Overland & Underpaid a WJ story...

AZ Explorer said:

Well, look at that! I actually got something for the WJ. 265 75 R16's They measure 31.65 tall and 10.51 wide. Some call it a 31, some call it a 32. Either way I'm good.
I still need wheels and a 4 inch lift. Should be good for all that in the next two months or so. Then I'll work toward a winch bumper and a new Warn. I really like the new EVO 8-S for this Jeep.
Obviously this will be a smaller build and on a tighter budget than any before. But for what we're using it for, it'll be perfect.
Still haven't done the corner armor yet, kind of went on the back burner until I get a nutsert tool.

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wjtstudios said:

Tires look great, can’t wait to see it up on the lift. And a nutsert tool is a must!


2015 JKUR AEV JK350
1985 CJ8 Scrambler

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Elroy231 said:

I like seeing these wjs built up a bit. Nice one. Looking forward to what you do with it

Sent from my SM-G965U using WAYALIFE mobile app

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WJCO said:

Looks good. Can't wait to see them mounted.

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catahoula said:

Nice. Too bad you have 16" tires. I got some of these I'm selling. View attachment 341215

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WJCO said:

Looks beautiful. Nice work. You'll likely be able to fit a 315 under there especially with a 6 inch lift and adjustable arms.

Here's a flex test I did with 315s at only 4 inches of lift and custom bump stops: https://wayalife.com/showthread.php...read-1999-WJ?p=1023848&viewfull=1#post1023848

No issues with rubbing at all, even running Holy Cross and Chinaman.

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AZ Explorer said:

The plan of keeping the Grand a simple project, went right out the window. I had to put things on the back burner for a while, but in the last couple of months I have gotten a few things done.
I had installed a 2 inch budget boost and went up one size in tire. I think it is the same size that came on the overland edition, and those are still on there now while I save for tires.

I'm doing everything cash and carry because I don't want to owe a penny on this as well as doing all the labor myself. It's been mostly fun and has given me something to do.

I just got the wheels today and test fit them for clearance issues and am very happy with them. They are 17x9 -12 offset. The center hole fits the hub perfectly. I love that I could choose really anything that fits a JK since its the same bolt pattern. So many options.

I also replace the crappy steering wheel with a brand new Mopar/Jeep factory wheel. I just couldn't stand the shitty fit of the remanufactured one. It cost me, but lesson learned.

Some of the other stuff I did was put a Rough Country 4 inch long arm lift on, in addition to the 2 inch boost. Obviously, it's now at 6 inches which the kit says the arms and adjustable track bar can handle no problem. I've met a number of guys out here who have run the kit long term and have been really happy with it. I really wanted a long arm kit and Clayton requires welding and the iron rock has a 3 link up front that I hate. That left rusty's and what I ended up with. For the thousand dollar savings and a few problems I have with rusty's, I'm happy I went the way I did.
There is also the goliath front bumper and bushwacker cut out flares. Got WAY better headlights. Went with the Warn VR EVO 10s to get a quality winch but still save about half the cost of the I paid for the ZEON.
Oh, and I finally put on my quarter armor. That was a pain in the ass, but it came out really good.

Over all, the Jeep is coming along as I originally envisioned when I bought it. So now I have probably a couple months wait for tires, and I need to do the driveshafts too. I have a couple of other ideas that I'm kicking around for later. If anyone is wondering, the tire that I am most likely to get is the Nitto Ridge Grappler in a 305/70r17 which ends up being a 34x12.00 17. A 315 is possible, but I'm concerned that might be a little too much when turning while flexed.

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catahoula said:

Holy shit! I just seen these. Looks awesome man. How do you like the quarter armor? Are they rolled or bent to panel? Thinking about getting those. Love those flares.

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AZ Explorer said:

Found enough extra money in the budget to purchase two of the new tires I need. Will still have to wait on the others a bit, but I figured why wait and get all 4 at the same time. I only need 2 to test fit.
Bit the bullet and just got the 315 70r 17 Nitto Ridge Grapplers. Ended up fitting with no problems like WJCO said. The end result looks so cool and I am very happy with it. Definitely going to lose my Rola rack but that's okay, I have a buddy who wants it for his Nissan. It simply will not clear the garage door... by like half an inch :crazyeyes: I have some ideas for roof lights that will look better with the rack gone anyhow, plus I already have the brackets for a light bar.

By the way, I have to give a big shout out to Discount Tire again. I was worried the tires might be too big and almost went smaller. My sales guy said it was no problem mounting them up to test fit. He said as long as I don't actually drive on them, I could exchange them for another size. No other tire place I have ever dealt with including any I worked at when I was a kid would do that. Everyone says a mounted tire is a used tire.
Over and above Discount, well done! This is why I haven't bought a single tire or wheel from anybody but them in 20 years. And I buy a LOT of tires and wheels.

I bolted up the tires and wheels on the drivers side and used some jackstands to level it out to ride height on the other side. Later, after I was satisfied with the clearances, I moved the rear one to the front. Now I just have to wait and throw the rears on when I get them.

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AZ Explorer said:

Quarter armor is cool but a pain in the ass to install. It's curved one way (top to bottom) but not well the other way (front to back). Nobody seems to do them in a press so its not perfect. It does get really close once the bolts are completely tightened.
You start drilling from the back and work forward. Nutserts didn't end up always lining up perfect, so I had to drill the holes on the armor a bit and add small washers.
I ended up pulling the interior trim and doing nuts and bolts without the nutserts on many of them. Its tight getting in there but it can be done. Removing the seatbelts helps getting to the forward most ones.
Probably would have been better off just through bolting right from the start. I taped off the quarter panels to avoid scratching plus it helped marking the holes for drilling easier.
Then complete disassembly to powder coat before final install.
On mine, lots of extra jacking around to make them work with the flares.

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AZ Explorer said:

Found enough extra money in the budget to purchase two of the new tires I need. Will still have to wait on the others a bit, but I figured why wait and get all 4 at the same time. I only need 2 to test fit.
Bit the bullet and just got the 315 70r 17 Nitto Ridge Grapplers. Ended up fitting with no problems like WJCO said. The end result looks so cool and I am very happy with it. Definitely going to lose my Rola rack but that's okay, I have a buddy who wants it for his Nissan. It simply will not clear the garage door... by like half an inch :crazyeyes: I have some ideas for roof lights that will look better with the rack gone anyhow, plus I already have the brackets for a light bar.

By the way, I have to give a big shout out to Discount Tire again. I was worried the tires might be too big and almost went smaller. My sales guy said it was no problem mounting them up to test fit. He said as long as I don't actually drive on them, I could exchange them for another size. No other tire place I have ever dealt with including any I worked at when I was a kid would do that. Everyone says a mounted tire is a used tire.
Over and above Discount, well done! This is why I haven't bought a single tire or wheel from anybody but them in 20 years. And I buy a LOT of tires and wheels.

I bolted up the tires and wheels on the drivers side and used some jackstands to level it out to ride height on the other side. Later, after I was satisfied with the clearances, I moved the rear one to the front. Now I just have to wait and throw the rears on when I get them.

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AZ Explorer said:

Found enough extra money in the budget to purchase two of the new tires I need. Will still have to wait on the others a bit, but I figured why wait and get all 4 at the same time. I only need 2 to test fit.
Bit the bullet and just got the 315 70r 17 Nitto Ridge Grapplers. Ended up fitting with no problems like WJCO said. The end result looks so cool and I am very happy with it. Definitely going to lose my Rola rack but that's okay, I have a buddy who wants it for his Nissan. It simply will not clear the garage door... by like half an inch :crazyeyes: I have some ideas for roof lights that will look better with the rack gone anyhow, plus I already have the brackets for a light bar.

By the way, I have to give a big shout out to Discount Tire again. I was worried the tires might be too big and almost went smaller. My sales guy said it was no problem mounting them up to test fit. He said as long as I don't actually drive on them, I could exchange them for another size. No other tire place I have ever dealt with including any I worked at when I was a kid would do that. Everyone says a mounted tire is a used tire.
Over and above Discount, well done! This is why I haven't bought a single tire or wheel from anybody but them in 20 years. And I buy a LOT of tires and wheels.

I bolted up the tires and wheels on the drivers side and used some jackstands to level it out to ride height on the other side. Later, after I was satisfied with the clearances, I moved the rear one to the front. Now I just have to wait and throw the rears on when I get them.

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