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New body or repair the old one?

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New body or repair the old one?
J

js5020

Jeeper
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Location
PA
Vehicle(s)
79 CJ5 SA, 258,T150, D20,PS/PB D30, Amc 20
83 CJ5, 258, T176, D300, PS, D30, AMC 20
I've pretty much finished the chassis rebuild and am now moving on to the body. I'm a bit indecisive on repairing or replacing the body. Since I'm in an area that gets "white dirt" and salted roads I was considering fiberglass, spendy I know. I can't find many suppliers other than Shellvalley anyone have one of their standard bodies and what do you like or dislike about it? How about the fenders and hood?

My steel tub is repairable with considerable labor and materials, it would be cheaper in the short run to repair, but I'm concerned it will just rust out again and I will be right where I am now in less than 5 yrs? Any preferred methods to get long life from the steel bodies?
 
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Nooooo! please don't put glass on a Silver Anniversary , that just wouldn't be right.

Repair the metal tub, use a good quality primer and paint. Wash often and it will last.
 
Posi said:
Nooooo! please don't put glass on a Silver Anniversary , that just wouldn't be right.

Repair the metal tub, use a good quality primer and paint. Wash often and it will last.
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:agree: and you could use a Rinoliner on the under side and even on the inside of the tub for protection.
 
Posi said:
Nooooo! please don't put glass on a Silver Anniversary , that just wouldn't be right.

Repair the metal tub, use a good quality primer and paint. Wash often and it will last.
Click to expand...

Yea, thinking about that also. It is a real SA, has the glovebox emblem, correct seats including the rear, correct data plate code, tach, clock, engine code says correct year engine, under 100K miles. Only have 1 original rim though, but it does have the original brand bias ply tire.
 
You can do several kinds of metal restoration. The easiest would be to remove as much of the rust as you can using the usual methods, ie,grinders, sanders, etc. Then under coat with something like POR15, then paint.
You could have it media blasted, then paint.
There are places, depending on where you live, that can chemically strip an entire car body or frame.
And, if the sky is the limit, chemical strip followed by powder coat.
Bottom line, like Posi, I favor keeping the Jeep as much metal as possible.
 
js5020 said:
Interesting stuff, I take it one would only use it on the underside of the vehicle and not the upper painted surfaces?
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think of it almost as seasonal undercoating, wax and a lubricant all in one. it came from the farm world originally, used to coat tractors and the like. i did the entire underside of the cj including coating the inside of the frame with an extension wand. cost about $125 but i don't have to worry about the heavily salted roads here in the winter time. it can be applied to paint however a test area should be done first to see if there are any unwanted effects. it's safe to use on most paint and plastic surfaces.
 
Ok I've decided to repair the original tub, it's not that bad after looking things over. It's more labor but way cheaper than a glass kit or replacement steel kit. It will need some parts, I've searched the net and found plenty of suppliers for the necessary preformed parts, but the question running in my head at the moment is,,, would there be any advantage to make my own out of thicker materials? I could cut sections out to the point that I get out of the common rust out points and replace the areas that commonly rust out with say 12 ga or 10 ga. Or am I just going to far and preformed stuff will suffice?
 
IMHO, a chain is only as strong as it's weakest link. To weld in metal that's almost 1/8" thick to the original metal will not really gain you anything. Plus, metal that heavy is really hard to hammer into shape to match the existing parts.
If you have tools like a bead roller, which will make the metal more rigid, the satisfaction of doing the complete job from scratch yourself is very satisfying. Nothing wrong with using quality replacement panels either.
 
Another consideration, coming from an aviator, since you will probably be applying new paint, a Zinc Phosphate aircraft primer would combat the corrosion you see in your area. It's not the end all of corrosion inhibitors but it is the base coat of flying things that don't do well with corrosion issues. Goes on fast, gets in all the tight spots, and dries smooth for the most part. It is also adhesive to metal giving a good base for paint. Glad you're keeping another CJ alive. Thanks!
 
Well it's been awhile,, life seems to always get in the way of projects like this. But now my hand is sort of forced to getting something done and life has let up a bit.

I had the body in the shop to give it a detailed look over in prep for the repairs needed,,,, ya glad I didn't just order a bunch of parts from the original inspection, it's a lot worse than originally thought and after poking around and finding many unseen soft spots and removing 3/8" of bondo I'm not messing with it, I may have professional mechanic skills but my body work skills aren't at the same level and I doubt I would have it finished for 6 mos so a new body will be in order. We stripped everything off/out of the tub and took it back outside.

Despite all the pros/cons and sentimental stuff to keep steel on an SA I think we will be going the fiberglass route due to rust issues prevalent in my location. I think fiberglass will be a once and done solution where as steel will just rot out again in a few years and honestly I'm not known to fuss over a vehicle to the point of doing body maintenance, don't think I ever washed my GC in 8 yrs,,, that's why it rains. My jeeps have always been "mules" used for everyday life and this 5 will be the same.

I do have some concerns/questions about the glass tubs before pulling the trigger on one,,, I know every hole in the firewall will need to be cut, some steel put in the area of the pedals, and special component grounding but what about things like seat mounting? The glass tubs look like they a flat in the seat area unlike the steel tubs? I assume reinforcement for things like seat belts and roll bars should also be on the to do list? I have decided I don't want a tailgate but what about a one piece front end vs a three piece? What about windshield frames are the glass ones strong enough or not?
 
I was in the same boat as you and wanted the same thing for the same reasons.

After talking it thru with my shop I went with metal. They hate dealing with glass due to all the extra labor around grounding.

If your good with wiring and glass then go for it because it will be less body prep for paint.

However I would not forgo the rear tailgate. I know a couple of guys that have glass tubs and every one regret not having the gate access.
 
sponge said:
I was in the same boat as you and wanted the same thing for the same reasons.

After talking it thru with my shop I went with metal. They hate dealing with glass due to all the extra labor around grounding.

If your good with wiring and glass then go for it because it will be less body prep for paint.

However I would not forgo the rear tailgate. I know a couple of guys that have glass tubs and every one regret not having the gate access.
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Hmmm, I wonder why they regreted not having the tailgate? It's been 25yrs since I had a CJ and though I cant totally remember why I didn't like it, I do remember it rattled, leaked air, and the chains rubbed the paint off the body. I've read that on a glass body it weakens the structure? The current steel body doesn't have a gate either so I would need every part to put one on.

Wiring doesn't bother me, I totally rewired my old CJ5 30 yrs ago. A few terminal blocks, some wire, a few ends, a pain yes but pretty much a one time deal or so I am thinking.

Body work,,,,, ya hate that stuff, well (don't take this negatively folks but I think of my Jeeps as one step above a farm tractor, its a good thing) I'm not into show queens, we will paint it here, wont be a pro job but as long as it has color on it life will be good, less stress when it gets scratched.
 
Has anyone gotten a tub/body from Usbody source out of Fla? How about Shell Valley? To bad AJ's isn't around anymore they would have been local. I see 4wd doesn't sell them anymore either.
 
js5020 said:
Has anyone gotten a tub/body from Usbody source out of Fla? How about Shell Valley? To bad AJ's isn't around anymore they would have been local. I see 4wd doesn't sell them anymore either.
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Last fall a friend of mine bought a CJ8 glass tub from Shell Vally and it was a major disappointment for him. He found a ton of cracks, including a 21" crack near the tailgate area.
 
Well the CJ has finally moved up to the top of project list, and I made my decision on the body. I looked at the post dates in the thread, man does time fly by.

I went back and forth on the body material many many times, both have their advantages and disadvantages, then there is the thing of the CJ being a SA and keeping it original and all of that.

Well I don't like silver as a body color anyways, and rust is king in my area. I'm going glass,,, found another CJ5 locally with a bad frame but has nice full glass body with tilt wheel, 4 speed Transmission , one piece axles, better looking rims than what I have along with several other trinkets that can be swapped over for dirt cheap. Maybe I can finally get this CJ back in operation again and complete "phase 1" of my CJ project.

On to contemplating "phase 2" of the CJ project.
 
Wish you the best-:chug:
But-I agree 110% about FG bodies and crack issues.:eek:
Good luck,
LG
 
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