Farm Jeep Build x4

[MBezner]

I have an addiction to the jeep build forum. So after drooling over all these awesome jeeps, I figured I better post my attempt to build my jeep along with a couple more.

I am a farmer in the far northwest Texas panhandle. We use center pivots to irrigate our crops. Center pivots require daily matainance and quite often provide us with hours of muddy, sweaty, nasty, repair. We use ATVs to get around. The ATV's dont seem to like the daily abuse we put them thru. So we thought we would try our jeeps, after all that's why jeeps were designed in the first place. I had a 2000 tj and my brother had a 2002 tj. We sold them to the farm and went looking for new jeeps. My brother found a solid 2012 jk and I found a modified 2011 JKU.

That's why I call this Farm Jeep build x4. Here they are.

Most all repairs and mods will be done in this shop that we use for our farm equipment.



The two jeeps use by the farm will be mostly repairs, but will post pictures. It will be interesting to see how they will hold up.
My brother Brian aka Dirt Rancher, will probably be posting his pictures of the mods he has made on his two jeeps and I will do the same. Thanks for looking hope you subscribe!

 

[USMC Wrangler]

Subscribed because I'm a sucker for build threads and 4 Jeeps at one time!

 

[MBezner]

2011 Silver JKU

The day I bought it.
View attachment 155534

2011 JKU Sahara
To the best of my knowledge the mods that it had when I bought it.
4 inch pro comp lift
Fox steering stabilizers
35 inch Goodyear Kevlar tires
Mickey Thompson wheels
Muffler doesn't sound stock
After market bumper with LED lights (can't find a tag on it to see what mfg)
KC lights

Sorry the pictures are sideways still learning.

So first thing I noticed was a lack of power. This is in 3rd gear, if I turn on the OD it constantly searches for gears on flat highway.

So she needs new gears...... We will come back to that.

View attachment 155537
The wife doesn't like heights so install some steps. She wouldn't let me buy sliders cause that wouldn't help her climb in.
I got into some deep water on front end and needed help getting back out. So I had to change my fan and my alternator. While I had the fan out I changed idler and tensioner arm and put a new serpentine belt on.

Went and did a little climbing in the mountains and heard or developed a horrible noise coming from the front end while in 4wd.View attachment 155538
Drained the oil in the diff and it looked like this. So I did both diffs 3 times over the next week.
View attachment 155539
Doesn't appear to be anything major wrong.

 

[MBezner]

So after some searching I found left u-joint was out. Replaced it on a Sunday and decided to just do the right side on Monday. Should be easy enough, repairs are always easier the second time you don't cause you've been thru it once already........ Wrong!

Went by the parts store and told them to give me the exact same u-joint so I could do the other side. Pulled it apart and hammered it out. Pressed it back in and I noticed the caps were much deeper in the yoke. Should have investigated more but I was in a hurry. Turns out the right side axle was different from the left side. Left is stock and the right axle is bigger. So I dig thru the trash and find the old u-joint and found two of the caps.
Don't have a picture but the cross has a number on it. Brought it all to town and started over at the pets store. Every number we traced came back to an axle made for a Dana 44? Can you even put a 44 axle in a 30? Maybe this is some of my diff problems? Already decided on 4.88 regear. So no big deal, I will get a matched set of axles at regear. While I had it in the shop I figured I would try and address the steering. Used the alignment write up.

Used this to make measuring toe more accurate. It also helped centering axle.
While I was wrenching around here I found the right spring looked odd.


This is the left spring.


Used the angle finder on my phone. Right caster appears to be very close to 0 degree. The left caster is about a -2.5. So I need more caster but why would it be so different from side to side. Did the previous owner hit something on right side and bend the axle or possibly turn the caster? That would explain the two different axles. Don't know I'm just speculating. Either way I need to regear so I'll just have the professional look at that too.

Installed a grill insert just before I drove it to the mechanic.

 

[Spudcannons]

Sweet looking farm workshop. That should be pretty fun to build 4 Jeeps at once but really expensive! But I guess you can write them off as business expenses!

 

[dillard09]

Now that's a shop to work on some jeeps. Good luck with 4 builds and repairs at once. Should be interesting to watch.

 

[Dirt Rancher]

Here are some pictures of my 2012 JK of the Farm Jeep x4 group getting a moderate Rancho Sport lift last Sunday. Couple days before.
Simple lift to install took about 2 hours to do but four hours to get the wheels off!
Throw away all those cheap ass chrome jacketed lug nuts!!!

 

[MBezner]

Out with the old in with the new

 

[OscarMike2.0]

Subscribed :thumb:

 

[Rodeo_jk]

Here are some pictures of my 2012 JK of the Farm Jeep x4 group getting a moderate Rancho Sport lift last Sunday. View attachment 155560 Couple days before. View attachment 155561View attachment 155562View attachment 155563View attachment 155564View attachment 155565
Simple lift to install took about 2 hours to do but four hours to get the wheels off!View attachment 155566View attachment 155567View attachment 155568
Throw away all those cheap ass chrome jacketed lug nuts!!!

How do you like that lift? I looked at it a couple times. Does it sit level? Hows the ride?

 

[MBezner]

On the way back together. This is on my 2000 tj.

 

[Logan1982]

Dirt Rancher

How does the Rancho 2" sport lift handle on the 2dr? Would you say better than the stock set up? How are the shocks? Does that front sit high or is it level?

 

[MBezner]

So I was checking my watermelon field this morning and found this

And I put my nephew to work tonight and he found this

Jeeps at work!!! He was eating my crop.

 

[MBezner]

The 2002 TJ getting some spring spacers. If the 33's still rub after the spring spacers I'll cut the fenders.

Not a jeep but Brian's pickup radiator developed a hole. So new rad will be here in two days.


His rancho suspension on his 2012 jk works dang good. He installed it himself and his wife drove it around and said there was no difference in the steering. The jeep might look a bit higher in the front but not much.

In the meantime she decided she like driving the jeep so much she traded her Tahoe off on a new one. So I guess I need to add another jeep to the tread, but I think he is going to leave this one stock for a little while.

 

[USMC Wrangler]

That's one heck of an addition! :thumb:

 

[Dirt Rancher]

The 2" Rancho Sport lift rides really well. I went with 9000 shocks and I like being able to adjust the ride. The lift is super easy to do; takes about 2 hrs to do. I will be doing my wife's new Rubi Altitude with the same lift shortly.

 

[MBezner]

We got tired of the stock wheels and bearings failing on our power washer so we gave it a lift kit today.

No flat tires!

 

[MBezner]

The 2000 tj got some new lights and rancho shocks.


The 2002 tj is waiting on brown Santa to bring new ball joints.

 

[Dirt Rancher]

Alicia's Rubicon Hard Rock got a touch of attitude today!

The 2015 Rubicon Hard Rock a.k.a The Rubix Cube; got a little lift today(Rancho Sport Lift). Mark n I with the help of hired man Doug installed it in hour and a half plus a beer break of 10 minutes (hotter than hell today)!! I think my brother Mark miss named this thread; it should've been "The Farm Rebuild x God Knows How Many!" Anyway here are couple pics from before and after of Alicia's Rubix Cube. Front Wheel before after rear wheel before Rubix Cube after

 

[CrazyTrainJK]

View attachment 158218The 2015 Rubicon Hard Rock a.k.a The Rubix Cube; got a little lift today(Rancho Sport Lift). Mark n I with the help of hired man Doug installed it in hour and a half plus a beer break of 10 minutes (hotter than hell today)!! I think my brother Mark miss named this thread; it should've been "The Farm Rebuild x God Knows How Many!" Anyway here are couple pics from before and after of Alicia's Rubix Cube. Front Wheel before View attachment 158217 after View attachment 158216 rear wheel before View attachment 158220 Rubix Cube after View attachment 158221

Looks good:thumb: So the new Rubi's are coming with BF Goodrich All Terrain KO2's ?