1985 CJ 7 Bell crank problem

[mtnwhlr]

If it's the bell crank... no

This is what I was talking about, so something has changed with the swap.

 

[meekorp]

UPDATE:
Replaced motor mounts and tranny mount

Checked rear of valve cover... fairly dry so I'm sure the rear main seal needs replacement as there is a nicely placed oil drip hanging from the bell housing.

The undercarriage is an oily mess and the skid plate had a nice caked on mix of oil and desert dust between it and the tranny... which only confirms my opinion that it's the seal.

Picking up the minuscule nylon bushings and C clips to give er another try on Saturday. Honestly... the old motor mounts were only a bit worn (.125") and the tranny mount was obviously ready for retirement but I don't feel confident that this will have an affect on the bell crank issue. I don't know, maybe a little wear on those mounts might have kicked it out of alignment enough to make a difference. Sure hope so because the time spent on those mounts was a good learning moment however it will be a disappointment if that crank pops out again. Might start looking at the hydraulic kit.

 

[Dan77CJ7]

UPDATE:
Replaced motor mounts and tranny mount

Checked rear of valve cover... fairly dry so I'm sure the rear main seal needs replacement as there is a nicely placed oil drip hanging from the bell housing.

The undercarriage is an oily mess and the skid plate had a nice caked on mix of oil and desert dust between it and the tranny... which only confirms my opinion that it's the seal.
F
Picking up the minuscule nylon bushings and C clips to give er another try on Saturday. Honestly... the old motor mounts were only a bit worn (.125") and the tranny mount was obviously ready for retirement but I don't feel confident that this will have an affect on the bell crank issue. I don't know, maybe a little wear on those mounts might have kicked it out of alignment enough to make a difference. Sure hope so because the time spent on those mounts was a good learning moment however it will be a disappointment if that crank pops out again. Might start looking at the hydraulic kit.

Long shot but have you made sure your pivot ball is installed. If your tricky you can pull the fork boot and kinda see if the ball is still on it’s “ pedestal “, prolly not the issue but worth a gander..

 

[meekorp]

Long shot but have you made sure your pivot ball is installed. If your tricky you can pull the fork boot and kinda see if the ball is still on it’s “ pedestal “, prolly not the issue but worth a gander..

Dan, I have not

Seems to operate OK

She's still up on the ramps so I'll give er a look see tonight

Thanks for the insight!

 

[meekorp]

Well Fellas, after replacing the motor and tranny mounts, then installing a new bushing and C clip... I drove it all the way into work. So why am I just waiting for it to fail again? Oh wait! It's because I love my Jeep and I'm a sucker for a CJ. Maybe that's why I leave the tow bar attached and chained to the grill. Thanks for ALL of the comments, suggestions, and help! It was a pleasure.

 

[Hog Head]

Glad to see your bellcrank problem solved. I was curious about the motor mounts playing a part in the misalignment. I’m fairly new here also, but I can tell you all these folks are super cool and ready to help. I’ve been dealing with the same bellcrank issue on my 84 CJ7 . PO had installed a 4.0L with a T-18 and Dana 300 tc. I installed a new bellcrank kit when I bought it and still had problems with it...popped off on the side of a mountain full of boulders and still had to get up the hill without a clutch. Fast forward after a lot of upgrades including 4” spring lift and 1” body lift, now the thing is really misaligned. So this weekend I put an offset spacer on the body side and matched it with the same thickness spacer on the bellhousing side. Seemed to line up pretty good. Only thing now is my new adjustable length pedal rod is about 1 1/2” away from the bellcrank connection. I’m planning on making a spacer for it also but not sure how strong it’ll be or how many times I can press the clutch without some sort of issue. I have some pics and I’ll upload them if I can figure out how to do it. This rig is not a daily driver but built to hang with my friends up and down some pretty tough terrain.


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[Hog Head]

View attachment 1 here’s a couple of pics of my bell crank offset bracket and the pedal rod spacer on a grade 8 bolt. You guys think it’ll work, or have other ideas for this connection. Thanks in advance for your expertise.


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[Hog Head]

Well that didn’t work. Still trying to post those pics.


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[Hog Head]

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[Hog Head]

Figured it out, not bad for an old guy


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[meekorp]

Looks good... glad it worked out

Those custom jobs can really test your engineering skills huh?

 

[Hog Head]

Thanks, not so sure it'll even work, haven't put it all together yet and tried it. I need to get er done and test it a bit before the 27th when we are headed to Barnwell Mountain for some rock crawling.
I'm still thinking I may have some of the same problems you did with the motor mounts. The newly rebuilt engine was already installed with new motor mounts when I bought it. But in some of my escapades, I've noticed the Transfer Case twin sticks as well as the Transmission shifter, torque and move side to side a bit when doing some of my professional driving lol. Thinking maybe I should check the tightness of the bolts.

 

[Torxhead]

These motor mounts will eliminate the excessive engine lift that pull those bellcranks away from the pivot points. They are pricey though:https://www.mountainoffroad.com/jee...motor-mount-kit-pre-99-cj-with-amc-6-cyl.html

 

[Hog Head]

Thanks Torxhead, just looked at them. Yes they are pricey. I guess they’re like everything else in life, you get what you pay for. Jeep, just empty every pocket.


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[thebushmen]

I had the same problem. It's weird because it only started happening recently.

The engine in my 1983 CJ7 is a swap from an industrial forklift (Nissan SD33) that was also used on the old Patrols/International Scouts.

Anyways, I sense that the engine size is part of the reason why the two brackets are misaligned. If you look at the link below you'll see my problem.

https://www.jeep-cj.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=9804&c=3

Also see attached photos.

There was an L bracket that sticks to the engine/tranny.

Is my best bet to get a new bracket?