Build Thread CJ7 let the fun begin.

[gootee08]

3QuarterTon CJ, it looks as if you have done to your jeep what I wish to do to mine. That is some great info, now I spent all night looking on line for the motorcraft carb, and reading about the convertions. Today I'll find some junk yards and check on the HEI dist.

I originally wanted to stay with the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l but if coverting is going to get to costly I would go with a 350. I like what I've read about the nv4500, do you know if they will bolt to the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l ? or would I need a new bell housing.

So next in line is replacing the sides. I did not want to leave any rust and after taking off the diamond plate...

There is a lot of rust.

As I said I bought the front panel so I needed to make the back panel.
Start with a new flat sheet

Make sure you leave enough around the edges to make the flanges. It's best to try and remake what the factory did.

Now I'm using some TJ flares because I wanted to open up the wheel wells.

The key with the wheel well flange is to go slow and keep your metal flat. As your put the flange in the curve it will try and curve your flat piece. Just use the flat of the bench and keep taping it down. It will take some time just keep at it.


I use TIG for this but gas or mig work to.
And here is the passenger side.

I'll put it on tomorrow. Thanks for looking, and thanks even more for the advise. I was going to rebuild my carb because it started running like they all do. After read, now I think I'll just do a carb swap, with the HEI.

 

[3QuarterTon CJ]

The NV4500 will not bolt to the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l without a conversion bell housing, or adapter of some sort. However if you decide to go with a 350, you can then use a factory Chevy bell housing.

I used a 1986-87 bell housing for my 4 speed, cuz for those two years they had a hydraulic slave cylinder bolted to the bell to operate the clutch. I preferred the hydraulic system over the standard linkage style due to the linkage binding while wheeling over harsh terrain.

You could most likely do the same if you get the bell that mates to the 4500. The hydraulic set-up is very smooth, no matter how twisted the Jeep gets.

The Chevy engine conversion can be pretty costly as well. You will need the motor mounts (which you can actually fab up pretty easily), the engine, a different radiator, Transmission adapter or different Transmission , Transfer Case adapter (if using chevy Transmission ), possible drive shaft modifications etc.

However once it is done, you will enjoy the extra power you have, and the convenience of having parts availability should you break down away from home. As most parts stores keep plenty of chevy parts in stock.

The Chevy engine will already have the HEI, and any performance add-ons you wish to do will be cheaper and easier. Not to mention you can fuel inject it for super cheap by using the 88-95 TBI set-up. Just go to the bone yard and grab the throttle body, the intake mani, the wiring harness and the computer. It's almost too easy. That is the next thing on my list for my Jeep, I already have the harness and comp i just need the intake and fuel pump yet.

Good luck in whatever direction you go with your Jeep. The AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l 's are pretty well bomb proof, and produce decent low-end torque (esp if you add a RV cam), and are rather reliable little engines. The 350's are plentiful, have power, parts availability, and aftermarket support keeping them on the list of popular swap candidates.

 

[3QuarterTon CJ]

P.s. Awesome job on the sheet metal work man, that thing is gonna be a new Jeep till you're done with it. I could only dream of having that kind of patience for body work!! I guess that's why mine is all fiberglass lol.

 

[gootee08]

Looks like a 350 might be in the future, but that is not a bad thing.

So the most improtant thing when cutting this much metal away is making sure what is left does not move. So I put everything back together before bracing the inside, and you can never have to much bracing.



Then start cutting and fitting, I use a cut off wheel and snips.




And after hours of cutting and fitting.


I try to leave no gaps, but I'm not as good as my mentors, and TIG everything together.


The drivers side is the same, I can skip that and show the finished inside, or post it if anyone is interested.

 

[BedneckKustumz]

dude...post everything...I am truly amazed by your work. I wish that you lived close to me, so I could come sit on your toolbox and watch...lol...I have the want and the attention to detail for that type of work, I just don't have the teacher..lol...keep the pics and posts coming...it's inspirational.

 

[gootee08]

dude...post everything...I am truly amazed by your work. I wish that you lived close to me, so I could come sit on your toolbox and watch...lol...I have the want and the attention to detail for that type of work, I just don't have the teacher..lol...keep the pics and posts coming...it's inspirational.

Thanks for the compliment, but if you are in Alabama and you want to learn metal shaping then check out this site. Allmetalshaping.com. The very talented man I learned a lot of this from is in your state. PM me over there and I'll give you some threats to look at. (same user name)

So on with the drivers side. I think you can see the bracing a little better on t his side. After finguring out the passenger side it is easy to just copy what was already done.



I did the same thing to make the panel.



And welded it in.



the only difference is I used TIG on the passenger side and MIG on the drivers side, and the MIG was a lot faster for me. I think that maybe a skill level thing as I have been using MIG for much longer than TIG. The down side of MIG is the weld is harder and not as easy to work with as TIG. But it's a Jeep, I'm looking for strong not perfect. If you are looking for the perfect metal finish I have read others will TIG over a MIG weld to get it workable again, though I have not tried it yet.

Next I finish the inside and paint. It's time for me to go wheeling.

 

[BedneckKustumz]

I registered for that other site you gave me...I'll hit u up on there soon...it's just cool to watch you make the stuff..thanks again for the pics.

 

[gootee08]

On with the inside and the finish (for now).

So you can see the insert in the back. It is very heavy duty so I'm going to use it and just fit it and weld it in.


And her e is the areas behind the seats, in front of the wheel wells.



For the floors I do not have a spot welder, so I drill holes and use the MIG welder to plug weld.



This is the bumper when I started.


5 or 6 cans of Rustoleum and I have a good 10 foot paint job (looks good from 10 foot away)


The bumper is not done yet but this a good pic of where I'm at now (and what I was doing yesterday) So until I'm back home I'll be out here enjoying the fruits of my labor.

 

[gootee08]

I registered for that other site you gave me...I'll hit u up on there soon...it's just cool to watch you make the stuff..thanks again for the pics.

Make sure you post an intro, so you can complete the registration.

 

[gootee08]

Well it has been a while since my last post. I think it is time for an update. I destroyed my rear axle and was planning on dana 60's with 37 tires. Plans do change. After talking to several folks the kind of wheeling I'm planning on is going to need a v8. So a sbc with dana 60's is the new drive tran with 103 wheel base and a body based on the hummer hx.
As for the Jeep, I picked up a parts jeep for $500 that has a soa, solid rear axle, spare AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l , and 33's.
http://www.jeep-cj.com/gallery/files/6/5/6/1/img_1574.jpg

I rebuild the carb from the parts jeep, it was an 83 and had a non computerized carb.

Pulled off a pile of junk.

Cleaned up under the hood.

Changed out the axles, pitman arm and tires. And now rolling on 33's with a soa lift.

so back on the road and ready to do some 4 wheeling. The other build will not be a jeep but should be fun.

 

[gootee08]

Forgot to ask my question. I have been told the T-5 trany is my weak piont, I have a T-4 with the parts jeep. Is the T-4 any stronger than the T-5 ?? From the cases they look allmost he same.

Thanks for the advise

 

[Darren9975]

They are both pretty much the same. And yes very week!

 

[gootee08]

Thanks, good to know, off to the scrap yard...

 

[CJ BRIAN NJ]

hey bud looks like another fine jeep being brought back to life! thats alot of diamond plate , i guess he couldnt find the diamond plate complete body :0 i pulled some off my 79 CJ7 (in my build thread )and i got lucky under it no major rot! keep up the good work im adding you built to my list of threads to watch!

brian

 

[CJ BRIAN NJ]

i wanted to mention the Holly Pro-jection setup "pro-injection" for the straight 6 . my last cherokee motor was the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l after the rebuild i got my hands on the setup really cheap. it really puts modern reliability back under the hood and is not short on power. im sure there is some argument that more parts = more problems (compared to carb) but its a really tight setup and if setup right it should outlast any motor its bolted on. it was a while ago but if i remember right it was 4-5 wire hookup and my setup came with 2 sizes of injectors and programable stages. i kept the motor when the cherokee was totaled and was going to put it in my cj but my AMC 304 is just way to nice to swap out

and also wanted to give you your props for all the body work its nice to see how well you fitted everything up if you can fit the sheetmetal that well im sure you could handle a mig welder even a tig but mig really makes it easy! im way behind on mine but im getting more time now that its getting cold .

great work ! brian

 

[gootee08]

Re: CJ7 let the fun begin. Fun for sale

Thanks to all for the input and comments. I now have a new project and the CJ is for sale. 3900$ obo. Jeep located in Belleville Mich. If anyone is interested.