Fender cutting

[jwatts]

I have an 87 Grand Wagoneer this is going to be my first real trail rig and so I'm learning as I go. I just recently put a 4in lift on it and some 35 BFG mud terrains. I do not have a lot of clearance though, the rear tires rub just leaving my driveway! Another lift is not feasible option right now so I want to cut the fenders to make room. I have never done this before and do nto know really how to go about doing it. I have a general idea on how its done but that's about it. If someone would like to take the time and explain the steps to doing this I would really appreciate it.

[fullsizejohn]

Do you mean the mechanics of making the actual cuts? the how.
Or the best lines to cut to to make it look/perform best? the where.:sawzall:

[Chevelleguy]

Even with a 6" lift you have to trim 2" to clear 35's. To make it simple, you are going to need to remove the entire 'flair' from the front fender (which is the easiest to do). If you have an air compressor and cutoff wheel, use that. You can also use a Sawsall or a jig saw with LOTS of blades. Just follow the outter line of the flair. For the rears you will need to remove about 4" from the wheel well lip and will leave a pretty good gap between the inner and outer wheel wells. You can leave about 1-1.5" of the inner wheel well so you can fold it over and weld up the gap or you can leave it alone if it's just a trail rig.

[jwatts]

I think I know where the cut need to be made to keep the tires from hitting the body I'm just unsure of the process of cutting the fenders and then making it look presentable when I'm done. Also, I believe my fenders are in two parts, an outer fender and an inner piece inside the wheel well. Is this inner piece important? Like can I just cut it out all together? Or do I need to weld the two pieces back together when I'm done?

[Tad]

You are going to cut quite a bit to fit 35's.
When I first cut mine I was 4" springs and needed about 1 1/2" of trimming for 33's. I eventually added a 2" body lift to keep the 33's from rubbing.
Front is not a big deal, plenty of room to play with.
Rear gets a bit trickier due to the inner fender well and the proximity of the front door.

I had a lot of rust so details were not that important.
This is the rear. It's changed a bit since then ;)
http://members.cox.net/tadsal/web%20page/wagpictures/fencutrear.JPG

Don't run out and cut just yet.
There are plenty of folks that have done a way better job than I did.
Look at their stuff first.

[TooRisky]

I hate body lifts, these beasts are top heavy to begin with in my opinion...I have a 7" lift and run 37" MT/R....I had to cut the fendes and make room but I am so happy I did, offroad I am super stable and happy with the setup....

http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j135/TooRisky/100_0529.jpg

[jeeping1974]

depending on the color of your rig. Maybe take a black magic marker or black paint and paint what you want to cut. This will at least give you some idea about what it will look like.

I used a sawzall to take off most of mine, then went to a jigsaw for the closer cut and finished it off with a grinding wheel.