Brian's '96

[yikes]

Big thanks to SteveG for doing all of the leg work on these shocks. I would have been in way over my head if he hadn't prepared everything for me. He had all of the parts, paperwork from Swayaway and build notes. Good stuff!! Thanks Steve!

[SteveG]

Heavy suckers too. They'll be over 80 with tenders and dividers.

Ha! I hated mocking up with those things when they were empty! Hopefully they don't have to come out for a long, long time!

[philofab]

The pistons in those things allow the shaft to rotate right?

[yikes]

The pistons in those things allow the shaft to rotate right?

Yup.

[BajaF250]

Those things are just plain monsters! Wow! Cool factor of 10! Nice job Brian. I can't wait to see it out and about!

[yikes]

Those things are just plain monsters! Wow! Cool factor of 10! Nice job Brian. I can't wait to see it out and about!

Thanks Tom!


Added another gusset to the lower shock mounts...couldn't resist. It just looked like a weak spot.



Bumped, strapped and SHOCKED!!! Woohoooo!!

[Andy Jones]

looks good Brian!

[yikes]

Look...no jack stands!! Woohooo! This is a monumental occasion for me. Still a long way to go, but I can finally see the light.


It's sitting an inch or two high right now because it's around 500lbs light in the rear and 200 in the front, but guess what? It's resting on the front coils with no tenders and around 1/4" preload. Should settle in just about right.





The brakes were the usual pain the neck. One of the factory fittings leaked at the master cylinder. Had to disassemble everything with fluid in it. Ahhhhhh! Hate brake systems sometimes. But they're plumbed, bled and ready to adjust in.

[philofab]

Nice. Have you already built your bumper?

[tcm glx]

Damn Brian, your camera angles are making that thing look outstanding, hahahaha. J/K

When is the planned test run? How much more do you think to get her running and in the desert again?

[Nick]

It must feel good to see it sitting on all fours B! It's looking really good!

[yikes]

Nice. Have you already built your bumper?

Yeah. Last fall?? I think. Haha! It's all rusty sitting in the garage right now.

[philofab]

Yeah. Last fall?? I think. Haha! It's all rusty sitting in the garage right now.

Going to powder coat this one as well? I don't recommend going back to who ever did the bumper I got from you.

[yikes]

Damn Brian, your camera angles are making that thing look outstanding, hahahaha. J/K

When is the planned test run? How much more do you think to get her running and in the desert again?

I'll hopefully be testing during my week off at Christmas. There's a few more things on the list to take care of before it's actually ready to hit the dirt.

relocate the battery
rewire the radio and lights
rebuild the t-case
replace the wheel bearings and retainers
fab brackets for the coil, fuse box, carbon can, vacuum reservoir and air filter
fab rear bumper
finish front bumper
more porting on the front u joint
replace the body mounts
align the body
fab a cage for the front fenders and core support
mount the glass hood
replace the cowl
hook the a/c box up so I can have a heater and defroster
replace the heater hose
fab a spare tire carrier - inside or out...not sure
re-valve the rear shocks - but waiting to see how it responds to the new front suspension


About a days work for Tom. Decemberish for me.

[yikes]

Yeah. Last fall?? I think. Haha! It's all rusty sitting in the garage right now.

Going to powder coat this one as well? I don't recommend going back to who ever did the bumper I got from you.

Haha! Yeah, no kidding. I haven't decided yet, but probably will powdercoat and stay away from the two stage stuff. Was thinking of going with a nice pink.

[philofab]

Haha! Yeah, no kidding. I haven't decided yet, but probably will powdercoat and stay away from the two stage stuff. Was thinking of going with a nice pink.

I've done several with LineX. Much cheaper and holds up better. Last bumper for a Jeep was $40.

[Andy Jones]

Single rate coil? or dual rate in the future?

[Drilim]

Looks mighty handsome there, B. Big congrats!

[hobbyturnedobsession]

Way to go Brian! If you ever decide to sell or build another one I'm game for one!

[yikes]

Single rate coil? or dual rate in the future?

Not sure at this point. Since these shocks do not have shim stacks single rate may be the way to go to limit body roll at low speeds. Until it hits the road I have no idea what it's going to do.


Thanks for the good words fellas!



Managed to knock out one of the brackets tonight. I'm wiped though. After four 12-14 hour days I'm ready for a couple of hours of relaxing. Anyway. When I put headers on a few years ago, I removed a strut to the coil mount and never put it back. That resulted in repairing cracks a number of times. Haha! I didn't like using the header bolts for an anchor point, so as is the norm, I took the more unconventional approach.