Well, good news. My XJ is ready to go out on NYD (as close as it’s gonna get anyways)! It’s ugly and might fall apart, but it should be a good time
….at least the front axle is pretty
…after these pics were taken, I added tow hooks to the front bumper and painted it black.
All I have left to do before NYD is put the cable back on my winch and get my gear back inside the XJ
I might actually make NYD….still going to be a close call.
started my jeep for the first time in almost 6 months today…..fired up with no problems
steering is pretty much done
PS cooler relocated
I also got the axle shafts, unit-bearings, and brakes all installed again.
It’s getting down to crunch time…less than a week before NYD. I’m not sure if I’m going to make it yet…..tomorrow will be an important day.
bye bye old trackbar
hello shorter one. small RE joints on both ends
the good news……no clearance problems with the trackbar. worked out perfectly.
the bad news, my trackbar brace interferes with the drivers side UCA mount, so I have to take it off for now, until I figure out what to do about it
sitting on all 4 tires for the first time in months
bumper just about done
but things aren’t looking good for new years day……..
The good news:
- My axle is under the Jeep
- My steering is going to work fine
The bad news:
- My tie rod is too long, I need to cut it down without messing up the threads
- My front driveshaft will probably need to be lengthened
Now I just need to finish welding on the coil buckets and figure out my trackbar mount. I also need to fine tune my axle placement.
Here’s the pics:
Ball joints, knuckles and wheel bearings on
in place
wow….it’s actually starting to look like a vehicle again
I got a little work in after Toys for Tots
internal bracing added
bottom added to one side
Brian and I headed out early this morning to attend the annual Toys for Tots parade down Lake Shore Drive. Was a good time for a good cause. Here’s a few pictures.
Brian enjoying an episoide of South Park 
my beautiful rig
Check out this picture, too. It’s 1.5MB and I stitched it together:
http://pictures.myxj.net/t4t2006-panoramic/panoramic.jpg
Plenty more pics here:
http://myxj.net/g2/v/2006_Trips/toys_tots/
Enjoy.
My front bumper is getting closer to finished
welding
front section fitted
holes cut for access to winch bolts
test fit
…and welded
nothing too major, but the bumper is still moving along
clearance is tight, but it should work out
tacked together
angle will be used for more weld area between the mounts and the top
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