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New Project...

Discussion in 'Mini Lounge' started by Mighty Milt, Jan 29, 2009.

  1. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    Well guys, i hate to say it but i had to get rid of the mini. the economic crunch has just kicked my butt. work is slow and only working 30hrs a week meant selling off the toy. but that truck was enough to get me interested in 4 wheeling enough that i bought a street legal jeep. i've been doing a lot of wrenching and fab work on it lately and had a little money left over after selling the mini to put some money into the jeep. i took it out today just playing around and it deffinately has A LOT more suspension travel than the mini did and articulates really well. i won't dissapear, i promise. i still enjoy this forum a lot, but the economy sucks and we all have to make sacrifices.

    here's what i've been doing lately :D

    from this...
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    to this...
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  2. kepow

    kepow Member

    Sorry to hear that Milt...... please......and I admit these are or selfish reasons......keep sniffing around this site as guys with your knowledge and intelligence are few and far between
     
  3. greg0187

    greg0187 Moderator Staff Member

    OE Wheels, tube fenders and rock gaurds. Nice upgrades! What else you got planned?

    -Greg
     
  4. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    i got the JKS quick disconnects on the front swaybar that allows the articulation but snaps back on for street driving.. that's what i was working on today. i fabbed the rear bumper not for towing so much but for recovery. i installed a CB for trail rides. i pulled off all the bulky tail lights and put in truck 4" led's and the led's up front.

    it has the 4 banger and the 6 speed. i'm getting ready for the 4.88 gear sets, 33's or 35's and probably a 4" short arm lift. i'm having trouble deciding on which rear end to put in it. a 44 would be an easy swap if i could find one, but still considering the ford 8.8 out of the exploders or mountainers. once i have that in i should be doing good.

    kepow...

    don't worry bro, i sold the truck a couple weeks ago and am still hanging around, you all are a great bunch of people that i wouldn't give up for the world :D
     
  5. greg0187

    greg0187 Moderator Staff Member

    Cool! When I was looking for axles I saw a few peeps selling the rear D44 rubicon axle with the OE selectable locker. Nice but a bit pricey though. They make a ton of stuff for jeeps, lots of options too. Have you thought about converting the D30 on the front to a 30 spine or are U thinking about upgrading that one in the future. I hear they don't hold up well with tires > 33".

    -Greg
     
  6. Windmill

    Windmill Member

    A friend of mine built a rock crawler using 2 1 ton axles from a Ford F250. Put a v-8 350 in it has huge tires. Will try to send some pictures to you Milt.
     
  7. Timetripper

    Timetripper Moderator

    Jeep = 1
    Fire Hydrant = 0 :D
     
  8. cabinmini

    cabinmini Member

    It's Goregous!!

    Happy for you Milt. It looks like you've got an awesome project. Can't wait to see what you make of it:cool:! BTW welcome to white:D!
    Jim
     
  9. miniMOG

    miniMOG Member

    Is this the new 'Jeep pics thread'? LOL


    Great looking rig, Milt! Very clean Jeep!

    You dont want to know how much I have into this one!

    J ust
    E mpty
    E very
    P ocket

    We are going to the "Hammers" this weekend for some hardcore wheelin'.

    Maybe we'll meet up for some Jeeping sometime.

    Welcome to the club. I fabbed mt front bumper/winch plate, rock rails, and I am welding up a rear bumper in the morning- I'll post a pic when its done. That way I can thoroughly hijack your thread. lol

    I am on www.pirate4x4.com and Jkowners.com. Anything you ever need to know, or any part you would ever need is on Pirate. Check it out if you have not already.


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  10. jtpc

    jtpc Member

    :D You guys have got some good looking jeeps.
    I used to have a Jeep Wrangler unlimited with the bushwacker flares and 33" tires. (2" lift).
    Fun vehicles, but only got 15mpg average with the 6-cylinder.
    Gas crunch last year forced me to have to trade it.
    (plus I needed a truck anyway for towing)
     
  11. Windmill

    Windmill Member

    Hey ,Josh is that why you bought your Hijet????
     
  12. jtpc

    jtpc Member

    Hey Windmill,

    Sorry I wasn't clear. When referring to 'truck' there, I was talking about my Dodge 1-ton for towing. No, I didn't get the Hijet for towing. :)
    The Jeep could tow 3500lbs, whereas the dodge pulls 12,500 from the rear hitch.

    I bought the Hijet for the fuel economy (if that is your question).

    I love these trucks b/c ya get the fuel economy close to a smart car, yet have the truck bed and 4x4. :D
    I know gas prices are going to get high again--just a matter of time, so have to be prepared with something that is more efficient.

    ~Josh
     
  13. Windmill

    Windmill Member

    Nah, you bought the Hijet for the towing. lolololol I have friend at work who has been giving me hell for my little mini. Next weekend it is going to be ON. I am going to back my Mini up to his F250 and then hook up a tow rope to it. Then I am going to take pictures. After printing up some 8x10's I am going to go in the break room at work and post them before him goes to break. :pop:LOLOLOLOLOLOL That will teach him to mess with my little Honda "Nat"
     
  14. topherztoyz

    topherztoyz Member

    Wow Milt.. I've been thinking of selling or trading my Mini and been thinking about Jeeps also..
    Chris
     
  15. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    i haven't got enough money to do a big swap right now, like i said the economy sucks. i'm banking on my tax return for the gear sets and tires. i would love to get my hands on a rubi D44 with the e-lockers but yeah, they get a pretty penny for them. i'm just going to use the D30 & 35 for right now and upgrade as i destroy them :D but i have to go easy on this rig since it's my daily driver. with the 4cyl in it i get right at 20MPG so it's not too hard on the pocket book. i've looked at pirate a little bit, but my mainstay is www.virtualjeepclub.com there are a lot of knowledgable guys on there. they are an arizona based club and always planning local trail rides. i'm going on my first next saturday. there is so much preparation necessary for taking these out on the trails. i've spent nearly as much on my "crash kit" as i spent on upgrades. but without the crash kit a bad day wheelin' can turn disasterous. i think i posted this before, but here's a pic of the bumper i built and a good look at how i changed the tail lights out and got rid of the license plate holder and formed the plate to the tub.

    [​IMG]
     
  16. dwink

    dwink Member

    Jeeps are just cool! Whether it is a cj7, wrangler, or tj it does not matter, there is a certain kinship in owning a jeep! I've had a couple and just helped my buddy do a 304 conversion on a 82 scrambler. It is bada$$! The only thing he lacks is lockers and 456's. We had it in a gravel pit one night against a pinzgauer(which is pretty bada$$ itself) and we kept up until the front driveshaft came apart when we went up a 50 foot straight incline. He put a reverse shackle kit on it and did not extend the front drive shaft as directed.
     
  17. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    so, my jeep is going to the shop tomorrow for a front locker, 4.88 gear sets front and back and 33/12.50 x 15. i'll be bringing home a body lift and engine lift for it.

    this is all in lieu of my trip out last weekend. we went on "raw deal" and "upper terminator" my little 235/15's were so undersized i had a run of bad luck. i put a big ding in the r/r corner of the tub, forcefully removed half the exhaust, bent the skid plate and moved the trans up a couple inches, bent a driveshaft and wrecked the u-joints and ripped a sidewall. IT WAS AWESOME!! i'm hooked.

    here's where i hit...
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    what i was climbing when i slipped... (sorry about my ugly mug in there :eek:)
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    Last edited: Feb 12, 2009
  18. jtpc

    jtpc Member

    :D good photos. Sorry to say, but I'm thinking you maybe need a stock Rubicon with the straight six. Maybe with a 2" lift. (Then again you probably need more than that seeing what you are doing!)
    But I'm sure with enough money into this one and you'll have it set up where it'll handle your adventures.
     
  19. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    already got 2.5" lift with springs and spring spacers... have a body lift coming tomorrow... should get me up there pretty good. the 33's will be a big improvement, they are 5" taller than the tires i have now...

    i'll post pix tomorrow when i get it home :D
     
  20. greg0187

    greg0187 Moderator Staff Member

    Just a little boo boo. Looks like a blast. Hey, when you get a chance let me know what size the stock springs are... Length, outer diameter, I think they are also tapered at the ends so the OD of the taper would be nice to know as well. Alot of the brackets I've been looking at accept those springs.
     
  21. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    all the guys (and girls) out there, when they found out i had only made one payment on the jeep, said the missus would freak out about me dinging it up... quite the contrary, she said "you popped your cherry!" it's just a little rock rash, i can always cover it with the armor corners...


    btw... i have a set of stock springs you can have...
     
  22. greg0187

    greg0187 Moderator Staff Member

    If you can get the measurements I may want them. Just depends on if there is room. I'm thinking not.

    -Greg
     
  23. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    what measurements do you need, they are static now, not sure how to measure them otherwise....

    can give you overall height, width and taper... but don't have much to give you as far as load testing
     
  24. Timetripper

    Timetripper Moderator

    Milt, If I hid my Sambar down in the hollow then your suspension wouldn't have as far to flex :D
    You could just roll right over me :D
     
  25. greg0187

    greg0187 Moderator Staff Member

    I was just out measuring. Its hard to tell without brackets but somewhere around 16-18" in height, I can make up any difference in excess of that. Width is where I"m thinking its not gonna work. 3". I'm thinking those springs are in the neighborhood of 4-5". If I'm right I'm thinking I'm gonna have to use 2.0 coil-overs.
     
  26. Acerguy

    Acerguy Moderator Staff Member

    I just put some 33x13.5x15's on my rig this week. Well, they're for my John Deere. :D I'll have to post pics!
     
  27. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member

    i got my junk back from the shop today :D body lift, new gear sets, bigger tires... i was so excited i almost peed my pants....

    i got pix of it next to my full size dodge for good perspective on how big it is now :D

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  28. Mighty Milt

    Mighty Milt Active Member


    greg,

    finally remembered to measure the springs for you...

    Fronts are 17" OAL with 5" OAD. one end is 5" seat, other end is 4" seat.

    Rears are 13" OAL with 6.75 OAD and both ends have a 4" seat.
     

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  29. MiniBrutes

    MiniBrutes Member

    Those are some wicked photos. I love the one on the fire hydrant in the middle of no where.
     
  30. kepow

    kepow Member

    Milt does your wife have a sister?
     

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