Wayne (User Name on RME is WLJ) moved from Wisconsin to Utah and brought his 1972 CJ5 with him. He quickly learned that a Jeep setup for Mud, sporting 12.5 to 1 Compression and a Short Wheelbase isn't the right Combo for the Utah rocks. The CJ was sold and a stock TJ was bought to replace it. 2 years later, there's hardly a part that hasn't been replaced or upgraded!



Engine- 4.0L Straight Six.

Mods: Rock-It Air tube and K&N air filter, Power Aid Throttle Body spacer, Rubicon Express 62mm Throttle Body, 3-core Radiator and a Flex-lite Electric fan to keep it all cool.

Transmission- Jeep AX15 5 Speed and a Hand Throttle.

Transfer Case- Atlas II 4.3!!

Axles-

Front:
Currie-built, Ford 9”. High pinion with ARB, 4.88 Gears, Warn Inners and Outers shafts, Warn 5x5.5 Hub Conversion, and the Housing has been Shaved on the Bottom.


Rear:
Currie-built, Ford 9”. High pinion with a Detroit, 4.88 Gears, Warn Full Floater, Ford Disc brakes, Welded on skid protection. Also Shaved on the Bottom.


Suspension- Rubicon Express, Long Arm Kit with 5.5” of Lift. Currie Anti-Rock bars help keep it all in balance when the going gets twisty.

Tires & Wheels- Wayne runs 2 sets of wheels and tires. One set is a little more Street-friendly, the 37” MT/R's on CenterLine Hell Cat’s 15x8.5's. But, when things get nasty there's a set of 36” SX Swampers with 15X8 Allied Beadlocks waiting to play.

Protection- Off Your Rockers Corner Guards, Currie Front bumper w/ Steering brace & gearbox skid plate. Also from Currie are the Rear Bumper with spare tire carrier and for rocker protection are the Currie Rock Ribs.

Winch- Warn 9500HS on a Custom Mount.

Interesting Facts- LED taillights, KC back-up lights, Kilby Gas Tank skid plate and for roll-over protection, a MORE Cage w/ additional spreaders. Tom Wood Drive Shafts sent the power to the Diffs; (Wayne has a full set of spare shafts!!) Yellow Optima Battery provides the juice, Hard and Soft Tops, Full and Half Doors, a Cobra CB, 1” Daystar Body lift, 1” Motor Mount lift, Halon fire extinguisher and a cool Custom Aluminum Box replaced the Back seat, for storing tools and spare parts.

Whats Next?- There's thoughts about a rig with a little less sheetmetal..... like, say..... a Tube Buggy!

In the mean time, there may be a Dana 60 in the works, to replace the rear Ford 9".



Some of the things that have given Wayne the most satisfaction include; Installing the Suspension, mounting the Currie 9" Axles and well...... everything! Wayne has done all the mods in his garage. (I guess you can do that when you're a Mechanical Engineer!) When Wayne isn't wheelin his Jeep, he also occupies his time with Rock Climbing, Road Racing his '89 Mustang, Tele-skiing, Kayaking, Camping and playing in the Outdoors.