The Silver Mullet:

[AgitatedPancake]

It's all lookin pretty damn good man, nice work! I like the new clearance in the rear a lot hehe.

[FortCollinsZJ]

Paul, it does look very tall in the back, but I still only have 4.5" springs, my perches on the 8.8 are about 1.25" off the axle, (stock is maybe 3/4" or 1") Cutting all that I did, and raising the tank, definitly makes it look alot taller. I may get some 3.5" springs and see how that works out, but then I will definitly have to relocate my upper shock mounts to accomodate a decent length shock. 3.5" and 35"s would be pretty bad ass though.

Ben, I did keep all the trim pieces, some have some paint chips, and little dents or dings, and they are painted dark grey (not sure if that was factory, or what) I'm not sure what yours look like, PM me and let me know which piece or pieces you need. I also hvae a ton of the little white clips that hold the trim onto the body.

Jeep tech, thanks for noticing the fender trim, it definitly came out a little better the second time around, although I am still happy with how they both came out. You may notice the front fenders are trimmed, but I welded in a 16 gauge 1" wide strip back into the fender to add support and clean up the sharp edge. All that may be replaced with tube, wasted time.

Poser5.9, I only did one side so far for the rails, the other is planned for this weekend, I can take a few more pics along the way if anyone wants them.

Greg, thanks dude, looks like you may need to go the same route, keep you from flexing that bumper into the body so much.

[Jeeptech01]

I didnt notice the lip added before but I do now. Nice touch. I'll have to look into the durabak. It looks cool. Did you tint it? Concerned about how well it will hold up?

ed: Im curious how this compares to the raptor liner I used on my interior.

[FortCollinsZJ]

The Durabak was already tinted dark gray, they offer a ton of colors and shades. I specifically chose grey over black for the reason that if it fades, it will just be a lighter gray, when black fades it looks like shit usually. I also opted for the UV version of Durabak, it has a UV protection in it, and is supposed to strongly resist fading due to the sun.

As for how it will hold up, I painted a small piece of the fender that I cut off on the front, (3"x3") after the durabak was dry, I folded the piece in half both directions and the durabak never even cracked. I believe it is all in the prep too though, I sanded everything down, and cleaned it with Xylene prior to rolling it on.

I am definitely satisfied with the product.

[FortCollinsZJ]

Got the C and D pillar done on the cage. This thing is going to be a pig when it's done, which sucks. I am definitly building a lighter front bumper soon. Probably tube, and a little bit of plate. We'll see.

Got the tube work done around the tail lights, it all ties into the frame, and you can see the D pillar frame tie in aswell.













Flexed it out on a stump (no stacking to cheat) I was surprised how easy it would climb the stump being about verticle and without a locker in the front. The cage work has already stiffened up the chassis, the lifgate will open and close fine with the jeep fully flexed, not so before the cage.

[zj95maxx]

Looks good dude. That C pillar hoop has a lot of bends in it which makes me un-easy, but it has plenty of support I suppose. Doing two X bars? that is a lot of tube!

[Kraqa]

that looks sick.....

i LOVE the rear cagework and bumper. and the comp cut style behind the rear tires. i always wanted to do that.

keep posting i will follow this close.

[leeanderthal]

Very cool build! Keep it coming!

Cage looks BA. How is it tied to the floor?

[FortCollinsZJ]

Maxx, I trust the bends in the "C". Straight would have been stronger, yes, but I wanted something that hugged the interior walls a bit more. In a hard corner hit, the load will be spread through the X and not through the pillar bar much anyway. And yes there will be two X's.

Kris, I gotta give credit to the "Splinter" build for giving me the idea for the tube around the tail lights, RacerX did it first.

Lee, the D pillar has a 3"x3"X 3/16" plate welded to the floor directly above the spring perches, with enough room for holes for coilovers behind the X (maybe someday)

I really don't like how heavy this thing is getting, even with a relatively light rear bumper, and the small amount of tubework I have completed. Plans are to look into tubing the front clip, narrowing the grill for a dovenose, a small stinger, flush mounted winch spot, and all built on a ladder style tube frame from the frame rail forward, sans the fenders, and big ass front bumper. Its alot of work, but it's looking pretty necessarry to trim any weight I can without sacrificing integrity or cabin comfort. (not going full buggy with this, I like a windshield and roof, hence the soon-to-be exo roof halo)

[rstrucks]

I love the raised floor and the high clearance rear tube work. Looks really good and it gives me ideas for mine. Nice work.

[FortCollinsZJ]

Ditched the Claytons radius arms. Flexy four link is in. Also got the B pillar done a while back, and I'm ready for the roof halo to go on. No pics of the tube work right now though.











Also got a good final skidplate made up, I was going to clock the T-case for a flat skid, but I kkept the 70.00 and just built a skid trap on the bottom. Holes are for water drainage. 1/4" plate, bent up at Metal Distributors.

[Jeeptech01]

Nice work. Is the whole skid 1/4? Guess on weight?

[FortCollinsZJ]

Solid 1/4". I'd guess about 70-80lbs. So less than a winch bumper, minus the winch.

It is definitely the single heaviest piece of steel I have added to the jeep. My rear bumper is obviously a minimal piece, and I currently lack a front bumper, as it was a bit too heavy for my liking. So far though, I don't notice the added weight, especially being that it is down low, and centered about 50/50.

[SirFuego]

Skid looks great! However, did you add any additional support to middle of the skid? I'd assuming that welded area for tcase clearance will add support, but long spans of unsupported 1/4" will bend. This is especially important if you designed it with a tight tolerance to the stuff it's protecting. I'd recommend some angle iron for additional support to the skid.

With the exception of the skid trap, the design is very similar to Clayton's -- which I have bent upwards. IIRC Maxx had a similar design with his and ended up welding in some angle iron as well.

I would love to see someone do an FEA on that skid design for both 1/4" and 3/16" supported and unsupported with tubing and/or angle iron. I'd be curious if a 3/16" supported design is lighter and stronger than a 1/4" unsupported skid.

[FortCollinsZJ]

It's not going anywhere. both bends added a ton of strength, and the skid trap made it even better. I can lift the jeep from the weakest point in the skid with a floor jack, with no deflection at all. I have maybe 3/4" to the t-case under the skid trap anyway.

I had an idea of cutting a piece of 1 3/4" tube in half, length wise after bending the ends down, then welding it to the top of the skid as a reinforcement, like the angle iron idea, just with rounded ends and top. I saw how bad Maxx's skid bent, but this one doesn't seem like it will have any problems. I guess I should have added some ribbing before it was painted and installed though.

[SirFuego]

The Clayton's skid has those bends, too. So basically it comes down to how much support that skid trap adds. Hopefully it'll be enough. At least that additional support of the skid trap is at the most important part -- where the tcase is.

[chadjans]

What did you end up for vertical seperation at the axle?

How bad does the front end unload on assents?

[CrawlerReady]

Updates? I want to see some pics of that skid installed man!!

[Jeeptech01]

Tubework pics!!

[Kraqa]

noce work man keep going.

i wana see some finished shots!

[FortCollinsZJ]

Chad, the unloading feels a bit less than the Claytons, It doesn't behave much different until it starts flexing out, hitting potholes at 40, or braking hard, then I can realy see the difference. I have plans of a center limit strap on the front anyway, the front end pops up too much on big whoops, always has.

Went to lake Powell for a week, and saw some fun wheeling spots close by, made me really itch for Moab! I want to try to go in Oct. Still slowly working on the jeep, just redid my trackbar mount on the axle, it was around the stock location, now its 4" over the tube, MUCH better roll center now, and the trackbar wont hit the diff cover bolts now. I also got a pair of 11" Big Black Cock Shocks from Poly Performance, and added some mounting points in front of the gas tank, off the cage, inside the cab, I now have 7" up travel (should be about 5" after tools etc are added to the jeep.) much better than the 2.75" or 3" I had before. and the downtravel maxes just as the springs get loose. Perfect for me.

This is all I have for pictures though. Here you Go Tyler.

[FortCollinsZJ]

Here are a few new puctures. Got The b pillar done and painted a while ago, and the interior shock mounts aswell. Also built a trail vise that plugs into my receiver.

[Arsonist_Bob]

very clean. i like it

[Joe Lynch]

Nice.

[downtowncb]

Was that hitch vice a kit or something? It looks professional. If not, how did you cut out the thick stuff for the jaws?