The Bumper Search Continues...

After many weeks of an exhaustive web search, I am still no closer to finding a set of bumpers for my JL. Here is the list of all the vendors I have searched through and while some have risen to the top, none have come out as a clear leader.

• ARB (delayed the Bondi bumper)
• AEV (no word on timing for their SEMA stubby)
• Artec (strong contender but would prefer a bull bar over a stinger)
• VKS (does not produce recessed & fog lights - but really great customer service)
• HiLine (did not find one I liked)
• JCR (strong contender - Great Rear bumper - square fog hole lights)
• Poison Spyder (rear bumper has it's own hitch - square lights on front bumper - really like their finish)
• Full Metal Fabworks (still working on their JL bumpers)
• CrawlTek
• LOD (many options)
• Expedition One
• Hauk Offroad (really cool but got Very expensive as I configured them)
• Hammerhead
• DV8
• Ace Engineering (really liked these but their bull bar is huge)
• Motobilt (also a very strong contender - still considering)
• Metalcloak (interesting version and very modular)
• Go Rhino
• Rugged Ridge
• Smittybilt
• etc...

Suffice it to say that there are many vendors out there producing JL bumpers. This gets even crazier if you search on eBay and Amazon and start counting all the off-brand versions out there.

Many of these bumpers are very close to what I want and frankly, the issue is more with me than any of these individually. I was hoping for a few items in the front bumper and rear bumper. Let's start with the rear:

1. Full coverage
2. Tow points
3. Ability to work with factory hitch
4. License plate mount that does not interfere with backup camera

For the front bumper, I was looking for:

1. Mid-width or stubby
2. Use of factory fog lights
3. Recessed winch mount
4. Tow points
5. License plate mount (I live in NJ so require front and back plates)

In general, I am not a huge fan of the heavily textured finishes and really like the Poison Spyder coating they use.

What I have seen is that most of the rear bumpers do not have the license plates factored in and expect it to be moved to either the tire or similar location if you don't run a spare. This might be fine for a more dedicated rock crawler but on a dual purpose, daily driver, having my spare tire with functioning backup camera and a place for the license plate is more practical. There are several bumpers that can work here so I have been holding off on pulling the trigger because I like to match my front and rear bumpers.

So for the front bumpers, the search has been harder. I understand that there are always trade-offs with form and function but I still believe that I will find one somewhere that meets all or at least most of my requirements. The fog lights and the recessed winch bumper seem to be the "sticking" point for any stubby bumper just because of the space issues with fitting everything in the same space. I might just move up to a mid-width that has both but is a bit heavier (and this might be my best option).

Anyway, I just wanted to provide an update on what's been going on. I have also been working on mounting my antennas for the CB and GMRS radios and this has also taken more effort than I expected. One big issue is that the JL is really limited on places to mount magnetic base antennas with all the aluminum in use to cut the weight. I have also picked up a 5th Cyclone rock light for the front and will be installing that once I get some decent weather.

Was hoping to be able to show you my newly mounted bumpers by now but the search is still on...

The Journey is what counts, Adventure Awaits!

Stickers, stickers and more stickers...sometimes

We in the Jeep community really like our stickers, we display them like badges of honor. Some

represent the products that have gone into our builds, others the places we have visited, and the organizations we belong to. Each of us had our own reasons for displaying them proudly as well as our favorite locations on the vehicle.

On my last Jeep, INCUS, I only put stickers onto my JK that I had specifically installed somewhere on it. I used the space opposite the license plate on the rear passenger side for most. I applied a couple to my soft top and one other (AEV) to the body because they were the lift I installed and i really liked their color/logo with the bull.

As I start on my new JL build, I started thinking about where to install my new stickers and found myself not wanting to clutter up the Jeep's body with too many so I need to find a new option/location. The search is on...

I also took a look at some of the first items I have installed and noticed something interesting, some vendors do not include any stickers, others one or two, and some give you an entire sheet along with patches! Seems a bit all over the top so I wanted to see why the differences? For the manufacturer, there is definitely a cost to printing but that must be offset somewhat by the "free" advertising they receive having their logos prominently on display on Jeeps everywhere. For the Jeep owner, there is the feeling of pride and some individuality in displaying what went into your build and how you personalized it.


Price does not seem to be a factor. I purchased my $1700 Rock Slide Engineering Step/Sliders and they were delivered without any stickers at all, my $300 Falcon Nexus Steering Stabilizer came with a sheet of stickers (Thank you) that have a few sizes to choose from, and my KC HiLites came with their traditional black and yellow stickers.

Obviously, this is not a deal breaker in anyway, I will still purchase a product regardless of the number or type of stickers that are included in the packaging, but I am just curious why some vendors make it such an important part of their material and others seem to pay it little attention. After all, they are basically being paid (when we purchase the products) to display their logos (stickers and patches) on their customers Jeeps and then have those Jeeps driven all over the world. It seems like a "no-brainer" marketing 101 to me. Why would you not take advantage of this?

Oh well, we may never know (or really care) the truth so now I will return to trying to figure out the best locations for my decals and patches. Honestly, I am starting to really like the patches more because I can easily put in a small piece of Velcro and attach the patches to it. This also allows me to switch them out/around as I need/want to. Decisions, decisions... I think for Great White the Jeep, I will put the stickers on my tool box that I always carry with me and install a Velcro strip for the patches across the back inside the Jeep. Once I upgrade the bumpers and suspension, then I will have a few more places to work with. Just not wanting to put too much on that pretty white paint!

Where do you prefer to display the vendors you support? What do you think is a great way for vendors to get their names out?

The Journey is what counts, Adventure Awaits!

1st Jeep Jamboree for Me!

So I am pretty excited to let you know that my friend Chris and I will be participating in our first ever Jeep Jamboree this coming May! We signed up for the Spring Coal Mountain Jeep Jamboree located at the Anthracite Outdoor Adventure Area (AOAA). I wanted to share this trip with you when I signed up back in November but it was birthday gift from Chris's family so I had to keep my mouth shut all this time! Thankfully, his birthday was Jan 5th so I can finally talk about it.

It runs from May 2nd (check-in) through May 4th with wheeling done on Friday and Saturday. I am trying to secure a camp ground for this trip and probably should have done so sooner as they are all booked up or a longer drive in, each morning. Ehh, I will figure something out.

This trip consists of both sides of the property and here is a description from the Jeep Jamboree website of the trails:

West Side HO–BD Highway • Rating 2–4 This trail ride gives a great overview of the west property that includes mud, rocks, and coal dirt along with scenic overlooks such as “The Caves Overlook” and “The Whaleback”. We may also encounter active mining near the “Fan House”. There is a wide variety of terrain from forest trails that highlight the region’s coal mining history, up and down hills, mud and water pits, tight tree sections, and a rocky creek bottom in the “Little Rock Creek” area. 

West Side Coal Crackers • Rating 4–6 We start with a little loop to get you back in off-road mode, then we travel through the woods to tackle the tight and winding Potato Chip Hill. Close your eyes and scream as we go over Roller-Coaster Hill. Head back up the Dozer Cut on your way to Fern Ridge. Start with the rocky, non-stop Fern Ridge Challenge then original Fern Ridge Trail with an optional drop into the Fern Ridge Hole, climbing out will challenge both driver and Jeep! On to the Trench and the Fern Ridge Extension. 

West Side Kyle’s Follies • Rating 4–6 Anybody’s guess. With numerous new trails being developed this winter expect new stuff! Trail Guides will be bulldogging you along a wide variety of trail conditions to see if you’re ready for our Darker Blue Trails. Only our surveys will reveal what it really is. Although Trail Leader, Kyle Buchter, has been running a lot of 101 & 201 trail rides we know he’s got a darker side.

West Side – Breaker Boys • Rating 7–8 Big Boy rock garden early into the newer section. Then to rockface outlook and up a rocky hill that travels to Kutch’s Krack (see Mike Kutch for that story) and Fern Ridge east with numerous Rock garden loops. Hit the NJ Trench downhill & out to the “Stairway to Heaven” then east bound on West Fern Ridge with a hill rock garden with several different lines. You pick it!

East Side Mud Mining • Rating 2–4 This will cover a large portion of the east side property. If you are looking for something scenic and historic this is your trail. It includes tight trails that test your driving ability as well as hill ascents, hill descents, rocks (you are in coal country after all), off camber obstacles, and some mud if mother nature cooperates

East Side East Bound and Down • Rating 5–7 Travel along the pole line with up and down hill climbs and ravines as you make your way to The Point. Then it’s onto Upper Anthracite downhill. Challenge both yourself and your Jeep on Barney Rubble’s uphill rock climb.

East Side AAA • Ratings 6–8 Loop in and out of the trees, discovering rocky washout hill climbs and descents along the way. Begin challenging yourself in Green Briar, a looping twisting rock garden ending in a gulley that’ll put your front tires in the air. Push yourself by completing Upper Anthracite, working your way down the usually dry creek bed. Finally, test your Jeep’s limits on Barney Rubble, the rocky uphill climb that now features a downhill side that may be even more technical than it appears.

East Side Rock and Rumble • Rating 8–9 Travel the same lines the 2018 Ultimate Adventure Traveled! Rocks, rocks and more rocks! Warm up with Barney Rubble then into Bam-Bam onto Thunder Alley. Then it’s onto M Trail, and pending vehicles & conditions “Screaming Jimmy Hill”….Winch points await you! Next it’s “B Line” with numerous rock sections including The BIG UGLY which is always changing to test driver & Jeep. For more we wrap things up with Lower & Upper Anthracite. 

Now I need to get all my upgrades installed pretty quick!

I am really looking forward to this trip and suggest, if you want to take on a Jeep Jamboree, find a local one and sign up, they sell out quick.

The Journey is what counts, Adventure Awaits!

Two Week Review - 2019 Jep JLU Rubicon

So I have about 2 weeks worth of experience with my JL and wanted to provide my view of it so far. Just as a refresher, this comparison is based on my 2014 JKU Sport S since that was the last Jeep that I had driven.

The Good:

1. The 2.0-Liter I4 DOHC DI Turbo eTorque Engine has been pretty awesome. I am averaging about 19 miles per gallon (2nd tank of gas) when compared to about 14 on my JK both running 33 inch tires and 4.10 gears. I do not drive fast so the Start/Stop function does not bother me at all. It took a few days to get used to it but now I barely notice it. Passengers still do notice it so there is definitely a lag/delay but nothing that bothers me. Power seems pretty smooth throughout normal driving speeds and I have no problem passing someone on the highway when I need to or accelerating onto a road. The first week of February, I will be driving down to NC so I will get some real world data on a longer trip. Still have not had it off-road but my club has a trip coming up mid-January so I can hopefully make that one.
2. The 8-Speed Automatic Transmission seems to be fitted up very well to this new engine and shifts very smoothly.
3. The Uconnect® 4C NAV with 8.4-Inch Display is pretty awesome. One of my biggest issues with the JK was how poor the radio sounded (I had the base system but had upgraded the speakers twice). This one works really well and sounds great. Even the Navigation works great when compared to my wife's 2015 Grand Cherokee or my portable Garmin. Also really happy with how easy it is to pair multiple cell phones and choose between them.
4. Heritage Tan Leather Seats - Very comfortable and look great! The heated seat function gives you 3 settings to choose from and all are more than enough. The big winner is the heated steering wheel, that is just amazing!
5. Trailer Towing Option - I love the 4 Auxiliary Switches and they are very convenient to utilize. I connected my rock lights up to one and plan to use another for my CB and GMRS radios. 2 of the switches are 40 amp and always available and the other 2 are 15 amp but require the engine to be running. I also love that you can customize how they function (momentary verse on/off). Have not pulled the trailer with the Jeep yet but will try it out in the spring.
6. Overall fit and finish is way ahead of what my 2014 JK had.

The Bad:

1. Huge level of complexity in an off-road vehicle but I have not had (knock on wood) any issues. I did purchase an extended warranty as the 2nd battery system scares me a bit.

Last bit of commentary and some background...

My original plan was to keep my JK until the Gladiator launched but as the date continued to slip out, I started to really want the JL. I really liked the changes I was seeing and I wanted to upgrade to the Rubicon model. I had jokingly told my wife on many occasions that we would trade her Grand Cherokee in for the Gladiator and this way I could have both! She would use the Gladiator for her daily commuter but this plan really never went over well and was a "pipe dream" of mine. Fast forward to about a week ago and her first time driving the JL, she really liked it to the point where she mentioned that she might not mind driving it for her daily driver! This has got to be one of the best "compliments" for the JL Rubicon engineers when you consider the fit, finish, and on-road manners the new JL has. Today she asked to drive it to work and when she got there, I got an IM that said "Jeep drives really nice"... GLADIATOR here I come!!!

 The Journey is what counts, Adventure Awaits!

KC HiLites Cyclone Rock Light Install

I finally got some time to do the install and I will try to highlight for you what went well, what I had to modify, and what might still need some work. I think I will also start an installation ratings system based on a few criteria that I can use going forward for future upgrades. The main criteria I will focus on will be:

1. Price
2. Completeness of Directions
3. Completeness of parts/materials
4. Ease of Installation
5. Final Product

I will use a simple 3 point scale where 1 is the lowest score and 3 is the best. I don't think it needs to be much more complicated than that.

So for my first scoring on the KC HiLites Cyclone 4 Piece Rock Light Kit:

1. Price - 1 ($226.99)
2. Completeness of Directions - 3
3. Completeness of parts/materials - 3
4. Ease of Installation - 3
5. Final Product - 3

Grand total of a 13 for this kit! Now let's get into the install... I want to point out that the install is for a Jeep with standard Rubi Rails from the factory or steps. My Rock Slide Engineering steps that I installed last week were a bit different from a mounting perspective so I needed to grind down part of the step mount that is not normally present on the factory steps. I did not count this as an issue for the light install.

Step 1: Install the Busbar - I like Busbars as they make for a nice clean install and allow for me to easily upgrade to additional lights in the future. It is a four inch bar that you mount relatively close to the battery and a common ground. I mounted mine close to the battery but up out of the way (see picture for details).

Step 2: Installation of the 4 Cyclone Rock Lights - In the directions it tells you to mount them to the hardware for the Rubi Rails but as you are aware, I have already replaced those and I mounted them in a slightly different spot using the brackets that KC provided with the lights.

Step 3: Driver Side Wiring Harness - This is a straightforward run from the Busbar, across the firewall and down to the frame rail on the driver side. I used zip ties to secure it along the way and connected the Cyclone lights to the wiring harness using the supplied bullet connectors. KC nicely added in extensions that you can use if you need a little extra length to get from the light mount over to the wiring harness. I had to on the driver side as I needed about 2 additional inches and it worked out fine.

Step 4: Passenger Side Wiring Harness - This is the same deal as the Driver side only running down the passenger side of the vehicle to your Cyclone Lights. Only really important item to remember here is to make sure you zip tie the harness up and out of the way from anything that might snag it off-road or and heat source that could melt it. I did not need to extend the wires on the passenger side as there was ample wire in the harness itself.

Step 5: Switch Harness Installation - This is where I deviated from the KC provided install instructions. Since I wanted to use one of the Auxiliary switches already installed in my JL, I took a look at the following detail from the owners manual and located the wires near the battery under the hood. I utilized the Dark Blue/Pink wire which has a 15 amp fuse for my power source  (this is the Aux 4 Switch). I extended and ran this wire to the Busbar where the instructions called for the Green Wire from the KC wiring Harness to go. Since this is already a fused switch, I did not need to do anything else.

That's about it! This was a really easy install for anyone who has ever wired a light before. I would say that this took me about 1.5 hours to install. The finished product looks great and I can't wait to see how it functions off-road. To be honest, these are more for looks so I am not too worried about it off-road but if they provide a good light then it's a bonus. The wiring harness was pre-configured to add in additional rear lights (connector located on the Passenger side Wiring Harness) so I might tackle that next if I find I need/want more light...

The Journey is what counts, Adventure Awaits!

New Year, New Delivery...

Before I traded in my JK for the JL, I pulled off all the extra items that I had installed over the years that the dealership did not care about. Some of these items I saved for the JL, but for anything that would not fit, I tried to sell. I sold off my tube doors and used the money to purchase new KC Cyclone Rock Lights. These are something that I had wanted for a while on my JK so figured I would get a jump on them with my JL build.

I still love seeing the Brown trucks roll up outside to drop off a delivery... I ordered these from Quadratec and took advantage of one of their after Christmas sales and saved about 15%.

I had a set of cheap rock lights on my JK but I really liked the look of the Cyclone lights so figured this was a great time for an upgrade. I will try to get them installed this weekend and will post an update once completed but here is what they look like out of the box. I purchased the 4 light set figuring I could add on if I need to later. I also chose the Amber lights and I think that will both complement the Jeep the best and provide a nice functional light off-road.

I plan to use one of the Auxiliary switches that came optional in the JL. From what I can see and read, they are pretty configurable so I think this will be a good use for one of them. Stay Tuned for the install...

The Journey is what counts, Adventure Awaits!

Some Smaller Adds to my Jeep JL over the Holiday Break

I have been featuring the RSE Step/Sliders and the Teraflex Falcon Nexus Steering Stabilizer (yet to be installed) but I have also been busy with some "smaller" modifications just to make the JL more comfortable/functional.

I have installed:

• Front and rear Mopar Grab handles
• The Tekonsha 3014-P Brake Control Wiring Adapter
• Reese Towpower 8508211 Control Proportional Brake-EVN
• Tool Bags
• Midland MXT275 MicroMobile® GMRS Two-Way Radio
• Midland 75-822 40 Channel CB-Way Radio
• LED Lights for the Steps

I still need to figure out exactly where I will mount some of the items but all the wiring is in place and everything can be used once I figure out the best places to mount the radios. I found it extremely hard to drill any holes into my brand new JL dash. It's, frankly, too pretty!

I also still need to run the antennas out the back but ran into one problem, there is not much actual steel out the back of my Jeep! The GMRS radio has a magnetic mount and the bumper is plastic (for now) and everything on the tailgate is either Aluminum or Plastic so no options there either. Once I upgrade the rear bumper, then I will permanently mount the antennas.

More changes to come as time and finances permit...

The Journey is what counts, Adventure Awaits!

Happy New Year!!!

Just a quick post to wish you all a very Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year. 2018 was a great year for me and I am looking for more of the same in 2019!

Attitude is what gets you out of bed each day and lets you choose to have a good day or a bad day - always opt for the Good Days! I am a firm believer in positive thinking and not because it holds some sort of mystical powers but because I feel people in general prefer to associate with positive thinkers. It opens you up to many more new opportunities than if i you approach your day from a negative perspective.

Choose to be positive and more than not, good things will be made available to you. Make sure that you take full advantage of the opportunities when presented because they will not stick around too long.

Anyway, off my soap box and back outside...I installed LED lights for my RSE Step/Sliders and wired up my brake controller, last thing on my list is installing my Midland MTX275 Radio.

The Journey is what counts, Adventure Awaits!