Something I wanted to touch on while I'm building the high pinion dana...After installing the IRO C gussets I was wondering if I messed myself up for using the 10 Factory axle tube seals that I was hoping to use.. I searched and found nothing on what someone did to make it happen with the two together...Here's what I ended up doing..I bought two 90* 8mm grease fittings to replace the original standard fitting.. I clocked the fitting at the bottom so I have access between the gussets.. Worked perfectly.. I was worried that I had the perfect storm of parts that wouldn't work together.. Considering the C gussets, almost alloy kit making the axles wider, and those fittings at the bottom I wasn't sure just how it was going to work out...

90* 8mm fittings

in place

 

Finished up the dana 30...The gears have a nice pattern and all went well...I've got about 5 coats of epoxy on the housing and all components...Installed a Kentrol stainless differential cover, lubelocker gasket and a Rough Country rock guard..

 

Got the coated "black hat" rotors...I've used these on a few builds and they hold up great..Should keep it looking fresh for a while...

 

OK I've been waiting to talk about the lift kit because I know how this usually goes..I bought a 4.5 X series kit from Rough Country..Now before everyone goes off on the usual rant that's been played out here for years you need to see this...This latest kit is NOT one of the low quality kits from days gone by...Look at the new joints...You don't put these together they come preassembled.. And they're beefy !! I actually saw these on someone's rig and at first didn't believe what I was seeing ...All new reengineered with quality machining..The fit and finish is fantastic...If I wouldn't have told you who made them I guarantee you wouldn't have guessed unless you already have seen them..

 

I'm not sure how long they've done this but the lower control arms are offset for more clearance away from the axle shock bracket... And it does the job nicely ..After installing the control arm drop kit and control arms, I dropped the front axle down low enough to simply slip the coils into place even with the ACOS spring adjuster installed and never found "bottom" where the lower control arm hits the shock bracket...Doesn't get any easier than that..

 

Overall I was impressed with the improved components..The track bar followed suit and has been reengineered from just a few years ago...Someone must be listening over there...Anyhow here's a pic of the front end ...It's heading into the garage for round 2 which is the rear axle...

 

Breakdown of improvements for the front axle/ suspension are :
Rough country X series 4.5 lift, control arm drop kit, differential rock guard
ZJ tie rod upgrade
ACOS adjustable coil spacer
Iron Rock Off road shock bar pin eliminators, almost alloy axle kit, coil spring keepers, C gussets
JCR dana 30 truss, LCA skid plates
Barnes upper control arm gusset
Eaton TrueTrac helical-gear style, limited-slip differential
Yukon 4.56 ring and pinion
Spicer 5-750x axle universals
10 factory axle tube seals
All suspension components are new including spicer ball joints, timken axle bearings,moog drag link , etc...

 

Build looks great so far.

 

Thanks...
I got the rear axle out with no issues...Sandblasted, welded in the JCR 8.25 rear truss, and sent it off for the Yukon gear set to be installed.. I'll post some pics when it returns, the shop had an opening for this week and I wanted to get it prepped and sent off so I can get it back...
In the meantime I started the rear leaf spring removal ceremony...After reading about so many having issues with the inner bushing sleeves rusted fast to the bolt I wasn't sure just what I was getting in to...As suggested, I did spray them with PB blaster a few times over the last week before going in...I sprayed up through the frame to hit the threads in there and sprayed both sides of the bushing hoping to have it soak the sleeve from both sides. .And then proceeded to soak it as I worked the bolt back and forth a little at a time so I could see what I'm dealing with...It paid off and I got all of them out with no issues... Good bye old springs, shackles, and hardware !! I've bought all new factory bolts, nuts, and shackles so basically everything can get tossed making the process easy from here...

 

Unfortunately the upper shock bolts didn't go as well..... I figured after I snapped two of the four rear axle bump stop bolts I might be in for a battle...I ended up snapping off 3 of the 4 shock bolts... So they all met with the air hammer..... It took me longer to crawl back under there than those coming off using the weapon of choice...So that'll just give me an excuse to install bigger bolts for the IRO bar pin eliminator brackets... I'll throw in a pic of the inner quarter...I didn't sandblast the inner panels or the bottom of the quarters they were so nice I figured they lasted this long there's no need to strip and repaint...I'll scuff and shoot some black epoxy over them until the body gets painted...

 

The rear sway bar came off without any issues.. The upper bump stops didn't go as easy as hoped.. As I stated before I snapped one bolt on each side.. So it was easy-out time... I drilled up through the center, shot some PB blaster through the bolt so it soaked down from the top... Then drilled again so the heat generated would help it soak in..Used the easy-out and then chased the threads.. Good as new...

 

Here's something I ran across that was a pleasant surprise.. I bought the Crown Automotive ZJ backing plate assemblies for the rear disc conversion.. So I wanted to enlarge the center hole/stud holes for them to fit the 8.25 axle flange.. And...


They slipped right on !! .. I'm not sure why but I won't argue with less work.. I changed the flange bolts and moved on...

 

Rerouted the factory brake lines...Welded some tabs on the axle tubes to hold the soft lines.. The trial fit went well.. Here's my version of the ZJ brake swap line routing..


The left side is pretty much a mirror image of the routing.. E brake lever/cables have been checked for clearance as well as the axle U bolts and plate..Lots of location planning for a simple solution...

 

Any snow down there in PA?

 

Oh yeah...lol... And more coming every other day the way it seems...Quite a difference from last year... The forecast is calling for 3 more rounds through the next week...