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The Abominable WJ – Project Yeti

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161K views 509 replies 67 participants last post by  argentums  
#1 · (Edited)
I finally got around to posting some pics of the WJ. Here it is all cleaned up, begging to get muddy.

It is the snow monster, so I call it the Abominable SnowJeep, or Yeti
Yeti is a name for the abominable snowmonster (Nepal/Tibet).

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I learned real quick how much I like the MTRs after towing the boat through a 100 yard section of really deep mud. The boat was a mess. After getting a few feet in, I thought I had made a huge mistake.

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Time to take a bath and get cleaned up. This is much better than waiting for hours at the boat ramp to put it in and out.

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Bear Lake

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First time out wheeling it.

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I don't dare flex too much, This thing needs some serious trimming before I can discover Moab. 315x75x16's are pretty big tires for the jeep. In front of the rear tire will be OK, but something needs to be done about the rear bumper.

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Motivation for visiting friends to lift their Grandy. He is currenlty raising his Gas tank and building a rear bumper. He may end up making many of the parts to do his own long arm kit. You can see the beginnings of the rocksliders he is making. They have been used extensively since he has been running in Moab without a lift.

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Not to bad of a cruiser though. I really like the feel of the Long Arm kits. Much smoother than I had anticipated.
 
#170 ·
looks great! Do you have plans for different offset wheels for a wider stance? you should post some front/rear stance photos for us.
 
#172 ·
ya i heard that trail is extremely hardcore in the winter and early spring would definately like to hit it with you guys when you go oh and if you need help with your safety inspection hit my up its what i do brotha
 
#173 ·
Word. It's wider then I thought. In some of the photos it looked like the body was way wider then the wheel base. Looks good bro.
 
#174 ·
Yeah, a few of my pics have been from weird angles and it made the body look wider that the track.

ya i heard that trail is extremely hardcore in the winter and early spring would definately like to hit it with you guys when you go oh and if you need help with your safety inspection hit my up its what i do brotha
Cool, we'll post up when we are hitting it again. If you haven't joined the Utah Jeep Crew on JeepForum and Facebook, do it. They are a great group of jeepers locally that like to wheel together.
 
#176 ·
I actually just came across your username (and looked for WJ in your location) and realized this. :)
 
#178 ·
You must like my sig :D

The ironic thing is that I now drive a Honda...haha.
My Camaro was my DD until about 2 years ago. Driving that thing in Utah winters was like attempted suicide. I am lucky that after 13 years of DD that thing I am still alive.

I bought an 04 TL in Jan 09 with 37k on it. The original owner babied it, it was mint. I have never enjoyed a car so much. I have always teased about Honda's though, but I am sold. I keep thinking I should change my sig, but I still think it is funny.
 
#181 ·
I had the RK joints all around at first. Currently, I am running rebuilt RK joints in the rear arms. The poly bushings are like $6 and very easy to install. I pull the arms one at a time, leave the joints in the arms, pull off the sides of the joint (they unscrew), replace the poly, and tighten everything back up and re-install the arm.

Up front I have the solid poly RK bushings on the unibody side, and currie johnny joints on the axle side. It rides very smooth with no loose joints now. I have to rebuild the RK joints about once every 2 years. The solid poly joints and currie joints just take grease twice a year.

We headed up into the hills this last weekend to snowmobile:
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#186 ·
The WJ has different shanks depending on the generation of the lift. Just go out and rough measure it. I think my lowers were all 1 inch shank, 14 threads per inch.
 
#187 ·
Installed a new rear wiper blade last night. After 5 years of having a sun rotted blade, it is nice to have one that works well. Why didn't I do this any sooner?
 
#189 ·
Well, it works better, but it isn't perfect...haha. The parts store listed two sizes, a 13 inch and a 10 inch. I had a 12 inch on it, so I just bought a replacement in that size.
 
#191 ·
I put the JK wheels on for a test fit today. Pics suck, it was night and the cell phone flash isn't that great.

I really like the look, but need some new tires. These Toyo's are getting pretty low on tread.

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As you can see, the offset is terrible on these wheels. I love the look, but I am going to need some wheel spacers to run them.

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#194 ·
They are painted metallic silver, I might go to a darker color.

looking good! you're right about the offset with those, it sucks! those would probably look pretty sweet powder coated white...

When we going wheelin?
I will be in Moab for Fri/Sat of EJS. I will likely just be a spectator though. I also want to hit up 5 mile in early April and also the Bountiful B to test a few things out. I have been on mild stuff above Eden on the Mantua side, do you have any trails up your way?
 
#193 ·
looking good! you're right about the offset with those, it sucks! those would probably look pretty sweet powder coated white...

When we going wheelin?
 
#195 ·
why will you just be a spectator in moab, that doesnt sound like a whole lot of fun, are you not going to be taking the wj down? Ill be down in moab in a week, hopefully the weather is good, I was going to go down for EJS but dont have any friends that can go. As for trails around here, there arent many, Ive got a couple though that are kinda fun, but they wont be melted off until april/may. Next time you are thinking about hitting the B or something let me know, Ill PM you my #
 
#196 ·
Got your PM, I'll let you know when we hit the B.

I won't be running trails at EJS, just some minor wheeling. I will be taking the WJ. We plan on hitting potato salad hill to watch the craziness. I want to test a few things so that I can solve a few "issues" before GSW in June. I also have a hotel booked for June 9-12 for GSW. That should be a blast. But yeah, EJS is crazy so I don't plan on running full trails, just some minor site seeing expeditions. I think I need a new t-case, and I might have a CV popping, I need to figure out the weird sound.
 
#198 ·
Tyler, I will be there the 22-24th. Are you going to set up as a vendor? If so, I will come say hi. I might hang out there with Iceland Offroad for a while on Friday. If not, what trails do you plan on running?
 
#201 ·
Just saw this. I won't be setting up as a vendor this year. Still doing CR part-time and a one-man show. Friday I'll be running Pritchett, Saturday I'll be out at Area BFE running Helldorado and Green Day, a night run on Moab Rim sometime in there. Not sure what Sunday, may go hike through Arches with the GF.

What are your plans?
 
#199 ·
I pulled the sliders off, repainted them, then re-installed them. I didn't realize until the paint started peeling that I used the wrong chemicals to prep the metal....FRUSTRATING. In the pic below, you can see rust on the slilder behind the front tire. The paint just started falling off. For the many years that I have been around automotive paint, I can't believe I made this mistake. Oh well, lesson learned.

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#202 ·
I used a paint thinner for oil based paints. :mad: This time I used a wax and grease remover made for paint prep.

Just saw this. I won't be setting up as a vendor this year. Still doing CR part-time and a one-man show. Friday I'll be running Pritchett, Saturday I'll be out at Area BFE running Helldorado and Green Day, a night run on Moab Rim sometime in there. Not sure what Sunday, may go hike through Arches with the GF.

What are your plans?
Probably a night ride somewhere on Friday, and spectating at Potato Salad on Saturday, followed by some light wheeling. We will likely go hiking somewhere on Sunday too. It is national park week, and entrance fees should be waived both at Arches and Canyonlands. We figured it would be a fun activity before the drive home on Sunday night.

I am getting a pretty severe clicking in the front axle that I need to figure out before GSW. I replaced both CV's, and the diff has 5k on it. I don't know that I trust the diff though, six states didn't impress me with the install on the gears. I don't think it is in the t-case, but could be wrong.
 
#204 ·
It is likely the CV or front diff.

It does it with torque applied, and worse when turning. With a lot of torque up front, the sound is very loud (especially in 4LO). It is a click/thump that increases with wheel speed.

The CV's have 2k on them, the front diff has 5-6k on it, and the front driveline has 2k on the u-joints.. I guess it could be in the t-case, I need to pull the front driveshaft and test. It also has a vibration/griding noise (likely the same thing) that is starting to annoy me at freeway speed. It does quiet down a bit as the Jeep warms up. Maybe it doesn't get that much quieter, maybe I just get used to the sound. But it seems like it is worse when you first hit the freeway.
 
#205 ·
My drivers side fog light wasn't working, so I had to trace the wire and fix the break.

I pulled my K&N and cleaned it, it is drying right now and I will oil it and re-install it in the morning.

I pulled my old fixed endlinks off and installed my JKS Quicker Disconnects. It wasn't just a bolt in job though, both sides had tears/holes in the lower U where the endlinks mount to the front of the coil buckets. I spend time adding metal, straightening mounts, and welding.

Also, does anything look wrong in this pic? I didn't even notice this until now (installed by PO). The fixed end links didn't match up, one was straight and the other is bent. The bends are a factory bend...What's up with this garbage, terrible:

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The joints were really getting annoying over the smallest of bumps on the road. This pic shows how much slack they have in them, I am glad they are gone. See how the one joint ball is twisted clear around? There was a ton of slack.

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Welded, fixed, pins installed.

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DONE:

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