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Sinclair's SassyAssassin Build Thread

24K views 331 replies 19 participants last post by  Sinclair 
#1 ·
So I've decided to start a build thread to track the mods I plan to do to my new JK. My 2011 JKUR was totaled in a rear end collision, and subsequently, most of my aftermarket parts went to the salvage yard with the jeep. Now I'm starting over again….

I have no plans for doing any extreme mods - mostly basic things - but I was inspired by other forum members (like StarBrite) to keep track of everything. Who knows, someone might get some useful info from it. Being a woman, I take great satisfaction in being able to do things myself, but I don't see too many ladies posting build threads. Hope that will change one day!

Well, first things first -- here she is, bone stock from the dealership, not looking too sassy yet:
 

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#3 ·
Brown Santa was good to me this week!! :)

Today, I decided to install my Spidertrax 1.5" wheel spacers because I will be lifting the jeep soon. Not ready to pull the trigger on tires and wheels yet, so I had to move the stock wheels out a bit. Plus, I like the stance. ;)

No issues with the install, but those little clips on the lugs are a PITA!
 

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#5 ·
My ACE Engineering Rock Rails arrived this week also (sorry, Brown Santa). And the fellas at ACE were generous with the goodies. Got a green bottle opener, a blue bottle opener, and a bright orange ACE coozie!

But, I didn't get the decal I ordered. Huh. Oh well, I will call them and inquire on Monday.

Anyway, I figured I'd just go ahead and cut my Rubi rails before I put my ACE sliders on, because it will be one less thing I need to do when I get the bigger tires, and….if you ever installed these ACE rails, you know that it's not something you want to repeat too many times.

So, out with the sawzall and off with the Rubi rails. I cut about 1 3/4" from each, gave the bare metal a shot of rattle can black, then installed the end caps with a little RTV to keep them sealed. Thank you Jeep for cutting that pinch seam for us….I remember stressing out when I cut the seam on my 2011. No worries now that it comes already cut!!

By the time I put the Rubi rails back on, I didn't have it in me to keep going with the ACE rails. I guess I'm still recovering from the wreck, and decided it was better to save something for tomorrow. :happyyes:
 

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#6 ·
Next up….

- Finish my ACE rock rail install
- KC SlimLites with the Olympic Windshield Mounts

My Rancho Shocks (yay Shocktober!) arrived and are patiently waiting their turn in the garage.

Also pulled the trigger on the TeraFlex 2.5" lift. As much as I hate to do it, I may have to get the 4x4 shop to install it if I'm not 100% by the time it arrives.

Ordered the TeraFlex adjustable track bar for the front, and a set of exhaust spacers, mostly for peace of mind when I put the lift on.

Also, on the way -- JCR Offroad Crusader front bumper - WooHoo!!
 
#8 ·
Thanks, Priscila! :)

So, on the agenda for today.....

First, I need to do some research on the forums. I've always thought that winches with the wire rope require a roller-type fairlead, and synthetic rope requires a hawse fairlead. It looks like all of the pics for the JCR bumpers show a hawse-style fairlead. I'm wondering if it's ok to use it with a wire rope?

My winch will be a Warn M8000 with wire rope. My old one seldom got used, but when I needed it, the winch did its job flawlessly. Still, I cannot justify forking out the extra $ for synthetic rope. Anyway....that's a mod for another day.

The other thing I need to find is a bracket to hold my CB radio. When I was in the salvage yard frantically grabbing everything I could get my hands on from my wrecked JK, I just unmounted my CB and left the bracket in the jeep. Also, I just cut the power cord since I didn't have tools or time to disconnect it properly. So I have my old Midland CB with no power cord or mounting bracket. Ugh...time to search the interweb again....

Hopefully I will get my ACE rock sliders installed within the next couple hours. Pics when I'm done!!
 
#9 ·
Well, my ACE rails are on. They went surprisingly smooth (or maybe I have just gotten better with practice).

The only part I don't like is the grinding of the washers on the body bolts. If I only had a vise......hmmmm......

Anyway, if you're doing this solo, jack stands are your friend. Oh, and a decent air ratchet helps too. ;)

I didn't know the torque spec for those body bolts, but I went to 100 ft-lbs. I seem to recall looking this up once before. Why do I never write these things down?
 
#10 ·
Nice build thread! Glad to see another lady Jeeper with her own thread. We have to stick together! :)

For what it's worth, the ACE rails should be torqued to 80fp, from what I found on a couple other posts. I couldn't remember what we did when we did mine.

Can't wait to see more! :drinks:
 
#12 ·
Thanks, StarBrite!! I was actually inspired to make my own build thread after following yours. :drinks:

Oh man. I knew I should have looked up that torque spec. Ugh. Well, maybe I'll ride with them for a while and let things shake loose and settle a bit, then retorque. But, if there's any damage to be done with my extra 20 ft-lbs, it's too late to undo. Live and learn, I guess!
 
#11 ·
Here's the pics of my ACE rails.

Had one small area on the driver's side where the powder coating was scuffed. I don't think it happened during shipping because they were cushioned fairly well in the boxes. Oh well…if it bothers my OCD too much, I'll rattle-can it!
 

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#13 ·
A little rustoleum rattle can bedliner sprayed in an empty can and a cheap brush work wonders on scuffs of ACE powder coat and are pretty much invisible when dry. :)
 
#20 ·
Good advice....was wondering what I should use for touch ups. :thumb:

After driving on the interstate today, I realized that I totally forgot to put Ty-wraps around my hood latches to stop the flutter. I've always sworn by those things to keep the hood tight. Cheap, easy mod, right??

Well, no. Silly me went shopping online, yet again, and I needed something like $25 more to get the free shipping. So....Daystar Hood Latches are on the way, and my neat-o cheap-o Ty-wrap mod will be no more.

Isn't it just sick when I will spend an extra $25 to get free shipping on an order that probably would have cost $5 to ship??!! Sick, I tell ya....
 
#19 ·
Thank you, WhiskeyMike! Damn, I feel honored that you guys commented in my build thread!! :worthy:

I'm about 20 miles west of New Orleans.

Just waiting for the mounting brackets for my KC lights. Not looking forward to that one....I hate dealing with electrical stuff. Give me a wrench any day....
 
#17 ·
For what it's worth, I didn't have to trim my rails and I run 33" tires on 15" wheels on my 2014.
 
#22 ·
Haha! My OJCD sure does love to make a mess of my bank account....

As for hood flutter...it's one of those hit or miss things. There's a 2-lane highway that I travel daily. When meeting oncoming semi trailers, it doesn't seem to be as bad as the shorter, stockier dump trucks and delivery trucks. Then, just as the nerve-wracking flutter is over, there's usually a rock or two that drops by to say hi to my windshield.

Hey, maybe when you put that Celticon logo on your hood, the flutter gremlins got scared and ran away!
 
#23 ·
I bet that's it! They just flee in fear of the awesome Celtic-ness. :D

I'm interested to hear how you like the Daystar latches. I know some of them require you to cut the hood. Do you have to do that for these?
 
#24 ·
Oh, maybe I used the wrong term…these are just the rubber pieces, not the whole assembly. They should be a direct replacement for the weak factory rubber on the existing hood latches. I think Drake makes the whole assembly - it has a wire retainer and stuff - might be the ones you're thinking of? If I have to do any cutting, I'm going back to my trusty Ty-wraps! :)
 
#26 ·
Hellooooo, Brown Santa! What did I get today?
- a nice new tree trunk protector, really heavy duty, to replace the one I left in my dear Lil Miss Badass
- Olympic mounting brackets for my KC lights
- Red Rock door sills/entry guards

So, why on earth I decided to play with my interior lights today...I have no idea. I ordered some Precision LED red dome lights as part of a JK interior "kit." The dome lights fit and looked great, but the 'festoon' light was totally wrong. Ugh. The best part of this kit was the awesome plastic trim tools they sent. I swear, these things are great for prying and pulling those trim fasteners. But I digress .....

Went to Autozone to see what kind of LED selection they had. No red festoon lights for the cargo area, but they had blue. So I currently have some blue interior lighting going on until I can get the right ones in red.

I should have just quit when I encountered the LED drama, but noooo. I decided to install the Rugged Ridge billet grill insert that I had bought for the 2011 and never installed. It's been sitting in the garage.for a year. All I can say is, screw that. I hated installing this thing. For one, the placement of the brackets makes the top of the grill difficult to reinstall. Two, for such a sturdy mesh insert, they sure used some crappy hardware. The screws are tiny and awkward. It didn't help that I was tired and sweating and just not in the mood to mess with it.

I like the way it looks, I guess. But it's mostly for radiator protection. Will get some pics in the daylight tomorrow. I sure expected it to go smoother....because, well....there is not much to it.

Entry guards went on. They are lightly textured. I never realized how much I drag my foot over the door sills until I put these on. Happy with them.

I am procrastinating on my KC lights install. I really hate doing electrical stuff. Really.
 
#27 ·
My blue LED dome and cargo lights. These came from Autozone, but I am waiting for my red ones to arrive. Then I will change them.

I also plan to do something with the footwell lights. Maybe I will install a socket that I can plug a regular 194 LED into so it can be changed when the mood strikes me.

Think I will leave the rear view mirror map lights alone for now. Probably the easiest way to change the color would be to put some kind of film over them or something. Anyone know if I can just buy some of that tape that goes over brake lights and such? Those things can get pretty hot, so I'm not sure what would be best for it.

Anyway -- the pics. The garage lights were on, so the pics don't show the full effect. Looks pretty cool, though.
 

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#28 ·
Hey!

The grill insert did need a little cutting of the plastic to fit in better. Mike just trimmed out a slot with a razor knife. And if for some reason you take it out again, before you reinstall it, line it with a piece of window screening (attached with your favorite - ty-wraps! :happyyes:

It keeps the tinier bugs from still plastering themselves all over the fins. I think there may be a picture in my build thread, or I can post another one, if you'd like to see it.

I like the blue lights! :D

Another guy here, milani, just plastidipped his footwell light and it seemed to work well. I went ahead and added strips of LED lights, but his looked good, too. Maybe you'd want to try that?

As for the map lights. Look for flash gels for camera flashes on Amazon. They should work. Another guy here bought some, but he hasn't tried it yet as far as I know. Mike had the same idea before that, but we never tried it. If they can stand the heat from a camera flashing, I'd think they could withstand the few minutes at a time you'd have the map lights on.

Sounds like you had a good day modding! Even hot and sweaty modding is better than no modding at all. :beerdrinking:
 
#29 ·
Man, that's a great idea, Star. I ordered a couple sheets of the camera flash gel material from Amazon. It seems like it will work for covering the mirror map lights, and I might be able to use it over the footwell lights too. Thanks!

Also, I decided to wait on the install of my KC lights (awww) because I decided to get a Painless Wiring 7-circuit thing first. Got the idea from Khatton's build thread. Basically, it will "organize" all the aux circuits....some are ignition hot and some are always hot. So, it will hopefully make future electrical connections easier without shelling out the bucks for an sPod. As of now, I only have plans for one set of KC's and a CB. But you know how plans change....:)

So here is my Rugged Ridge mesh grill insert. The sun was not cooperating when I took the pics, so there's some weird shadows. The bug goo and fingerprints are just added decoration. I will use StarBrites window screen idea if I see too many bugs making it through, but right now, I don't want to mess with it. The holes in the mesh are nice and big, and it seems pretty tough. I don't foresee any airflow issues at all.
 
#31 ·
Looks good! :thumb:
 
#32 ·
Thank!

Have to work a few night shifts so I'm taking a little break from modding. Should be back at it this weekend, though.

Next up....KC lights must go on this weekend. Dead pedal also. Lift should arrive soon, but still haven't decided if it's gonna be a DIY or have the shop do it (grrrrr....).
 
#33 ·
I'll volunteer the shop here, but I know it would be a long drive for you.

If you're up for a road trip though, let me know! :thumb:
 
#36 ·
Aww, thanks Star! I wish you guys were closer....it would be a blast to spend time wrenching with y'all. :drinks:

I'm afraid that I'd just get more ideas for more mods, then the next thing you know I'd wake up in some treatment facility jonesing for just....one....more.....mod..... :D
 
#34 ·
Enjoying your build so far! I'm definitely looking at that Painless Wiring kit as well. I'll admit, I'm not all that experienced with wiring stuff up, so I'm hoping to see the install on a couple builds before I get going on mine.

I definitely like the mesh inserts...looks perfect. :)


Excuse my ignorance...but...what is a "dead pedal"?
 
#35 ·
Thanks!

A dead pedal is just that.....it's basically a footrest that mounts on the drivers side of the footwell (almost where a clutch would be, but further to the left). It gives you a place to put your left foot while driving to reduce fatigue. Comes in handy on long trips, but it is also useful when off-road, acting like a "brace".

Don't have a link right now, but the one I bought is the M.O.R.E. Dead Pedal. I will take pics when I install it.

Also will take pics and do a write up for the Painless Circuit Block. Should get it done this weekend. I will let you know how the install goes, but it seems very simple (famous last words, lol!).
 
#38 ·
Nikao - You can see the pic that StarBrite posted (thanks Star!) of her deal pedal. It's one of those mods that fall into the category of inconspicuous, not noticeable UNTIL you drive with one, then you wonder how you got along without it!

I LOVE the way your footwell lights look, Star.

New track bar and exhaust spacer kit arrived today. Lift is surely not far behind. I'm going to get a quote for the labor from a 4x4 shop. I've decided that if they charge me more than the gas to go to and from Texas, I just might take StarBrite up on her offer! :D Pride is such a powerful motivator.....lol!

My jeep actually came from a dealership in Taylor, TX. It was a dealer trade, so she probably wouldn't mind visiting her old home....haha!
 
#39 ·
The dead pedal is really an awesome mod. I had one in my ooooooold Mustang, but never did again. When I saw they were available for the JK, I added it to my wish list, just as a neat mod, not realizing how much I would LOVE it. Now I don't think I could go without one any more. It seems like it should be OEM required. When I drive Mike's jeep I REALLY miss it!

Thanks on the lights! I love them as well. As soon as I saw milani's, I started jonesing for blue light for MY jeep. I need to get my rack back in so I have the ones in the cargo area. Only thing I DON'T like about them are the dome lights are two different shades of blue, but I deal. :D

Let me know what you find out about the shop and I will rally the troops! :thumb:
 
#40 ·
Started before sunrise this morning, because, well.....MODS!!

Installed my Painless Wiring Aux Circuit block. Ok, not quite as painless as I thought it would be, mostly because I dropped every effing small part that I touched and had to remove the battery to retrieve them. Grrrr.... Whatever, it's done.

Gonna get started on my KC Lights next. Will post pics of everything, so others can see where I put my circuit block. But I don't want to put any pics until I know for sure that it's working! Hope the rest will go smoothly.....I hate wiring. :D
 
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