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Joel's multipurpose XJ build (rocks/boulevard)

I'm contemplating if there's a way around that (IE electric over hydraulic power steering) but I've never driven a pure hydro rig to know if the behaviour is acceptable even if I can buy down risk of the failure modes.

Take this for what it is - I've never owned a full-hydro rig. that being said, everything I've read suggests that on the street they are passable but not a good idea. (Also, I think illegal when configured with a double sided ram in the center?)

The exception was a setup I saw in a magazine once where they had a high-quality PSC ram pushing a tierod. It was configured like a hydro assist but there was no draglink. They said the road manners where great, presumably because you can do a proper alignment. That type of setup would let you leave the front links alone. (I don't know about the street-legality of it.)

There will be many who say full-hydro is FINE for the street... but that is typically just something said because they do it. A kid on Pirate died when his malfunctioned and he crashed. Of course he wasn't wearing his seatbelt, nevertheless it was a tragedy with root cause in the full-hydro steering.
 
What's happening y'all? Been a while. Still rocking the XJ as my daily while my rx7 is under the knife. Unfortunately, the XJ's been seeing a lot more of home depot than the trails, but that's still pretty helpful since home projects have been all over.

I've done a few things since last fall so figured I'd just jump back in, say hello and document for posterity.

Did my own version of the cut and fold fender mod, only with a lot less cutting than what I've seen pictures of elsewhere... There's no pie cutting necessary if you start with a smaller lip and work it a bunch.

XJFenderFold1.JPG



This tool was an idea I picked up from "project binky" on youtube.

XJFenderFold2.JPG



Getting close:

XJFenderFold3.JPG



Done:

XJFenderFold4.JPG
 
High praise from you guys. Thanks.

Couple more little things. Replaced my blinker relay. It'd been intermittent for a long time and it finally got annoying enough to do something about. Contrary to the youtube vid I was following, you can get the under dash stuff off without removing the steering column cover (at least I could with a tilt wheel).

XJBlinker1.JPG


XJBlinker2.JPG



Other big change was that I finally had the paint buffed out. A neighbor had gotten me with some bad overspray and I was pinstripped badly from running around Wildomar. Some of those trails are more motorcycle width than jeep sized.

Pretty neat. Looks decent at the mall. :laugh2:

XJBuffed.JPG
 
Catching up to current events now...

I recently replaced the front axle seals on my HPD30. What a PITA. I assume the seals have to be in tight to the diff because of some slight radial motion at the ends of the tubes, but I wasn't expecting to pull the diff when I started a brake job.

Once you have it all apart and waste about a roll of paper towels cleaning everything up, it's not too bad. Used a 36 mm socket and most of my extensions to drive it in. The bores didn't look quite perfect so I went ahead and used some RTV on the new seals as well.

XJD30Seals1.JPG



Girls are getting old enough to help. Little one mostly rode her bike in the street, but I'm just glad they want to hang out with me.

XJD30Seals2.JPG



Torque specs as noted by a six year old. Last number is fluid capacity (L).

XJD30Seals3.JPG



Just for giggles, I pulled out my D60 front for comparison (going into the FJ40). Good grief! What have I gotten myself into?

XJD30Seals4.JPG


XJD30Seals5.JPG


XJD30Seals6.JPG



Couldn't help it. Gave the D30 shafts a quick sand and then threw a quick coat of 2 in 1 primer/paint on them to help keep rust at bay.

XJD30Seals7.JPG



Oh and it did get a new pair of shoes and rotors.

XJD30Seals8.JPG



Which brings me to a question: My pad wear was pretty bad, biased strongly to the inside. Any tips or tricks for keeping things sliding? Shoe instructions recommending lubing the shoe to bracket interface but it seems like that would just collect dust in a heartbeat.
 
Grease up the sliding pins.


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Use some brake grease and check the knuckles for deep groves in them. If the pads are getting stuck in the groove, it could make for uneven wear and less than optimal braking.
 
Slight grooving on the knuckle. Sliding pins seemed Ok, but maybe a bit on the firm side. Probably should have done that but I was in a hurry for a family thing. I'll give both a closer look when I open that back up.

So it's basically lube the 6 points that can move (4x shoe tips, 2x sliding pins) and brake dust collection be damned? Then make sure the knuckle grooves are minimized so pads can't hang?
 
Remember all the dual shear track bar stuff we talked about earlier in this thread? Yeah, apparently I should have moved out faster doing something about that.

XJtrackbar2.JPG



Did the criss cross strap trick to get it home.

XJtrackbar1.JPG


In skimming through prior posts, I've had recommendations for off-the-shelf dual shear track bar mounts from Clayton, Rubicon Express, and Rock Krawler. Is there any reason not to just fortify the existing bracket and turn it into a double shear? I have a plasma cutter, spare 1/4" plate steel, and welding capabilities.

Someone remind me, what are the rules about pivot geometry? I think it was basically node to node, have track bar and drag link run parallel at ride height (and as equal length as possible to keep them parallel through travel).

I'd like to use what of my BDS kit I can. I will be adding a bend to my drag link as well since that got pointed out. I do still have this 2" ballistic joint laying around.

XJtrackbar3.JPG



But some of you guys didn't like it much and suggested it would wear quickly. There were suggestions of a Johnny Joint (any particular size??) or just a 7/8" heim. I kinda think I'd like to avoid a heim since this rig is pretty street friendly. I'm really tempted to run the joint I have, since it's the fastest fit I can see. Is the wear a problem of keeping it lubed or is this just fundamentally the wrong joint for the job?

Pressure's on since I need to get this fixed quickly and the rest of my projects aren't running at the moment (rx7 at body shop and others are a long way off). You can only steal the wife's car so often, before you start to violate the "happy wife = happy life" rule. Any final advice or specific links would be greatly appreciated.

-Joel
 
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Oh, you too huh? Mine snapped right at the bottom of the hill coming down from Shaver lake. Being as it left me with no steering, I'm lucky to be alive. Had it snapped a mile or more sooner, they would have been pulling my lifeless body out of a ravine...

It really is a poor design. I'm not an ME and even I can see that would fail...

I think about the only way you can modify that set up to be in double sheer is to either have a custom ball made or cut off the end and adapt a rod end.

I'm sure you already know this, but Outlaw Off-road is your BDS supplier. Just don't let them work on your rig, they are clueless.

Where abouts in Tustin are you? I'm over by the 55 and 17th street...
 
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I believe these are the off-the-shelf track bar brackets I'm looking at:
http://www.rubiconexpress.com/Suspe...5.aspx?t_c=1&t_s=101&t_pt=4303&t_pn=R/ERE1665
https://www.claytonoffroad.com/trackbar_brackets

However for Rock Krawler I'm not finding any XJ products at all. Is the XJ compatible with other models?
http://www.rockkrawler.com/

Is their XJ line just discontinued? http://www.quadratec.com/products/16189_8106.htm

If stock bracket itself isn't inherently weak adding to it doesn't seem hard so I might save the $90. However, if the stock bracket isn't up to it, I doubt it's worth it to build one from scratch so I go shopping. One shopping challenge is that they also don't tell me how much drop these have from the frame rail so I end up guessing at geometry. Thoughts?

-Joel

PS MudButt, glad you're OK. You already fix yours? I'm near RedHill and Edinger. Thankfully, mine failed right in front of my driveway. I was using the XJ to drag the FJcruiser around (had it in 4L because the wife was driving) and the front lunchbox stayed engaged while I attempted to flip a U-turn in the street. Thought it would just chirp and drive through it but the tires gripped and it let go with a bang. Thought I blew an an axle at first.
 
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You already fix yours?

Yes. BDS has a no questions asked guarantee on all their parts (minus wear parts like bushings and shocks). However, this only applies to the original purchaser. Unless the P/O gave you receipts and you can convince BDS you are him, they won't warrantee it.

You will have to take the broken part to Outlaw and have them order a new one as BDS requires the old part before they will ship a new one under warrantee. It takes about 5 days.

As a funny side note, do you know what BDS stands for?
 
Not original purchaser unfortunately. I think BDS's "no red tape guarantee" line is utter crap. Non-transferability is about as big an line of red tape as I can think of. Either their parts failed or they didn't. I'm not rolling deep enough to buy very much of anything new.

What's it stand for?
 
Tnt double shear mount. They have different heights for different sterring setup

That might be a contender. $75 and no extra holes/unnecessary brand names etc.

I don't see the height option though.
https://www.tntcustoms.com/jeep_parts/xj_mj_track_bar_mount

Any idea what width joint it's supposed to be used with?
-Joel

PS You guys sure I shouldn't be reusing/using my existing parts (bracket and joint)?

The TNT joint looks identical. https://www.tntcustoms.com/jeep_parts/rebuild_kit_small_flex_joints
Insides of a Johnny joint looks damn similar: http://www.quadratec.com/products/16054_001.htm. Clayton is using a 2.5" joint instead of my 2", but still....

Trippled, did you ever try reinforcing the stock bracket or were you just welding up the cracks when they formed?
 
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