Using JL wheels on a TJ

[Tire Shop Supplies]

I went Tim D's route and ordered my custom wheel adapters from Tire Shop Supplies in San Bernardino CA and they made them with 1/2 x 20 lugs mounting to the TJ and M14 x 1.5 studs to the new Gladiator Mojave wheels I bought . I felt that the stud size was just too big to ignore. $345 with military discount which didn't seem to bad compared to lets say Bora wheel adapters which are like $600. I am going to wheel my TJ semi hard so it seems like money well spent. These are the wheels and tires I bought. I'll post pics on the jeep when I get them installed.
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Thanks for mentioning us in the post. We are so glad to of helped you out with the adapters. If anyone would like info or quotes on adapters or spacers please feel free to contact me, William. Thanks!

Tire Shop Supplies

 

[Tire Shop Supplies]

We really wanna appreciate all the positive feedback we got with our Adapter & Spacers. If you guys are in the market for a set of Adapters to go from 5x4.5 (5x114.3) Vehicle side to 5x5 (5x127) Wheel side. Studs being 14mm x1.5 & 1/2-20 nuts. We can have them built Hub Centric or Standard Non Hub Centric. Feel free to reach out to me if you have any questions or concerns on pricing & build time.

Tire Shop Supplies
Thanks again, Will

 

[AH64ID]

I guess I never posted my JL wheels results on this thread. Lug Nut Guys 1.25” thick adapters and they now have 7/8” M14x1.5 black lug nuts on there. 2.5” suspension lift (Some rough country, some Rancho parts), had to add a couple of washers to each steering stop so they wouldn’t buzz the front lower control arms at full lock. 285/70r17 Falken Wild Peak on what I think are stock JL Rubicon wheels.

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Bringing this back up to see how you still like it with the 1.25" adapter?

I'm torn between the 1.25" adapter with M14 studs and a thicker adapter with 1/2" studs.

A 2.0" adapter would put the effective BS at 4", but I am not sure I want that wide of a stance. I like how my 31x10.50R15's tuck up with the ECCO wheel 5.5" BS, but they do rub on the control arm at full lock every now and then... trying to find a good compromise, and I like how yours looks.

 

[Jeff d]

Bringing this back up to see how you still like it with the 1.25" adapter?

I'm torn between the 1.25" adapter with M14 studs and a thicker adapter with 1/2" studs.

A 2.0" adapter would put the effective BS at 4", but I am not sure I want that wide of a stance. I like how my 31x10.50R15's tuck up with the ECCO wheel 5.5" BS, but they do rub on the control arm at full lock every now and then... trying to find a good compromise, and I like how yours looks.

I think 2” would be too much. I still like my 1.25” and think it’s about perfect. 1.5” wouldn’t be noticeably wider but all the way to 2” would be too wide for my tastes.

You’ll almost certainly need new, longer rear wheel studs to get sufficient thread engagement regardless. It wasn’t too difficult to remove the brake drum and knock the old ones out and then pull new ones on with some lube, a scrap lug nut, some washers. I didn’t even have to unseat the axle shafts, or brake shoes, there’s a couple of spots around the circumference where you can sneak the old studs out and the new studs in. The studs I used were Doorman 610-449 available from most auto parts stores. Those are the stud length that comes from the factory on the front axle.

 

[AH64ID]

I think 2” would be too much. I still like my 1.25” and think it’s about perfect. 1.5” wouldn’t be noticeably wider but all the way to 2” would be too wide for my tastes.

You’ll almost certainly need new, longer rear wheel studs to get sufficient thread engagement regardless. It wasn’t too difficult to remove the brake drum and knock the old ones out and then pull new ones on with some lube, a scrap lug nut, some washers. I didn’t even have to unseat the axle shafts, or brake shoes, there’s a couple of spots around the circumference where you can sneak the old studs out and the new studs in. The studs I used were Doorman 610-449 available from most auto parts stores. Those are the stud length that comes from the factory on the front axle.

Thanks, yeah 2" seems way to wide to me too... but it's puts the JL Rubi wheels at 4" BS, so I had to ask.

I'll go the same route you did.

 

[Alexd183]

I work in design engineering and manufacturing and while I don’t know about this Chrysler decision for a fact, I would bet the reason for this change was to consolidate the supply chain and reduce cost. Auto manufacturers are continuously looking for pennies in every aspect of manufacturing because it results in significant margin improvements. As you pointed out, the structural difference is insignificant.

I put 2020 Gladiator Rubi takeoffs on my TJ using standard JK adapters. The Internet opinion majority at the time I did my research is on the side of having used JK adapter plates without failures.

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How much lift do you have?

 

[AH64ID]

I think 2” would be too much. I still like my 1.25” and think it’s about perfect. 1.5” wouldn’t be noticeably wider but all the way to 2” would be too wide for my tastes.

You’ll almost certainly need new, longer rear wheel studs to get sufficient thread engagement regardless. It wasn’t too difficult to remove the brake drum and knock the old ones out and then pull new ones on with some lube, a scrap lug nut, some washers. I didn’t even have to unseat the axle shafts, or brake shoes, there’s a couple of spots around the circumference where you can sneak the old studs out and the new studs in. The studs I used were Doorman 610-449 available from most auto parts stores. Those are the stud length that comes from the factory on the front axle.

Got the spacers installed. They sent the wrong ones at first, but all is good now.

I did not need longer rear studs, they were the same length as my front ones and went all the way into my acorn nuts with just less than 1/2 thread protruding. Plenty.

With my 1.75” BB front and 0.75” BB out back I only rub slightly on the passenger side control arm at full lock. I’m going to wait until I decide my final lift height before I mess with the drag link.

The 3.07’s aren’t as angry as I expected, which is good enough for now.

I’ll get the new spare tire installed this week.

 

[NavOhio]

Reviving a thread. My new to me 2005 TJ has what I think are JL wheels. I think. Part number is 04755591AA and they say MOPAR on them. Can anyone confirm they are JL wheels? Also attached is what is on the wheel adapters which are 1 1/4 inch thick. Can someone decipher what the measurements/codes are on the adaptor? The nut holding on the adaptors is a 3/4 inch nut. Reading this thread I think these adapters are for the TJ and JK size studs of 1/2-20, not the stud size of the JL wheels of M14-1.5. I also think the lug contact area is a bit sketchy on the wheels, as in to much bite up the conical area, another reason I think the adaptors might be for TJ/JL size studs. Tires are brand new (previous owner) at 245/75R17. Offset looks good and they look good to me overall and the jeep rides great and is a good height for me to get in and out so I am keeping the wheels/tires. I just want it to be correct and safe. I would not be adverse to getting new adaptors, but as a minimum I need to track down better lug nuts. All this is new to me, but this is why I got an old Wrangler, lot of things to mess with!

 

[NavOhio]

I found the lug nuts that are wider and seat across the entire conical surface of the JL wheel that previous posters mentioned. They are from the "lugnutguys.com". As previous posters pointed out the JK lug nuts only seat on the edge of the stud opening in the wheel. Every once in a while I would find one loose. These lug nuts have the 1/2-20 thread pattern of the TJ and JK prevalent on most wheel adapters, especially those on Amazon, but fit the JL wheel design. These wider lug nuts torque down nicely. Side note, I have 245/75R17 tires on 17" x 7.5" JL wheels. 1.25" wheel adapters. No lift. Tires measure 31.5" x 9.6". With 3.73 gears it moves along nicely and it rides great! There is no rubbing by the tires on the body or suspension. I did have to lift up the spare tire carrier 1" for the spare tire JL wheel to fit over the bumper. I used metal conduit cut to 1" length as spacers. The bolts used by Jeep on the spare tire carrier are still long enough to re-use with the 1" spacers.