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sean1

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Location
mid-atlantic
Vehicle(s)
2006 f350, 1979 cj5
hi. i got a 79 CJ5 awhile back. going to need some advice on what to do. want to do a frame up rebuild but not too nice. still want to have fun with it. happy to see places like this on the web .
 
Hi sean1, and welcome to an awesome forum! Don't be afraid to ask questions around here, there's a ton of knowledge, and people that are doing, or have already done what you are.

Again, welcome to a great site :booze:
 
Whats you long term plan for using the Jeep? that will really dictate what you do as far as rebuilding it and what parts to install.
Will you be on trails, in the mud, rocks, extreme stuff, sand, ect.?
Will it double as a daily driver at times?
is fuel economy important? or is more power a must?
 
i would say more mud and trails. maybe some rocks. nothing extreme. i live in se PA. not too many all rock trails nearby.
 
Welcome Sean1. Some mud and a few Rocks from SE PA. Sounds like Rausch Creek to me, just north of you.

What motor and Transmission are you running (or did I miss that). What size tires do you plan on putting on?

Some things you may want to consider with a frame off. Upgrade to rear disk brakes, lift kit (depends on what tires you wish to run). Upgraded axles.

Look forward to watching your build progress.
 
welcome sean1
Do you have a plan yet or are you still thinking about it?
There is a few of us here that have done mild builds for the type of trails you talked about.:chug::chug:
figured I better give you two in case susie wakes up early any takes one.
 
old dog
plan to swap in the 4 spd and Dana 300 . wt Dana 30 and AMC20 . like to run 35's. jeep needs alot of work. frame repaired and painted. axles gone over and beefed up. lift. wiring. roll cage. body and paint. would have looked for one in better shape but this one was basically given to me. $400 and it ran.
 
Well, I am running a 30/20 axle combo with the upgraded shafts front and rear and lockers. Current tires are 36-12.50x15 TSL's. Since upgrading the axles and welding/trussing the rear, have not broken an axle (knock on wood).

I think a lot of it has to do with the drivers use of the skinny pedal. I've seen people trash 44's while the next driver makes the trail running stock axles.

My motor is a bit bigger than yours though so you should have less problem controlling that. :D
 
iceman if you dont mind me asking. how much was it to do all that work to your axles? trying to weigh my options here.
 
One piece axle kits for a 20 will run you about $275. The welding is a regional thing, and depends on what a shop will charge you to stick a little steel to your axle housing. I think a good estimate would be below the $500 mark to do it all.
 
sean1 said:
iceman if you dont mind me asking. how much was it to do all that work to your axles? trying to weigh my options here.
Click to expand...

coldwater said:
One piece axle kits for a 20 will run you about $275. The welding is a regional thing, and depends on what a shop will charge you to stick a little steel to your axle housing. I think a good estimate would be below the $500 mark to do it all.
Click to expand...

That is about right. I have about $700 into both axles as I shopped around for the shafts until I found a good deal on both front and rear. Bought the lockers from a guy who purchased them and never could figure out how to put them so sold them at less than 1/2 price.

Truss we made (friend in my Jeep club) and welded it and the shafts to the pumpkin ourselves. And we did preload the axle so the truss works as it should. Just need to find people in your area with knowledge, a good local club is nice, plus people to wheel with.
 
maybe a dumb question butwould i be money ahead in the future to get some 60's from a junk yard and have them fitted to the CJ5 ? are they too heavy for a AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l ? is the CJ5 too short of a rig for all this? would be better on a CJ7 or 8? too many options.
 
sean1 said:
maybe a dumb question butwould i be money ahead in the future to get some 60's from a junk yard and have them fitted to the CJ5 ? are they too heavy for a AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l ? is the CJ5 too short of a rig for all this? would be better on a CJ7 or 8? too many options.
Click to expand...



I gotta be honest here. Buying, narrowing, and fitting a set of 1 ton gear under your Jeep is a big and very expensive step, not to mention a total and complete waste of money if you're going to turn them with a AMC 258 i6 / 4.2l . Unless you intend on hitting some pretty gnarly hard core trails, and going to a big torque V8 engine you certainly do not need 60's, and if you do go that route, the 176 will be a weak link sitting in the middle of 60's and an 8 on 35's blasting trails. Unless you intend on going big, save your $$ and look for a Dana 44 , pop in a locker, and call it a day. As far as a 5 being the right platform for these mods..well, there is no doubt that a 7 would be easier to lift because of It's being 10" longer than a 5. but other than that, It's pretty much apples and apples comparison. Here's the shake down. Once you go nuts on any single part of a build, like 60's, you can't just stop there, Everything else will need to be matched to that component. A big 8 will eventually crush your rears, big tires will do the same, fix those, now your tranny will go, then the steering will be a weak point. See what I mean?
 
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Agree with Coldwater on not spending the extra $$ now on the 60's.

Every time you upgrade a component, all you are doing is moving the weak link to another part of your drivetrain setup. Bigger tires, then bigger axles, etc.

I can say I still think a lot has to do with what you want to do with the rig, and your driving in those circumstances. In Tellico 2 years ago, we had 5 rigs on a run. 4 of the rigs has 60's and at least 36" tires. All pulled cable and had breakage during the weekend. The 5th was a CJ7 on 35's with upgraded (one piece) axles and a rear locker. He was able to keep it together all weekend and pick good lines thru everything, thus avoiding pulling cable.

It's up to you, but I would first clean up the frame and go with at the most the 44's and have fun with it.
 
thanx for all the info. reason iask i found a dane 44 ront and a 14 bolt pretty cheap. i just dont want to set this thing up and then wish i would have done it differently. like putting the money into an axle that wont hold up. but i agree i need to decide what im going to do with it.
 
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