My parts list and jobs I did today:

pedal pads (installed)
windsheild cowl rubber (tomorrow)
tread lightly floor mats for front (installed, wow, nice)
center dash bezel to replace my cracked one (tomorrow)
new main shift knob (installed)
bestop entry guards (tomorrow)
new hood latch kit (installed)
front sway bar end links and frame bushings (installed.. omg... insanely hard)
lug nuts (installed)
+ "8" leaf spring bushings.. (who knows if i'll ever install these.. I have a Rough Country 2.5" lift on the way..)

I had to remove the upper side of my front track bar to get at one sway bar framne bracket bolt. I thought about just taking the track bar off.. I dont really know what it does. But 98% of my driving will be street, so I decided to leave it on until I can gather a bit more info on it.

My new chrome lug nuts. The pic doesnt do it justice.



From grimey rusty to shiny chrome:



The Bestop brackets. I ordered 2... The sent me 2. for ONE door.. now i have to order 2 more and wait another week.. and there are my front brackets I removed tonight. I might as well order them too.



My leaf spring bushings which I havent used yet. I am not looking forward to the job.



My new soft rubber pedal pads, instead of rock hard plastic.



My soft fresh windshield cowl gasket



My new shift knob. I didnt know it was textured... lol. my old one is smooth.



My new sway bar end links:



My Tread Lightly floormats

windsheild cowl rubber (installed)
center dash bezel to replace my cracked one (installed)
bestop entry guards (installed)

Got my front left leaf spring off as a test since I have a 2.5" RC kit coming in 2 days. Had no issues, all bolts came off like butter. I didnt even need to bring out my impact gun.



My 8 new leaf spring bushings work out just right, and I will have enough to do the whole truck now.

SWEET! My kit delivery moved from tomorrow to today! Great service from Rough Country. They sent it 3 day select, I dont know if that is standard practice or not.

jeep is looking great man, it already looks a lot tougher with the black rims

thanks, the rims are really starting to grow on me.

im already nervous about installing the RC lift kit after reading 75% bad reviews on it long term. But I have to give it one chance. I wont be getting replacements if they end up sagging, why install something twice if it has a history of problems. The leaf spring job isnt exactly and easy job. I want to do it once and forget about it for a couple years.

looking great !!!!! keep postin pics.... your keeping me interested!

damn, i forgot to take measurements before removing that leaf spring..

and only my stickers came today.. lol. everything else comes tomorrow.

deciding if i will reinstall that stock leaf spring today just so i can get my stock height measurements... i probably should...

My stock height measurements before my Rough Country 2.5" leaf spring lift.

Front:
18.5" from ground to bottom of bumper
31" from ground to fender line middle of tire

Rear:
19.5" from ground to bottom of bumper
33" from ground to fender line middle of tire

I really like the stock ride. I hope this kit doesnt make me hate the ride. Thats why I only got a 2.5" instead of a 4".

Think I could go maybe one tire size bigger with no lift whatsover? My stock tire is 28.9" (call it 29"). I'm sure I could fit 30" easily on this stock height. But 31", I'm not sure of. I am running 15x7 rims with zero offset..

i have 31's on my stock 88 yj, and its not good...if you have anyone other than the driver in the truck the tires rub on the fender flares...just a heads up.

thats exactly the info i wanted.. then maybe i can fit 31" with my 2.5" lift..

but my tires are almost new, and i wont be swapping them for at least a year.

I changed my mind on the lift. I like the stock ride too much.

Even though I decided not to install these, I got pics anyway.





And here is a comparison of front springs showing the arc.

After really screwing up my alignment and my steering wheel since i removed my leaf spring, I just came home from an alignment. Perfect spot on now. After I bounced the bumper a few times to really settle everything in, the track bar bolted directly up with no movement required.



Also bought my gear oil stuff. I bought Mobil 1 only because it already includes the LSD additive I needed. Better than hunting down some additive. I plan to do my rear end first. Then my front end. Then I might consider doing my transfer case, as i bought an output seal. But i need to find out if it is really leaking. I dont want to mess with the seal if its not.

after getting 3 stitches in my thumb last night while trying to get my transfer case output seal out..







i got it all done:

new fluid in both front and rear end: Mobil 1 synthetic
new ATF in transfer case: basic ATF
replaced rear output seal just in case it was leaking a bit.

need to know how many o-rings the speedo gear has in case i need to replace those next.

Cleaning the engine bay with a toothbrush...God bless you! I thought I was the only one...nice attention to detail. Nice Jeep.

thanks, its finally just about done. i keep saying that, but its real close. only thing I havent done is the water hoses.. I have to find out if there is more than 4 hoses to replace. I know about the obvious 2 radiator hoses and 2 heater hoses to firewall. if anyone knows... but if they were real bad i would have already replaced them. I think they're still decent.

I just tugged super hard for 2 hours trying to get my halftop installed. It's installed.. mostly.. the velcro arent as tight as i would have liked, but all the buttons and under bracket things are in place. It was SO tight I had to use pliers to get them snaps to work. (carefully).

So what I dont understand.. when I flip up that sunroof thing halfway back.. what holds it? I have TWO "J-clips". One is a huge long one hanging at the back.. (I just realized that is my middle tightening rope as I was typing this..) My other "j-clip" is a really short strap that goes on my rear rollbar.. but no way it would ever reach anything I can see.. it is also hanging down behind my seats, in the middle of my roll bar. I do have a sound bar also..

Pics of the halftop installed. I need to unbolt the seat belts, they flop real loud in the wind. It will rip them to shreds. Of course the doors dont seal well, especially my drivers one along the front/top of the window. When the freeway starts the top of the door bows out like 1/2" and makes a big air gap.

looks great thus far...hey what size tires did you throw on there...stock size? they make your truck look great

thanks dood. all stock suspension and tires. i think theyre 275/75/15 or something?? i know they are 29.5" high, that i know for sure. i wanted to preserve the stock oem feel and look and am pretty happy with it for now. also, if i sell it in 1-2 years it will have a lot better resale value original with no lift.

I decided I don't really like the halftop much. I'll have to stay bikini and just not drive it in the rain. The halftop is noisier than no top at all, affects visibility, and just cramps my style.

Was thinking about selling it to get a pile of money back. I was advertising $6999 firm, and had a couple hits wanting to come see it. After another drive yesterday with nothing but blue sky i backed out of selling it. Its just too fun and i'd be really sad if I sold it.

WOW.... I'm impressed. One will never find a midwest YJ any where near that condition. That piece is gorgeous. Mine was $700. with a bad transmission and 150k on the clock. I have alot of work ahead but small budget. I don't believe yours was ever in four wheel drive the way it looks.

ive never put in in 4WD either. not many places close I can do that around here.

Lets say you had an offer of $7000... would you take it? Paid $5000, put at least $2000 into it.

dammit.. I have someone that wants to buy my Jeep and is fully willing to pay $7000.. a military guy you know, and my jeep has a military type feel to it.

im so torn. I love the jeep. but i love money. money can be replaced. maybe the jeep can't. I know I would be very sad if I sold it.

i just cant part with it. i gotta stop advertising it and pissing people off. he was all set to pay my asking price of $7000.. must be my miles.. dont know why else he'd pay that much.. well, i would, but i know how nice it is, and how much i have fixed it up.

its 75F today and the stupidest day ever to sell a Jeep. I been driving it all morning and its just so fun. I put the halftop back on (yes, again), to test it a couple more days. I did not try the sunroof feature last time, so this time I have the sunroof off. Makes it a little less claustrophobic than the full top on, cramping your style. I probably still prefer my bikini top, but i like a roof at night so leaves and sap dont fall inside it all night.

do regular soft tops also have a foldback sunroof? or just my halftop style? what sucks about the halftop is I have to remove the back seat and rear seatbelts.