Marc Bryson lazy "build" -JT Gladiator Rubicon

mbryson

.......a few dollars more
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This wasn't horrible but took more time than I wanted to spend on it.


Steps are way cool. Lighted and everything. Should be cool in the church parking lot on early Sunday mornings. ( Since this only goes to church on Sundays)
 

mbryson

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Trail Day #7--- December 2022 Swell Trip with @moab_cj5 and @Tonkaman

Left the house at 4:30am and am hitting snow at about 8:15. Proved to be the wrong trail but a very cool one. We'll be back on that one. Earlier in the week, I figured out that my JT 5"ish display would show my gaia maps app when my phone was plugged in. It worked mostly well. Gaia maps app is not truly "turn by turn", at least as I'm used to. I'll need to spend a bit of time with the app but once I'm off road, the tracks save well and the map layers are pretty cool and match up with the roads you're on. Gaia is something I'll have to get used to. I should probably buy some kind of a phone mount but I'm trying not to have all kinds of junk hanging from my dash and such like other JT/JL units I've seen.

This was kind of camp "signature" for camping night #1 from the JT. As most of you know, I'm far from a good camper but was willing to give it a shot.
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black bag is my "kitchen", the always handy $3 wool blanket I bought in Tijuana in 1989 or thereabouts, a pretty good quality ExpedX sleeping pad, my -20* bag, my "outfitter" A frame tent (good tent as far as tents go---it is pretty good in whatever weather), a ground tarp that fits the tent footprint, a fleece blanket for my head and shoulders and the always handy Harbor Freight moving blankets that are versatile. I'm sure that'll get me through one night? That gear easily packed into two storage containers that I strapped down to the JT bed. Overall, it worked pretty good but I didn't end up using the tent.

We met up with Dave and hit Swasey Arch quick enough. Easy travel.


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Wandered down and over Fix-it Pass.
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Odd little mine sort of near Buckhorn Draw

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Near the end of the motorized access in the Mexican Mountain "wilderness" area. Wilderness area that's complete with an airstrip, grazing cattle and roads that lead to mining access. Kind of a chicken shit way to manage the area calling it "wilderness".

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I didn't take any pictures of camp but as you can tell, by the time we are back from the Mexican Mountain Wilderness area, the day is getting a little long in the tooth.


On to Trail day #8 in the next post.
 
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mbryson

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Trail day #8. I tried to sleep under my tonneau on the wool blanket and the air mattress/pad thing. It was difficult to get into at my size and I was concerned about getting claustrophobic. Super cozy and pretty warm though. I thought with my head out on the tailgate (truck has a 5' bed and I'm 6' tall) and a moving blanket/tent ground cover over my head, I'd be pretty cozy and still be able to fight the claustrophobia. About 12:30-12:45, I rolled over and hit the alum cross bar of the tonneau cover with my shoulder and fight or flight kind of kicked in. I knew that my sleeping under the tonneau (pretty comfortable honestly) was over. My fall back was to sleep in the backseat of my truck in a semi-sitting position or sleep in the passenger seat of the truck. (or I could setup the tent in the middle of the night).

I chose the back seat with my sleeping bag, fleece blanket and pretty much nothing else. I was able to get some quality sleep and woke up about 7 am. It was kind of like sleeping in a recliner or similar. Not the most comfy but not something you'd totally regret either. I don't think I'll do it again in a planned situation. Despite the sleeping "crisis" it was worth waking up to this.

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or you could pivot 90* and see this....
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Or pivot about 110* and see this.
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Worth my overnight to wake up to this. I cleaned up in about 15-20 min while we all ate and cleaned up and we hit the road.
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Quick little run up a side canyon we explored. Awesome camping spots.

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Some kind of FRESH cat tracks (is a bobcat this small?)
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We ran up to the Buckhorn Wash panel and stopped at the pit toilet (those are pretty handy and make camping pretty decent).

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mbryson

.......a few dollars more
Supporting Member
Actually did some very light welding today. The dealership I bought the truck from didn't have the foresight to think I'd actually WANT the Rubicon stock bed protectors. After watching the Facebook Marketplace and KSL for the past few months I got mad and bought some aftermarket units. Bolted right on after I cut a rear bumper bracket off.

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We'll see how the thinish wall tube holds up. Total time investment 75 min. $ investment, free 99 due to a gifted visa card. "Visa" JT is living up to its name?

I need to find some semi-gloss black to dull the shiny spray paint. I tried to "dust" spray the gloss and it just glossed.
 

Hickey

Burn-barrel enthusiast
Supporting Member
Actually did some very light welding today. The dealership I bought the truck from didn't have the foresight to think I'd actually WANT the Rubicon stock bed protectors. After watching the Facebook Marketplace and KSL for the past few months I got mad and bought some aftermarket units. Bolted right on after I cut a rear bumper bracket off.

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We'll see how the thinish wall tube holds up. Total time investment 75 min. $ investment, free 99 due to a gifted visa card. "Visa" JT is living up to its name?

I need to find some semi-gloss black to dull the shiny spray paint. I tried to "dust" spray the gloss and it just glossed.
I’ve been considering adding those to ours. The Mojave does not come with them.
 

mbryson

.......a few dollars more
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I have some bonus frame brackets if you'd like to build your own ? On mine that are installed, I'm not sure how well the thin wall tube will hold up welded to the thin wall bumper but it's easier than spending a few hours building a bracket to bolt to the bumper? (Bumper had a little mishap on a snow run while I was kinetic roping a stockish JL. Not really made for any kind of bumper duty despite the shackles built into it.)
 
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mbryson

.......a few dollars more
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Trail day #10. Day trip to Moab.
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Getting started on Backwards Bill. Making tracks in fresh snow.

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Sliding down a little ledge


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Friends from when I lived in West Jordan. Good to get out with them. All the little kids now have little kids. Life is awesome
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My JT just seems to find the Monitor and Merrimack buttes when it's in Moab.


Today I'm back to Cache Valley for a funeral/celebration of life for a 93 year old I know/respect on Saturday. Driving the JT everywhere this weekend. Driving seems to be the theme with this dawg. I bought it 5 months ago and just hit 10k miles that I've put on it. Bought at 10,247 I'm at 20,3xx when I got home last night.

Super cool rig with some legs. The truck is kind of a swiss army knife. Lots of good things, nothing great but you love it because it can do a lot things well
 
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mbryson

.......a few dollars more
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I think it fair to write a 10k mile (talking seat time here, truck has 20k on it now). Was this a good purchase or not? After busting up my "Jeep" pretty good on the Thursday before Labor Day, I bought this the Friday after Labor Day 2022. Biggest factor was daily driving the tow rig, taking care of a trailer (which I'm finding I still would like something to haul my Buick) and fixing my long in the tooth trail jeep after most outings. The F350 sold the day after I put it up. The 36' three axle bumper sold a few weeks after putting it up. We paid off the balance owed on my wife's Navigator with some of the truck $, have a chunk in the bank intending to put it down on the JT and refi that loan back to where what the payment on the Navigator was. After 5 months, I'm not sure what we'll do there but I'll leave that to a discussion with my accountant I sleep with rather than air that dirty laundry on the interwebs :D


I've had a tow rig/trailer for the last 18+ years. This is a pretty big change in lifestyle for me. I do get to tell people I can't help with moving a car or whatever they've conjured up when they wanted to borrow my truck/trailer. Over the years, I've decided I'm cool with lending my equipment out if I come along with the truck/trailer. Here's the times I can help you. Now I just can't help them. It's a nice change.

As far as a tow rig, the JT is far from optimal. It's probably not horrible but I've not towed with it.

Concerns when buying:
3.0L diesel (decent power and mpg but the dreaded CP4 or whatever fuel pump it has---100k mile Chrysler/Fiat warranty---if needed, I hope I don't regret the powerplant choice)
DEF
short bed (5' bed? Come on! I like full size 8' beds---but have had more 6.75' short beds than long beds)
breakover angle
expensive car on the trail
trail adjustments (less "hard" trails---I only used the Jeep 3-5 days per year on those at best anyway---is that an acceptable loss?)
cost of JT --- no joke there


Not all of the concerns have been resolved. There are at least 3-4 times I would have liked to have Sweaty Betty back. I figured something else out each time and honestly, Sweaty Betty would have been a compromise at 1-2 of those times with the short bed. I don't remember specifically what I needed a full size truck for but remember thinking that the JT was just not even a consideration. I'm still alive and things are OK in my world so maybe "needing" the truck was more of a want?

The 3.0l diesel was not really chosen by me. I liked this specific truck as much as any I drove and it was "done". "Built" by a dealer as it sits. The title of this thread is "lazy" build. I bought this truck as it is, put Rock Slide Engineering steps, radios, ARB air and a winch on it and have just driven it. I was back and forth many times between this white Rubicon 3.0L diesel or a silver Overland 3.6 (would have put ARB lockers in, changed the lift and probably the wheels on that truck---for whatever reason the leather seats in the Overland and the painted flares were kind of the reason I went with the 3.0L truck---after deciding that the JT was for me, I looked at quite a few new and trade-in JT and just came back to lazy build). I hope as time goes by, the 3.0L doesn't prove to be a huge mistake. Plan is to run it to 60-70k miles and evaluate from there.

DEF---like any modern diesel owner, I'm not a fan. It's kind of a non-issue so far. Just another thing to plan around. I intend to go on Expedition Utah Ghost Town Tour with this truck. From what I can tell, I'm the ONLY diesel and I need 350 miles of range. With a full tank, I get about 325 miles of range. With the CP4 pump, I'm not taking any chances on running the truck low on fuel and will be taking 10 deezel gallons with me and topping off the DEF before we head out.

Shortbed---It's stupid but still functional. I would NOT want it longer for off road, in fact, it's too long for off road. My trailer hitch scrapes everytime I go anywhere. For general use, it's ok but an even shorter bed (did I just type that?) would be OK most of the time. (is it Motobilt that has the replacement beds that are shorter? ---- not happening but kind of tempting but not really)

Breakover angle---this is a problem on the trail. No way around it. 137" wheelbase and 37" tires make for creative lines at times. Frankly it's kind of fun having to be this creative. I'm sure I'll run into something where I'll hate the breakover but as long as you account for it, it's been a non-issue. I do have to take some creative lines to keep the belly out of places where I probably shouldn't be. So far, so good

Expensive car on the trail---this is kind of a challenge. My Jeep on the trail, I don't really care if I rub up against a rock or something. I need 10-20 years out of this truck for what it cost and if I do need to bail on it, I need it in decent condition to sell it. I feel like the "will this scratch my Jeep guy" at the EJS drivers meetings

Trail adjustments----I haven't run the "hard" trails much at all the past 8-10 years. My other Jeep was pretty overbuilt for all the EJS trails and if I took my Jeep on "hard" trails, I usually had to fix something. I needed to adjust the K30 Jeep to be more trail/driver friendly (possible) or buy something to fit the trails I do run. This truck will run at least 95% of the trails that I did run in the K30 Jeep. I just have to be a little more careful about damage

cost----nothing to say here.
K30 Jeep --- $10kish
JT --- $65kish (after buying stuff I "needed")

K30 Jeep wins by a landslide here (in fact, by 60k)

Things I knew I wanted and love:
  • HVAC system that seems to do what I want it to do
  • drivability -- people complain about these seats and head room in these things. I'm pretty happy with both
  • decent sound system (important for the Van Hagar songs I dig) -- not ideal but "ok"
Things I didn't know I wanted:
  • Heated seats---I'm sure I'm on record telling everyone I hate heated seats. The ones on this truck are pretty great. I only run them on the lowest setting but I haven't worn a coat all winter (it's in the back seat)
  • Ability to hit 80+ on the freeway after a quick air up post trail
  • Fuel range -- 325 miles is about the range I have
  • 8 speed trans paired with a turbo -- I'd rather have a 5.7 Hemi in here but this 3.0L isn't bad

Things I don't like:
  • ducks.... what the hell? This just points out that those that buy a "new" Jeep are buying it for the Jeep "life". Somehow the Jeep community has watered itself down to ducks. I assume that's for the cheerleader types ?
  • storage --- problems for any Jeep. Jeep has done a pretty good job making spaces for you. You (me) just need to adjust what junk you bring
  • hyper electronic --- I WILL have occasion to swear at the electronics in this car. So far, a reboot of the system seems to solve everything. Kind of like a Windows OS?
  • I miss my old man tailgate step from the F350
  • The cheap Amazon bumpers need to go. Not in a rush to replace those but I will be changing them out over time. (probably not this year as what I have still works and I have many dollars going to airlines instead of putting my cash into bumpers)
  • I still don't like the three piece hard top. I didn't care for it on my JKU and I feel similarly about the JT top. The JT top doesn't leak (at least yet) like a '79 Trans Am
  • Chrysler "nanny" stuff.... Do you realize to fill the diesel with a can you need some stupid $3 funnel to open the spicket/valve thing at the top of the fuel filler? No idea what lawsuit this is fighting but I'm sure it's something stupid? Possibly a "fix" for accidental DEF filling into the fuel tank?
  • I'd kind of like a hard top/tin top version of this truck. Basically a solid axle Tacoma with a comfortable seating position, adequate power (lower in the powerband) and proven reliability
  • There's a bunch of "storage" on the dash.... I hate shit on the dash. Very distracting to me


I CAN take this truck on trips that I've always wanted to run like ExpeditionUtah GTT. I can take day trips to the Swell, Moab or whatever. It is a solid to good daily driver. I don't have to leave a tow rig/trailer somewhere and come back to it. I like how the JT looks and drives. So far, this thing is a win despite it's exorbitant cost (at least to me). Fordyce is OUT (still want to do that trail). Rubicon is eh, not sure but with the right crew, I'd go again.

I'm not a great camper, so weeks long or 3+ night trips are probably out. I can survive anything for a night or two and am looking to see if I can make some of those things more comfortable without giving up too much that works for me on the truck. More to come there in the next few months


So for a judgement after 10k, "Good" purchase. I must like it, I drive it a LOT.
 
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mbryson

.......a few dollars more
Supporting Member
That Ramcharger is so cool! The wheels on the otherhand...:grimacing:


That is a cool RamCharger. Rick Miller is the owner. Dodge passenger drop 60 front, I think a semi-float 14 bolt in the rear? Both are swapped to the 5 on 5 bolt pattern so he could get some nicer wheels. I am very confident by the time he swapped the bolt patterns on both axles, he should have bought some cooler wheels. (this is where my opinion of 20" wheels on the trail comes from---40" or bigger, 20" wheels are likely fine maybe even good---less than that, 17" for my taste) Holley Sniper fuel injection on the 360

Rick is a super cool guy and great friend. Brent Orton and myself have had Rick in some pretty awkward positions over the years with that truck. It's run Pritchett many times, Lower Helldorado a few (had to leave it there while we fixed a D44 steering knuckle in Moab and brought the fixed unit back to put it on the Rammer to drive it out) and countless other trails. Rick keeps it SUPER clean, has a stirrup to get in/out of it and is always fun on the trail despite him being kind of slow. He says he's slow due to the leaf springs (and he does have pretty good arch in those springs to run the 38" tires).

Running him along the 'I lean' part of 7 mile and that little boulder pinch I knew would be the highlight of yesterday. I was not disappointed. He climbed the "easy" side of Wipe Out Hill without even slipping a tire.
 
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glockman

I hate Jeep trucks
Location
Pleasant Grove
Great summary! I'm glad to see other people totally over think things. I must not make the money some people do who just plop down $70k for a "wheeling" Jeep for the pics on Insta. Or maybe I won't be eating dog food in retirement or worse, greeting for walmart in my 60's. Either way, love the rig.
One question, do you even radio bro?
 

mbryson

.......a few dollars more
Supporting Member
Great summary! I'm glad to see other people totally over think things. I must not make the money some people do who just plop down $70k for a "wheeling" Jeep for the pics on Insta. Or maybe I won't be eating dog food in retirement or worse, greeting for walmart in my 60's. Either way, love the rig.
One question, do you even radio bro?

I am looking fwd to getting those radios more under control. The stupid one is the CB that I'll only run for RR4W events. I need to get a cap for that and stow the antenna behind the seat in the truck.

Some people I go out with run GMRS and others run 2m.
 
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