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G-Rocc's LJ Build

101K views 264 replies 50 participants last post by  BDann 
#1 ·
Time for a build thread. This is my second Jeep, first one was a '01TJ stepped it up to an '06 LJ Rubicon. Feel Free to comment and add suggestions as the build is still in progress and would be happy to hear your thoughts.

Day 1 and First trip off road (bone stock):
 

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#3 ·
Stage 1
Create a capable off road ride. Using mostly bolt-on parts get the clearance up and put some 35's on that dirt:
Rubicon Express 5.5" Long arm lift kit
Custom exhaust bent around the new long arms
Bilstein Shocks
Pro-comp alloy rims
35" Pro comp M/T
Smittybilt rocker tubes
 

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#5 ·
Sell off some old parts to fund some new parts:
Smittybilt Spare tire rack (which I now hate, and was ridiculous to install, no holes matched and had to rig it all up like it custom). Will be looking for other options in the future.
Mount up that full size spare and add a High-Lift to the bumper
 

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#8 ·
The Day it all Changed...

Land vehicle Vehicle Car Automotive tire Off-roading


Nice looking pose, right? Look beyond my Jeep and into the background and check out that LJ on 42's. 42's? Are you serious, I thought those were only buggies.

Call me a little green but searching the 4wheel parts website and flipping through Quadratech catalogues I thought I had an amazing Jeep. Rubicon Unlimited platform, high end lift kit, 35's, lockers, dana 44, blah, blah, blahand I thought I was set.

I met some guys on the trail from rokmen.com and they changed my entire Jeep paradigm. I saw things that day that I didn't even know were possible for a Jeep to do so stage 2 begins:
 
#12 ·
A Few of my favorite shots from last summer's wheeling

Here a few shots from wheeling this past summer. There is some of China Man and Italian creek. Can anyone say 'Wrangler poster'?
 

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#13 ·
What's next?

Now you can contribute to this build. I have curry HD steering, Rokmen rocker pannels, and 37's on beadlocks on order. I will update once they get on that machine.

After that selling off the 35's and rims to hopefully pay for a re-gear. Thinking 5:13's in the rubi 44's?

Looking for any sort of suggestions, deals or comments. Feel free to contribute.
 
#14 ·
Now you can contribute to this build. I have curry HD steering, Rokmen rocker pannels, and 37's on beadlocks on order. I will update once they get on that machine.

After that selling off the 35's and rims to hopefully pay for a re-gear. Thinking 5:13's in the rubi 44's?

Looking for any sort of suggestions, deals or comments. Feel free to contribute.
which transmission do you have?
 
#18 ·
Met those guys buy chance but great people. The Freak is on 42's now but they have done a few different builds with 40's I think.

I highly recommend anything out of their shop though. One of the reasons I started the thread was to pump up their shop. They build the best looking Jeeps I have ever seen.
Land vehicle Vehicle Car Automotive tire Off-roading
 
#17 ·
then IIRC, those 5.13s would be the way to go. now how they hold up in a D44 is an entirely different matter i know nothing about.
you can try playing around in here with different gear ratios to get an idea of how it would behave:
Novak Conversions - Gearing & Gearing Math for Jeeps

your trans info can be found here:http://www.wranglerforum.com/f5/tj-transmissions-specs-26347.html

NSG370 - 2005-2006
* 6 speed manual
* Used with both 4 cyl and 6 cyl models
* 10 spline input
* 23 spline output
* Ratios:

1st - 4.46
2nd - 2.61
3rd - 1.72
4th - 1.25
5th - 1.00
6th - 0.84
Rev - 4.06
 
#19 ·
G-Rocc said:
Met those guys buy chance but great people. The Freak is on 42's now but they have done a few different builds with 40's I think.

I highly recommend anything out of their shop though. One of the reasons I started the thread was to pump up their shop. They build the best looking Jeeps I have ever seen.
Yeah I have bought A LOT from them, great guys to do business with.
 
#20 ·
Very nice Jeep....
 
#21 ·
#22 ·
Steering Upgrades

After wheeling the stock steering set-up and needing an alignment every time I got off of the rocks I thought the steering upgrade was pretty high priority. I went with the Currie Currectlync and OME stabilizer. Take a look at the differences in these set-ups.

Before and After:
View attachment 104385 Auto part Vehicle Bumper Automotive exterior Rim


Comp Images:
Auto part Pipe Suspension

Suspension part Shock absorber Auto part Suspension
 
#122 ·
After wheeling the stock steering set-up and needing an alignment every time I got off of the rocks I thought the steering upgrade was pretty high priority. I went with the Currie Currectlync and OME stabilizer. Take a look at the differences in these set-ups.

Before and After:
View attachment 104385 View attachment 104386

Comp Images:
View attachment 104388
View attachment 104387
Did you notice a difference between the white one and the OME steering stabilizers?
 
#25 ·
For Sale

Selling off the old Sliders:

Two different styles of rock sliders for sale. They will work great together or seperate. I used them as a good pair. Get your jeep protected for a good summer of wheeling.

Set 1:
Rubicon diamond plate steel rocker panel. All steel construction with weather seals/gaskets, bolts onto the Jeep. These are made for the LJ (Unlimited) but can be cut down for a TJ. On Quadratec for $300.00. Asking for $200.00. In excellent condition.
MOPAR 82208021 - MOPAR® Rubicon Diamond Plate Steel Rocker Panel Kit for 97-06 Jeep® Wrangler TJ - Quadratec

Set 2:
Smittybilt Rocker Guards. All Steel tube textured black powder coat. These bolt directly onto the frame. These were made for the LJ but can be bolted onto the frame of any long wheel base vehicle (Cherokee, JK, Grand Cherokee, I bet they would even work on some trucks). Install is extremely simple, I do recomend upgrading the hardware to grade 8 bolts though. These are only 2 wheeling seasons old and have some rock rash (my Jeep doesn't though, which means they did their job). I always painted over the scratches after wheeling trips to fight rust so they are still in good condition. These are great because they offer a nice tube step without taking away any additional ground clearance because the step is angled upward. $230.00 on Quadratec, I'm asking $175.00
Smittybilt 76642 - Smittybilt SRC Rocker Guards in Textured Black for 04-06 Jeep® Wrangler TJ Unlimited - Quadratec (Link is for the TJ style mine are the LJ model)

I'll sell the combo for $350.

Vehicle Automotive exterior Car Automotive tire Tire
 
#27 ·
There are two types of Jeep owners--the guys that get into it (when you started) and the guys that GET INTO IT. You made a pretty quick transition. The latter is much more fun, much more expensive, and you'll learn a whole hell of a lot more than the guys that stay behind and never really go past the shallow end of the pool. The Rokmen guys do some nice things and build some sick rigs--check out 'Fledge' on ROF. Rig looks good--looking forward to seeing which direction you head in terms of drivetrain and suspension.
 
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