Help for the Chick!

[chodette]

Ok, Jim....what is the best thing to do to it now? What do you suggest for the prep and paint (brand)? I haven't picked a color yet, but I was leaning towards hammer grey. Any good advice would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

 

[IOPort51]

Only one color choice, AMC blue. Eastwood has "correct" engine enamel. More than likely it's cheaper to buy two spray cans than to buy a quart from a auto paint store.

Ok, Jim....what is the best thing to do to it now? What do you suggest for the prep and paint (brand)? I haven't picked a color yet, but I was leaning towards hammer grey. Any good advice would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

 

[CJim7]

Ok, Jim....what is the best thing to do to it now? What do you suggest for the prep and paint (brand)? I haven't picked a color yet, but I was leaning towards hammer grey. Any good advice would be GREATLY appreciated!!!

Ya know, when I painted mine, I didn't have a clue as to what I was going to use either. I browsed around auto parts stores and that gave me my best insight. I ended up finding a multitude of engine enamel colors in brands such as Duplicolor, Krylon, and several store brands. I went with Duplicolor engine enamel and it has held up great. No priming was necessary but use several coats allowing time inbetween for the paint to soft cure.

Be sure to plug off your sparkplug holes or install an old set. You do not want overspray on the cylinder walls

 

[CJim7]

Only one color choice, AMC blue.

I couldn't handle that blue-green-seafoam color...thus the change
Im not sure what the factory was thinking when they chose that God-awful color

Pardon my deviance from AMC tradition...Im a purist but that color is just wrong :down:

 

[chodette]

Sorry to disappoint, IO, but I am not painting it blue! Maybe pink......j/k

And Jim, I left the old spark plugs in for when I paint! I figured I will look around on the internet today and figure out what I want to do next, and what product to go with. I may visit the local auto paint store.

Thanks for all the help guys. I would be lost without it!

 

[fzsk4p]

Have had good luck with the Dupicolor Engine Ceramic paint. Advance Auto and Auto Zone carry it.

Dupli-Color :: Engine Paint with Ceramic

 

[chodette]

Oh, that looks NICE! I would have never thougt to paint my hoses. I think I have decied to got with the Por-15 engine restore kit in Aluminum and Black. Like here:


I do have another question. How do I know if my exhaust and headers are Smog legal? I know I have to add a cat, but is there a way to tell if the ones I have are OK for CA emissions?

Also, any advice on cleaning the gas tank? Should I do the inside or just the outside? I bought a new sending unit, so I would have pretty good access to the inside.

 

[yleefox]

I looks like you've accomplished a lot so far. What I would suggest is that is you have used high pressure water or believe you might have gotten water into your engine, that you change remove the spark plugs and turn the engine over, either with the starter if that's possible or by hand with a hand tool. If any water has gotten into the cylinders this will help remove the excess. IF you get any water out of the cylinders then I suggest you put a few squirts of engine oil in each of the spark plug holes and again turn the engine over a few times to coat the cylinder walls and help prevent rust. The excess oil will run out of the spark plug holes. When u eventually start it up again, it will smoke a bit at first until that oil burns off. They other thing you might want to do is change the engine oil to get rid of any water that may have found its way into the crankcase.

Good luck with ur jeep.

Y

 

[hole]

Chodette, I'm not too familiar with the AMC 304 's stock set-up here in Cal. but if it didn't have an air(smog) pump with lines that ran to the Exhaust manifolds, headers should be fine. I believe that those blue hoses where bought that way, paint doesnt like to stick to rubber all that well. Once you get the sending unit off it will be easier to determine if and how to clean it. I've seen guys put pea gravel into fuel tanks and strap the tank to a cement mixer barrel for a few hours to get rust and other loosened up, just depends how cruddy it is.

 

[billyocup]

Chodette - I just went through the whole gas tank thing on my 75 CJ5 and I think it really depends on how much crud is in it when you get it to the point where you can look inside. Mine looked pretty grungy. I called a local radiator shop about cleaning and sealing the inside and they told me at least $200. I looked into Eastwood's tank refinishing kit and it was about $50 and I would still need to buy muratic acid and acetone locally and then deal with disposing that stuff when I was done. I found a new tank online for $95 and decided that was the easiest way to go. That's my 2 cents.

Been watching your build thread - you're doing an awesome job!

Bill

 

[Rescue Diver]

Can I get a suggestion on a good dizzy? Is this one okay?

AMC JEEP CJ5 CJ7 304 360 401 V-8 HEI DISTRIBUTOR 6512-R | eBay

Not so fast Chodette!

Whatever you do, make sure that distributor has the soft metal gear before buying it! V8 AMC engines have a soft metal gear that attaches to the cam instead of a hardened gear that's actually machined as part of the cam. Some HEI distributors that are converted to work in a V8 AMC have a hardened gear that will chew the living out of your soft metal cam gear in very little time. This isn't a problem for the inline 6 AMC HEI conversion because the I-6 has the regular hardened cam gear, but countless V8 owners have been bitten by the HEI conversion.

That's probably a good distributor you found on ebay, but if it has the hardened gear, you'll want to replace it with a soft one, which will add about $30 to the cost, plus the hassel of locating a parts store or dealership that can look it up and order it for you. I'd contact the seller and ask them which it had before bidding.

David

 

[IOPort51]

can you swap the gear from your old dizzy for the new one??

 

[Rescue Diver]

can you swap the gear from your old dizzy for the new one??

Don't quote me on this, but I think the stock AMC distributor shaft is a different diameter. I read someone on the net that a Mopar gear from like a 360 will work on an HEI in an AMC V8, but you know what I think of most info you read on the net.

If I bought an aftermarket HEI for an AMC V8 and it came with a hardened gear, I would bring it with me to the parts store or dealer, with the gear already removed, so I could verify that the new one matches up side by side with the old one, and that it fits correctly on the distributor shaft before buying the gear.

 

[chodette]

Yleefox-I left the old spark plugs in and I DIDN'T use my powerwasher. With the oven cleaner, the hose did the trick. I am pretty certain no water got in. I had it duct taped and put absorbant chamois's in and when I was done, they were all still dry at the bottom.

Bill and Hole-I guess when I take the sending unit off I will make the decision if it is worth keeping it and just cleaning it vs. replacement. The thought of a new tank does appeal to me since the outside (even if not the inside) is a mess.

Rescue & IO-I haven't bid on the dizzy yet, and thanks for the heads up. These are the things I NEED TO KNOW! I will either buy one from a local parts store (and take in my old one) or email the seller on Ebay if I can find a good one that will work for a good price on there.

Any of you guy buy the pre-bent SS gas lines and brake lines? Any recommendations? I want to do this right

 

[chodette]

Chodette, I'm not too familiar with the 304's stock set-up here in Cal. but if it didn't have an air(smog) pump with lines that ran to the Exhaust manifolds, headers should be fine.

And Hole, it originally did have a smog pump, but all the emission stuff was removed. Now, I have to put it all back on. Should I at least be able to use the exhaust manifolds I have?

 

[hole]

Are they the original manifolds? If so, yes.

 

[billyocup]

Any of you guy buy the pre-bent SS gas lines and brake lines? Any recommendations? I want to do this right

I'm in the process of installing new SS brake lines on my 75. They're real pretty, but I'm finding I have to rebend all of them to make them fit. The ones at the rear axle needed the most work.

 

[Rescue Diver]

I'm in the process of installing new SS brake lines on my 75. They're real pretty, but I'm finding I have to rebend all of them to make them fit. The ones at the rear axle needed the most work.

I was wondering how well they would actually fit, so I just measured and bought sections cheap from the parts store and bent them myself. Same goes for the fuel line. The frame I bought had already been stripped of all the lines, so I had to fabricate mine without the old ones as a template. It was easier than expected.

 

[escobar]

Hey Chodette, for your gas tank the old school way works wonders (imo).

Put some c-clamps on each side and hang it up from a branch or even a cherry picker.

Find some small gravel, like what walmart sells in the garden section. The sharper edged gravel is better. I just use some of the shale from my driveway.

Put a coffee can or two in the tank and a can of chemtool b-12 in, and start shaking. Work the hell out of it and make sure to turn it over a few times. Then dump it and do it again if you want.

You will be AMAZED at what comes out. As for tank lining, ive never used any, and I've had my toys for a long time. I have heard that they are good though.

 

[IOPort51]

I like the tree idea

Hey Chodette, for your gas tank the old school way works wonders (imo).

Put some c-clamps on each side and hang it up from a branch or even a cherry picker.

Find some small gravel, like what walmart sells in the garden section. The sharper edged gravel is better. I just use some of the shale from my driveway.

Put a coffee can or two in the tank and a can of chemtool b-12 in, and start shaking. Work the hell out of it and make sure to turn it over a few times. Then dump it and do it again if you want.

You will be AMAZED at what comes out. As for tank lining, ive never used any, and I've had my toys for a long time. I have heard that they are good though.