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Quadratec Employee: "New" TJ Build

24K views 81 replies 31 participants last post by  PAFirefighter11 
#1 · (Edited)
Hi all,

For those of you who don't know me, my name is Rick. I am the Quadratec Forum rep. My ex and I split up last year after 6 years, I had to sell my JKU, our house, etc.:



I was Jeep-less for 4 months. Thankfully, I am back, this time with Jeep #10, my 5th Wrangler, 2nd TJ. She is a 1998, 4.0L, 5 speed, 186k (though prior owner said he did a swap to an engine with less than 60k), YJ wheels, tiny tires, Bushwacker flares. I picked her up for $3000:



The salesman from where I purchased the Jeep (Also a Jeep guy) stated it could only be driven in 4WD. He wasn't sure why. I poked around down there for a bit prior to purchasing it. I came to the conclusion that the rear was shot, whether it was the spider gears, ring gears, or something else. No problem D35's with 3.07's are a dime a dozen. My buddy had a few in his garage so we decided to do a quick swap. First, we wanted to pop the cover to see what was going on:



Spidergears chipped. Ring gear unbolted. Basically no fluid. Interesting. We proceeded with the swap:



This only took about 3 hours. The rear lower control arm was the easiest to remove:



As you can see, she has some frame rust. This is pretty typical for TJ's in rust belt regions such as here outside of Philly:



Thankfully we sell Auto Rust brand products:

Auto Rust Technicians Parts & Accessories | Quadratec

So I am able to repair the rusted frame sections as needed.

We also rebuilt the front driveshaft as it was completely shot due to the prior owner driving only in 4WD for some time:





This weekend is step 1 of the frame repair work! Looking forward to finally having a 4 link setup again ;)

Will post more progress photos soon. Hoping to build this similar to my prior TJ:



Stay tuned!

-Rick
 
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#2 ·
Awesome!
 
#3 ·
Nice find. I'm right there with you on the frame rot. Still putting mine together. Good luck with the build!
 
#4 ·
Nice Rick,must feel good to be back in the saddle. If I worked where you do Id go broke,I dont know how you can control yourself,especially with a new build.
 
#8 ·
Nice find! I had my frame crack due to rust issues right at the passenger side lower control arm bracket. Those Auto Rust Technician Safe T Caps are very handy!
 
#11 ·
Thanks all!

It's surprising how quickly TJ frames have begun to rust. I know of only a few TJ owners in this area who have no rust issues. Well, at least of which they are aware! Thankfully Auto Rust makes a brilliant product for those of us in need :D

Working here is like being a big kid in a big kid candy story. Definitely bad for my bank account! Having a house and a dog I have to be somewhat responsible at the end of the day but my Jeeps definitely see a lot of mods.

I'll be honest ... Having owned all Wrangler models to date I really prefer the TJ (Though an LJ would be perfect). The one big benefit of the JKU was the additional cargo and passenger capacity. Having brand new parts was great as well, but having a car payment basically is the same as having a TJ you put money into monthly for mods/fixes. I was always a bit off-put by the thought of wheeling a brand new, $30,000+ vehicle. With my TJ's, I beat the heck of out them, scratch and dent them, and it does not bother me as much:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gSqNkqmY8Mg

The JKU's bumper is a JCR brand bumper. Made in Michigan, great quality!

https://www.quadratec.com/categories/jeep_bumpers_towing_racks/front-bumpers?f[0]=sm_field_brand%3Ataxonomy_term%3A6038

They are available for XJ, ZJ, CJ, YJ, TJ, JK!

-Rick
 
#12 ·
Here's the latest update on the rust repair:

It took about 2-3 hours to do. Not bad at all. Auto Rust really makes a killer product!! This is the one I used:



Auto Rust Technicians ART-124-L Driver Side Lower Rear Trail Arm Mount for 97-06 Jeep® Wrangler TJ | Quadratec

Once we had the Jeep up on jack stands we unbolted what was needed and begin cutting:



We test fit and marked the replacement piece:



Ground down the frame coating to bare steel for welding purposes:



Tacked it up:



And off we went:





Welds finished:



Painted up:



Purdy, but out of focus (my apologies):



And she drives much better now!



More fun mods & repairs in the pipeline!

-Rick
 
#13 ·
Nice work! And yes the safetcaps are amazing. Very well thought out, strong link mounts and easy install for those of us with welding skills. Better yet cutting and grinding skills :)
 
#16 ·
I just completed a full Rear CA Mount to just in front of skid plate repair on both sides of my frame. I only need to do the rear sections but I figured if I'm in here why not do it all. It turned out great and I had 2 nutserts fail removing the skid this time so good call. Now I just need to POR the remainder of the frame. Great post and nice work. Welcome back.
 
#18 ·
Thanks everyone! Probably should also do the passenger side and will need to do both crossmember sections eventually as well. Prior owner welded the crossmember skid to the frame ... cheap permanent fix that needs to be changed.

The guys and gals at Auto Rust Technicians really have saved countless Jeeps!

-Rick
 
#19 · (Edited)
#20 ·
#21 ·
Nice work. Those headlights put out a nice white light. I got the KC headlights for Christmas but they don't seem quite as bright as yours. And not sure why but the link for them isn't working maybe its my phone.
 
#22 ·
#23 ·
It is coming along nicely.
 
#25 ·
#26 ·
Took the TJ into the middle of the woods last night. *This J5 lightbar is ridiculously bright! *The photo does it no justice! *Cell shot:




Amber lights only (J5 lightbar and parking lights);




And ... lost something:



You know what that means! *Broken parts = reason to upgrade. *Look for updates over the next few weeks!

-Rick
 
#29 ·
I'm sticking with 32's or 33's max for this. I am trying to do an LCG build, potentially no lift. Right now it's between 3.73 and 4.10. It has to be able to handle my daily commute (though it is not my daily driver), as well as several hour road trips, some overlanding, and rock crawling / trail riding.



Are planning to use Quadratec fenders or are you open to other brands such as JCR, Metalcloak, Poison Spyder, etc?
I have JCR rear corners, rear flares, front flares, front bumper :) With Moab EJS just over a week away it may have to wait until I get back.

-Rick
 
#31 ·
Looks awesome!
My jeep is a twin with yours when it was stock, even have the same wheels.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Thanks! Love our color! I rarely, if ever, see it around here. Is it the same up there for you?

Bumper swap - JCR Off-road:



-Rick
 
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