Washington Washington members that live to wheel
- Thread starter Wildman
- Start date
No
. I was riding with a friend at work and he got a call so we pulled off in a gravel area and while he talked I was just looking out the window and then pointed and said "That's Fred Williams." He was just like, "is that a friend of yours or something?" Not everyone gets it! 
Haha he's a former writer turned Editor in Chief of Petersen's 4Wheel and Off-road in the magazine days (@4xfredwilliams on IG and YT). Came up under guys like Rick Pewe. Eventually became the host of Dirt Every Day which later brought Dave Chappelle (@dirthead_dave on IG and The Dirthead Shed on YT). Dave is actually over in your area. Think he's in Mead but works at Diesel Power Products in Spokane.
I was the kid that didn't care about cartoons and sports. I watched all of the off-road and automotive shows and read the magazines (Petersen's being my all-time favorite).
https://www.motortrend.com/how-to/1410-1997-jeep-wrangler-mayhem-to-moab-part-3
In order to get ready for our annual trip to the Moab Easter Safari we stuffed 37-inch Pit Bull tires under our ’97 Jeep we affectionately call Tube Sock with only a 2-inch suspension lift. The goal is to build a strong yet simple little Jeep perfect for Moab’s red-rock trails. We figured 37’s would be adequate with just a trusty four-cylinder engine and enough gearing, but we really wanted to build this Jeep with as many off-the-shelf parts as we could find so that custom fabrication wouldn’t be required. In the end we did need to do some minor cutting and welding, but the majority of the install was still bolt-on.
The first iteration of Tube Sock was near perfect, it just worked. Always one of my favorites of his personal projects.
I drove to Bend and got to talk with Fred for a bit at the Overland Expo.
https://youtube.com/@4xfredwilliams?si=wbQu9cn1ruFq9UGK
And you can't forget a shout out to Dave Chappelle...
https://youtube.com/@thedirtheadshed?si=wJSoT86CefJBDVwY
-Mac
https://youtube.com/@4xfredwilliams?si=wbQu9cn1ruFq9UGK
And you can't forget a shout out to Dave Chappelle...
https://youtube.com/@thedirtheadshed?si=wJSoT86CefJBDVwY
-Mac
Well I’m not sure I’m going to make this run. I’m having issues with right rear shock rubbing the spring. The perch has already been cut back and it clears that but not the last bit of coil. Iv tried two different shock relocaters as temporary solutions and neither works with my aftermarket brackets. I don’t have time or resources to do an outboard right now. I’m toying with a couple ideas to piece it together for now just to go wheeling. We’ll see 
Well I’m not sure I’m going to make this run. I’m having issues with right rear shock rubbing the spring. The perch has already been cut back and it clears that but not the last bit of coil. Iv tried two different shock relocaters as temporary solutions and neither works with my aftermarket brackets. I don’t have time or resources to do an outboard right now. I’m toying with a couple ideas to piece it together for now just to go wheeling. We’ll see
After my 4" lift and setting pinion angle, I cut off the old mounts, bought new mounts and welded them in at what would be stock orientation. No more clearance issues.
Well I’m not sure I’m going to make this run. I’m having issues with right rear shock rubbing the spring. The perch has already been cut back and it clears that but not the last bit of coil. Iv tried two different shock relocaters as temporary solutions and neither works with my aftermarket brackets. I don’t have time or resources to do an outboard right now. I’m toying with a couple ideas to piece it together for now just to go wheeling. We’ll see
Welcome to my solution...let me know if I can help!
-Mac
I have another aftermarket bracket that’s different than the one that’s currently on there. I’m just not sure putting it in the factory spot is going to clear. It’s seeming like I would have to angle it sticking out more than down..
I murdered a couple pairs of black maxes and decided any further effort was best spent outboarding.
Got a really slick solution for sucking up my exhaust. Got a few more parts coming.
-Mac
pic 1 you can see where it’s rubbing the spring. 2 and 3 are what I’m considering doing for now. It’s a hack job but may hold for now. I’m going to weld those little self made tabs to the outside of the existing bracket and it will place the shock farther away from the spring. Outboarding would be awesome if I had the time and money.
As I was writing you were editing.
I’m not the best with posting stuff.
Oh and I had to cut the bolt out of the lower mount to remove it. Would a grade 8 work fine for lower shock mount or is 10.9 hardware required?
I found this. Seems like you would want 10.9. makes sense as there can be a lot of lateral force on that bolt and if it bent or broke, you could have a bad day.
Thread 'Jeep Wrangler TJ Shock Bolt Hardware Bolt Sizes' https://wranglertjforum.com/threads/jeep-wrangler-tj-shock-bolt-hardware-bolt-sizes.10293/