MagicNelson's 99XJ Build "Josephine"

[dukie564]

Also, I need to figure out how I want to carry my 33" spare since it won't fit in the cargo area anymore.

sure it will.

 

[MagicNelson]

I forgot to update...the spare fits good now

Today, I changed my oil and fixed my oil filter adapter leak. Also, forgot to mention one the coolest mods on my XJ; the high clearance mod.

 

[MagicNelson]

P.S. my pictures suck because the lens on my phone is scratched/dirty. Hopefully I'll be getting a new phone soon so they'll suck less in the future.

 

[RoyalXJ]

Looks good

 

[MoparManiac]

Diggin the blacked out moabs.

 

[MrShaft696]

nice jeep looks good, we have the same color xj its the little blue jeep at our house....

 

[MagicNelson]

Looks good

Thanks, Bob. The bumper install was pretty smooth. Took me a few tries to get the brackets placed right but I eventually got it. Fresh coat of paint and it looks good as new. And I was able to make the stock end caps work with it which is cool.

Diggin the blacked out moabs.

Thanks. I wasn't sure if I liked them at first but they're definitely growing on me.

nice jeep looks good, we have the same color xj its the little blue jeep at our house....

Nice looking Jeep! Maybe it's the picture but yours looks bluer (is that a word?) than mine. I think mine is called gun metal blue or something like that.

 

[RoyalXJ]

Thanks, Bob. The bumper install was pretty smooth. Took me a few tries to get the brackets placed right but I eventually got it. Fresh coat of paint and it looks good as new. And I was able to make the stock end caps work with it which is cool.

Good shit

 

[MagicNelson]

Got off work early for memorial day weekend so i took my driveshaft in to get it balanced or whatever it needs to stop giving me vibes. I was tired of messing with it. After that, i reinstalled my t-case skid. It works perfectly with my Clayton crossmember. I think it's made by Appalachian Armor if anyone is looking for a compatible skid.

Also, did a little bit of test flexing today.

I didn't have the time to take off the shocks and measure but I'm pretty sure the rears are too short by a few inches. The good news is that my DPG offroad rear bumpstops worked perfectly and I don't rub at all in the rear. The front is a different story though. My hockey pucks + ACOS bumpstops worked really well but I'm going to have to trim and relocate the flares a little higher. Then I should be able to take out one of the hockey pucks so the tire can stuff in the wheel well a little more.

Tomorrow I'm installing my longer front brake lines and my ZJ prop valve guts. Got the guts for free at the junkyard last weekend. I put them on the counter and the guys laughed and said "that's all you got? Get out of here". So off I went It's been about a year since I did the rear discs and never felt the need to swap the guts on 31s. Now that I'm on 33s, Im hoping for improved braking.

 

[MrShaft696]

yeah if you still get vibes after the balance you need to replace all the joints...as long as your pinion angle is good. I had a small bit of play in the cv end of my rear shaft and it would not run smooth over 65 with 456 gears

 

[MagicNelson]

yeah if you still get vibes after the balance you need to replace all the joints...as long as your pinion angle is good. I had a small bit of play in the cv end of my rear shaft and it would not run smooth over 65 with 456 gears

That's the thing...all the joints are brand new. I rebuilt it 3 different times with the same results. And it didn't give me vibes prior to replacing the u-joints.

 

[MagicNelson]

Put my longer brake lines on today and the ZJ prop valve guts. I used GM brake lines that were about 3" longer than stock. They needed a little bit of modifying to make them work but it wasn't a big deal. Regarding the ZJ prop valve, I can actually feel the rear brakes working and there is less front end drop under hard braking. Overall, I'm satisfied and wish I would have done it sooner.

 

[dukie564]

Cool. Where'd you pick up that AA skid? I thought they went out of business many moons ago.

 

[MagicNelson]

Cool. Where'd you pick up that AA skid? I thought they went out of business many moons ago.

I got mine from eBay about 3 or 4 years ago directly from them. Must have been right before they closed shop. It was pretty cheap too if I remember correctly...something like $80 shipped.

 

[Tony_SS]

Put my longer brake lines on today and the ZJ prop valve guts. I used GM brake lines that were about 3" longer than stock. They needed a little bit of modifying to make them work but it wasn't a big deal. Regarding the ZJ prop valve, I can actually feel the rear brakes working and there is less front end drop under hard braking. Overall, I'm satisfied and wish I would have done it sooner.

When you did the prop valve did you have to bleed the brakes?

 

[MagicNelson]

When you did the prop valve did you have to bleed the brakes?

I swapped brake lines at the same time so I had to bleed the brakes anyway. If I was just replacing the prop valve, I would have still bled the brakes. Opening up that prop valve allows air to get in the system.

 

[MagicNelson]

Drove around some service roads with some buddies and grilled/chilled over the weekend. The weather was great and we took it easy.

I lost my passenger fender flare somewhere along the way and was pretty bummed about it so I drove back out today to look for it. Luckily it was sitting in the middle of the road untouched from when we were there.

The highlight of the day was finding this random old guy trying to figure out how to use his camera phone to take a picture of a pretty big rattle snake. He couldn't figure out how to zoom in on his phone so he decided to just get closer to the rattling rattle snake...

And the rattle snake...

 

[MagicNelson]

Today I did this mud run/obstacle course in Newtown Square, PA which was pretty cool. It was about an hour drive on the PA turnpike. As soon as I pulled in my driveway, my brake pedal went to the floor and the only way I was able to stop was by throwing it into park (my e brake doesn't work too well). Turns out one of the copper washers that go between the banjo bolt and the caliper on my front soft line wasn't seated right and had a slow leak. The fluid eventually went so low in the master cylinder that the pedal lost pressure. I was able to get to the parts store before they closed to get brake fluid and fixed the leak before it got dark.

I flexed out the rear of my xj and found that my shocks are barely long enough. I'm going to get a set of BPEs to add another inch of down travel so they don't come close to bottoming out. Didn't get a chance to measure the front yet.
On Friday, I picked up my driveshaft from the shop. They said it needed a new slip yoke and wanted $230 to fix it. I said no thanks and grabbed a front shaft from my local junkyard for $50. I installed it and no vibes! Ill be keeping the other shaft as a spare.

 

[Rob Mayercik]

Hey, another NJ member just popping up to say hello and add myself to the chorus of "nice rig".

I'll have to keep an eye out for you at NACFest - always interested in meeting another member from Jersey...

 

[MagicNelson]

Hey, another NJ member just popping up to say hello and add myself to the chorus of "nice rig".

I'll have to keep an eye out for you at NACFest - always interested in meeting another member from Jersey...

Thanks, Rob. Where in NJ are you from?