Start to an off-road build on a 1988 Cherokee Chief

[CamperSpecial67]

Carnage update from clayton:
None other than a dent on the passenger rear door (more like a souvenir rather than carnage haha)

Tried out tuckers triumph? left off the airstrip going up and found success. turned around close to the top because somebody had to be following me in their daily driver... but running opens and low tread 33s i got around farther than i thought i would with my current lame setup. Watched coleman destroy his cj in the creek bed to the right of the airstrip and then made it through myself before jumping out to play it safe. Had a lot of fun, the xj was puking oil the entire time but the 12 quarts a had were more than enough for the weekend. Defiantly looking forward to the next trip up there. There was talk about making a trip up there in the spring, and Gilbert Nail offered to let me shoot his .50 cal if we did end up coming back when the weather got warmer

[Sharpe]

Puking oil from where? My first 6.2L diesel on Pigpen leaked out of the rear main so badly it would lose about a quart an hour on the trail.

[CamperSpecial67]

It was the rear main for sure, have the parts to fix it just haven't gotten to it yet. From the park to clayton country end i spit atleast 4 quarts going down the highway haha. Haven't updated in awhile as the beginning of this year has been pretty busy for me and the jeep really hasn't moved since clayton. But here's the good news, hit up the junkyard in Bryan right off of 2818 (saw a couple former club rigs in there which was pretty neat) and struck gold. Picked up the rare xj rear dana 44 axle, new d30hp to replace the awful two piece one i have, new steering column (mine has had multiple issues for awhile now), front and rear driveshafts, new leaf springs and all the included hardware this past week. THANK YOU TAX REFUND.

Also in the works coming this summer will be a diesel swap for it. Hate the renix 4.0 that i have, its high maintenance and has one thing or another always going out on it. So after some heavy homework im gunna go with a OM617 swap, specifically from an 82-85 diesel Mercedes that came stock with a turbo. They are lighter than the 4.0, make similar power, have ultra reliability, and i can squeeze 20+mpg out of them. Good low end torque, mechanical, share a very similar power band with the 4.0, and a company I found practically makes everything to make the swap a breeze for a fair price (around 400 bucks). you can buy the donor cars for well under a grand and given my budget a doable swap as i can keep my entire stock drive-line from the motor back.

[Seth]

What junkyard and more importantly, what rigs?

[CLNethery]

The place is called "Scotts Automotive" in Bryan. We came across 3 rigs, but that's not to say there aren't a few more laying out there. The station wagon from our last trip to Alto three years ago, Tommy's ford (Axles, motor and front clip had all been removed -- still has frame, tub, rollcage and dash) and lastly an old ford pickup with the banner still attached.

[CamperSpecial67]

Went out to hidden falls this past weekend with the club. Axles held up great, oil was now minimally leaking at best, and the carnage this past weekend was thankfully minimal as well. Next up im finally getting around to throwing in a lunchbox and building that bumper.

[CamperSpecial67]

forgot to mention, got a CB for free, wired it up and mounted. About 10 of the active members in the club now runnin CBs and its defiantly an upgrade. Bought from wire, antenna and got it workin in one night. Its a Uniden with a tuner built into it, not a bad setup for 30 bucks to get it installed and in working condition!