Varg In Jeep's Clothing

Hard to believe that started as CJ frame (did it?). That's quite a transformation and a beautiful paint job.

 

As soon as I hand her the key.

<ducking>

 

I'm crossing my fingers..... Maybe mid July in the Sierra Nevada mountains...

 

It did. It’s the ‘49 3a frame.
Aside from the dry time (even with the hardener), I’ve been really impressed with this paint so far. It’s super thick, so it’s really hard to get runs, and it’s very good at self-leveling.

 

I've used farm paint for years. It is great stuff x2 on runs and self leveling and reasonably priced

 

And touch-up cans are color-matched and readily available!

 

That's one of the reasons I'm using it on my project.

 

what did you use for thinner? acetone is a fast drying choice. I use cheap automotive lacquer thinner in the fastest dry I can get or acetone.

 

Nothing. Just cranked up the pressure a bit and let it flow thick, and I worked slowly. It gave me time to think.

 

This paint is great for how its being used. Just don't paint the exterior with this stuff. In a year or two, it will be chalked and faded, especially reds.
If I saw this chassis somewhere, I would have a hard time identifying it as coming from a CJ.
-Donny

 

That’s what I’ve read. I still might use the same stuff, but “Ford Gray” on the cage. It’s a really light gray; fade and chalk will probably go unnoticed. It’ll see a lot of abuse, and the ability to touch it up with a rattle can is worth the drawbacks.

 

Paint is one of those things “ you get what you pay for” I’ve been doing body work for 30 plus years cheap paint is just that. On a frame or othernon finish parts it’ll be fine for the finish I would go single stage polyurethane I.e. no clear. Clear scratches white while single stage looses gloss but retains color in the scratch.

 

My cage is black, painted with the same Rustoleum from Home Depot. Most people think it's powder coat.
No thinner, No hardener...... gave it two days before moving it. Then put it outside for a few days to let the paint harden up. Its as glossy as the day it was painted, Even the parts that see sun.
If the varg is going to be stored indoors when not in use, I wouldn't hesitate to paint the body with the Rustoleum Paint. I have a dozen pieces of mill equipment that are glossy as the day they were painted. Best part about the Rustoleum paint... If it starts looking ratty, feather the scrapes and chips with a DA, lightly sand the body with 320/400 and spray a fresh coat over it. Brand new jeep again.

 

my 1970 cj5 is painted alice chalmers orange, implement paint, going on 12 years now, and its as shiny as the day i painted it. i heard that chalky stuff happens, but ive not witnessed it personally.

 

I painted a frame red with tractor supply paint the sun had it pink in less than a year the tractor truck sits in the sun. Your results may vary and as far as twelve yer old paint looking good the voc laws have changed paint drastically over the last twenty years the “same” paint isn’t the same.

 

Compromises...

In order to get away with ~18” belly clearance with only 32” tires and minimal lift, the t-case is tucked up much higher than stock. I’m running a double cardan joint in the rear, and will need to run a limiting strap at the differential to limit the downward travel, as not to destroy the joint. Articulation shouldn’t be affected, just droop during airborne situations. Speed bumps and all.

I’m using a seat belt and hardware from the Isuzu Rodeo that I sourced the axle from.

I pre- and post-heated the casting around the weld. I did, and have been running a similar setup on my 3b for two decades without issue.
(Also removed the speed sensor from the housing and fabbed a cover plate.)



The mounting hardware that Isuzu used was massive, and I wanted to use basic 3/8” bolts. I needed to cut the shoulder and flange off of the original bolt and drill it out to 3/8” and use it as a shoulder washer/spacer to allow the tabs to maintain mobility when the bolts are tightened.

 

I’ve looked a little bit at buying limiting straps. Most of it is really expensive.

 

Yeah, it’s hard to find any that aren’t designed for desert racers with huge coilovers.

 

Rear axle is ready to finish weld, blast and paint.

I managed to track down the original brake hose clips that I cut off this axle and reuse them to hold the little hoses coming off the calipers.

For the hoses coming down from the frame, I got two steel unions and welded them to tabs that bolt to the housing/tube.