Guess I'll start this one up.

Many of you know the black XJ got totaled over the summer thanks to a drunk driver. Insurance cut me a check, bought it back and proceeded to buy the same damn thing (very original right?)

Old jeep hur ----> <!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="http://www.mmsports.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=9897&start=100">viewtopic.php?f=14&t=9897&start=100</a><!-- l -->




First one never failed me and always got me home. Took it on plenty of wheeling trips and made general good use of what it was designed for.

So this guy.

1998 Jeep Cherokee Sport
144k on the clock. Picked it for $3000.



My intentions with this were to take a lot of the parts from the black one and throw them on the white one. I went back and forth on how much lift it would have and had plenty of struggles with justifying building another XJ with 3.5" of lift. Just didn't need it now that Vienna is 2.5 hours away from almost any decent trail. This this was going to have to see a lot of DD duty with the capability to haul camping gear, fishing gear, shooting gear, people, groceries, car parts blah blah blah.

So I settled on building it up for around 2.5" of lift which would give it very modest off road performance but keep it manageable on the street.

Most of the summer not much happened

Small maintenance items, damn those brakes were bad, changed the diff fluids and pulled off my old front tow hook kit and Hella 500 fog lights.





Sat like this for quite some time.


Took it on a few adventures and camping.



Ended up selling my black XJ to a NOVA Jeepers members and kept the wheels and 31's. 31's DO NOT fit well already under a stock XJ without some serious rubbing. Well when your rear leafs are practically flat you get even more.



Took the money and ordered/bought the following

OME HD leaf packs
Rubicon Shocks
JCR Offroad Transfer case skid.





Already had 2" lift springs from the first iteration of my black XJ, extended rear bump stops and some bar pin elminiators from my old busted Rubicon shocks to give me an extra ~1" of shock travel.

Some of you were at the lift day and thanks again for all of your help.

Front took about an hour and the rear consumed most of the day. The biggest hold up being the shear torque needed to loosen the bolts which held the old packs in place.. And my dumbass for forgetting well over a month ago to press out a metal sleeve in the bottom of the rear shocks.

Some pics of install and old parts comparison.




So now it sits like this.




I've got a few driveline vibes which aren't bad.

Mainly my next course of action is as follows:

Install Tcase Skid
Fix driveline vibes
Build CB antenna mount
Mount CB antenna and wire up CB
Purchase/install some front quick disconnects

Get it out on the trails! I'm really itching to get back up to Harrisonburg and hit all the local trails I miss.
Updates will come as things progress.

....I'll wait, I know there is a lot of you - basically everyone in MM works in IT :lol: File in, theres donuts and coffee by the door.

So. I pretty much decided that I had enough of working in sales and that its time to change things up - for a better tomorrow! Long story short, I graduated in '09 with a BA that I haven't found entirely useful (Int'l Relations); unless I put up with the onerous slog of trying to find a position within the Federal Gubment (entry level position - must have GS-9 qualifications!) or I go back for a masters ($$$ and the only way any of the 3-letter companies will look at me), I'm basically left with a nice piece of paper that is only sufficient for the "hey, I'm an educated, worthwhile member of society" argument that doesn't get anybody hired anymore.

(Sidenote: if any current students are reading this, and you're working on a soft, fluffy lib. arts degree, FOR CHRIST'S SAKE: You've got to get out of there.)

Weighing several options ATM, but I've looked at getting into the IT field, of which I have some basic, past experience. I spent my summers working basically as a paid intern for the DoS (where my dad works) in various IT support offices; installing work stations (including a temporary office for Condoleezza Rice, which was pretty nifty), doing general help desk work, digitizing/cataloging stuff, etc. I did some very basic, instructed maintenance in a server room once or twice.

It was fun and good experience, but at the time I didn't have much interest in pursuing an IT degree in college. I was never a strong math/science student, with few exceptions - I scored approximately Rain Man on every geometry assignment that was put in front of me, but was fairly mediocre everywhere else. Plus, it was still the time of "do what interests you, you'll get a job after graduation". Lulz.

So, I was happy to find out more about the Cisco Networking Academy. Now, I'm still reading through the basics, but it sounds to me as though if you're capable of learning things, you can start their program from the ground level at any one of their training academies (locally, FFX county continuing education, NVCC, GMU) in pursuance of CCNET, CCNA, etc. certification to become a network technician.

Would any of you fine IT folk care to shine your light on pursuing such an endeavor? I'm still reading about the prospects of such a career (it sounds as though if you can get more certifications and work your way up to an Administrator/CCIE role, you can make some serious bank), but don't know really how to approach it. Again, I'm not a math/science wiz, but it sounds like its building-block stuff, understanding protocols, the hardware itself, etc. I'm sure I could break it down and learn it if I put my mind to it. I've looked at NOVA's program of getting an IT/Network Engineer Associate's degree (which includes some Cisco Academy certification training), or just taking the Cisco course training outright - I'm not sure which would be the better way to go in my case.

So, yeah. Any info/guidance/"I've been there" sort of stuff would be great :thumbup: Thank you.

WERA (one of the groups I race with) has some paid openings for tech and registration. Don't know how many events they'd want you to commit to though.

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I'm registered to drive. My brother will be there drifting his cobra. All in all it's an awesome event if anyone else wants to come out. Oh yea and it's CHEAP

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iPhone 4: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ele/3460890927.html">http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ ... 90927.html</a><!-- m -->

Kindle: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ele/3460889668.html">http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ ... 89668.html</a><!-- m -->

iPad: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ele/3460670550.html">http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ ... 70550.html</a><!-- m -->

MacBook: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ele/3460688873.html">http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ ... 88873.html</a><!-- m -->

Also

Ikea Queen Bed Frame + Nightstands: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/fuo/3460892128.html">http://washingtondc.craigslist.org/nva/ ... 92128.html</a><!-- m -->


Descriptions can be found in the ads - The prices posted on CL ad are negotiable to MM peoples.

Stumbled across this website and thought while I'm not a die hard fan of many of these cars I wouldn't mind seeing some of them up on my wall.

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Is there any good driving routes between JMU and philly, I wouldn't mind making the drive home for break kind of interesting

New XJ is getting lifted.

If you're around this Saturday 12/8 @ 10AM I'll be putting it on.

Beer and some brats on the grill for lunch.

9015 Old Courthouse Road
Vienna, Va 22182

So, yesterday I drove up to the Philly area to attend the end-of-year meet put on by the Northeast region Supraforums group. Cars and people from all over met at Undercover Performance, a multi-faceted shop that does a lot of regional Supra work, but does also, as you'll see, turbo Buicks, domestics and even classic car restorations.

We then caravan'd for about 45 minutes to a steak restaurant and the show's location. I rode there in the black Viper GTS ACR and back in a 600whp single turbo Supra :twisted: . Definitely a worth-while trip.

I took too many pics to post all of them, but a smattering below - all of them here.










































I'll single this one out for its extreme rarity - a bone stock, '98 Quicksilver FX Turbo 6 speed. Exactly the kind of car that may bring beaucoup bucks at Barrett Jackson in 20 years, if the market goes that way.

Aside from the ridiculous fees and myriad of anti-seller policies, this is but another reason I refuse to sell anything on ebay from here on out:

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://codenerdz.com/blog/2012/12/03/think-of-selling-on-ebay-using-paypal-think-again/">http://codenerdz.com/blog/2012/12/03/th ... ink-again/</a><!-- m -->

TLDR: Guy sells iphone on ebay to guy with good feedback, buyer issues a chargeback for 'item not as described'. Credit card company takes back the money, buyer not forced to return the phone, seller left with no recourse. 3 others hit by same scam by same buyer.

Craigslist only for me =/