Yeah, I've got mine laid out to tighten it up from the back...Pretty much the same thing...

 

Someone was asking about the original price back in 99... I dug out the original window sticker ..

 

Excellent! Rig looks great! You should be proud of this thing. Good job man. Keep the updates rolling in.

 

More progress on the receiver hitch tire carrier...The anti-wobble set up is now completely welded up... It actually has "L" shaped inserts for strength..


After the 5/8 holes were drilled in the inner sleeve I made up the main side reinforcements from 3/16 metal plate...Those in turn got completely welded to the inner sleeve and drilled for the 5/8 grade 8 bolts...This should add up to a touch over 1/4 in thickness.. That will keep the strength where I'm confident there will be no issues down the road..


Here's a pic in the process... All welds were dressed and corners radiused so there won't be anything to catch as you are walking around the unit.. I tend to run into the receivers or anything sticking out from time to time...lol..


So one of the details on my mind was the mounting hub... I see quite a few tire carrier mounts are nothing more than plate steel with only 3 studs to hold the wheel... I would assume this is acceptable with the amount of carriers with this configuration...I just don't feel that's adequate with this type of carrier and a 33 inch tire....I ended up buying an NOS factory axle and made a preliminary cut at 8" behind the mounting surface for the mock-up..I'm sure I'll be cutting more after the fitment.. I bought a set of standard-length lugs to get the job done.. After all there won't be a drum so they should be just a touch longer...

 

What epoxy paint do you like to use for these applications? And how has it held up for you?

 

I use VHT all weather epoxy... LINK

Hands down the best rattle can suspension finish you'll spray on the parts..I've never had any come off even after years of outdoor use...But I do sandblast the parts first.. No primer needed.. Lately I've been getting it at an autozone near me...

 

Hey Corky, Did you use rivet nuts to install the skid plate to the transmission cross member?
You forced me to find one of these and put on my XJ!! LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I thought about adding the rivit nuts but I didn't want to end up with the same situation as the boneyard ordeal, with a spinning insert and no way to get the plate back off.. I ended up taking the easy way out and used some 3/8-16 x1 1/4 self threading hardened bolts for the job.. The local hardware only went so big and I wanted at least that size so I ordered them off Ebay...They really bit the metal and should hold up nicely being somewhat shielded by the reinforcement ribs.....But for hard wheeling I'd probably go with the insert and a grade 8 hardened bolt.. EDIT: Here's the link for them...Self threading bolts
You might be able to find them locally in your area if you go this route...If you have trouble finding them I did buy 10 and only used 3...lol... So I could send you a few if you want..: Here's a description of the hardened bolts used :.... TYPE F Hardened steel thread-cutting screws are made for use in metals. Use them as general purpose fasteners for almost any fastening purpose in harder metals such as steel, special alloy steels and cast iron. Utilizing a standard machine screw thread, they perform their thread cutting function in metals of any thickness and may be used over and over. Because these screws possess almost twice the strength of ordinary machine screws much smaller screws can be used. When driven into untapped holes (drilled or punched) they stay snug in their self-cut, perfectly mated threads. Type F thread-cutting screws conform to American National Standard machine screw dimensions and tolerances.

 

I've reached a good point to show some progress on the receiver hitch tire carrier... I was at work today and decided to use the shop hoist to make my task easier... I strapped my spare tire and lifted it into the air...Bolted the mounting hub on the rim and did a trial fit of all the components...I'm happy with the direction it's all going...I should have the perfect spacing and axis for the tire and rim....Looks like I'm ready for some more welding...

 

I'll add a few more detail pics during the refinement stage of the carrier...I have my 220v welder at work.. So I welded the axle hub and the receiver components then took everything back to my shop...I ended up welding a taper on the receiver{as an insert stop} as well as a few passes on the sides and bottom..What this did was give me a tight, custom fit with barely any play when the hitch and receiver come together...


Combine that with the anti-wobble set up and it's got Zero play in any direction...Here's a pic of my recessed anti-wobble nut... I wanted it back away from the fuel tank skid plate...


Here's two pics of the unit in the upright position.. I have it as close to the bumper as I'm comfortable with ...




And as stated before... I don't need this to go completely down against the receiver... I see no need because you wouldn't be able to get the tire on/off with it facing directly down anyhow... So it only leans down enough to clear the rear liftgate with the rim and tire on there... If I get a flat and can't lift the tire on and off the upright it'll be time for me to give it up...lol....

 

Good morning, Corky, Thanks for the info to install the skid plate. I used some rivet nuts... I hope I don't end up with the spinning situation...... I'll find out at the worst possible time probably!! LOL!!!!!!!!!

 

You're welcome... And technically the rivnuts are the correct, factory way of getting it done.. I always use copper anti-seize on anything that looks like it could be trouble....
So I'm winding down the receiver hitch and as usual I smoothed out the welds to a nice radius for most areas... And added some customization to my carrier in the way of some 2 inch. 3/16 thick lettering ...LOL....Yeah, I know.. Over the top again.. Now everything gets sandblasted and epoxy coated....



Oh, I'm a few steps ahead on the ideas here and I needed to upgrade the top two studs to a longer, metric thread stud for my new license plate relocation kit... More on that later..

 

Installed the tire in it's final resting place... Today's task was wiring the brake light and license plate relocation light.. All are LEDs...Keeping with the RC theme I snagged their spare tire license plate relocation kit for a Jeep JL and modified it to fit the 5x4.5 bolt pattern of the XJ.. Not much needed other than some filing and those two metric studs for the adapter lugs to work...


I added an LED brake ring for the HELO rim...Holy cow does it light up back there when you hit the brakes !!!

 

What an adventure this is. Damn good work. The attention to detail is astounding. Keep it up!

 

Thanks !! I've had a more fun building this than I ever expected... I've officially finished up the receiver hitch tire carrier... I made up my own version of a hitch pin for the carrier.. Starting with a 5/8 bolt I cut and welded a quick link on the head so I can grip the bolt... Then I found a cast iron **** with the correct 5/8-11 threads so I can tighten down the upper pin but still unscrew it for quick removal.. Now I have the best of both worlds.. A quick release pin and one that holds the post tight while in use..
The wiring for the brake ring and license plate LEDs come out from the original plate lense and have short weatherproof connectors for quick release when the carrier is tilted ...I added marine grease inside all pivot points as well as the slide area of the post/liner and it moves very smoothly...
On the highway it's quiet and tight... I'm confident this should last for years and I've still got room if I ever go with a bigger tire in the future...