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Anyone done anything cool (not on the outside of the Jeep) with their Badge of Honor badges?

I moved to a new house late last year, and some things are still boxed up. While in the basement looking through a box trying to find something else, I found my badges (along with 5 of the OG versions, which I never really cared for the look of as they were plasticky and had a lot of chrome on them).

Definitely not affixing them to the Jeep, as that is not my style. I thought about maybe affixing them to the side of my Dometic fridge or, when I get it, the back of the American Adventure Lab VersaTable. But, I would also be more than happy to just create some sort of small display for them in my office with a photo of the Jeep(s) I have earned them with.

Also, it kind of irks me that Poison Spider and Golden Spike are BoH trails, but not Gold Bar Rim (which is the third part of what has recently been dubbed "The Trifecta"). I've got a badge coming for Fins N Things, which I did during EJS with AEV on a night run, and I also noticed that they added Gulches in South Carolina to the list, which I completed in my old JKU Rubicon when I lived in GA, and I am certainly not about to drive back out there to horse around in an off-road park, so I may have found a way around doing that drive. :)

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So, last week, Denver Auto Shield posted a writeup of the tint / PPF / ceramic coating job on the Jeep. The writeup is here and is cool, if you're interested in PPF / ceramic coat at the process... But the pictures are droolworthy (at least, to me 😅 ).

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I'm going to have to break the pictures up into several posts due to forum limits...
 

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That Sarge Green with the Gold Borahs and trim just looks phenomenal.
 

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Just found this thread. Coolest Wrangler out there. Thanks for sharing this journey with us! We're loving it!
 
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Been a while and a bit since my last post, but I've been pretty busy as of late and haven't done much in the way of "fun Jeep things." However, I did go to Overland Expo West in Flagstaff, AZ a couple of weeks ago, and had a blast.

I ended up being invited by a friend that works for AEV to stay at the AirBnB they rented for the show, which was a welcome change of plans given the weather. I fought severe thunderstorms from my house in Colorado up until just outside of Winslow, Arizona where the weather decided to cooperate and allow me to enjoy a nice, cool evening. I even got to stand on a corner and take it easy. It was awesome staying with the AEV guys. I got to meet the owner of AEV, Dave Harriton and hang out with him a bit at the show and at the house / at dinner. Really awesome guy. He showed me some stuff that I promised to keep between us, but let's just say the Ranger Raptor isn't the only upcoming mid-size truck that will be able to do "Raptor things." Keep those eyes out for the new Colorado ZR2 Bison and the GMC AT4X AEV Edition... They're gonna eat.

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I went over and offered to take a few photos for the lovely couple pictured across the street.

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He wasn't quite tall enough for the photo op, but we made it work...


I got into Flagstaff on Wednesday night and, after doing a beer and snacks run to stock the fridge and pantry on the way, I met up with a couple of the guys from AEV at the AirBnB.

On Thursday morning, we packed up and headed to the fairgrounds to setup the AEV booth. It was really cool getting to see this beast again after seeing it in Moab after the AEV customer tour, and it was just awesome to get to see the guys from AEV again and hang out in a more relaxed setting when they don't have to be "on" for a show or a tour.

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Had to grab a nose-to-nose shot!

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It was pretty surreal driving into the Expo itself on setup day behind the PXL Tray Bed... My buddy at AEV that is responsible for the booth was going to see if we had room to fit my Jeep into the booth, but because they had requested to be next to the GMC booth, the space was smaller than expected and they couldn't get more than two vehicles into the space (and they already had Sean Holman's amazing "ADVJeep" 392 lined up for the booth). Sean's 392 being Firecracker Red with AEV Bronze Borah wheels really looked fantastic next to the PXL tray bed sporting the same color combo.

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I thought this was a neat picture, given the Sarge Green color and the signs on the building...
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Back side of the GMC booth with the AEV booth in the distance, and of course my Jeep. You can see the ominous weather looming in the distance overhead...

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Honestly, my favorite thing at the show was the PXL Tray Bed. It is the perfect single guy's truck. If sexual energy was a truck, it would be the PXL Tray Bed. Massive 41.5" IROK tires, the proportions, everything. DROOL.

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However, aside from the Tray Bed, there was some really cool stuff at the show and I was really impressed by the new AEV'd GMC / Chevy offerings. They had the new Sierra HD 2500 AT4X AEV Edition and the Silverado ZR2 Bison at the show. The fit and finish of the AEV parts on those vehicles are heads and shoulders above what is being offered by the competition from factory off-road trucks, and more robust to boot. I saw the 2024 Tacoma Trailhunter at the show and, while I love ARB and the ARB bumper looks better than what Toyota has offered in the past (not saying much), the AEV bumpers on the GMC and Chevy trucks are just so much more integrated looking. And, in the days since Expo West, the new Colorado ZR2 Bison was announced with factory 35" tires! I know this forum is about Jeeps, but the mid-size truck market is on fire! The various Gladiators, the new Colorado ZR2 Bison, the upcoming GMC Canyon AT4X AEV Edition (which will also have factory 35" tires), the Ranger Raptor, and... I'm forgetting something... the Nissan Frontier PRO-4X! Oh, and I guess the new 2024 Tacoma which FINALLY has a fully-boxed chassis and FINALLY has ditched the drum brakes in the rear in favor of 4-wheel disc brakes, and has suspension seats that literally no one asked for, and doesn't have a V6 engine option, and will probably enter the market in "middle-place" once again because Toyota has gone from Legendary to "that'll do, Gary."

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Even the power port for the engine block heater is integrated into the bumper!

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It POURED on Friday, but fortunately I was talking to the fellas from Equipt and they graciously allowed Sampson and me to take shelter with them for about 2 hours in their shelter, and I'm not exagerrating... The storm seemed like it would never peter out.


Other than the PXL Tray Bed, I think this was likely the coolest rig at the show... Matt Scott (from Adventure Imports, Overland Kitted, and Overland Journal) brought out this AEV 570 (5.7L HEMI swapped) LJ he had recently acquired with 13,000 original miles and an undercarriage so clean you could have eaten off of it. All work had been done by AEV, including the powder coating and installation of parts they don't even sell. Wow. Spent some time chatting with Matt about the rig and catching up on other topics.

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Then, there were the people. Honestly that's my favorite part of Overland Expo and other Jeep / off-road events. When you've been to enough of the events, you've kind of "seen it all" in terms of builds, from mild to wild. Every so many years, a new product will hit the market which are cool to see in person, but getting to see the people in this community and continue to develop relationships with these folks is what keeps me coming back. Shoutouts to Matt, Jeff, Eric, and Dave (yes, THAT Dave) for their amazing hospitality, inviting me to stay with them, and it was great to see folks like Justin Pitcairn, Nick Psomas, Brit Mansell, Marco Hernandez, Sean Holman, Jay "Lightning" Tiles, Matt Scott, Scott Brady, Caleb and Sam Wallace, and many others. If you've never been to an Overland Expo and have been interested in going or are interested in overlanding or just "fancy car camping," I would encourage you to put it on the calendar and go!

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It was great to share an ice cold Dr. Pepper with the hosts of America's best podcast, the Truck Show Podcast. Sean and I have met before and chat fairly regularly, but it was cool to meet Lightning and talk to him about some potential Banks Power additions to the 392 build.

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It was also great seeing Marco again and catching up with him. There are a lot of people with huge followings on YouTube and Instagram that, in-person, aren't at all the people the present themselves to be on the internet, but Marco is not one of those people, he's one of the most genuine, kind, and down to earth guys you'll meet.


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Was so great catching up with Caleb from Overland Kitted.

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Awesome to see Graeme from Go Fast Campers!
 
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It's been a busy summer at work, so I haven't gotten the Jeep out nearly as much as I'd have liked, but I did get out on the Saints John / Deer Creek loop yesterday with a few friends. This is a loop that I've done many, many times, but never quite as fast as in the 392. We were moving!

The AEV suspension just soaked everything up, and although I knew my group of friends was each individually prepared and were well-versed on the trails, I had to slow myself down, or come to a complete stop and wait a handful of times, because I lost sight of them in my mirrors. The well-known FunTreks guidebook says Saints John (they rate "Difficult," which I disagree with) should take 2-3 hours, and that Deer Creek (they rate "Moderate") should take about 1.5 - 2 hours. We did the whole loop in about 2 hours and 45 minutes, including a ~15 minute stop at the Wild Irishman Mine and a ~45 minute stop around the General Teller Mine.

All in all, a great day with great friends!

I didn't take many pictures, but here are a few.

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A friend brought his new 20A 392 which still had paper plates. First one I have seen in person. The new grille looked better in-person than it does in pictures, but I still prefer the old style.

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I've been fortunate enough to encounter mountain goats every time I have driven these trails.

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If you see me in your rearview, take a cue from that classic Ludacris song :)


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We even let a Land Cruiser come with us...
 

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Warped

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Beautiful country. I really need to get out west. Are going to the AEV open house next month? I'm thinking about driving out to it.
 
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Beautiful country. I really need to get out west. Are going to the AEV open house next month? I'm thinking about driving out to it.
No, I won't get there. My parents are arriving later this week and will be here for 3-4 weeks. I'm going to see Matt and Richard at Expo Mountain West, though.
 
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AEV just released the video footage they put together of the Moab customer run. My 392 gets some camera time, including the closing shot!

 

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Great video and congrats for getting on it.
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