Build Thread 81 CJ5 "build"
justinfonder
Jeeper
- Posts
- 208
- Media
- 2
- Thanks
- 0
- Location
- Fort Pierce, FL
- Vehicle(s)
- 1981 CJ5, 258 w/ clifford intake and holley 4bbl/T-176/D300. 32x11.50s
Going to give a little background on this "build" before I get started. I'm out to sea and have been wanting to start this thread for a long time, now i have the time. (your tax dollars hard at work). this will be a long first post as I'm 2+ years behind. but promise to keep it entertaining.
I bought the CJ about 2 1/2 years ago. I gave $3000 for it because I really wanted one and was impatient in my search. I had jeep fever and it hasn't gone away since.
On my drive home(highway), the rear drive shaft came apart. My wife was following me in her NEW Mercedes
, and the shaft decided to put a hole in her bumper... So now I hate this thing and I'm cursing the PO. I limped it to the next exit with the front wheels in 4H and then pulled it home the rest of the way with the tow bar that the PO so generously threw in... (btw, i was running lane to lane like frogger on I-95 in south Florida picking up drive shaft parts)
So I get the driveshaft rebuilt with about an extra inch of length as it was riding short, also did the U-bolt conversion while i was there. The guy at the shop was a jeep guy so he only charged me for the parts. this can only happen amongst jeep guys.
It had 33x12.50s on the back and 32x11.50s on the front on a stock suspension. fronts were dry-rotted, the backs were too big. Went to a flea market and found a set of what appeared to be brand new Falken A/T 32x11.50s, got them mounted up for $400. I was pretty happy about this purchase knowing retail on these were about 180 a piece along with a huge improvement in ride quality. steel wheels got the primer black rattle treatment.
the windshield frame was falling off. No matter how many times I blew this thing out, I still had rust all over me every time I drove it. So my first weekend off, just so happened to be thanksgiving, I put in a new frame and all new seals/gaskets. there is a picture of me eating thanksgiving dinner in the front seat of my CJ with no windshield on. the wife was pleased.
while I'm doing the windshield I sand down the dash, tape everything off, rattle can it flat black(I'm an old school hot rodder, everything starts off primer black). the dash and the tub to windshield surface is in good shape. replaced that rubber seal as well. naturally, the factory fuel/water temp gauges don't work and still don't. i plan on installing all mechanical gauges in a custom dash.
The drivers side A-pillar is rusted, from the windshield hinge down about 6 inches. just the surface metal, the supports underneath are solid, it got cut away and rattled. Along with a few other rust spots. The tub itself i would say is in overall FAIR condition. salvageable by all means for what i intend on using this jeep for. A few small spots on the hood around the hinges and hold downs. a corner of the floor by drivers feet where water used to be able to pool up. I'll do some quick cut/replace/grind on the rust spots and coat over everything. Want to stop the rust from spreading but not too worried about making it "pretty".
Now, the good stuff.
The interior is perfect. all nice black vinyl, wouldn't trade it for anything.
AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l was rebuilt about 2000 miles before I bought it. w/ clifford 4 bbl intake and holley 390 cfm carb. serpentine setup
I rebuilt the carb after it sat for most of a 15 month Afghan deployment.
T-176 , new clutch, Dana 300 t-case. all work excellent.
frame is straight, very little rust, surprising for a FL jeep. will be doing some boxing when I'm upgrading axle/suspension.
Most recent work:
4" skyjacker lift, installed and removed within a week when i decided i wanted to do an axle swap.
front and rear bumpers from poison spyder
8000 lb winch
new exhaust w/ glass pack (needed a quick cheap fix after i ripped the old exhaust off bottoming out on a trail)
Future plansin no particular order)
Waggy 44s, locker, 4.27 or 4.56 haven't decided yet
4.5" Rubicon springs
35x12.50s
stretch rear axle back 6"
fuel cell
tube fenders
cut rear fenders (not comp-cuts)
full cage
custom dash w/ Mech. gauges
HEI distributor
4.0 head swap
power brakes
and all the odds and ends
this list could go on and on, as you all know. This has been my daily driver when not deployed. Have only put about 3,000 miles on it in 2 1/2 years. ready to take it off the road and do some work on her.
picture is about 6 months old, no lift, no bumpers, no winch. unfortunately the only one i have right now.
I bought the CJ about 2 1/2 years ago. I gave $3000 for it because I really wanted one and was impatient in my search. I had jeep fever and it hasn't gone away since.
On my drive home(highway), the rear drive shaft came apart. My wife was following me in her NEW Mercedes
, and the shaft decided to put a hole in her bumper... So now I hate this thing and I'm cursing the PO. I limped it to the next exit with the front wheels in 4H and then pulled it home the rest of the way with the tow bar that the PO so generously threw in... (btw, i was running lane to lane like frogger on I-95 in south Florida picking up drive shaft parts)So I get the driveshaft rebuilt with about an extra inch of length as it was riding short, also did the U-bolt conversion while i was there. The guy at the shop was a jeep guy so he only charged me for the parts. this can only happen amongst jeep guys.
It had 33x12.50s on the back and 32x11.50s on the front on a stock suspension. fronts were dry-rotted, the backs were too big. Went to a flea market and found a set of what appeared to be brand new Falken A/T 32x11.50s, got them mounted up for $400. I was pretty happy about this purchase knowing retail on these were about 180 a piece along with a huge improvement in ride quality. steel wheels got the primer black rattle treatment.
the windshield frame was falling off. No matter how many times I blew this thing out, I still had rust all over me every time I drove it. So my first weekend off, just so happened to be thanksgiving, I put in a new frame and all new seals/gaskets. there is a picture of me eating thanksgiving dinner in the front seat of my CJ with no windshield on. the wife was pleased.
while I'm doing the windshield I sand down the dash, tape everything off, rattle can it flat black(I'm an old school hot rodder, everything starts off primer black). the dash and the tub to windshield surface is in good shape. replaced that rubber seal as well. naturally, the factory fuel/water temp gauges don't work and still don't. i plan on installing all mechanical gauges in a custom dash.
The drivers side A-pillar is rusted, from the windshield hinge down about 6 inches. just the surface metal, the supports underneath are solid, it got cut away and rattled. Along with a few other rust spots. The tub itself i would say is in overall FAIR condition. salvageable by all means for what i intend on using this jeep for. A few small spots on the hood around the hinges and hold downs. a corner of the floor by drivers feet where water used to be able to pool up. I'll do some quick cut/replace/grind on the rust spots and coat over everything. Want to stop the rust from spreading but not too worried about making it "pretty".
Now, the good stuff.
The interior is perfect. all nice black vinyl, wouldn't trade it for anything.
AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l was rebuilt about 2000 miles before I bought it. w/ clifford 4 bbl intake and holley 390 cfm carb. serpentine setup
I rebuilt the carb after it sat for most of a 15 month Afghan deployment.
T-176 , new clutch, Dana 300 t-case. all work excellent.
frame is straight, very little rust, surprising for a FL jeep. will be doing some boxing when I'm upgrading axle/suspension.
Most recent work:
4" skyjacker lift, installed and removed within a week when i decided i wanted to do an axle swap.
front and rear bumpers from poison spyder
8000 lb winch
new exhaust w/ glass pack (needed a quick cheap fix after i ripped the old exhaust off bottoming out on a trail)
Future plans
in no particular order)Waggy 44s, locker, 4.27 or 4.56 haven't decided yet
4.5" Rubicon springs
35x12.50s
stretch rear axle back 6"
fuel cell
tube fenders
cut rear fenders (not comp-cuts)
full cage
custom dash w/ Mech. gauges
HEI distributor
4.0 head swap
power brakes
and all the odds and ends
this list could go on and on, as you all know. This has been my daily driver when not deployed. Have only put about 3,000 miles on it in 2 1/2 years. ready to take it off the road and do some work on her.
picture is about 6 months old, no lift, no bumpers, no winch. unfortunately the only one i have right now.
