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AndyZJ
07-11-2007, 10:31 PM
I've been snooping around here for a while now and just figured i'd finally introduce myself before making comments on threads of any importance. I'm 22 years old and live in Delaware. I've been wheeling for a while now. My family has always had Jeeps and my first GC was a hand me down from my dad when i was 17. I was a shitty 6 cylinder Limited. One night taking a cruise with some friends, i saw a small path through the grass. Well after a long night of the old "my 4wd will save me" method, i gave up and called the dad. He brought out his flatbed tow truck the next morning and popped me out. After driving to the shop with a Jeep covered in mud, i wanted more. So next i got a ZJ with a V8 5.2L (gas was cheaper). 3" Rancho lift and 31" BFG muds. That Jeep helped me learn alot of things about getting stuck, getting out, getting around things, and lots of lessons of offroading.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/Jeep2.jpg

Sadly after 2-3 years of wheeling this jeep, it couldn't last. I was coming home one night from Universal Technical Institute where i go to school. As i entered an intersection going about 45-50mph, an elderly man decided i wasn't there and made a left hand turn right in front of me. I struck him full force, t-boned in the passenger door. I went over him integra and rolled 3 times. Not wearing my seatbelt i was knocked out for 3 hours and woke up in the hospital with someone stitching my eye back together. The older man wasn't so fortunate. This is what my ZJ looked like after wards.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3282.jpg

Snapped the control arm brackets off the axle and exploded the Tcase.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3285.jpg

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3286.jpg

So when the insurance for the man came through with a check for $2500 for the wrecked ZJ, i decided i needed another ZJ to make me feel right at home driving again. So i purchased a '93 Limited V8 from a salvage auction for $600. My dad owns a junkyard and that's how we were able to get it so cheap at such a place. After months of body work to fix the rear from where it was hit, it was up in running order. Now for a lift. I was going to do short arm, but knowing i had money now and enough experience(i think) to move to the next level, i decided long arm. So the only one in my price range was Rusty's. :smt067Oh this will be fun to hear replies about. But don't worry i'll get back to that. I have had it now since January '07.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3301.jpg

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3302.jpg

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3307.jpg

These are when it was just done. Took all weekend to put it on at the shop. PITA! Also if anyone noticed, its all black with no badges. I love it that way.

I didn't really feel safe with the way Rusty's LA was bolted to the unibody i needed some reinforcement so i welded some 1/4" angle iron between the front and rear mounts.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/HPIM0696.jpg

This was actually a really good idea because i then heard horror stories about the brackets shifting and cracking the unibody and the drilled holes elongating and all kinds of stuff. So anyway i could stiffen it up was good until i came up with something else.

So then after thinking long and hard about how horrible a design that crossmember upfront was, i gathered up $300 and called up clayton's and bought a crossmember. I then began practicing welding alot with the Lincoln welder my dad uses all the time. Then a guy down the street was selling an old arc welder and it had higher amp output and was a new style of welding so my dad and i decided that might be cool. So i began practicing that art and when i was good and confident i welded the Clayton crossmember to my underbody. Thank god my dad had a yard full of Grands to practice unibody welding on. So after that i needed something to do with the side mounts left from the Rusty's kit.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3462.jpg

Cut them up!!
And make some reinforcements for the Clayton crossmember.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3468.jpg

And then welded that back up to the 1/4" angle iron running from there to the rear control arm bracket.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3469.jpg

And that is where i'm at now.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a32/AndyZJ/122_3347.jpg

zj95maxx
07-11-2007, 10:34 PM
Trim that front bumper up!!


Looks good man.

AndyZJ
07-11-2007, 10:49 PM
Geez max, always with the front bumper. I'm working on a tube bumper for the front and rear and i'm going to give the front bumper to my dad to sell at his junkyard. No point in wasting good parts.

SOLITUDE
07-11-2007, 10:55 PM
You forgot to include the clayton crossmember.

AndyZJ
07-11-2007, 11:03 PM
Haha, i just added that part when you posted before i edited it.

ELLLLLIOTTTTT
07-11-2007, 11:08 PM
Not to be a jerk, but I wouldn't trust those welds holding on suspension related components.

OverkillZJ
07-11-2007, 11:09 PM
I was thinking the same thing... I'd hate to see you wreck the new ZJ too :)

zj95maxx
07-11-2007, 11:14 PM
It does look like you melted alot of shit.

AndyZJ
07-11-2007, 11:18 PM
Yea those pictures i think don't do it much justice. I had all fresh metal to weld to in both spots and after they were joined i ran a puddle up above thinking i'd build the weld out. I never burned through the unibody when i welded on the crossmember. I should have taken better pics of those welds. I concentrated more on the thicker metal and wacked at them see if they were actually holding. What do you think is the issue? I'm open to criticism, after all i'm driving this shit and don't want another mishap.

Ex-Nihilo
07-11-2007, 11:55 PM
You want the weld to look like what was done on the clayton crossmember. Cleaning the metal is a good start. I really can't say much though I just play a welder on the internet.

*Edit*I would grind those out and reweld it. Also when you weld to unibodies (sheetmetal) you need to stitch weld it so you don't warp it.

Cue-Ball
07-12-2007, 10:54 AM
That is SOME damage to the first ZJ, the TC exploding is classic (which TC by the way, if it is a 249 that will be the official picture of the POS from now on I am sure).

I too like the black look with no badges.

But I agree you need to address those welds!!!!!

But looking good man, now you just need to pony up for a Clayton kit and you will be set.

rccolacc
07-12-2007, 11:36 AM
In his defense:
All stick welds look like crap when you take a picture of them without cleaning them. I bet he used a 6011 rod, which is perfect for the dirty metal he was welding to to get good penetration. 6011s make a lot of weld spatter and aren't pretty by any means, especially when you take a picture of them. The fact that he got anything welded vertical and upside down on the underside of the Jeep with a stick welder is pretty amazing in my book. Besides, if the welds fail it's still bolted on. I had trouble MIGing my muffler on...
Everyone brings up good points here though. I'd be checking the unibody around those welds often for cracks. No one's sure of the stresses you'll put on your suspension, but due to the high heat of a stick welder I wouldn't be surprised if it starts to crack.

AndyZJ
07-12-2007, 12:00 PM
That was a 231 Tcase in the busted Grand. I used 6013 sticks for the welds. I haven't seen any cracks in welds or unibody yet, but i will look out for that. I had good penetration. I ground everything down before welding to it, but the powdercoating on the side member melted off. I'll admit that some spots look kinda hot and i probably stayed in them too long, but the main parts that look burned were from the stick getting stuck to the metal and having to pull it off. It creates a poof of dark coating. It was hard welding upside down with that stick. And everytime some extra splatter would come off that shit would burn sitting on my shirt for a while. But i took my time. And like was already said, if the welds break i still have the bolts welded to it and the rusty's side support to hold it on. So i'm sure its not going anywhere.

adam99wj
07-13-2007, 03:39 PM
nice rig!!!!! all it needs now is some d60s and some coilovers !!1

i hate welding sheet metal with a stick , dont feel bad

AndyZJ
07-15-2007, 08:31 PM
Well i have a 8.8 with a limited slip and discs waiting to be swapped in, but first i wanna find a front HP30 with a matching ratio, then i'll move up to 35's and go from there.

The main reason i wanted to do some stick welding is because any monkey can use a mig welder. Maybe this monkey should have stuck with that.

OverkillZJ
07-16-2007, 10:51 AM
The main reason i wanted to do some stick welding is because any monkey can use a mig welder. Maybe this monkey should have stuck with that.


That's fine and dandy, but if you can't use stick well enough why start with suspension parts?

AndyZJ
07-18-2007, 09:26 PM
I practiced with the stick welder before i decided to just jump into the suspension parts. I have confidence in my welds.

AndyZJ
07-19-2007, 10:53 PM
Beat the hell out of the ZJ today in Jersey. It performed awesome and after all was said and done, not a single crack in any of the welds. It was so nice to have some solid suspension under there now since the Rusty's crapmember is gone.