So this is my 05 TJ “Patton”. It started life as a bone stock Rocky Mountain edition TJ that I actually bought when I was 14yrs old as my foster vehicle. The rig only had 58k miles on it when I bought it in 2014.
The below image is the night I bought him.
One of the first things I changed on him was painted the red flares black and got a cheap barricade front bumper and winch.
Next came wheels and tires - Pro Comp steel wheels and Firestone A/T. The firestones have been great on the road, but pretty lack luster off-road. Along with new tires came a 3.25” rough country lift. It’s been a good budget lift, but the thing rides about as soft as my 2500 Ram. ROUGH!
The next upgrade I added was a rear tire carrier and I built my own Jerry can mount because I couldn’t bring myself to drop the $150 in the manufacturer units. I built the Jerry can mount out of left over roll cage components from my 65 barracuda drag car. I also built a custom trasharoo out of an old army Alice pack. I just used some ratchet straps and the Alice pack aluminum frame. I cut up the straps and busted out my sewing skills to attach them to the backpack frame. It has held up great the times I’ve used it. I’ve hauled firewood to a campsite and then trash on the way out multiple times. I personally love the look of the US army Alice pack. It also has additional pouches for recovery gear.
I was able to locate a used garvin expedition rack on Facebook only 30 minutes from my house. I’ve been wanting a roof rack for so long but hated all the big tubular designs. The guy selling it only wanted $300 for it and it was the sketchiest Facebook deal I have ever been apart of. I showed up and the guy was in the process of chopping up a TJ in his driveway. Like just fully chopping the body into pieces. I loaded the rack up in my truck and wanted to leave. The guy then tried to sell me multiple different motorcycles he had just all around his yard. Well about a month after buying the rack my brother sends me a link to the Oklahoma City police department and it’s a wanted posting for the guy I bought the rack from!
A few additional mods that I don’t have good pictures of is an aluminum genright fuel tank skid, skip yoke eliminator, some interior upgrades.
Patton has been with me through high school, college, dating my now wife, the birth of my two daughters. I bought the jeep with 58k miles on it and I just rolled over 110k. I moved from Oklahoma to Tennessee and the Jeep hauled a lot of my junk for the move. So far it’s never let me down.
I am planning on revamping the whole build. The goal is to build a clean capable 4WD vehicle that I can pass onto my daughters. I’ve always wanted a vintage Jeep and I figure in 15yrs when they start to drive the 05 TJ will fill that role for my family.
The below image is the night I bought him.
One of the first things I changed on him was painted the red flares black and got a cheap barricade front bumper and winch.
Next came wheels and tires - Pro Comp steel wheels and Firestone A/T. The firestones have been great on the road, but pretty lack luster off-road. Along with new tires came a 3.25” rough country lift. It’s been a good budget lift, but the thing rides about as soft as my 2500 Ram. ROUGH!
The next upgrade I added was a rear tire carrier and I built my own Jerry can mount because I couldn’t bring myself to drop the $150 in the manufacturer units. I built the Jerry can mount out of left over roll cage components from my 65 barracuda drag car. I also built a custom trasharoo out of an old army Alice pack. I just used some ratchet straps and the Alice pack aluminum frame. I cut up the straps and busted out my sewing skills to attach them to the backpack frame. It has held up great the times I’ve used it. I’ve hauled firewood to a campsite and then trash on the way out multiple times. I personally love the look of the US army Alice pack. It also has additional pouches for recovery gear.
I was able to locate a used garvin expedition rack on Facebook only 30 minutes from my house. I’ve been wanting a roof rack for so long but hated all the big tubular designs. The guy selling it only wanted $300 for it and it was the sketchiest Facebook deal I have ever been apart of. I showed up and the guy was in the process of chopping up a TJ in his driveway. Like just fully chopping the body into pieces. I loaded the rack up in my truck and wanted to leave. The guy then tried to sell me multiple different motorcycles he had just all around his yard. Well about a month after buying the rack my brother sends me a link to the Oklahoma City police department and it’s a wanted posting for the guy I bought the rack from!
A few additional mods that I don’t have good pictures of is an aluminum genright fuel tank skid, skip yoke eliminator, some interior upgrades.
Patton has been with me through high school, college, dating my now wife, the birth of my two daughters. I bought the jeep with 58k miles on it and I just rolled over 110k. I moved from Oklahoma to Tennessee and the Jeep hauled a lot of my junk for the move. So far it’s never let me down.
I am planning on revamping the whole build. The goal is to build a clean capable 4WD vehicle that I can pass onto my daughters. I’ve always wanted a vintage Jeep and I figure in 15yrs when they start to drive the 05 TJ will fill that role for my family.
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