TheHops
Well-Known Member
- Thread starter
- #1
Edit:
Over 20,000 views on this thread as of this edit. Sweet!
The build has come a long way since this first post. For any of you interested in getting a better look at my build and my adventures, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel here -> https://youtube.com/channel/UC1878vz1cer11modr9SUwYw
There are quite a few videos there to check out, with new content coming on a regular basis. Thanks for stopping by!
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Happy New Year all!
A few days ago, I picked up my dream vehicle from the dealer: Ares is a brand new 2020 Gladiator Rubicon with a manual transmission in Firecracker Red. I took him off of the lot with just 18 miles on the odometer.
For as long as I can remember, I've wanted an off-road capable, 4x4 pickup with a manual, and Jeep definitely delivered on this one. I also entertained a newer Frontier or Tacoma, but after seeing my first Gladiator Rubicon in-person several months ago, I knew that was the route that I wanted to take. I had been hunting around for months for just the right deal, and I came across this one about 300 miles away from home, with just about everything that I wanted, at the right price point. After a few days of back-and-forth with the dealer, I had a one-way car rental from Nashville to Atlanta, and I was on my way to pick it up.
I've always been interested in the overland/long-range exploration scene, and I plan to carry on the trend of my previous builds with this platform. I have huge plans for this Jeep (Truck? Jruck? Teep?). I do plan on swapping out the wheels and tires asap in order to maximize resale on the stocks, however aside from that I do plan to enjoy it in (more or less) stock form for a little while. We'll see how long that lasts...the bug is biting hard, but I'm hoping to resist the urge on any major mods until at least the summer, due to several work trips scheduled between now and then.
The weather around here has been crappy for the past couple of days, but I did manage to snap a picture on the lot just before the sun went down. Believe me, there are many more pictures to come.
A brief dream sheet of mods on the horizon, in no particular order:
-Moderate (flush, or barely poking) offset (+10 to +30) 17x8.5-9.5 black wheels
-35x12.50R17 Ridge Grapplers
-High stage ICON lift (only stage 1 is available at this time)
-Find an OEM black hard top
-Tint the fronts to match the rear windows, add tint brow to windshield
-Line-x truck bed
-Mount my ARB dual compressor (I like the bracket that mounts under the passenger seat)
-Mount my fire extinguisher in cab
-Front and rear bumpers (currently leaning towards Fab Fours)
-Winch install (I currently have a brand new Superwinch EXP 10k synthetic, but may look to trade/sell for a similar WARN)
-Find means to mount rooftop tent (torn between tonneau/bed rack, or waiting on a suitable camper shell such as an Alu-Cab)
-Roof rack over cab and camper shell/bed rack
-Full skid/armor
-Install sPOD
-Wire in my two sets of Rigid pods (does anyone know of brackets that can mount pods behind the grille?)
Much, much more, but those are the major ones that I can think of at the time of writing this initial post.
This build thread will be slow going, but look forward to updates in the near future as I start getting parts in. I'm glad to be a part of the community, and look forward to learning/contributing!
Over 20,000 views on this thread as of this edit. Sweet!
The build has come a long way since this first post. For any of you interested in getting a better look at my build and my adventures, please consider subscribing to my YouTube channel here -> https://youtube.com/channel/UC1878vz1cer11modr9SUwYw
There are quite a few videos there to check out, with new content coming on a regular basis. Thanks for stopping by!
----------
Happy New Year all!
A few days ago, I picked up my dream vehicle from the dealer: Ares is a brand new 2020 Gladiator Rubicon with a manual transmission in Firecracker Red. I took him off of the lot with just 18 miles on the odometer.
For as long as I can remember, I've wanted an off-road capable, 4x4 pickup with a manual, and Jeep definitely delivered on this one. I also entertained a newer Frontier or Tacoma, but after seeing my first Gladiator Rubicon in-person several months ago, I knew that was the route that I wanted to take. I had been hunting around for months for just the right deal, and I came across this one about 300 miles away from home, with just about everything that I wanted, at the right price point. After a few days of back-and-forth with the dealer, I had a one-way car rental from Nashville to Atlanta, and I was on my way to pick it up.
I've always been interested in the overland/long-range exploration scene, and I plan to carry on the trend of my previous builds with this platform. I have huge plans for this Jeep (Truck? Jruck? Teep?). I do plan on swapping out the wheels and tires asap in order to maximize resale on the stocks, however aside from that I do plan to enjoy it in (more or less) stock form for a little while. We'll see how long that lasts...the bug is biting hard, but I'm hoping to resist the urge on any major mods until at least the summer, due to several work trips scheduled between now and then.
The weather around here has been crappy for the past couple of days, but I did manage to snap a picture on the lot just before the sun went down. Believe me, there are many more pictures to come.
A brief dream sheet of mods on the horizon, in no particular order:
-Moderate (flush, or barely poking) offset (+10 to +30) 17x8.5-9.5 black wheels
-35x12.50R17 Ridge Grapplers
-High stage ICON lift (only stage 1 is available at this time)
-Find an OEM black hard top
-Tint the fronts to match the rear windows, add tint brow to windshield
-Line-x truck bed
-Mount my ARB dual compressor (I like the bracket that mounts under the passenger seat)
-Mount my fire extinguisher in cab
-Front and rear bumpers (currently leaning towards Fab Fours)
-Winch install (I currently have a brand new Superwinch EXP 10k synthetic, but may look to trade/sell for a similar WARN)
-Find means to mount rooftop tent (torn between tonneau/bed rack, or waiting on a suitable camper shell such as an Alu-Cab)
-Roof rack over cab and camper shell/bed rack
-Full skid/armor
-Install sPOD
-Wire in my two sets of Rigid pods (does anyone know of brackets that can mount pods behind the grille?)
Much, much more, but those are the major ones that I can think of at the time of writing this initial post.
This build thread will be slow going, but look forward to updates in the near future as I start getting parts in. I'm glad to be a part of the community, and look forward to learning/contributing!
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