Generic expo HPD30 8.8 build.

[albersondh]

I have been working on this for a long time now, years of pics below. Mostly doing easy non wheeling type mods. Did the natural progression of F/R swap and worked my way to a HPD30 with 4.10 and an aussie locker with IRO LA's. Got a 4.10 8.8, installed another aussie and now Im working on building my own doubel triangulated rears. Built a nice stereo system, CAI (with snorkel plans in the future), dual batteries, 4x4x.188 rockers/sliders, and a Ford e-fan. the 249 crapped out (surprise!) so I did a 242 a while back. This is for camping and not getting stuck, basic expo/cross country type stuff.

98 Limited 5.2
4" front 4.5" rear
NP242
HPD30 4.10 aussie
DIY rocker/sliders
CAI (soon to be snorkel)
IRO front LA's
DIY double tri rears (in progress)
8.8 4.10 aussie
35" on 17" rubies
Dual batteries
Waggy box
WJ knuckles, brakes, flipped steering.

Future stuff.
x2, 2000w inverters
OBA
Solar pannels
Hot water generator
Fuel cells
Bumpers
Electric cabbin heat with thermostatic control.
44 or 60 front maybe.




Currently building my rear LA's.

The CAI. Plan is to integrate a snorkel into the fender and up the a pillar.















Sliders 4x4x.188 (soon to be air tanks with OBA).

















Woofer.











Waggy box.





NP242





Happy times!!



Dual batteries.





Attempt to get the DW under control at 4".



E-fan.

[albersondh]

HP D30, WJ TR flip/brakes, IRO LA's, and track bar mount build.

TJ,XJ,ZJ (left to right).


Poweder coated goodness.





















SS bracket.





Track bar bracket.







8.8 prep. TIGed up the tubes with 304.





Truss building. Truss is 3x3x.188. I wasnt too comfortable with the penetration I was getting with my old 110 Lincoln, so I got a 210 HH for the bigger stuff now. Had an out of the box problem with the Hobart, so my initial welds suck. The feed was speratic as hell. Turned out it came with a free malfunctioning PCB. Replaced the PCB and it welds like butter now.







Fighting the messed up 210.



Started with some Ballistic spring perches but wanted to push the axle back a couple inches for the 35's. So I modified the perches with some 3x3x.25 angle. Boxed in the spring position so they cant slide around. Got the welder fixed...









No off the shelf links/mounts would accomodate my specific double triangulate requierments so I had to make my own. 3x3x.188. HF band saw rocking the house. Lower CA's are 26* and right at the end of the axle tubes.





Cummins drill press circa 1978 sucking the ass.





China special (Everlast) TIG/SMAW/Plasma doing work. Cutting out notches for joint articulation.



Axle lower CA and frame side x-mmbr mounts. Plated the frame with 3.5x.25 angle.




Building the lower CA x-mmbr.





Boxed the .188 link mounts pretty good.



And thats where Im at now. Still struggeling with getting enough verticale seperation frame side. I was dead set on frenching the uppers into the body, but looking at all the off the shelf kits Im thinking I will be ok with 4-5". AS will suffer but Im convinced that to get optimum numbers on the calc, your basicaly going to be building a buggy. Most kits look like about 3'ish". My x-mmber (3.5x3.5x.188) is flush with the x-fer case bottom and Ill be building a skid to help stiffin up the x-mmbr mounting and obviously protect the x-fer case. I could have hung the x-mmber lower to increase frame side VS but Im a ground clearance whore. Lower links are 2.5x2.5x.25, using 9/16 bolt creeper joints. Uppers are 2x2x.25, havent started on any of the upper junk yet. So thats where it is now. Just working on getting everything square and tacked in place at the moment. First time is taking FOREVER. I could do this again in less than half the time....

[FortCollinsZJ]

Nice work. Not a lot of double triangulated four link ZJ's. I think I ended up with 4-4.5" of vertical separation at the frame side. Works great. My cross member was 2x4, so my link mount hang below just slightly.




You should think about building thinner walled uppers though, you said 2x2x.25" uppers? That's WAY overkill. Claytons are 1.5" square .125" wall. Mine have beat the hell out of my floor pan, but they have yet to bend at all. Go .188 if you must, but .25 uppers is just extra weight for nothing.

[Jeeptech01]

Very nice work man. Ill be watching this build. I always wondered why you didnt have one here.

[ATL ZJ]

Quality work... impressive. Nice collection of tools too. You probably want to cut a short sleeve for that 4th steering box bolt just to ensure it stays tight. The plated framerail helps but something solid to preload against is better IMO. and don't over grease those creeper joints- it'll be a nightmare if you do!

[albersondh]

Quality work... impressive. Nice collection of tools too. You probably want to cut a short sleeve for that 4th steering box bolt just to ensure it stays tight. The plated framerail helps but something solid to preload against is better IMO. and don't over grease those creeper joints- it'll be a nightmare if you do!

IDK why I never sleeved that 4th bolt.... I think I wanted to use some black pipe or other cheap stuff, but the clearance was tight, so the tube/pipe wall had to be thin, so I wanted it to be DOM or something pretty strong/stiff that I wasnt able to get from Home Depot. Need to get that done.

Your advise is much appreceated, thank you.

You should think about building thinner walled uppers though, you said 2x2x.25" uppers? That's WAY overkill. Claytons are 1.5" square .125" wall. Mine have beat the hell out of my floor pan, but they have yet to bend at all. Go .188 if you must, but .25 uppers is just extra weight for nothing.

Your right I should do .188 uppers, my joints are 1.25x12, so Im stuck with 2". My lowers are like 45lbs per link 41.5" long.....

Your x-mmbr position is exactly where mine is going. Why didnt you just weld it in place? It looks like its bolted to brackets?

[FortCollinsZJ]

Your x-mmbr position is exactly where mine is going. Why didnt you just weld it in place? It looks like its bolted to brackets?

I did have it welded in originally, but it was tucked up so close to the T-case output, that If I needed to take out the case, I'd have a real PITA time doing so, also, I have plans for a hack and tap SYE. So I cut it all out, and rebuilt the crossmember to bolt in and out. 3 bolts per side, the first two are obvious, the third runs vertical, also it's the skid plate bolt, and is kind of camouflaged in the picture.

[Jeeptech01]

Looks like you ground on the outside of the unit brg. Was that to make the rotor fit?? What rotor did you use?

[albersondh]

Looks like you ground on the outside of the unit brg. Was that to make the rotor fit?? What rotor did you use?

I think it was 2001 exploder sport track rotors. The ID on the hat of the rotor is just a bit too tight for the unit brng flng. Idealy you would messure and have it (unt brng) machiened down. I spun mine against my bench grinder untill they fit. A note on this. Take the unt brng flanges down about 1/16 under the rotor hat id. First time I did it I took just enough off to clear, bad idea. They rust welded themselves in place. I ended up clearancing a bit more and antisiezing the hell out of everything. No issues since then, and no vibrations (out of balance) with my hack machien work.

[albersondh]

Your right I should do .188 uppers, my joints are 1.25x12, so Im stuck with 2". My lowers are like 45lbs per link 41.5" long.....

Looks like 1.5x1.5x.188 uppers are not going to happen. Cant find tube adapters in 1x14 -1.124 OD..... Sick of spending money on taps Ill use once in my life time as well. Looks like Im stuck with 1.5x1.5x.125 and Clayton tube adapters. Oh well, never heard of anybody tweaking a Clayton upper so I should be ok. More weight saving is plus.

[ogdak]

Very nice build, I like the headlight.

[Jeeptech01]

I think it was 2001 exploder sport track rotors. The ID on the hat of the rotor is just a bit too tight for the unit brng flng. Idealy you would messure and have it (unt brng) machiened down. I spun mine against my bench grinder untill they fit. A note on this. Take the unt brng flanges down about 1/16 under the rotor hat id. First time I did it I took just enough off to clear, bad idea. They rust welded themselves in place. I ended up clearancing a bit more and antisiezing the hell out of everything. No issues since then, and no vibrations (out of balance) with my hack machien work.

Ok so you used the 99 up brgs and 01 sport trac rotors with no spacers..right?

[albersondh]

Ok so you used the 99 up brgs and 01 sport trac rotors with no spacers..right?

99+ unt brngs are 5x5, the sport track rotors are 5x4.5. So keep the unt brngs 98-older (5x4.5). Gotta run the spacers. I know your planning on keeping the inverted-y and just flipping it, so I added a couple pics of the ZJ inverted-y being used on WJ knuckles below. Also, check the parts in the below pics, with the pn#'s facing out. Thats everything you need to do the brake swap.

[Jeeptech01]

Thanks for posting that. I was referring to the 99 up xj/tj unit bearings not the WJ ones. They are 5x4.5 and, as I understand it, makes spacing the caliper bracket with washers unnecessary. IIRC if you look up rotors for a 99 or 00 XJ/TJ there are two different pn's because of the hat depth.

[albersondh]

Thanks for posting that. I was referring to the 99 up xj/tj unit bearings not the WJ ones. They are 5x4.5 and, as I understand it, makes spacing the caliper bracket with washers unnecessary. IIRC if you look up rotors for a 99 or 00 XJ/TJ there are two different pn's because of the hat depth.

So your saying the depth from the unt brng knuckle mount surface to the wms (x in below pic) is deeper on the 99-00 XJ-TJ unt brng, if Im understanding correctly? Below part info from rockauto for reference. The flange is not as wide on the XJ-TJ, so maybe no grinding to fit into the esploder rotor hat, thats a good thing. Need to take a caliper to the parts store and find the depth difference, I cant tell from the below specs. I wonder if the ZJ hub brngs are bigger based on the flange dia being bigger and the additional weight, something else to look at and consider if applicable. The 4.0 and V8 ZJ unt brng has the same pn#, I was curious if they went smaller on the 4.0, no same thing.



1998 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE LIMITED 5.2L 318cid V8 MFI (Y) OHV : Brake/Wheel Hub : Axle Bearing and Hub Assembly WikiPriceTIMKEN Part # 513084 Tapered Bearing; 4.5 in. Bolt Circle Diam; 6.062 in. Flange Diameter; 2.133 in. Flange Offset; Modified Flange Shape; 71.4248 mm Wheel Pilot Diam


1998 JEEP GRAND CHEROKEE LIMITED 4.0L 242cid L6 MFI (S) OHV : Brake/Wheel Hub : Axle Bearing and Hub Assembly WikiPriceTIMKEN Part # 513084 Tapered Bearing; 4.5 in. Bolt Circle Diam; 6.062 in. Flange Diameter; 2.133 in. Flange Offset; Modified Flange Shape; 71.4248 mm Wheel Pilot Diam


2000 JEEP CHEROKEE 4.0L 242cid L6 FI (S) OHV : Brake/Wheel Hub : Axle Bearing and Hub Assembly WikiPriceTIMKEN Part # HA597449 Ball Bearing; 4.5 in. Bolt Circle Diam; 5.984 in. Flange Diameter; 1.907 in. Flange Offset; Modified Flange Shape; 71.425 mm Wheel Pilot Diam


2000 JEEP WRANGLER 2.5L 150cid L4 FI (P) OHV : Brake/Wheel Hub : Axle Bearing and Hub Assembly WikiPriceTIMKEN Part # HA597449 Ball Bearing; 4.5 in. Bolt Circle Diam; 5.984 in. Flange Diameter; 1.907 in. Flange Offset; Modified Flange Shape; 71.425 mm Wheel Pilot Diam

[Jeeptech01]

Yea look for the model year tj or xj that unit bearing pn's change. Or rotor pn's. I have run into it several times. If you get the wrong ones put together you will bolt the wheel on and tighten it and it wont turn LOL. IIRC Djjordache mentioned it in my knuckle swap ?? thread.

[Jeeptech01]

Any reason you decided to use the cheaper balljoints for the upper and moogs for the lower? Id love to have a reason to save $60.

[albersondh]

Updates. Links are done.

UCA's frame side mounted as high as possible.



Ended up needing an extra inch of axle VS I built the truss a bit too low. It looks like the UCA mounts are just hanging but I actualy used some .25 angle and braced the part that hangs off upward to the truss, shits not going anywhere.





LCA's. Ended up bolting in the x-mmbr to some .188 sq tube I welded onto my frame supports (3.5x.25 angle). My skid is going to further support the LCA x-mmbr by tying it to the tranny x-mmbr. Also going to come up with something that supports it rearward closer to the UCA mounts. My skid is going to be .188 with .25 ange frame work to reinforce it and give mounting points for bolts.

Two .50 bolts going front to rear and one button head going through the bottom (each side). The tube that the x-mmbr slides onto centers it and provides some support. The rest of the support will come from the skid and planned additional rearward mounted brackets. Notice the .25 shim between the bottom of the mounting tube and x-mmbr. This gives me the VS I need and can be adjusted later if needed. Obviously this is a mock up shot, its all burned in tight now.



The DS is close, this is with the OE slip shaft hanging, I clearanced out the x-mmber a bit just be sure Ill be set with the CV shaft that is in route (41.5").







This shows how I forward mounted my perches, boxed them in to keep the springs from sliding around, and tied in the LCA mounts.

[albersondh]

No way the shocks were going to fit using the OE mounts. Used some 1.75x.125 wall tube (1.5 id) and made extensions that shoot back. Added a couple mounting holes so I can adjust the angle of the shocks. Also chopped off the lower shock mounts, welded on some 5/8 nuts, got some chromoly hardened 3 piece (Teflon) hiems and chopped them down. The heims are now my lower shock mounts, only added about .25 of length to the shock body at the nounting center of the heim vs the standard shock mounts. Since their just threaded into the nuts I welded to the shocks they are servicable as well. Used some Teflon tape on the heim threads to keep everything very tight without having to bottom the heim threads out on the bottom of the shock. I tightened them till the bottom of the heim threaded end contacted the shock, then backed out about 1/4 turn.

Shock on the OE chasis mounts with the suspension at rest, no bumpy, must have angle.



Shock mounts. Use 5/8 bolts.









Spaced out the lower tabs for the heims to 1.5", in case it sucks I can always switch to a standard shock.



Flexing it out and checking for bindage on the shock heims. 22* heims, more than enough to prevent shock bind.







You cant see it but I welded a 1/2 bolt to the rear of this mount that goes up through the floor into the cargo area. Its sandwiched between 2 .25 plates, dont want to rip through the sheet metal....



Full bump.



17" drop.

[albersondh]

I tried to get a TJ sway bar to mount in front of the axle but pretty much no way with the lowers triangulated, no room. Sooo I had to use a Esploder sway. I not thrilled with it, because of my truss I couldnt get the axle mounting tight to the axle. So it stands off a bit, about 1", looks gastly, like a hulahoop, and while it is above centerline of the axle tube, it would almost certainly fawk my departure angle..... Had to off set the axle mounting just about .25" to the driver side to clear the gas tank, also had to hack the shit out of the tank skid to get the bar links room to work. Only get about 6-7" of drop with the bar attached, so while it will work for on road, obviously it comes off for good times. The upper link mounts I made from tube and attached to the farthest forward skid/hitch mounting bolt location. Had to cut and rework the links a bit, but it came out as well as I could have hoped for and seems to work just fine when static flexing.

The Esploder SB mounting holes are just shy of .50", now mine are .50".



Reworking the links. Had to cut out about 1" of straight on one side and 1" of angle on the other.





Upper link mount (bolts to furtherst forward gas tank skid / hitch mount location).



It fits.



You can kind of see how I worked the stock ZJ brake lines around the back of my spring perches and over the truss. Didnt have to build any brake lines it all worked out just fine including the OE main hose from the chasis to the axle. The e-brake lines just start to get tight at full drop, Ill have to run the adjusters a bit loose. Used Esploder pads and cowlipers with ZJ rotors and e-brake shoes/hardware. ZJ pads wont fit over the slider ears on the axle without clearancing the axle or the pads about .20, and Esploder pads wont fit into ZJ cowlipers sooo thats how it worked out for me. EBC greenstuff pads.



Holahoop...

[albersondh]

Finished up my bump stops, got the brakes all worked out, limiting straps are done. Just gotta finish up the skid / LCA x-mmbr mounting, and build my exhaust. I have my left over WRX exhaust and guess what, its 2.5" and ss, SCORE! So I will have hybrid ZJ/WRX exhaust..... I may even use the WRX cat. Stock my WRX did about the same WHP as the 5.2 does at the FW so I think the OE WRX cat will be fine. Fishing around the jungle gym of links is going to be a chore, watch for lots of pie cut ss tube... Im using a 50 series FlowMaster and it is a TIGHT fit between the tranny x-mmbr and the LCA x-mmber going to have to work out some tight hangers to keep it from tap dancing between the chasis and x-mmber's.

[5.9 ANDY]

great looking build man.

my biggest regret with my jeep is buying a suspension kit, now i wish i did what you did and just build my own kit.

[Technohead]

Nice work!

[Jeeptech01]

Nice work and killer update! Im surprised you left all the abs shit on the top of the housing. I Leveled and filled it. There are pics and a brief description in my build if you are interested.

And this please \/

Any reason you decided to use the cheaper balljoints for the upper and moogs for the lower? Id love to have a reason to save $60.

[albersondh]

Any reason you decided to use the cheaper balljoints for the upper and moogs for the lower? Id love to have a reason to save $60.

Honestly at the time thats what the parts joint had and I dont have any reservations running TRW stuff. If they had Moog I would have done it that way. If I recal correctly the WJ knuckles have a bit of a different tapper so ZJ or XJ BJ's wouldnt work. I would love to learn that this is not correct but all my research led me to believe this, stupid ass WJ BJ's are $$$. I think I had more money into the BJ's than the knuckles and brakes combined..... When/if I need to service them, assuming I dont find a HP44 or 60 first, I would be looking for a way to do something with the knuckles (ream, ect) that would allow me to use an XJ or ZJ BJ.