Build Thread Bondo Brat

[Phoenix827]

Hi there, my name is Chris and i am an idiot. For those that don't know, a few months ago I bought a 1977 cj as a project. That's the Bondo Brat. It has a AMC 304 v8, GM Turbo 400 tranny and quadra-something Transfer Case . 66,000 miles on the odometer, no clue if it has rolled over. Interior is stripped but it appears to be a Levi (Edition) 's edition Renegade (Yes!) Every piece of sheet metal has holes in it and the body has about a half inch of bondo molding it to a bed from what looks to be a 1976 Ford Courier. The floors and body mounts are almost completely gone in it. Also has quite a strong varnish smell, (OLD gas). The back wall of the cab is half diamond plate and half plywood with a sliding back window from a truck in it.
Someone that owned this apparently likes to weld as there is stuff welded everywhere on this! The eear cross member is rotted out ok, let's weld some angle iron onto the supports of the bed so the gas tank doesn't fall out. Nerf bars? Welded on, bastardized trailer hitch? Every piece of it is welded to another. Front frame? Angle iron welded to it for something, maybe a small winch? Bed sides from the courier? Welded to the sides of the cj tub. Not a bad idea except the bed is 2 inches WIDER than the cj!
Last weekend i had a little time to mess with it and i removed a dead starter. Today I got to do more with it. Off came the broken fog lights, out came the spark plugs and in went some marvel mystery oil to sit. Also started cutting the bed off. I like the Scrambler look but this is all hacked together. Then since I can't stand the smell of varnish I managed to get the 1/2 full leaking gas tank out without blowing the whole thing up.
Plans are just to make a nice driver, mild off-roader with it. Replace the tub with one from a square headlight wrangler, supposed to be a fairly simple swap.
Thoughts? Opinions? Parts donations?

 

[Phoenix827]

What I bought,,,

 

[Phoenix827]

Got a leaking gas tank out today, I say "A" tank because I don't think its the right one



Also found this gem, yup, thats a board for a "body mount"

 

[Phoenix827]

Some of the stuff I have found is the wood body mount support, an elecric fuel pump on the fender wired in with scraps of wire and bits of electrical tape, the gas tank that didnt fit right, welded brackets and angle iron in places or holding the "custom" rear crossmember in place, stuff like that. eyeroll

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Sounds like the previous owner was… creative! That’s going to be quite a project!

While grinding the 1/2” of bondo off mine I found mine was retubbed.

 

[Phoenix827]

Got a little more done today, got the seats out, and hammered every bit of rust i could find looking for rot, I found it alright! lol Also cleaned out the tub a bit, .


believe it or not, this is about the worst spot on the outside body, Forgot to get a good pic of the drivers side though. that hole is a few inches back from this one but smaller.


drivers side,

Pass side,


And the infamous back wall

More "interesting" work, the doors are like this too, all screwed/riveted together


Plans right now are to keep stripping off the bad stuff while I get it running again. Then start patching the outside and pulling out the back wall so it can all be re-sealed and painted. Then brakes and a cheaper dual exhaust and drive it. Will probably strip off the half-assed camo and spray-bomb the original green again as best as i can. At the same time I am also looking for a cheap yj if anyone finds one. It can even be hit in the front. The frame has some rot but it looks fixable without it being a major problem.

 

[Belizean]

I’ll bet the other owner was a speedy guy and made sure it didn’t fly apart at great speeds with all that fastening.

 

[Phoenix827]

Sounds like the previous owner was… creative! That’s going to be quite a project!

While grinding the 1/2” of bondo off mine I found mine was retubbed.

Creative is one word, not one I would use though. How did you find it was retubbed?

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Tail light markers were last installed a few years before my jeep was issued. The PO bought it in 2000, so it had to have been done between 85 and 1999.

 

[Phoenix827]

Today's progress, got the radiator out, think the leak is in a core, not the bottom pipe. Flushed some nasty gunk out of it and the engine too! Check out the thermostat pic.
Replaced the main hoses, thermostat and cap too. Also got the starter in and it cranked over without plugs in it! (hooked to my other jeep) Slow, but it cranked. Still needs a battery and good cables. Put the plugs back in and it won't turn over, wtf? Again, this is all on jumper cables from another jeep. Cut out the stock ignition switch and figured out what I need to wire in another switch for 2 reasons, one someone tried to steal it so the ignition cylinder is gone and too medded up to just replace it and 2, I just want it in the dash.

Also removed the only emissions part still on the while thing, anyone need an air pump?

 

[Phoenix827]

Today's adventure, got the bed off, (and one homemade body mount, oops!) Also got the homemade hitch off, cut out the bed connections to the cab and cleaned that up a bit.
The cans fell out of the metal pile, I'm not THAT much of a pig.

Nice hitch, NOT! Note the 2 big bolts and top strap, the piece attached to the body mount goes to the bottom of the channel iron that the hitch is made of. The other side has 1 bolt and a strap to the SIDE of the body mount.


This is what was behind the c channel hitch frame.


Homemade body mount, it fell off when I cut the strap to the hitch frame

ANNND, the bad,

So far the rot seems to be just the drivers side rear section of the frame.

 

[KRUPP]

Wow!
My thoughts: You'll probably be able to salvage the drivetrain (motor, Transmission , Transfer Case , front and rear axles). But, the rest is pretty much scrap.
It sounds like you're plan for another donor vehicle (a YJ?) is the right way to go.

 

[Phoenix827]

Wow!
My thoughts: You'll probably be able to salvage the drivetrain (motor, trans, t-case, front and rear axles). But, the rest is pretty much scrap.
It sounds like you're plan for another donor vehicle (a YJ?) is the right way to go.

I hope its not scrap, The yj plan was just the tub.

 

[hypermopar]

Best of luck. I bought an 80 CJ5 in boxes....
Needing a tub as it was literallyhammeredand bondo'd, already got a used frame....

 

[Phoenix827]

This weekends progress! My loving wife Sherry got me a garage for an early Christmas present!! So I got that up Thursday and Friday then tried to fix the axle on the grand on Saturday and gave up after a 2 hour battle with the first bolt. Sunday I tried to get my generator running and found the fitting broke off the gas tank that's gonna be another $100 before it's fixed. So I got the garage set up a little better and decided to pull the Brat in with the grand instead of waiting for the parts to get it running. That got interesting doing it myself, move it a couple feet, fight with the steering wheel to get it lined up, lather rinse and repeat about 10 times. More info with the pics.

 

[Phoenix827]

Starting to come together


Tools, equipment and a place to work.


Back wall of the cab. Ther are 4 different chunks of wood here. Plywood on the top, 2x4s cut down on the side and a pressure treated 2x6 across the bottom of the window.


Ottom of the back wall, framed and welded on the inside, covered with aluminum diamond plate on the outside, (fresh coat of primer on it now)

I dont think this is gonna help anyone! Lol

 

[jzak]

This weekends progress! My loving wife Sherry got me a garage for an early Christmas present!! So I got that up Thursday and Friday then tried to fix the axle on the grand on Saturday and gave up after a 2 hour battle with the first bolt. Sunday I tried to get my generator running and found the fitting broke off the gas tank that's gonna be another $100 before it's fixed. So I got the garage set up a little better and decided to pull the Brat in with the grand instead of waiting for the parts to get it running. That got interesting doing it myself, move it a couple feet, fight with the steering wheel to get it lined up, lather rinse and repeat about 10 times. More info with the pics.

Hold onto her! Not many women will buy a garage for your Jeep. That's love.

If you've don't have a blow torch available, I've heard soaking it in PB Blaster for a couple days can loosen up badly seized bolts.

 

[Phoenix827]

Hold onto her! Not many women will buy a garage for your Jeep. That's love.

If you've don't have a blow torch available, I've heard soaking it in PB Blaster for a couple days can loosen up badly seized bolts.

Ya, she has been stuck with me for the last 27 years, I think i will keep her. I tried pb blaster, that's my go-to, no way I can get a torch to it without dropping the exhaust and driveshaft. This is for the solenoid in the front axle of my WK. Its a bear to get to. Thanks though!!

 

[Belizean]

Careful with a torch and wood. Glad you got a better place to work.

 

[Phoenix827]

Careful with a torch and wood. Glad you got a better place to work.

My wife is like "you are not welding in that garage" I said yes I am! lol I have 3-4 welding blankets just for that reason.