Build Thread 83 Cj5. My ongoing project has started.

[mattgunguy]

All my Jeeps have always been big *** military trucks. So this little feller is a new thing for me.

Few months back I got tired of dealing with the big trucks. Simple to work on, but everything is huge & heavy as hell. But I still wanted a Jeep. Hell, I've been wanting a Cj since I was knee high to a grasshopper. So the hunt was on. Ok, it was a short hunt. Got talking to a buddy one night who turned out to have a CJ5 he'd trade me.

Took a few months to line everything out on both ends (there's 600 miles between us), but I got the little jeep last friday &the fun begins.

Stats:
1983 AMC Jeep CJ5 .
AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l online 6 cylinder.
T-176 4 speed.
Dana 300 Transfer Case .
Dana 30 up front (wide track at that)
Amx 20 in the rear. Has a locker of some sort in it. Sounds mechanical.

I knew it needed some body work & a new clutch. Which I can live with.

Picked up a new clutch last week. Started on it late monday & finished with that tonight. So we can run & move under our own power now. Without starting in gear. Well, still gots to replace a u-joint. But that's tomorrow.

This thing sat for years. Like damn near a decade. The clutch disk was seized to both the flywheel & the pressure plate.

My goal for this week is to hit the inspection station & find out what else is needed to be fixed to be road legal.

This is going to be a husband / wife build project. My wife may not be automotively inclined, but she's happy to jump in and help / learn.

 

[Petescj]

Good luck with the little guy. Someone must have swapped the wide tracks in there , Cj-5s never came stock with them.

 

[mattgunguy]

Thank ya much.

Someone at some point did some work to it. I suspect that it was used for some wheeling as well. Has some jeep Jamboree participant tags on the dash from the early 90's. But with a 36 year old vehicle, only god knows what's been done.
I'm trading a set of Ford 3/4 ton axles to a friend for a set Gm 3/4 ton axles (high pinion Dana 44 and a 14 bolt rear) for later use & hmmwv wheels / tires. But that's on down the road a bit. I'll be using the 33's from my bronco for the now. As its getting parked for the winter and recieving some much needed attention.

Right now I'm looking forward to doing the body work. I'm one of those sadists who enjoy it for some odd reason.

 

[Project86]

Kudos to the wife for the willingness to get dirty (see what I did there). My better half is always happy to get involved with my diversions and excursions also. We have some good friends that live not to far from ya' down in Aurora. We come up once a year and go wheeling. Keep the pictures coming.

 

[mattgunguy]

Went to change out the fuel sending unit today. Scary. Very very scary.

The tank was held in with 2 bolts. Total. Dumped out 12 gallons or so of high quality grade A nastiness.

The sending unit was half rotted. The fuel line is rotted out. Fun times.

I've seen some nasty tanks in my life, but this isn't the worse by far.



Project86. Aurora ain't but a hope skip & a jump from me. Course most my family is down in your neck of the woods. I'm originally from Fort Worth. My wife likes helping where she can. She gets ti learn to drive a manual once this thing is road worthy.

 

[mattgunguy]

It's alive!!!


Runs, shifts, & stops. All be it, rather roughly yet. But, it's a start.

Put the 33's on the rear. Can't on the front. Stupid ford wheels with the small hub hole. I really don't like the style of the front wheels.

Gots to deal with the blinkers, brake lights, & exhaust still. Then a very thorough tune up. Runs rough. Change all the gear oils. Plugs, wires, coil, etc.

 

[mattgunguy]

Blinkers and brake lights are figured out. Super difficult & a major pain in the butt. I was throwing all over in frustration. In the end it was a two step process.

1: put a fuse in for the brake light. Wow, they work.

2: gee oh my. The hazards were on this whole time. Might turn those off. Well, the blinkers work now.


I wasnt really throwing stuff or mad. I drive a truck locally for a living & in my musings wondered if the hazards were on. Got lucky. Replaced the fuse, turned the flashers off & poof they work.

I would like to find the engineer who put the brake switch in such a horrible spot & slap em. That things just annoying.

 

[gert]

sweet dude sounds like a fun project I look forward to watching your progress

 

[mattgunguy]

All lights are now working. With the exception of one burnt bulb.

A friend gave me a almost new magnaflow to put under it.

And sold off some random junk for enough to get a new Weber 32/36. The Carter is on its last leg. Probably gonna get a new hood too. The dents bugging the heck out of me.

 

[mattgunguy]

Found some wheels local for cheap. Just needed spray paint. Got the tires mounted up. Passed inspection and got tags.

Then I got a nice surprise in the Transmission . I'm not really a surprise person.

Drained the dang thing. Which was about 6 quarts water & oil. Cleaned with a ton of brake cleaner & refill with 80-90. So we shall see.

Wheres a good place to shop for a good rebuild kit should I need it? I'll be wanting to replace everything except the case if I have to rebuild.

 

[mattgunguy]

Been doing little maintenance work things while waiting for the new carb to show up. The folks over at Morris were really patient with my questions and nice to deal with. But dang do they use sloooooooooow shipping.

Anywho. I digress. Tore into the differentials last night. After the Transmission , I figured they needed it. Well the front was great. The rear, well that's a different story. I thought it was packed with peanut butter or mustard pudding. And those stupid damn torque screw. I HATES THEM!!!

Fortunately my wife is smarter than me. Jack up the body she says. That's stupid I says. Try it anyways she says. Yeah, she was right. Could get to the top two bolts then. I should shut up & listen more often.

More brake cleaner & then some more. For sure has a lunch box locker in the rear. Unfortunately, the ring gear is devoid of any markings. So we'll be counting teeth tonight. Wanna make sure front & rear match. There's enough other hillbillie engineering going on, I wanna be safe.

Then we'll get to the Transfer Case . Got several more days to wait.

 

[Basod]

Those fluids have been neglected!

+1 on raising the body not the axle for rear diff fluid change - those top few bolts aren't coming out or going back in easy with the axle on stands

 

[mattgunguy]

Mere neglect would be an improvement. This is abuse level.

 

[Belizean]

That color of fluid is a new one on me.

 

[gert]

Lol wow man your PO had some experiments going on in your rear dif


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[TnCJ]

Holy !! What is that?

 

[mattgunguy]

Hehehe. Like that do y'all...

I didn't. The AMC20 is now officially my least favorite rear end to work on. That stupid gasket is annoying as all get out. And who ever designed the dang fill plug location needs to be slapped. Repeatedly & often. Such a stupid spot.

But it's done. Took a quick drive with my craptastic carb cutting out at every stop. But it sounds a lot better, and quieter. Less growly.

 

[shum8]

The rear, well that's a different story. I thought it was packed with peanut butter or mustard pudding.

Oh, man - I was just reading along, enjoying the new thread smell, and then hit the "mustard pudding" comment.... LMAO. Rotten punkin juice is never fun, but I've never heard it referred to as mustard pudding. Very accurate description. Bet it smelled like it as well.

Nice little 5 you have there. I always wanted a 5, but since I suffer from a case of bulbousassness, it's hard for me to get in one..... keep at it - lookin good!!

 

[mattgunguy]

Got my sorta shiny but brand new Weber in yesterday & installed. Tuned it today, & I am more than happy with it. Not sputtering out at every light or stalling in turns. Little jeep is getting happier all the time. Need to do the choke wire yet, but the the choke wire burnt up at some point and was removed.

Probably gonna rob the electric fan from the Bronco as it'll be sitting for the next year or so.

 

[mattgunguy]

Do ya ever just wanna set something on fire & be done with it? I'm not quite there yet, but it may have crossed my mind a time or fifty.

Got the exhaust rebuilt with the magnaflow. Which was a lesson in frustration in of itself. But it sounds good. Which brought up the current issues.

Was going around the block to see how things were going & halfway back. Ka klunk pow screech (yes that is a patented technical term)!! There went the bearings & brake pads on the rear drivers side. At the end of the quarter mile home, I was pouring out smoke.

I'm saying now, I'm not switching to one piece axles for a very specific reason. I should have the matching AMC20 wide track to match the front in a month ish. I would like to say that, whoever designed this axle needs slapped. Repeatedly & often. Maybe I'm just used to working on Fords. This blasted hub puller was stupid pricey, but the shop press wasnt cutting it. But it's going back together now.