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BuiltRight's 2020 Gladiator Build Thread

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5JeepsAz

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Well if he's coming from a Raptor... so he probably has a different version of pep than many/most new Gladiator owners.
I might need to drive some of the competition after reading so much on this. I just know from previous that an underpowered Jeep bugs for all time. I remember my 2 door wrangler having too much juice, but it never bugged. My too heavy liberty was sluggish at times and every time it was it made me wonder if I was in the right vehicle. I hope JT has enough...
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Happycoop

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Exactly the gladiator I'm looking to add to the garage...though I do wish the max tow was offered in a manual transmission. Interested to see the photos of the lift and tires. I'm sure it'll be a great alternative to driving the larger Raptor around town.
 

AL_Jazz

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I find myself in exactly the same boat Matt. I have had most every model of Jeep with the exception of the JL. I moved from having built multiple overlanding JKUs into a Gen1 Raptor. While I LOVED my 6.2 and the ride was incredible, it was simply to large for on-road driving and/or off-road adventuring. I found myself not taking it on trips and resorting to driving my old Hemi Commander just due to width. I sold my Raptor 2 weeks ago and am looking for the right JT to bring home. Looking forward to following your build and seeing how it compares. My wife loved the ride of the Raptor and isn't yet sold on the Gladiator...but she's not the one buying or driving it. :)
 
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BuiltRight

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Well if he's coming from a Raptor... so he probably has a different version of pep than many/most new Gladiator owners.
Truth is, what I really come from are fast street cars, so even the Raptor feels sluggish. The Gladiator actually feels pretty nimble, compared to the Raptor, and with the max tow, it zips around pretty good. I'm tempted by the procharger kit, though, so we'll see I suppose.
I might need to drive some of the competition after reading so much on this. I just know from previous that an underpowered Jeep bugs for all time. I remember my 2 door wrangler having too much juice, but it never bugged. My too heavy liberty was sluggish at times and every time it was it made me wonder if I was in the right vehicle. I hope JT has enough...
Definitely drive a few different trucks and consider one of the JTs with the 4.10 gears. I'm not disappointed in it, although I'm not looking for something 'fast'.
Exactly the gladiator I'm looking to add to the garage...though I do wish the max tow was offered in a manual transmission. Interested to see the photos of the lift and tires. I'm sure it'll be a great alternative to driving the larger Raptor around town.
You know, the manual transmission tempted me, but after many years of daily driving a manual, the Raptor has been really nice. These new 8 and 10spd transmissions kick ass, too. I do not regret the decision and am definitely already enjoying being able to pull into regular parking spots between two other cars without anxiety, haha.
Potential bike rack suggestion:
I dig it, just dont know if I want to have it obstructing the tailgate like that and I'd really prefer not to put it on and off all the time. looks stout, though.
I find myself in exactly the same boat Matt. I have had most every model of Jeep with the exception of the JL. I moved from having built multiple overlanding JKUs into a Gen1 Raptor. While I LOVED my 6.2 and the ride was incredible, it was simply to large for on-road driving and/or off-road adventuring. I found myself not taking it on trips and resorting to driving my old Hemi Commander just due to width. I sold my Raptor 2 weeks ago and am looking for the right JT to bring home. Looking forward to following your build and seeing how it compares. My wife loved the ride of the Raptor and isn't yet sold on the Gladiator...but she's not the one buying or driving it. :)
Agree 100% on the size. My normal commute is really just from my driveway to my shop, so parking isn't an issue, but there are some narrow roads and when I want to run to the store, it's always a pain in the ass. I think you'll be really happy with the JT. I'm super surprised as how smoothly it drives, even with a modest lift and 35s. MUCH more comfortable to drive around than the Raptor or even my previous F-150. My wife also loves the Raptor but shockingly, she really likes the Jeep. Back seat is a bit tight by the time we fill it with the baby 'stuff' that our 7mo old requires, would be my only complaint.
 

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@BuiltRight Look at the picture again, it swings out of the way of the tailgate, and it folds down when no bikes are on it. Only reason to remove would be long-term storage, or towing a trailer.
 
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So I've been lagging a bit on the updates, but I'm back on the horse now. I've also decided to become a forum sponsor! I think there's a good chance some of you might like a few of the custom bits that I've made for my JT and this way, I'll be able to more openly entertain building more of them for other members without the vendor/not-vendor conflict.

Annnnyway. Next up was the wheels/tires and lift. I think I mentioned it, but I went with the Rough Country 2.5" leveling kit for the front and opted for the longer shocks vs the brackets. The whole kit was super inexpensive (relatively speaking) and the install was a piece of cake (with the right tools, of course).


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Even without the wheels and tires, I think the level did a nice job of making the JT look a little more aggressive.

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That pic also shows a preview of a little project I was working on at the same time. It's actually something that I developed for the Ford Ranger, and will still work on that platform, but I was excited to adapt it to the JT.

Finally the wheels and tires. Found a little shop nearby that I knew would do a great job. I always enjoy supporting and building relationships with other small local businesses.

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Without further babbling, check out how these wheels and tires transformed the truck!! I'm super happy with how they turned out but beyond that, I'm really impressed with how well the truck drives. Still very smooth with light steering.

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Obviously, I managed to throw my tent up top and I also removed the small splash gaurds in the front bumper. This picture doesn't show it well, but removing those pieces from the sport bumper really makes the front end look more aggressive and jeep-like. I also think the black wheels helped pull together the look of the black fenders and freedom tops.

Matt
 
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@BuiltRight Look at the picture again, it swings out of the way of the tailgate, and it folds down when no bikes are on it. Only reason to remove would be long-term storage, or towing a trailer.
Yea, I saw that it swings, but didn't look close enough to see that it folds down. So if bikes aren't mounted, do you think I could open the tailgate without swinging it out?
 

Elanachan

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@BuiltRight I don't think so, I believe the intention is to make the rack not stick out so far when there are no bikes mounted, the swing is probably still need for tailgate access.

Edit, although, it looks short enough you might be able to fold it down with the wheel bars down:
yakima-drtray-2inch.jpg
 

Happycoop

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Build is looking great! Quick q: did you notice any sag in the rear with the weight of the bed rails/rack and RTT? Just curious since you lifted the front only if the OEM rear suspension handles added weight without sag.
 

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Build is looking great! Quick q: did you notice any sag in the rear with the weight of the bed rails/rack and RTT? Just curious since you lifted the front only if the OEM rear suspension handles added weight without sag.
That's a good question. I didn't measure it, although I'm sure it did, based on the fact that I can push on the tailgate and watch the rear squat. I'm gonna take the RTT off next week to make some changes and will measure before/after.

Matt
 
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BuiltRight

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Ok, finally have a minute to post a bit about the bed rack that I built and have been using. I've wanted to make something like this for a while and recently got this CNC plasma table, which really made it possible. I started by drawing the whole thing out and knew that I wanted it to be based on engineering extrusion as crossbars. The 'beams' would be single straight pieces that provide some flexibility and adjustment. The uprights would sit on the bedrails and attach either to the trail rail system or to the rail/mounting points if a truck isn't equipped.

Anyway, on with the pictures.

Got the uprights loaded into a program called sheetcam, which I use to generate gcode for the plasma table to run.
2iH46Id.jpg

Cut the uprights from 7ga (around 3/16") steel. Had my settings pretty well dialed in, so they cut cleanly, which is always nice.
1etF2Eu.jpg

I didn't think to snap a picture while I bent them up, but here's the cut and formed parts. Normally, I'd cut longer slots for easier and more precise bending of prototypes, but I needed these to have some strength so that I could actually use them. If something like this makes it to product, there would be not cuts on the bend line, as the cnc bending equipment can get them perfect without.
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Next, I cut the 'beams' from the same material. These are flat - no bending.
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I didn't snap too many pictures while assembling as I was too excited to slow down haha. It went together nicely, though. I put some tape on the bases to keep from scratching up the bedrails as it went on and off.
XeZzrba.jpg

Note that the beams dont extend past the uprights on this one. The reason for that is that at the time, I only had a piece of 48" material to prototype from. I ordered up some full sheets and cut full length parts the next day. This picture shows the longer beams, complete with my logo!
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Annnnnd mounted some of our riser mounts to hold my shoveltec shovel and threw the rtt on top. Nothing permanent, as I needed some shorter hardware for the rtt.
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That's it for the rack - time to test it. I'll get a bunch of miles on it, use the tent, etc and report back. Thanks for reading! Would really appreciate any input/feedback/etc.

Matt
 

TJ Mitchell Films

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Matt this looks great! I like the style of the rack and the adaptability of accessories on the side. What is the height between the bottom of the rack and the bed? Oh and I sent you a PM by the way.
 

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Great work, Matt! I'm excited to see what else you come up with. I'm particularly interested in the PALS/MOLLE plates you've come up with for the bed. Especially something that ties into the trail rail system.

Ummm, this is amazing! What do you do for a living that you've got all this equipment?
I mean, who doesn't have a plasma cutter?
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