Build Thread Hello! long-dormant 85 CJ7 project underway at last!

[Dirty Harry]

Wanted to say "Hello!" to all forum members here and introduce myself. My name's Harry. I have been a Jeep fan for a very long time. I have a project CJ that I am finally moving forward with after being in stasis for the better part of a decade. I also own a 2000 Cherokee that I've moderately tweaked. (Details can be found in my profile.) I'm 47, married with no kids and now finally in a position to jumpstart my project machine. I was very lucky to stumble across this site in a Google search for CJ stainless steel brake components. So, here we go...

I bought a rough shape 1985 CJ7 waaay back in 1997 for $500. The body was well on its way to being totally shot, but the frame, engine and running gear were all in decent shape, with the exception of a few rust holes in the back of the frame, which I'm told is common from road salts and what not. I did several upgrades to the I-6 engine: aluminum valve cover, Webber carb, (w/heavily modified linkage to get a "bolt-on" piece of equipment to fit properly. LOL!). S.S. header & Borla cat-back exhaust kit. DMI ignitiion system, BeCool alumnium radiator and flex fan, new fuel pump, MeanGreen alternator and gear-reduction starter. I drove it for about a year until the body began to disintegrate - literally. The rear rollbar mounts worked free from the rusty floor pan and left the bikini top flopping in my face - while driving down the road. Not good! About this same time, the rear fenders began to flap & wave as they crumbled to nothing, so I knew it was just time to park it until a new tub could be swapped in.

The CJ sat for a good 7 or 8 years before I got around to taking a sawzall to the body and choped it up and dumped it. I salvaged the dash and all non-body parts. I purchased a fiberglass tub / fenders / hood & windshield frame from 4WD Hardware. I already have this stuff painted; the underside of the tub & fenders and the inside floor tub is Rhino-lined for durability, road noise reduction and ease of cleaning. I have all stainless hardware (hinges, knobs, locks ,etc.) and a total s.s. nut/bolt replacement package, too. I've got plenty of other goodies for it, too: new seats, heavy-duty rear bumper with tiremount swingarm, a plain but beefy front bumper, Tuffy brand lockable glovebox and built-in radio loackable center console, new Steel Horse bucket seats, etc., etc.

I just needed some free time and a dedicated work area to assemble it all. Then along comes a woman and... well you can guess the rest. LOL.

I soon found myself happily married (have been for a few years now); that aspect of my life was good. But alas, my poor CJ continued to set and set and set. I considered selling it as a project (even went so far as to list it in the local trader paper) or swapping it for something else. Then one day a friend asked me why I didn't just hire someone else to complete the build, since I was always working and I no longer had the garage space (thanks to the wife's vehicle)?? Um... well... uhhh... D'OH! Why the heck hadn't I ever thought of that before!!???!! I always considered the CJ project as my own personal albatross, so to speak. I began checking around and asking advice from other Jeep folks and off road/hot rod guys.

So anyhow a fellow right under my nose where I work agreed (after checking out the CJ's rolling engine & chassis, the body and other misc stuff last week) to tackle the daunting task of assembling everything for this machine. He's done his share of kit and hotrod rigs before and I've seen his work, so I trust him, which is a very large and important part of the puzzle. His price isn't cheap but it's reasonable, and I'll be helping on many aspects of the build with him. He's taking this on as a winter putter-in-his-spare-time project so I hope to have it on the road by next spring or summer!

I will doubtless have many, many questions as I get deeper into this long-waited resurrection of my beloved CJ7 . I hope you will be patient with me. I am excited to get this underway and glad to have found a place on the web devoted soley to these rugged little pieces of military & automotive history. Thanks for reading.

 

[Dirty Harry]

Here are some pics of my CJ7 project:

Before restoration began...

Engine with most mods done; (CJ is now rolling chassis)...

4WD Hardware fiberglass tub w/ Rhino-liner on underside of tub, inner floorpan & firewall. Paint job is PPG double-pearl Cobalt Blue...

Right fender with finished paintjob & Rhino-liner underside...

Hood - painted and ready to go...

Everything else is pretty much still in the original boxes.

 

[Hedgehog]

Hey, that looks likefun and it doesn't look like you went cheap on what you've done so far. I like the paint. I bet this goes together quicker than you expect. annnddd then there was wiring ... looking forward o the build, lots of pictures please.

 

[Dirty Harry]

I forked over the $$$ for the engine mods and did most of that work myself. The money for all of the non-engine stuff came from a small inheritence from my late grandfather. As such, I didn't skimp on the body-related items nor the interior replacement bits & pieces.

The misc. odds-n-ends that I've doubtless forgotten (there'll be some, it's inevitable), plus the wheels & tires and payment for the actual build will once again be out of my own pocket. I'm already figuring exactly how much overtime I'll need to finance this without touching my "regular" bank accounts. Luckily for me (or not, depending on how you look at it), snagging overtime where I work hasn't been an issue for... years now. LOL.

The fellow doing the re-build for me has a couple of old school 70's muscle cars he's restored and he took a Chevy Suburban down to the frame and built himself a Hummer clone from a kit. He has the tools and the work space. This is his first Jeep, but he doesn't seem too intimidated and as I mentioned earlier, I'll be helping whenever needed for various aspects of this resurrection.

First thing is trailering the chassis back to his shop. He'll make sure the motor will crank and that all's good with it, then yank it & the T-4 tranny and get them steam cleaned. While that's being done he's dropping off the frame and running gear at a local shop to be sandblasted. He'll cart that back to my garage where I'll slather it with POR-15, crosslinker & paint, then it's back to his shop fto re-install the engine/tranny and start the body/interior build in earnest.

I may ask for the axles in order to have the bearings redone and get new brakes & rotors while it's all apart. I'm also considering upgrading to full disc brakes while the CJ's still in pieces. ANY OTHER SUGGESTIONS WHILE THE BODY AND FRAME & ENGINE ARE SEPERATED?????

Pics will follow as I dig further into this project.