Living With 47s - Jeep Cherokee Chief - Matilda - Project

Okay, so things didn't go exactly as planned. If you've been following along with our mission to feasibly run 47-inch tires on a daily driver, we were scheduled to have Matilda, Jeeps R Us' fullsize Cherokee on 47-inch Pit Bulls, finished by now. Why Matilda? Because that's simply the name that pops into our heads every time we look at this big Jeep.

Matilda was supposed to have some cool swapped-in axles, new shocks and bumpstops, and a completely revamped steering system this month. But we got this great idea that we needed to build the axles on a budget-oh, and start from scratch-just like any guy who was building a custom axle from scratch. What we are learning is that, sometimes, it really is just cheaper to buy the seemingly expensive super-wazoo front end-especially when you factor in time. Tracking down parts definitely takes some footwork and phone calls to make happen. Doing all this yourself to save a few bucks sounds nice in theory, but here we are at end of another issue and we're still not finished. The rear axle build is remaining fairly economical because we didn't have to change much hardware, but this front end is quickly raising its price tag and taking some time. And now we've decided that the knuckles need to be turned by Dynatrac to account for the large amount of suspension lift and pinion angle. Things are not staying as cheap as we had hoped.

We're building a passenger-side drop Chevy Dana 60 front housing that we picked up for $200, bare, off of a pallet of old military surplus parts. We are loading it with 35-spline axles, an ARB locker, Reid Racing knuckles, and Dynatrac kingpin kits, spindles, bearings, and hubs. Though we want to build strong and have good quality parts, we're going to try to not spend ridiculously. This is the same reason we are building a GM 14 Bolt axle in the rear. The original 10.5-inch ring gear 14 Bolt is known for being as strong as a stock 2.5-ton Rockwell axle, yet they are cheap (like under $200) and readily available, and hopefully all we'll need to do to it is drop in new gears and an ARB locker.

Though our axle builds have fallen behind, our steering equipment is looking good! We knew we'd need more than the average crossover steering setup with this big of a tire, so Offroad Design sent us an HD crossover steering setup and we ordered up a new PSC steering box and hydraulic ram assist to help move these giant tires back and forth under the truck. Without going fully hydraulic, this PSC, Reid Racing, and Offroad Design combo we've put together is just about the strongest steering setup we could build for our fullsize Cherokee.

We're starting the front axle build with a $200 surplus stock Chevy Dana 60 housing that was never even used. The rust and scratches are from three decades of sitting in a surplus yard. Unfortunately, we're going to have to spend some coin at Dynatrac having the inner Cs turned about 8 degrees, but luckily the spring perch-to-spring perch width of this stock Dana 60 is okay for Matilda. If cutting the tubes and moving the centersection would have been necessary, we could've tacked a few hundred more dollars onto the build.
We're starting the front axle build with a $200 surplus stock Chevy Dana 60 housing that w
Before we started bolting things on, we took a look at what machining is necessary on the housing by mocking everything up first. We used new Deaver Spring U-bolts that were the proper length for our setup.Abel at Jeeps R Us hit them with an impact gun to clamp the U-bolts up just enough to snug them up, but not enough to stretch them. This was only a mock-up, after all.
Before we started bolting things on, we took a look at what machining is necessary on the
Dynatrac doesn't just build custom axles. They also carry factory replacement parts to build or rebuild axles with,....
Dynatrac doesn't just build custom axles. They also carry factory replacement parts to bui

....so we got our bearings, spindles, hubs and new kingpin kits for both corners directly from Dynatrac.
....so we got our bearings, spindles, hubs and new kingpin kits for both corners directly
Since our bare housing came with no knuckles, we had the choice of tracking down some used ones or purchasing brand new ones. We considered a pair of new Reid knuckles a necessary cost since the tires are so big and we don't even like to imagine a knuckle snapping while Matilda is moving.....
Since our bare housing came with no knuckles, we had the choice of tracking down some used
.....The Reid Dana 60 knuckles are cast in high-ductile iron and are very strong, not to mention well-priced (comparatively). The Reid knuckles are drilled for a five-bolt steering arm setup and tapered for 1-ton tie rod ends or can be drilled out for 3/4-inch rod ends, but we like using conventional tie rod ends if possible. Reid also carries the ARP studs needed for fastening the steering arms to the knuckles.
.....The Reid Dana 60 knuckles are cast in high-ductile iron and are very strong, not to m

To get the Reid knuckles moving back and forth, we used an Offroad Design (ORD) crossover steering kit. ORD is one of the few companies that manufactures a five-hole steering arm (stronger than the four-bolt style), but it can still be used in a four-bolt setup if the knuckle isn't equipped with a fifth stud hole. ORD knew the correct tie rod length (we had a stock Chevy front end) and we called in our draglink length to get our HD steering setup......
To get the Reid knuckles moving back and forth, we used an Offroad Design (ORD) crossover
.....ORD also had a correct pitman arm to adapt the steering linkage to our fullsize Jeep. You'll notice only one steering arm and set of ARP studs in our package, not two. We cannot add ORD's High Steer kit, moving the tie rod up to the steering arms and off the knuckle, because the Deaver leaf springs are too thick and have too much arch for the tie rod to clear them.
.....ORD also had a correct pitman arm to adapt the steering linkage to our fullsize Jeep.
We used our Dynatrac kingpin kits and put the Reid knuckles on both ends of the surplus housing. With the ORD five-hole steering arm bolted on, it was time to locate the ORD-supplied steering.....
We used our Dynatrac kingpin kits and put the Reid knuckles on both ends of the surplus ho

.....links to make sure everything worked together. Richie from Jeeps R Us finished cinching on the two last tie rod ends, and we were ready to try to hook up to a pitman arm.
.....links to make sure everything worked together. Richie from Jeeps R Us finished cinch
Since we were trying to build on somewhat of a budget, we sent our steering box to PSC to have them drill and port it for hydraulic steering assist. PSC has brand new steering boxes available as well, but remember that we are trying to keep costs down.....
Since we were trying to build on somewhat of a budget, we sent our steering box to PSC to
.....We're even going to try to use our existing power steering pump instead of upgrading to a PSC pump. Since we were using our old steering box, there was no question it would bolt back up, and the ORD pitman arm went onto the steering box without problem.....
.....We're even going to try to use our existing power steering pump instead of upgrading

.....Since we were using 1-ton ends and Offroad Design was able to supply us with the steering arm, pitman arm, tie rod, and draglink, everything bolted up beautifully and there was no need for any reaming or any extra taper being put on any part.
.....Since we were using 1-ton ends and Offroad Design was able to supply us with the stee
Now that we knew the steering would work and clear all the suspension parts, we are ripping it back apart and sending out the housing to be cut, turned, sandblasted, and painted. Next month, we should have Matilda on the road and in the dirt. If everything goes right....
Now that we knew the steering would work and clear all the suspension parts, we are rippin

Sources
Offroad Design 484 County Road 113 Carbondale CO 81623 970-945-7777 http://www.offroaddesign.com/	Reid Racing 1917 Oak Park Blvd. Pleasant Hill CA 94523 925-935-3025 http://www.reidracing.biz/
Jeeps R Us 3231 Laguna Canyon Road Laguna Beach CA 92651 949-497-9183 http://www.jeepsrus.com/	Deaver Suspension 902 E. 2nd Street Santa Ana CA 92701 714-542-3703 www.deaverspring.com
Dynatrac 7392 Count Circle Huntington Beach CA 92647 714-596-4461 www.dynatrac.com