Build Thread 86 CJ7 Laredo. 1st timer

[CarolinaRaven]

It's been a few busy days but got some spare time to tinker. The frame is 100% bare and I have hit one side of it with the wire wheel. Pleased with the shape it's in and it measures true. A few spots will need a little attention, where the upper shock brace trapped junk next to the frame is eaten up a bit. A few body mount holes are wider than they should be. That is really about it. The final component removals were a little tricky having never done it before. Spent 2 hours trying to get tie rods out with various pullers I had. Finally went to O'reilleys 3 miles away and got the loaner puller, literally 30 seconds on each end. Having the right tools is a must. Managed to find a 33mm socket that fit the castle nut on top of the knuckle and someone at the factory was nice enough to grind slots in all my spindle nuts so they could be removed with a flat head and a hammer! Of course I know it was PO and not factory. My spindles are rusted bad and I will replace once I finally break them free. One motor mount was pretty much useless with all the rubber cracked and half gone. Rest of the front was no issues. Rear drums will need complete rebuild of everything other than the drum itself. Rear Passenger side leaf spring had the bolt seized in it for the front mount. 4 days of spraying, twisting, breaker bar and 1000lb impact wrench would not budge it. The outer nut came off but you could not beat the bolt out with a 5lb sledge. Was able to cut away the rubber and get it with a cutting wheel without damaging the mount. Burnt rubber takes a while to get rid of smell! Was able to remove axles from Dana 44 and initial inspection showed all was good. Almost forgot, half of the spiders that formerly lived in Virginia now reside in my garage. The drum brakes were packed with webs. All brake lines and fuel lines were in rough shape. One brake line broke when I grabbed it to remove a clamp. Starting to order parts and hopefully finish grinding on frame tonight and have it at work to try out or typhoon water blaster on it before the end of the week

 

[CarolinaRaven]

The last photo above is the drivers side upper shock brace. Had it in my vise sanding and grinding last night and noticed the "made in Canada" stamp. At least it wasn't "China". I'm planning on buying large washers today that have an inner diameter the same or slightly smaller than the body mount holes. Plan to grind out an area the size of the washers(gonna use 2 on each mount tacked together) and the weld them in place on the mount. They will be flush with the surface and I will grind as needed.

 

[gert]

wow you got your disassembly done quick, great work so far

 

[CarolinaRaven]

Thanks, i only ran in to a few issues so it did go quicker than I planned. A good bit of that could probably be attributed to the PO. He did a fair amount of preventive maintenance and the biggest thing is it was all stock. No mods or changes other than aftermarket radio. That made all my manuals match what I was looking at. Just hope I can reassemble it!!! I have about 400 photos of tear down and bags of nuts and bolts.

 

[CarolinaRaven]

Thanks, i only ran in to a few issues so it did go quicker than I planned. A good bit of that could probably be attributed to the PO. He did a fair amount of preventive maintenance and the biggest thing is it was all stock. No mods or changes other than aftermarket radio. That made all my manuals match what I was looking at. Just hope I can reassemble it!!! I have about 400 photos of tear down and bags of nuts and bolts.

 

[CarolinaRaven]

I started wet blasting the frame over the weekend and am pleased with results so far. Did not have a lot of time but did get about 70% of frame completed and will finish in a day or so. The wet blasting worked great with the only issue being flash rust. It is removed easily and doesn't cause no trouble. Considering it's free (other than the cost of 200lbs of sand) it works great. Zero dust although it does get sand splashed everywhere. I had safety glasses, long sleeves and a mask on but could have used long pants. The bounce backs do become annoying like standing on the beach when the wind is blowing strong. Frame looks really good so far and other than 2 or 3 body mount holes being chewed up a bit no pitting or holes. I'll attach some pics of frame, in one you can see original compared to blasted. Another has the flash rust compared to a section cleaned.