Roll Cage 2

I decided to have someone else install the cage.  There were a few reasons for this:

1.  I've welded a lot on this rig, but mostly on non-safety things.   I'm not a great welder.
2.  From assembling those Metal Tech tube fenders and my own sliders, I know that I don't have a lot of patience for fitting tubing (notches, gaps).
3.  My wife didn't want me in the garage weekend after weekend working on this.

So I took it to a local bumper fabricator.  He also does custom stuff (like a rear 3rd gen 4runner bumper that he's working on now).  He does very good work and I'm really please with the job he did assembling this kit.  He would've built the cage from scratch, but we decided to order the kit in the end.
 
http://backwoodsbumpers.com/

I dropped off the cruiser at his shop last Friday and he was done by this Friday!  Over the years and all my project vehicles, I've taken work to a shop probably 10-15 times.  Usually, it sits around and becomes last priority for the shop.  This was literally the best experience I've had--and he is super busy. He's 8 weeks out on all orders (I had to wait 10-11 weeks to get this work scheduled).

Roll Cage

I realized that my son's car seat wouldn't be covered with my current roll bar, so I ordered a family roll cage from Redline Cruisers.  It wasn't the smoothest process getting the cage.  It took a couple months.  Half of it got lost in the mail and had to be re-sent.  The main pieces were delivered just as you see in the picture (tape barely holding them together, torn FedEx label).   The shorter pieces came in a nice box.

Here's a link to their website:  http://www.redlinelandcruisers.com/items.php?FamID=1&CatID=1&ItemID=26

Mastercraft Seats

I found a deal on some Mastercraft Rubicon suspension seats on their website.  A certain color combination that matched my rig was about $80-90 off per seat.  I wasn't real happy with the comfort of the Miata seats that were installed, so I ordered them.  I also ordered some seat sliders, but didn't use them.  Time will tell if these are comfortable--I think they will be.  Oh, did I mention that I ordered them with seat heaters installed?

http://www.mastercraftsafety.com/rubicon.php

Here you can see me modifying my seat frame to hold the new seats.  The new seats mounting pattern is flat!  So much easier than mounting Miata seats.  A hole saw/drill press notches square tubing perfectly.

Transfer Case Swap #1

Ever since I've had this Land Cruiser, the transfer case has been super loud!  When I had my NV4500 swapped in, I also paid to have the transfer case rebuilt.  It still whined after the rebuild, but I learned from ih8mud that rebuilds don't typically cure a loud whine, unless its the idler shaft.

Well, I finally got tired of the loud whine and found me another transfer case to swap in ($50).  When I pulled the "rebuilt" one, I found that it was missing a bearing!  A huge bearing!  If I ever find that guy that I paid to rebuild it (he's out of business now)...

I did the dual speedo seal mod at the same time to cure a light drip that I had (it worked awesome).  I took it to a friend with a lathe.

But when I put the transfer case in, I forgot to line up the front drive collar, so I didn't have 4 wheel drive!

So, I had to drain the fluid again and fix it.  

In the end, this transfer case wasn't much different than the previous one.  I think I'm just a diva or something, but I can't stand these loud transfer cases.  I grew up with a '73 FJ40, but it had a split transfer case swapped into it since I was about 7 years old.  I decided to upgrade this one to the much quieter (I hope) FJ60 split transfer case.  

bumpers

I've been working on a bumper/tire carrier/jack holder.

Finished!  I may regret not making it swing out some day but since my tailgate is a bolt on, I couldn't justify the extra time and expense right now.

I've also been working on a front bumper. I wanted something that had more clearance, held the winch more securely, looked better, and was relatively easy to make. I'm getting a little tired of metal work, mostly the mess that it leaves in the garage.

I started with a DIY Jeep bumper from AtoZfabrication

To mount it, I had to make some brackets. I cut some brackets out of an old winch plate and drilled some holes. Also, I had to cut a couple tabs off of the bumper. And, I welded a couple gussets on the backside for strength. Overall, I'm very happy with it, for no more than it cost or time it took.

Anyone recognize the tow hook loops that I mounted on top? The hole spacing was perfect, so I had to use them. They still need painted.

Also, I still need a better way of mounting my solenoid box. I just have it zip tied to the top of the winch for now...

rock sliders finished!

After a long break of doing nothing, I finally finished my rock sliders.  In case you missed it, here's my first post on sliders:  rock-sliders-started. I'm trying to decide whether to paint them black or charcoal...  I had a rattle can of charcoal colored wheel paint so I tried that color first.   Hmmm....  Any opinions?

flex

I needed to test out my electric fan, so I took the kiddo to a local wooded area.  I couldn't resist the urge to test my flex, clearance, and bumpstops.  I think I'm getting some pretty good flex out of the front.  The rear is still on stock length shocks, so I wasn't expecting much.  But, the rear tire barely clears at full stuff.  I was hoping to be able to step up to a 37" tire (35" currently).  It appears that I'd need to cut the rear fender opening to do it.  hmmm.... how to cut 3/16" thick rear quarter panels and not mess up the paint too bad...