p@55w0rd's XK Build

[p@55w0rd]

Some History
When I purchased my Commander back in 2008 I put a lift and tires on it and enjoyed some tame offroading. On my 40th birthday my wife surprised me and told me to go get a trail rig and stop beating up the Commander. So I took the XK back to stock and purchased a 1979 Wagoneer. Spent the first year making it drivable and the last two wheeling it. Well last month someone made me an offer to purchase and after some deep thought I accepted the offer.

Well I now find myself with a fat wallet and a desire to make the XK my primary wheeling rig. On the first go around I coveted the OME lift and now I have the means to get it and a lot of other stuff. I need some assistance with choosing components to help convert the XK into a rig that suits my needs. I primarily wheel in Ohio at Southington Off Road Park, but I have gone to the Badlands in Indiana, and Flagpole in Virginia, and frequent the Outbanks in North Carolina. I would like to try to get out west to meet up with the Camp Commander's that are usually in Colorado.

XK Specs:
2008 Rock Mountain Edition
4.7
Tow package
Quadra Trac

What I would like to do:

Front winch bumper w/ winch
Rear tire carrier bumper
OME lift
Front sway disconnects
Rear sway disconnects
32" or better tires (275/70R17?) - really need input here!
FlashPAQ to fix trans shifting points and get a few more torques
New front skid to complement the bumper
Trans/Catalytic skid
Rear diff skid
Rear diff cover
Rear locker (possibly air locker depending on install cost)
Lockpick with rear monitor
Cat-back
CAI or dare I say - snorkel (not sure on the look of this though)
Brake upgrades - slotted rotors? better calipers?
HD UCA's

What I already have:
Rock Road Super Sliders
Full complement of OEM skids
4XGuard belly skid

The challenges I see are:
Will 275/70's fit with out a rear AC/Heat delete?
Cost of the install on the air locker may be outside of budget. In this case I can install a "luchbox locker" myself.
Bumper choices! Holy crap there are a lot more then there was 3 years ago. Looks like more options then the Get Lost 4x4 bumper (funny thing after he gave up on Commanders he bought a Wagoneer!).
Extending brake line brackets? Buy longer stainless steel lines?
Just moved to a place out in the boonies and my 750' long driveway is gravel. Jacks and backs do not like gravel!
Time! I have some major remodeling on the house I am doing myself at the moment.

I just spent the last week reviewing thread after thread on new options and have even contacted suppliers to get some input (Thanks 49er!). If you have any suggestions or for see issues I have not addressed please let me know!

[07JeepXK]

I got your PM. I'll give you a call tomorrow if your available

[p@55w0rd]

I got your PM. I'll give you a call tomorrow if your available

Sounds great!

[Matt]

Hey man welcome back to the club!

Looking forward to seeing this build.

[1USMC]

Looking forward to seeing this build.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ I agree ^^^^^^^^^^^^

[p@55w0rd]

Matt,

I noticed in your garage thread you are running 275/65R18's (32" x 11") I am planning on running 275/70R17's - about the same size. You are still running the OME right? What type of mods did you need to do to make them fit outside of the lift? Pinch weld? More backspacing?

[Matt]

Yeah I'm running the OME with an additional 1/4" strut spacer up front which provides about 1/2" more lift. Pinch weld mod is an absolute mod and you have to be very careful with your wheel selection.

Were you planning on running stock wheel with spacers?

[06JeepXKHEMI]

That's actually something I've read a lot on with the JK hubs like that with spacers.. Maybe over torqued the spacer? Either way I've been wheeling with spacer without a problem yet, just check their torque when rotating tires...

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2

[07JeepXK]

Yeah it sounds like the spacer was over torqued on the wheel bearing/hub assembly. I had spidertrax wheel spacers installed for years with no issues and gave them hell

[p@55w0rd]

So I am having some second thoughts on the OME lift... Steel Armadillo has such a great price on the Superlift 4" kit it really has me thinking! I wonder if this price includes the ECM module? I received a quote of $600 for the install at 4 wheel parts. I could then run some 34's!