Baystate Jeepers

So I have changed my forum names a few times over the years. Now that my TJ is long dead and my aborted attempt at getting back into one with my newly aquired soon to be gone 03 Rubicon I figure its time to shake things up again. I was never "voodoo chili" and it wasnt Voodoo Chile the country... It was one of the best songs by James Marshal Hendrix... In ode to a blues giant long gone by I am changing my screen name to reflect one of my favorite Junior Wells Songs.... Hoodoo Man Blues.

My 2012 JKU hasn't been completely stock in a while as I got new Duratrac tires about 50K miles or 2 years back. They served me very well in the snow and on the street and were significantly better than street tires. they worked well on the trail but it was a low rider for sure. Last may before Rausch I added a bunch of RockHard4x4 skids under the tub covering the engine and T case. I also remounted my old "Body Armor" rock sliders/steps that I took off of my 07 JKU before trading it in. The build worked surprisingly well at Rausch but was supposed to be a one off minimal use wheeler as it was my DD. I got lots of pin striping and a decent dent/scratch on the passenger door that trip. It handled a number of black, blue and greens nicely. The Jeep had a nice stable stance and I liked the LCG in it compared to my slinky like TJ.




Over the summer I had the misfortune of buying a RockHard front bumper which allowed me to mount a winch and take the low rider on more difficult trails and go deeper into the black trails... well because those are the trails that matter to me and are where I find my zen. It was all down hill from there...

A few weeks after Fall Crawl I sold off my RCV Shafts and then almost immediately fell into a deal on 03 Rubicon having just bought a set of D60 axles for my 71 Jeepster. Ok the sale of those shafts funded that purchase of the D60s. The 03 Rubicon has some rust issues with the body mounts and despite some amazing efforts between Kurt and myself doing a marathon refresh of plugs, belts, fluids and more followed by a second session with Ish,



Sadly I ran out of steam and the TJ wasn't quite ready when Crawling For A Cure rolled around on the calendar. I'm still pissed at the Dip Chit that tore my TJ apart and left it in little pieces... being exhausted after the event I still wasnt able to get the body mounts resolved. So when the ENH Fall Crawl came around the JK got dusted off for yet another trip. With no lift I was able to go places a stock Rubicon got stuck.

The JKU now with a Winch was also tapped to head to Stumpridge where my lowrider was stumped and I broke my winch and badly damaged my bumper.




Sadly I ran out of steam and the TJ wasn't quite ready when Crawling For A Cure rolled around on the calendar. I'm still pissed at the Dip Chit that tore my TJ apart and left it in little pieces... being exhausted after the event I still wasnt able to get the body mounts resolved. So when the ENH Fall Crawl came around the JK got dusted off for yet another trip. With no lift I was able to go places a stock Rubicon got stuck. I also went up a number of ledges and small rock gardens better than I could have imagined.... Then I was able to drive it home with all my gear and plenty of room to spare.




It was time for a change....

I spoke in vague terms to my incredible wife of wanting to put a small lift and bigger tires on it. 2.5" BDS or Terra Flex maybe... and the 35" MTR/K off the TJ perhaps.... So around the fall meeting I sent out a few messages and posted up about an improptu wrench fest. Thankfully The Kurt and Ish once again were free and it was on! A quick run out to Offroad Elements after the meeting had a lift kit in my trunk and a chance coversation with a friend from Crawling For A Cure Offroad lead to spacers to run my old 35s.... We're getting the old band back together... We're on a mission from God....

So in a very full day last weekend The Kurt, Ish and I spent some quality time under the JKU putting in a Tera Flex 2.5" lift kit, replaced the springs and shocks with TF stuff, relocated the rear track bar, replaced the rear diff cover with a HD one off one of my other axles, changed the oil and replaced a very stuck rotor and worn brake pads. Kurt also employed a trick with a bottle jack and chain to fix the front bumper. WE mounted the replacement winch and found the bolts were a bit too short... Got it in "good enough for now" and called it a day... We started around 10am and didn't finish until 730PM. We cleaned up Wayne's shop, rolled his boat back into the bay with the lift and Ish went one way, Kurt went the other and I drove up the road a mile or less and had massive death wobble.
Starting height...


In all the time they have sold this bumper which is thick steel they have never seen this kind of failure (result of Stumpridege stuck....)
[URL=http://s961.photobucket.com
/user/jpcamb/media/2012%20JKU/IMG_5419_zpsl3fpemnc.jpg.html][/URL]




After




Exhausted but not beaten, I brought the Jeep over my neighbors shop. Sure enough the upper and lower Ball joints were basically bad after 95K miles on them and the TRE were shot. A quick message to The Kurt and a call to Elais and we had a plan. New Synergy Ball joints on both sides and a Synergy Tie Rod.



So today I brought it to Sullivan Tire in Nashua and got it properly aligned by Jim thier master alignment guy. It took him an hour or so to get it dialed in to where he wanted the Tie rod but the Jeep now handles like a dream. I've heard people say their Jeep handles better after a lift than it does factory and I am now a beliver. The JKU rubicon shocks had plenty of life in them still but the stock springs gave a harsh ride. The Jeep rides like its on a cushion now.. Still have to figure out the proper tire pressure on the MTR as the jeep seems a tiny bit off. I have them at 30PSI but will drop them to 25 0r so tomorrow.

An enormous thanks to the Jeeper of the year and our DAL for all their help and laughs getting the JK up and ready for Rausch Creek Friday!

and finally RIP Voodoo Chile... You were an amazing beast in your day, Karma will get the POS that broke you and nearly broke me...

Very nice write up, glad you got the death wobble solved and that Jim was able to dial in the alignment well for you. Never had an issue with him. He is the go to guy for the simple front end alignment.