you put the clevis mounts in the wrong spot we had desinged it around clearance and you put 2 pionts hanging out to dig in the dirt that bottom should have been cut off at an angle and the clevis mounts come out of a hole cut in the top plate other than that it looks good
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99 XJ DD & Weekend Warrior
- Thread starter NW99XJ
- Start date
bmikes
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- portland or
99 XJ DD & Weekend Warrior
Yea I agree it's not the best spot. But it's not like they can't be taken off and re done in the future. Having those there isn't the end of the world, it's just something to improve upon next time
Yea I agree it's not the best spot. But it's not like they can't be taken off and re done in the future. Having those there isn't the end of the world, it's just something to improve upon next time
NW99XJ
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Gresham, Or.
Agreed on both accounts.
Bronzewyrm
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Independence,or
looking good josh!
stang65
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- independence oregon
looking good.
NW99XJ
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Gresham, Or.
Winch Bumper - Aug_2013
Ok, so got off work at a semi-decent time Wednesday, and made a mad dash home to grab the Jeep and head over to Brandon's to grab the bumper.
I got there, and immediately went to work.... first up was getting the steering box bolts out so we could get the bumper slid on and mounted up. All went fine until it came time to remove the last steering box bolt, that for some reason, decided to snap on me.
(I swear no project can go easy on this Jeep)
After WAY too much time with a set of vice grips that did next to nothing, the decision was finally made to weld a nut on the remaining bolt, and try and back it out.
....A little tack weld, and 1/16th of a turn at a time (and about a hundred of those) later, along with Brandon keeping force on the now dangling steerig box, and me with a foot on the tie rod for leverage..... we finally had the broken piece out. (what an ordeal)
Here's how I feel about that damn bolt......
Even though it was great to have extracted that without having to drill......the damage was done.
I chased those threads with 7/16-14 tap, as well as all the others, just for good measure. Mainly to clean things up a bit but to also try and make sure I was still going to have some thread engagement when it came time to remount this thing. Obviously, on this one hole, the minimum diameter had already been hogged out to the point where cutting new threads of the same size wasn't going to do much. I also didnt REALLY want to risk drilling this out, and re-tapping to a new thread/bolt/size/pitch.... It did though give me a few good threads of engagement, so I continued on with a contingency plan....which included a trip to the hardware store to get a new 7/16-14 X 4.5" bolt and a few grade 8 nuts.
The one upper bolt that was sketchy on thread engagement got an extra nut, to help cinch things down, and keep the bolt in place. (sorry no pic)
The other holes, well, there just wasnt enough room to get a nut on the bolt due to flanges. oh well......
I had brought up the idea, that if the steering box had a lateral brace, tying it in to the opposite frame rail, there would be less of a concern that this thing would shear off its mount.
So we went on a hunt thru this scrap bin and others, looking for materials to build one....
Sure enough, thanks to an exhaust clamp left over from Brandon's Grandfather's barn, and a few pieces of metal here and there, we had enough to fab one up......
We followed the over all design concept of the M.O.R.E. steering box brace and others that are similar in design, keeping it simple, yet functional.
The Durango Steering box needed just a tiny shave to better clear the clamp on the back side, it was literally just a kiss with the grinder....
Here you can see the clamp sitting in position....
The frame side plate was next up....this used two existing hole locations, one of which was one of the sway bar bushing bracket mounting holes.
This was made of 3/16" plate, trimmed and bent to match the contours of the frame, and drilled for bolt clearance.
To this was welded a 3/4" diameter steel rod.... bulged on one end, threaded on the other...
This was/used to be some sort of a prototype tool for something, so I'm guessing this was made from real good tool steel.
The larger end was welded to the plate......
While the other end (threaded) was welded to one half of the 2.125 diameter exhaust clamp:
Ok, so got off work at a semi-decent time Wednesday, and made a mad dash home to grab the Jeep and head over to Brandon's to grab the bumper.
I got there, and immediately went to work.... first up was getting the steering box bolts out so we could get the bumper slid on and mounted up. All went fine until it came time to remove the last steering box bolt, that for some reason, decided to snap on me.
(I swear no project can go easy on this Jeep)
After WAY too much time with a set of vice grips that did next to nothing, the decision was finally made to weld a nut on the remaining bolt, and try and back it out.
....A little tack weld, and 1/16th of a turn at a time (and about a hundred of those) later, along with Brandon keeping force on the now dangling steerig box, and me with a foot on the tie rod for leverage..... we finally had the broken piece out. (what an ordeal)
Here's how I feel about that damn bolt......
Even though it was great to have extracted that without having to drill......the damage was done.
I chased those threads with 7/16-14 tap, as well as all the others, just for good measure. Mainly to clean things up a bit but to also try and make sure I was still going to have some thread engagement when it came time to remount this thing. Obviously, on this one hole, the minimum diameter had already been hogged out to the point where cutting new threads of the same size wasn't going to do much. I also didnt REALLY want to risk drilling this out, and re-tapping to a new thread/bolt/size/pitch.... It did though give me a few good threads of engagement, so I continued on with a contingency plan....which included a trip to the hardware store to get a new 7/16-14 X 4.5" bolt and a few grade 8 nuts.
The one upper bolt that was sketchy on thread engagement got an extra nut, to help cinch things down, and keep the bolt in place. (sorry no pic)
The other holes, well, there just wasnt enough room to get a nut on the bolt due to flanges. oh well......
I had brought up the idea, that if the steering box had a lateral brace, tying it in to the opposite frame rail, there would be less of a concern that this thing would shear off its mount.
So we went on a hunt thru this scrap bin and others, looking for materials to build one....
Sure enough, thanks to an exhaust clamp left over from Brandon's Grandfather's barn, and a few pieces of metal here and there, we had enough to fab one up......
We followed the over all design concept of the M.O.R.E. steering box brace and others that are similar in design, keeping it simple, yet functional.
The Durango Steering box needed just a tiny shave to better clear the clamp on the back side, it was literally just a kiss with the grinder....
Here you can see the clamp sitting in position....
The frame side plate was next up....this used two existing hole locations, one of which was one of the sway bar bushing bracket mounting holes.
This was made of 3/16" plate, trimmed and bent to match the contours of the frame, and drilled for bolt clearance.
To this was welded a 3/4" diameter steel rod.... bulged on one end, threaded on the other...
This was/used to be some sort of a prototype tool for something, so I'm guessing this was made from real good tool steel.
The larger end was welded to the plate......
While the other end (threaded) was welded to one half of the 2.125 diameter exhaust clamp:
NW99XJ
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Gresham, Or.
Winch Bumper - Aug_2013
Brandon did the welding on this one as well..... Although I was confident that I could make all these items come together and resemble a brace,
I would put way more confidence in HIS welds than my own.
In the end, we had made one hell of a steering box brace,
from left over scrap, in all of about 20 - 30 min....
That honestly, in my opinion is just as good as many of the other braces out there.
I will eventually upgrade from an exhaust clamp to something else, or perhaps just reinforce that side of it,
....who knows, it may not need it and I could just be over engineering this.
The fit? ....couldn't be better.
The results? Well, I've only put about 5 miles on this so far... I know....not a true "real world" test...
There WILL be a shake-down run before I go to the Rubicon.
But my initial impressions are this....
Later today, I will try to get the winch mounted or at least mocked into position and get some good daylight shots of the bumper thus far for you guys.
(stay tuned)
Brandon did the welding on this one as well..... Although I was confident that I could make all these items come together and resemble a brace,
I would put way more confidence in HIS welds than my own.
In the end, we had made one hell of a steering box brace,
from left over scrap, in all of about 20 - 30 min....
That honestly, in my opinion is just as good as many of the other braces out there.
I will eventually upgrade from an exhaust clamp to something else, or perhaps just reinforce that side of it,
....who knows, it may not need it and I could just be over engineering this.
The fit? ....couldn't be better.
The results? Well, I've only put about 5 miles on this so far... I know....not a true "real world" test...
There WILL be a shake-down run before I go to the Rubicon.
But my initial impressions are this....
- It definitely stiffened up the steering... I can tell a difference.
There seems to be more rigidity in the steering system, and I feel as if its more responsive. - The winch bumper definitely added to this, the brackets on both sides of the unibody rails, and the support across the front, as well as the tie-in to the core support, really make a difference in the way the jeep feels going around corners. I'm sure this will translate well on the trails.
Later today, I will try to get the winch mounted or at least mocked into position and get some good daylight shots of the bumper thus far for you guys.
(stay tuned)
- Location
- Vancouver British Columbia
nice, I hadn't seen that kind of brace until TORX made one a few weeks ago.
NW99XJ
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Gresham, Or.
Between his, and what I have been looking at online is basically where the inspiration came from.....well that and the risk of my box shearing off the frame. lol
XJROMEO
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Gresham, Oregon
Re: 99 XJ DD & Weekend Warrior
Lookin good buddy!!
Lookin good buddy!!
- Location
- Vancouver British Columbia
Well it looks great, and very relevant to my current situation...
I need to prevent these cracks from growing or happening again.. ..didn't expect this to happen to me considering the light wheeling I do and my small 31s + Durango gear + inner and outer frame brace from C-rok!
NW99XJ
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Gresham, Or.
Thanks man, and sorry to see those cracks. You're probably going to have to spot drill at the ends of those, to prevent them from spreading further, then weld em up. Prob about all you CAN do there. Seems like you have a decent amount of reinforcement already.
NW99XJ
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Gresham, Or.
So doing some math I came across some unsettling numbers recently. 
The XJ gets anywheres from 12-14 mpg on a good day....unloaded commuting on the freeway.
With a full load of gear, provisions, and fuel, I figure I would prob average about 10mpg. Or at least thats what I was getting on the way to NWF.
With the distance from Gresham, Or. to the Loon Lake Staging in Ca. at roughly 680 miles, that means I would need roughly 68 gal of gas one way.
68 gal of gas times lets say roughly $4/gal = $272 one way.
272x2 (there and back) = $544 ....just to get there and back.
Thats not including wheeling gas, nor the potential expense of fixing damage should something happen.
Basically......I cant afford this trip right now. At least not as a driver. :flamemad:
It is a huge personal let down, and I'm sure a let down to those who have helped me up to this point to get the jeep ready for a trip thats now, not going to happen in the same regard as was planned.
Unless I can find a way to come up with an extra $500 in the next three days, the Jeep is staying here for this years trip to the Rubi.
It sucks, i'm really down over this right now, :bawl: but it's just not in the cards at this point.
At least I'm still going to get to experience this amazing trail system first hand, unfortunately it is going to be from a different vantage point this year.
The XJ gets anywheres from 12-14 mpg on a good day....unloaded commuting on the freeway.
With a full load of gear, provisions, and fuel, I figure I would prob average about 10mpg. Or at least thats what I was getting on the way to NWF.
With the distance from Gresham, Or. to the Loon Lake Staging in Ca. at roughly 680 miles, that means I would need roughly 68 gal of gas one way.
68 gal of gas times lets say roughly $4/gal = $272 one way.
272x2 (there and back) = $544 ....just to get there and back.
Thats not including wheeling gas, nor the potential expense of fixing damage should something happen.
Basically......I cant afford this trip right now. At least not as a driver. :flamemad:
It is a huge personal let down, and I'm sure a let down to those who have helped me up to this point to get the jeep ready for a trip thats now, not going to happen in the same regard as was planned.
Unless I can find a way to come up with an extra $500 in the next three days, the Jeep is staying here for this years trip to the Rubi.
It sucks, i'm really down over this right now, :bawl: but it's just not in the cards at this point.
At least I'm still going to get to experience this amazing trail system first hand, unfortunately it is going to be from a different vantage point this year.
Bronzewyrm
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Independence,or
So doing some math I came across some unsettling numbers recently.
The XJ gets anywheres from 12-14 mpg on a good day....unloaded commuting on the freeway.
With a full load of gear, provisions, and fuel, I figure I would prob average about 10mpg. Or at least thats what I was getting on the way to NWF.
With the distance from Gresham, Or. to the Loon Lake Staging in Ca. at roughly 680 miles, that means I would need roughly 68 gal of gas one way.
68 gal of gas times lets say roughly $4/gal = $272 one way.
272x2 (there and back) = $544 ....just to get there and back.
Thats not including wheeling gas, nor the potential expense of fixing damage should something happen.
Basically......I cant afford this trip right now. At least not as a driver. :flamemad:
It is a huge personal let down, and I'm sure a let down to those who have helped me up to this point to get the jeep ready for a trip thats now, not going to happen in the same regard as was planned.
Unless I can find a way to come up with an extra $500 in the next three days, the Jeep is staying here for this years trip to the Rubi.
It sucks, i'm really down over this right now, :bawl: but it's just not in the cards at this point.
At least I'm still going to get to experience this amazing trail system first hand, unfortunately it is going to be from a different vantage point this year.
awch bro, should be a good trip regardless. just more incentive to get the junk ready for next year.
I just realized I forgot to call you
. ill hit you up in da morning.Bronze.
90xjblue
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Yakima, Washington
I would have pegged you as more of a planner! Realizing 3 days before the trip that it will be expensive is kind of worrying. Nonetheless there will always be another day/time to run the trails!
bmikes
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- portland or
99 XJ DD & Weekend Warrior
Sorry to hear that man :/ that's not so great of news. But hey you know what?? Maybe next year or two years from now when you go ill be ready too!!
Sorry to hear that man :/ that's not so great of news. But hey you know what?? Maybe next year or two years from now when you go ill be ready too!!
BPB
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Battle Ground, Washington
99 XJ DD & Weekend Warrior
I would suggest building a Prius plug in they are good on gas. On a serious note after my last trip hauling 6 days a supplies for two the xj weighed in at 5250 lbs. the rear suspension which rides great when unloaded was bottoming out with the extra load.
I would suggest building a Prius plug in they are good on gas. On a serious note after my last trip hauling 6 days a supplies for two the xj weighed in at 5250 lbs. the rear suspension which rides great when unloaded was bottoming out with the extra load.
NW99XJ
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Gresham, Or.
Re: 99 XJ DD & Weekend Warrior
Shit happens, ....it is what it is.... I am at least still going down there....thats the bottom line.
Next years big trip is going to be MOAB!!!
I actually HAD a decent gas budget, but in the last couple weeks, there has been some unexpected medical issues that popped up and had to be dealt with. What was saved for gas, went to pay bills. I was hoping to have enough left over, and with doing a couple gigs on the side, it would have helped pad things a bit, but in the end, I would be cutting it too close for comfort. I COULD pull it off..... but I would be way too close to "zero" when I got back for my own comfort.
Shit happens, ....it is what it is.... I am at least still going down there....thats the bottom line.
Well your gonna have to wait till 2015 to hit the Rubicon with me bro.
Next years big trip is going to be MOAB!!!
One of the things waaaay down on my list was going to be addressing the rear springs, whether it was another new leaf pack or shackle relocation brackets or both..... At least now I have plenty of time to address all that.
90xjblue
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- Yakima, Washington
Gotcha, that stinks man=[ I had something similar happen to me recently but not for a trip as epic as the rubicon! Next time!
bmikes
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- portland or
99 XJ DD & Weekend Warrior
I know someone else who is going to Moab this coming weekend and I think he is going next year too. It'd be cool if we could coordinate to where we all three could go. Do you have dates picked out already?
I know someone else who is going to Moab this coming weekend and I think he is going next year too. It'd be cool if we could coordinate to where we all three could go. Do you have dates picked out already?
