Just Another XJ on tons, coilovers, 42's, etc. Build

[stumpXJ]

That looks killer man. Round tube is a bitch to paint, much less a couple hundred feet of it.

 

[garrett83]

Looks really good.

Do you know how well that stuff blends for touch ups later on? It looks like it goes on thick and would fill scratches real well.

 

[freerider15]

That looks killer man. Round tube is a bitch to paint, much less a couple hundred feet of it.

No kidding...no wonder powder coating places HATE painting chassis!

Looks really good.

Do you know how well that stuff blends for touch ups later on? It looks like it goes on thick and would fill scratches real well.

Well...here's the kicker.

The Hammered Black Spray paint does NOT match the Hammered Black paint quart. The quart paint is more a dark charcoal, the spray paint is a bit more of a true black.

However, I've noticed the spray paint does not give you as much of the textured look.

It does/can go on rather thick. I actually did it probably a little toooo thick...since I can dent the paint if I push real hard with a fingernail...oh well.

So for me, touch up will still be easy. I've still got 1.5 quarts left (bought three additional after I used the 2 I had and had to run and go get more). All I'll have to do is roll on some more paint, which is plenty easy enough. I've actually got some rolling to do still on the chassis (mainly the bottoms of the frame rails) due to the HVLP gun not really being able to spray being pointed directly up

 

[Lurch]

I've made that mistake before with the Rustoleum hammered spray. The caps for both colors look the same and the labeling isn't very clear on the difference between the charcoal and the black. It's great paint though, tough and touch ups blend in nicely.

Rig looks awesome beyond words.

 

[stumpXJ]

Did you thin it any before you sprayed it? Where did you buy it in quarts?

 

[freerider15]

Did you thin it any before you sprayed it? Where did you buy it in quarts?

Yeah I thinned it 20% with Xylene.

Directions on the can say 1.5 to 2 pints of xylene per gallon.

That comes to 18.75% to 25%...I just went with 20% and it worked for me.

I can get it in quarts (well black at least) anywhere around here...walmart, home depot, lowes, ace hardware, etc.

 

[SeeingSpots]

Yeah I thinned it 20% with Xylene.

Directions on the can say 1.5 to 2 pints of xylene per gallon.

That comes to 18.75% to 25%...I just went with 20% and it worked for me.

I can get it in quarts (well black at least) anywhere around here...walmart, home depot, lowes, ace hardware, etc.

Oh come on, Justin...I finally get to look at your painted rig and your dang pictures are down. What a dick tease.

 

[freerider15]

Oh come on, Justin...I finally get to look at your painted rig and your dang pictures are down. What a dick tease.

Yeah I just need to go ahead and either rehost them elsewhere...or pay photobucket the $20 for a year of unlimited bandwidth. Hasn't been a problem until the last couple months...been hitting my bandwidth limit just a couple-to-few weeks into the month.

Finally got my used to be DD XJ up and running again...its been sitting since November.

Feels weird to drive an XJ again

All it needed was a t-case swapped in...funny how long it took me to get that done.

Now to turn back to the buggy and get the damn doubler finished and bolted in!

 

[freerider15]

Next part of the ever continuing - never ending build :laugh:

A LOT has been going on lately, between work and getting ready for a two week vacation to the east coast starting this Friday that I haven't been able to give the buggy as much attention as it needs.

The major holdup has been figuring out how to have some sort of connection/belly pan for the space between the front and rear crossmembers. As well...after nearly killing myself several time trying to get the doubler back in...I KNEW I really needed the rear support that I had been contemplating needing for a while.

So I ordered of up a Roark Fab support ring and got it installed. Thing is, due to room constraints, I had to mount it non-traditionally (as seen below).

Rear support:

Belly support work: Had to stop as I thought I had a lot more 1" square tube than I did.

Once I get back...work should resume full speed ahead and stuff coming together much quicker.

 

[Lowrange2]

Who takes a 2 week vacation to the East Coast?! I'm trying to take a vacation out west...

Buggy seems to be coming along a lot faster. 2 more weeks and you should have it ready to wheel.

 

[kastein]

East coast? Drop by for a beer if you're in the area.

 

[rockclimber]

What you should be doing, instead of a 2 week vaca to the eat coast. (Which is lame), is spend that time finishing the buggy so you can take a 2 week vacation to the WEST coast and actually wheel that thing. At the hammers, where it belongs

 

[freerider15]

So I figure I'd let people know this build is NOT dead

I've actually been working my ass off on it. What was taking so long was finishing up the belly skid pieces, as well as making a connecting belly skid.

Since the last picture I've:

- Finished up, painted, and installed the crossmembers
- Painted and installed the rear case support
- UHMW skids cut out for the belly
- Finish welded, and painted my rear links
- Finished up, painted the 14 bolt
- Got two beadlocks done and the 14 bolted to them.

I was shooting to have the rear back on its own weight as of last night. However...I now need two taps to chase the LH and RH 1.25"x12tpi threads on the rear LCA's. Once thats done and I can get the joints screwed in all the way...the rear will be dooooone.

Now that the rear is pretty well done, now to turn my attention to getting the D60 done and under the rig. After that is done...everything will go rather quick!

 

[bails85]

More pics please!

 

[MoparManiac]

Coming along nice dude!

What dimple dies do you have? Just curious, been debating getting some myself in the future.

Definitely need some pics once it's on its own weight.

 

[freerider15]

Coming along nice dude!

What dimple dies do you have? Just curious, been debating getting some myself in the future.

Definitely need some pics once it's on its own weight.

Mine are from Barbed Wire Offroad...but they've gone uuuup in price since I got them. I got the set of 7 for $100 shipped a few years ago. They're $300+ now.

Alright...a little update!

Finally got the rear back on its own weight today:

As well, got the D60 stripped down and getting ready to finish it up:

Planning on getting the D60 finished up, painted, and under the rig by the end of this next weekend.

 

[knucklehead 61]

might want to look into a set of TMR customs d60 front brake brackets that fit 3/4 ton chevy calipers so you can ditch the retarded 78-79 ford brakes. they worked perfectly on my rig as the ford calipers would rub the inside of the rims after constantly popping the H blocks when braking hard in reverse.

 

[foxwar71]

The H blocks are a pain sometimes. Ive had much better luck with the 80/90's style on my jeep and the Ford outers on my Dodge. Still have the large dual pistons calipers but the caliper slides don't pop out or anything.

 

[freerider15]

might want to look into a set of TMR customs d60 front brake brackets that fit 3/4 ton chevy calipers so you can ditch the retarded 78-79 ford brakes. they worked perfectly on my rig as the ford calipers would rub the inside of the rims after constantly popping the H blocks when braking hard in reverse.

The H blocks are a pain sometimes. Ive had much better luck with the 80/90's style on my jeep and the Ford outers on my Dodge. Still have the large dual pistons calipers but the caliper slides don't pop out or anything.

I'll be sticking with the stock calipers for the moment since I bought them new (as well as rotors, studs, hardware, etc.) a while back. As well my front CNC MC is sized for them. If they do give me issues, then I'll look into replacing them...just not real high on the priority list at the moment

 

[cmelo]

I couldn't be more jealous of the proximity of your build to your refrigerator.