Build Thread Finishing Another Fella's CJ7 Build

[gaspipe]

Last winter I bought a '95 F250 4x4 powerstroke that was in rough shape. By early spring, I was rolling back and forth to a remote area of Arizona to work in it. Somehow, from slogging around the mountains of the Tonto NF in that, I decided I wanted a Jeep.

After a lot of looking, I bought a 1980 CJ7 that was partially overhauled. I didn't want a completed Jeep, I wanted to make it what I wanted. So it took me a while to find what I thought would be the right rig to start with.



The frame has 176k on it, the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l was rebuilt somewhere along the line and was a '79 from the casting #'s, and runs well. It recently got a 4.0L head and a MC 2150 carb conversion. And a CRT distributor.





The Transmission is an older rebuilt T-150 . Transfer Case is a more recent rebuilt Dana 20 .

The front axle is a wide track Dana 30 with spring under perches still welded on, fitted with a 4" spring lift, 2" shackle lift, Lock-Rite, and 3.73 gears. It's an older install and needs some love.

The rear axle is a just rebuilt AMC20 with a locker, welded tubes and a truss. New rear brakes, one piece Superior axles. 4" spring lift, 2" shackle lift.



The tub just had new floors welded in, and a new coat of desert tan urethane paint.



After spending a little time with it, I decided it was worth finishing the job the previous owner started. That guy spent a lot of time and energy on this old jeep, and it deserves to go to the next step.

This will take a while, but I have a plan. Really.

 

[mtnwhlr]

Looks like it is set up real well now. Very nice

 

[gaspipe]

Thanks mntwhlr! But some builds get just so far, then priorities change. This ol' CJ is mostly there for what it needs to be, but needs some TLC to finish the job. I plan to write that stuff up here.

I read a good thread on this forum regarding checking out your 'new' CJ....and it got me thinking. This just after a 20 mile drive wherein the steering shaft stripped off the steering gear.

Time for a thorough inspection....This is after reinstalling with a new bolt to get home.



I spent a bit of time looking stuff over, and ordered up the first wave of parts. I'm gonna hit this like triage. Sucking chest wounds first, nosebleeds later.

It's going to be fun.

 

[gaspipe]

And please, don't think you're hijacking! I'll gladly take all the help I can get.

 

[73CJ]

just after a 20 mile drive wherein the steering shaft stripped off the steering gear.

Time for a thorough inspection....This is after reinstalling with a new bolt to get home.
It's going to be fun.

Some people should not own a wrench.

An inspection is in order.

 

[gaspipe]

First order of business - fix the steering column.

I removed the old steering shaft, and cleaned up the splines with a wire brush. The lower steering bushing on the column looked bad, and felt gritty. I removed the spring retainer, and it basically fell into my hand. Most of the ball bearings were long gone.



I cleaned up the lower part of the shaft, and packed the new bearing with aluminum based waterproof grease.





And installed that into the lower column...



While I was doing this, waiting for something to arrive, I pulled the steering wheel and turn signal assembly, and installed a new ignition cylinder. The old one was so worn, you could remove the key while driving.

And then brown santa arrived with this....



I test fit it, filed the new flats onto the column and box splines, and installed the new Borgeson steering shaft. I coated the splines with this...



Done!



The combination of the new shaft and a new lower bearing did much good. Before, the CJ handled like a sailboat with a broken keel. Now it feels like a wheelbarrow full of wet concrete, with a flat tire. A big improvement, but not all there yet.

Next step is to rebuild the front shackles and leaf spring eyes. They are fairly wallowed out and will get my attention next. Is a steering box brace worth the effort on a manual box?

While I was poking around the front axle, I noticed the axle u-joints were fragged, so I'll be taking apart the steering knuckles and freshening up all that stuff too. Looks like both the front and rear axles are wide track units also.

It's whatcha get with a 32 year old vehicle.

Lastly, I noticed my AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l block is a 7445 casting, so I'm guessing I have a '79 motor, Transmission and Transfer Case swapped in somewhere along the line.

 

[gaspipe]

BTW, my wife thinks I'm nuts for taking on another vehicle resurrection, so I hung this on the dash.....

 

[JAG811]

Nice work !!
2 of the 3 main contributors to vague steering (In my books) ... Only other thing would be to adjust the box .. But it looks like you've got it totally under control

 

[alpha6]

BTW, my wife thinks I'm nuts for taking on another vehicle resurrection, so I hung this on the dash.....

Love the sign. Nice work on the steering. Great analogies...you should be a writer. "Before, the CJ handled like a sailboat with a broken keel. Now it feels like a wheelbarrow full of wet concrete, with a flat tire." I can totally feel that.

 

[Gunner Actual]

This looks like a great project. Oh, and welcome home Devil. Haha. I'm obviously interested in your tan paint. I'm planning on doing a body remodel on my rig this winter and painting it that same coyote tan paint. How is the finish on your paint? Is it rough like in the military, or is it smooth? Do you know the brand used? Thanks

 

[Petescj]

I ran across that Cj in my (what seems to be) never ending Craigslist search. Great starting point for sure , just a wee bit out of my price range. Enjoy.

BTW, my wife thinks I'm nuts for taking on another vehicle resurrection, so I hung this on the dash.....

 

[gaspipe]

Thanks GA.
This is what was used:
HRF233 DESERT STORM
From tcpglobal.com

It's about halfway between a true flat and a satin. Thus far seems to be quite durable.

This looks like a great project. Oh, and welcome home Devil. Haha. I'm obviously interested in your tan paint. I'm planning on doing a body remodel on my rig this winter and painting it that same coyote tan paint. How is the finish on your paint? Is it rough like in the military, or is it smooth? Do you know the brand used? Thanks

 

[gaspipe]

Hiya Pete!
How much, if you don't mind me asking, was the PO asking for it in CG? Just curious...

I ran across that Cj in my (what seems to be) never ending Craigslist search. Great starting point for sure , just a wee bit out of my price range. Enjoy.

 

[gaspipe]

I'm headed to north east AZ for work tomorrow. I have some stuff ordered up for the CJ for when I get back. Catch y'all in 2 weeks.

 

[gaspipe]

Sorry I've not updated this...got Shanghai'd into staying longer at work than I'd planned.

The first big problem I noted was the wheel u-joints were toast. Bummer, but goes with the territory. So I started digging towards the spindles....PO had removed the steering stop bolts, and the brake calipers mangled the shock tubes. Mission creep begins...

My trusty assistant...



Some 3/8" x 1.125" 24tpi bolts later, and we've got useable steering stops again.



And then the front shocks got replaced...



The bushings on the front springs and shackles appeared to be urethane, but the wrong sizes. And the front shackles are actually distorted from over torquing.





They were in fact urethane - the greaseable type ones, but with bent up non-gun drilled bolts. And they were quite worn and sloppy.

So I straightened the front shackles, got the proper urethane bushings, and reassembled it all with greaseable bolts. I have Limited time to work on this, which is why I'm doing it in the dark while raining





The ball joints and tie rod ends look pretty good and recent thus far, so I'm going to ignore them for now. I haven't even started into the axle shafts yet! I decided to re-do the rear spring eyes and shackles also, so I ordered up those parts to have on hand.

Sort of a cool thing - although the front springs are 4" lift CJ style (2"), the front axle has been modified with upper spring perches. So one of these days, I'll get some later model 2.5" front leafs.

Next, I'll press in some new u-joints.

 

[gaspipe]

Off to the axle shafts....I got too distracted!

Warn hubs stripped away....



Spindle removed....



But the axle shaft was not ready to budge. Hmmm. The axle tube was packed with sand Finally got the axle shaft free, but had to pull the diff to clean out the mess.



This u-joint has seen better days.





Cleaned up the axles....



And pressed in new u-joints...



A quick shot of satin enamel, and back into the axle housing they go.

The bearings looked pretty good as well as the seals. They'll last well enough until I get around to rebuilding the whole axle later this year to regear it and rehab a few other things.

 

[Sasquach]

Nice looking rig. Do you have enough travel clearance with regard to the rear axle truss and the tailpipe? looks like a squished brake line might be possible?

 

[gaspipe]

Nice looking rig. Do you have enough travel clearance with regard to the rear axle truss and the tailpipe? looks like a squished brake line might be possible?

That is an excellent question, and no, I doubt it. There are no marks on it yet, but I am pretty sure it has zero trail miles since that rear end went in. I'm planning to rework the exhaust as I move rearward.

 

[gaspipe]

It's been a while since I've been home to work on Jeep.

The 35" Goodyear Kevlar rubber and steel 15" wheels have been replaced with 265/75x16 BFG Mud Terrains and alloy 16x8" wheels. The 3.73 gears and the AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l each breathed a sigh of relief. I went this way because now I only have to inventory one size tire for both my truck and the Jeep.

Additionally, I sourced a 180 watt LED light bar while in China. Very bright (~12,000 lumens or so), relatively low amp draw. I've been using the same light bar on my F250 for a while now, and have been pleased with the performance.

 

[rbagley]

I am looking forward to following your thread. I love the look of yours, even if you bought it mostly that way. The first picture you posted caught my attention. :drool: