales.
Enthusiast III
Well I finished my Alps trip about 2 weeks ago. 9 Days 8 Countries and 3k miles of pure greatness. Not alot of dirt to be found but an amazing road trip and due to the weather it wasn't nearly as boring! over 5k images taken and just got my first cull down to 7-800 so will be doing the rest of the edits now expect a big post like the N Coast 500 one in the coming weeks! However to hold yall off here are the rest of the shots from the Snowdonia trip.
