New Shoes and No Bumper

Just got some new 265/70/17r Load E Good year Wrangler Duratracs!!! I did the pinch weld mod, but was still left with some annoying rubbing on the plastic fender flares. I ended up removing the fenders and then decided, "might aswell take the bumper off while I'm at it" haha :D. Without all that plastic, I have so much more tire clearance in the front end. I'm going to try and relocate the washer fluid resevoir as it sticks out unprotected without the bumper on, any suggestions on a good relocation spot?
Thanks, Ross

that looks pretty damned good with the matrix on there!!

Are you sure those are 265/70's? They look huge for some reason, more like a 285/70.

I thought the same thing... but the rear looks about right. Tires always look bigger when you can see more of the tread...

I never got around to relocating mine but with all the wheeling I've done I never hit either.

hmm I like the no bumper look for some reason. good on ya

My only problem is that without the fender flares and therefore wheel wells, alot of mud and clay gets right up in my door hinges and engine compartment. I remember once seeing a thread about someone making their own wheel wells with some type of roofing liner, but I can't seem to find it. Has anyone done something similar to this?
Thanks, Ross

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Originally Posted by psycho787

My only problem is that without the fender flares and therefore wheel wells, alot of mud and clay gets right up in my door hinges and engine compartment. I remember once seeing a thread about someone making their own wheel wells with some type of roofing liner, but I can't seem to find it. Has anyone done something similar to this?
Thanks, Ross

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That was me you were referring to. I got a 10ft long by 3ft wide roll of roofing rubber for my inner fender wells. Its thick enough to where it wont rip, but still flexible at the same time. I have installed it yet because I didnt end up cutting an inch off all the way around on my fender flares yet. It will happen soon, but my new 285's cleared with minor trimming. Plus I still waiting for my friend to weld in new steel plate in my pinch weld area I cut out so there was no point in installing the rubber because it would have to come right back out for him to do that.

So you never answered. Are you sure those tires arent 285's? They look to big to be 265's. It was mentioned that they might just look bigger because you have the bumper and flares off. Also I noticed you have the daystar lift and I dont think that lifts the XK nearly as much as the OME HD Coils.

Cool I'll prolly go pick some up soon. My Duratracs are in fact 265's but without the bumper, they do give the impression of a larger 285 tire. I am very eager to get the OME lift as the Daystar lift does not quiet give me the amount of lift I want. Since I already have the RR rear 2" lift shocks, I was thinking of just getting the OME HD front struts/springs and HD rear springs. I also want to run a small strut spacer to get a bit of added height. Would I need to remove the spacer I have in the rear, or would I just swap in the spring and leave the spacer?

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Originally Posted by psycho787

Cool I'll prolly go pick some up soon. My Duratracs are in fact 265's but without the bumper, they do give the impression of a larger 285 tire. I am very eager to get the OME lift as the Daystar lift does not quiet give me the amount of lift I want. Since I already have the RR rear 2" lift shocks, I was thinking of just getting the OME HD front struts/springs and HD rear springs. I also want to run a small strut spacer to get a bit of added height. Would I need to remove the spacer I have in the rear, or would I just swap in the spring and leave the spacer?

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The rear spacers wont be needed in the rear once you swap in OME HD coils. If you double stacked the lift you would have a bunch of other things that would need to be addressed like extending the brake lines, adjustable upper and lower control arms and adjustable track bar.

How big is the daystar rear spacer? If its only ~1" (which it might be if the daystar lift tends to run shorter) then its possible to leave it in. I used the Monroe LL shocks to get an extra inch from the rear of mine but eventually plan on making a 1" spacer and moving onto a more performance oriented shock

Good catch Matt. I never thought about the rear spacer being smaller than the other lift spacers on the market. If your only talking an inch I wouldnt be to worried about needing any other parts in the rear end. Regardless, one thing I do recommend on any lifted XK that goes off road is a Rusty's Adjustable rear track bar. More and more members are finding that their rear drive shaft hits the gas tank/skid when the rear is articulated. The last thing you want to do is ruin an expensive drive shaft.

Which reminds me.... I need to bend my gas tank skid back in place.

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Originally Posted by Matt

Which reminds me.... I need to bend my gas tank skid back in place.

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Just cut the skid like I did. No more rubbing on my XK.

The Daystar lift is prolly closer to 2" then 1". When I get the OME lift, I will prolly only run it with a small strut spacer upfront as that will give me the amount of lift I want. All this talk of reagearing has me thinking about just picking up those 3.55's from cmdrjim and getting a local shop to swap them in.

Most lifts raise the front more than the rear. So if the front was lifted 1.5-2" then its possible that the rear spacer is close to 1". It's worth measuring it and using it if its a shorter spacer. I believe my rear RC spacer was ~1.75"....

Oh yea i forgot about that, my bad haha, the spacers are bigger in the front to level and give a full 2".