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'66 Cj5 Tux Resto-mod

Discussion in 'Builds and Fabricators Forum' started by truckee4x4, Jul 9, 2018.

  1. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    I thought I would resurrect this two-year-old thread since I've been able to make some progress over the last few years and I have a pretty fun build project that's slowly coming along. Here's where I am at currently, a rolling chassis with a lot of finger-tight bolts and masking tape torque reminders:

    rolling chassis.jpg

    Two years ago I got sick of bandaid-ing the POs frankenrepairs, and against my better judgement (and my wife’s advice) I tore the Jeep completely apart to assess what was in need of repair versus what needed replacement.
    Photo Jun 17, 3 17 28 PM (1).jpg Photo Jun 17, 2 33 02 PM.jpg Photo Jun 17, 2 21 19 PM.jpg
    My initial list at the top of this thread has probably more than doubled. At nearly every twist and turn in the project I've found something wrong / bent / broken / field welded with a washer / modified. It's been really rewarding (and of course expensive) to try to slowly go through this stuff and correct it one by one.

    20181201_GK_untitled shoot_Photo Dec 01, 3 38 17 PM.jpg
    Photo Jun 17, 2 33 54 PM.jpg
    My goal is to end up with a safe, driveable, reliable, fun classic Jeep that is as original as possible yet modernized to the extent of my abilities and budget. Yes it is a Tuxedo Park, but I'm not doing this build to make a museum piece or with delusions that I'll sell it for more money than I'm spending; I'm doing this for fun, to learn, to stop a classic piece of American engineering and ingenuity from falling apart, and because I really enjoy restoring old things so they work properly and look new again. In the end I want my son to have it and since he's now 14 months old I have some time to get it finished :cool:

    EADF9385-3CA3-4EF8-B979-40DC363500A1.jpeg
    A lot of guys on here have been hugely helpful with all the questions I’ve had - especially (and in no particular order) nickmil, Keys5a, Timgr, Focker, maurywhurt, beachbum66, and others whose names I can't recall at the moment. I couldn’t do this without you guys, and of course Moses Ludels’ book, and metalshaper’s awesome videos.

    I have also had a lot of help on this build from my buddy “Chief” who is a lumberyard fleet mechanic and yacht Chief engineer. When I say “we” in my build, I mean him helping me. Chief is a savant, and is the best mechanic I’ve ever met; there’s not a mechanical system, engine, or device he can’t analyze, tear down and rebuild. While he currently makes a living fixing Mac trucks, forklifts, and megayachts, I’ve seen him replace the motherboard on a Macbook, concours-level restore 1970s BMW motorcycles, install and troubleshoot satellite modems, build propane flame cannon systems for art projects, and put fuel injection and maintain the incredible custom "car" Flux (pictured here next to the mechanical hand he helped build at Burning Man). He’s a handy buddy to have on a project like this.

    Anyway back to my Jeep build and progress. There's some pics above at the start of the thread that show the Jeep in it's pre-teardown status. It was my daily driver from purchase in 2008 until 2010 and then driven occasionally on forest roads until 2018. While it did drive, it leaked, rattled, squealed, sputtered, backfired, flaked chunks of rust, stalled a lot, the brakes were basically useless, and was generally crying out for some serious attention.

    Here's a pic of my friend's little guy in it back when it was together.
    Ethan in jeep.jpg

    I'll add in a post at a time some of the things I've done to it through the build over the last two years. Please by all means if you read or see something I did wrong or missed or have on backwards, let me know. After all this is the first time I’ve ever rebuilt a vehicle and I am a beginner mechanic learning as I go.

    Note: I bought these wheels and tires in 2008 - they're just what I have at the moment, I'm going to sell and downsize them later on. If anyone is interested in the meantime send me a PM.
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Jul 19, 2020
  2. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Chassis

    I started last summer with tackling the frame. The frame was bent and rotted out in a lot of places, and the rear crossmember had been hacked off by the PO (but without a rear fuel tank?).

    20190629_GK_untitled shoot-6.jpg
    The rear crossmember was hacked at with an O/A torch, and at the front, the original chrome bumper was long gone, and had been replaced with a bent and modified front crossmember with a nice A-frame flat-tow bar mount that I still have. There was also an added cross brace up front that may have been a winch mount at some point.

    20190630_GK_untitled shoot-2.jpg

    20190630_GK_untitled shoot-7.jpg
    20190703_GK_SquawTQ-22.jpg
    20190630_GK_untitled shoot-2.jpg
    20190629_GK_untitled shoot-21.jpg
    20190703_GK_SquawTQ-27.jpg
    20190703_GK_SquawTQ-4.jpg

    20190703_GK_SquawTQ-7.jpg
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Jul 20, 2020
  3. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Chassis Continued:

    The transmission and transfer case cross member was bent torsionally as well as smashed by a rock. No skid plate was installed.
    C4BDCDA2-F7BE-4EFA-945E-AB433482BABA.jpeg
    It was hanging lower than stock by means of a mish-mash of plates on each side between it and the frame.
    F4EF1799-3946-4EFA-9FE3-B0D2BFC24057.jpeg
    I sourced a new crossmember from KW, and put it back on with the two 0.25” factory spacers from the pile, which I cleaned up and painted. We will see if I need to drop it lower when we get the transmission and transfer case mated to the engine and dropped in. The driveshafts angles look way too steep for now...
    [​IMG]

    We bent back what we could with Chief's new Port-a-power ram, and I ground out and welded up some cracks here and there to the best of my ability with my 120V Mig. I stitched in fish plates to box out and reinforce the bent frame rails over the rear spring perches, and added some new metal over the axle bumpers where the frame had rotted out.
    64260F1F-50E9-4135-8476-EF8F393EB91E.jpeg

    20190703_GK_SquawTQ-25.jpg
    IMG_7051.jpg
    In the rear, we bought a CJ5 rear crossmember from Kaiser Willys, which was too short. So we cut it and spliced in some c-channel we dug out of the dumpster. We debated butt welding it so it looked OEM, but decided that four welds (overlapped) would be better than two, so it looks like an obvious patch but it will add strength back to the frame.
    58500959469__791907A1-1C43-4DB0-A7EA-53AC6AC07207.jpg
    Photo Jun 27, 8 34 33 AM.jpg
    rear cross member splice.jpg
    Once everything was all straight and the measurements checked out per the FSM, I sandblasted it with Chief's Typhoon pressure washer hopper-style wet sandblaster with Play Sand (yes I wrote an N95 respirator - remember when those were just for working on things?).

    I then cleaned with POR’s cleaner/degreaser, and then etched with their metal prep, and brushed on three coats of POR Gloss Black, flipping it between coats. I know this should be Chassis Black (satin) but I like the look of Gloss. This was pretty hard, and did not end up as “perfect” as I had hoped for. I will admit am not very good at painting. I still have to go back and sand out some bubbles and drips that resulted from my not having patience enough to paint slowly (and I shook the can! D’oh!). I am going to treat the coat of POR on the frame thus far as "primer" and before I get much farther I'm going to sand all the defects off, and then seal it all with POR TopCoat from a spray can so it hides some of my brushing errors and looks better. Although it looks far worse in all these pictures than it is because of the dirt and pollen and reflections of the high gloss....guess that's why people do satin!

    Also, since we have a small knife-making forge at the Roundhouse, I plan to eventually try to button the rear crossmember and new V up to the frame with hot rivets at some point. We tried a few on scrap metal, and did one test on the front cross member and it went pretty well so we know we can do it. We just need to mill up a better bucking bar. Yes I know I should have done this before I painted the frame….


    20190804_GK_untitled shoot.jpg 20190805_GK_untitled shoot.jpg

    Good close up of what happens with POR 15 when you don't clean well first. This has subsequently been sanded off and repainted...

    I am hoping that I can find an original Tuxedo Park front bumper to replace the new crossmember I bolted into replace the bent one that came with the Jeep. If not, I will have to modify an old or new Jeepster bumper and get it chromed.
     
    Last edited: Jul 20, 2020
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  4. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Driveshafts

    I tore these completely apart, cleaned out all the old lube, sandblasted and painted, and put in new U-joints and felt seals. The PO had done some pretty interesting stuff.

    POs custom u-joint cap retainer .jpg
    As I said above, the angles look too steep for now but waiting to see what’s up when we get some weight on the new springs.

    29B98745-969F-4D03-B666-1D0DB2C3D951.jpeg

    Exhaust - this had been replaced with a dual-muffler system that exited the chassis under each door. Sounded good, didn’t smell too good while wheeling slowly. I glass bead blasted the manifolds and treated them with Calyx dressing and they look good as new.
    76548935-1E39-461E-9431-57DA1BA7AF02.jpeg
    For the pipes, since the ones that were on it were junk, I am planning to replace with a Waldron’s OEM setup for 1966 with an under-seat fuel tank.



    Rear Axle

    The rear axle was mostly fine, but had some leaks so we just tore it down to clean out all the old gooey lube, but left the differential and pinion inner bearing/cup alone.
    Photo Apr 29, 7 16 26 AM.jpg

    We replaced the outer bearing and cup, and checked the preload and rotational torque. We replaced the seals, wheel bearings, and I upgraded the brakes to 11” rear drum brakes with Herm’s kit. Photo May 02, 9 56 12 AM.jpg
     
    Last edited: Jul 20, 2020
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  5. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Brakes

    The front Dana 27A axle got discs and the rear got 11” drums. I have new 3/16” CuNiFr lines ready to run when we get to that point, and I upgraded to a dual-reservoir master cylinder from Herm.

    Photo Jul 19, 11 09 43 AM.jpg
    Photo Jul 19, 11 09 30 AM.jpg

    Wasn’t happy to cut the OEM cylinder mounting bracket off to get this kit to fit, but I double checked with Herm himself and it needed to come out to leave enough clearance for the bell housing.

    Having never touched a vehicle's brake system before, I'm going to be leaning heavily on Cheif's experience (and borrowing his brake line tools).

    I had to replace both the brake/clutch cross shafts with new Crown ones as the old ones were totally worn out and/or broken.
    Photo Jul 29, 3 29 41 PM.jpg


    I have this all back together, but I’m debating whether the investment of upgrading to the Advance Adapters chain clutch is worth it….seems like it.
     
    Last edited: Jul 19, 2020
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  6. Jul 19, 2020
    Focker

    Focker That's a terrible idea...What time? Staff Member

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    I love how you're going to town on your Jeep! :clap:
     
  7. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Cheers! I have a lot of text written up offline so I'm gonna keep updating this thread a post at a time and add pics as I go.
     
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  8. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Starter / Solenoid

    This was in pretty bad shape, inside and out.
    Photo Dec 01, 4 15 25 PM.jpg

    It was not just filthy but the pinion gear was chipped and worn, and the posts on the original solenoid were almost rotted out. The brushes were about 50% gone.
    Photo Dec 01, 4 15 33 PM.jpg
    Photo Jul 05, 11 39 19 AM.jpg
    I tore it down, got a $15 rebuild kit from Chicago Corvette Supply, and cleaned it up, lubed up with dielectric grease, sanded the copper, installed new brushes, added a new solenoid, and rebuilt per the directions in the FSM. Wire wheeled the aluminum and painted the case.
    Photo Jul 05, 6 46 00 PM.jpg
    IMG_3486.jpg
     
  9. Jul 19, 2020
    Focker

    Focker That's a terrible idea...What time? Staff Member

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    I like how you work. I prefer staying organized as well.
     
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  10. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Front Axle

    The front axle was in need of some serious attention. There’s a thread in tech about this where I got some great advice (and some "saved my dumb *** from seriously screwing up" advice).Most notably the passenger side “ears” were bent and the kingpin bearing races were out of round. And, I think the tube itself was bent (see pic below of the OEM tube on sawhorses next to the replacement).


    [​IMG]
    The wheel bearings were shot. The PO at some point mixed a Spicer-style joint on the long side, and a Bendix-style axle joint on the short side. The threads on the Bendix shaft were long gone, so there was no way to correctly set the end play.

    There at some point had been a bunch of water in the differential:

    20190710_GK_SquawTQ-2.jpg

    Chief and I tried to bend-back the ears on the passenger side, but were not successful (as everyone on here said we would not be, but we had to try!). So I got a new tube from JW Jeep down in Antelope. I actually had to make two trips because I first came home with a Waggoner D27 axle, which I didn’t notice was bent (and especially didn't notice that it was too wide, so this was a happy accident that just cost me time and another tank of gas down the hill - see above about "dumb."). Mark was nice and let me exchange it for a proper D27A tube that was in decent shape.

    Photo May 19, 7 34 13 AM.jpg

    This was a major project that took about a month as I had to learn everything more or less from scratch. The replacement tube was in solid shape and cleaned up well. New kingpin races tapped right in, and I sanded down the knuckle "atlas" surfaces with 220/320/600/1200 paper until they were nice and shiny and burr-free.
    Photo May 28, 5 04 17 PM.jpg
    Photo May 28, 5 04 14 PM.jpg

    Photo May 19, 7 34 21 AM.jpg
    Screenshot 2020-07-19 14.39.59.png
    0.006" - right on the money.

    I cleaned up the new tube, inside and out. The new tube came with it's factory-machined matching carrier cups, so I was able to transplant the differential gears and matched pinion from my original axle into the new tube. We had to set the pinion depth with new shims, added in a new seal, bearings and races, and got it all sealed up with the right endplay tolerances and rotational torque. I confirmed the tooth-contact pattern with some White Lithium grease mixed with a 1/4 teaspoon of the wife's turmeric powder, and then I had Chief come and check my work, he used a piece of paper.

    Photo May 23, 8 56 58 AM.jpg
    Photo May 23, 8 58 04 AM.jpg
    I think I remember literally jumping up and down when everything checked out and I could move onto the wheels and knuckles, as this part of the build was a major hurdle.

    As much as I appreciated the period-engineering of the Bendix style axle, it was pretty badly worn from lack of endplay, so I got a new Spicer (Cardan) style passenger axle shaft put together with the right U-joint, and got that in with some minor filing of the splines. It was nice to be able to know the endplay was correctly set after I got the hubs on!
    Photo Jun 13, 9 28 48 AM.jpg

    I had new knuckles in a parts box from the PO, so I milled these down to accept 1.5” button head screws and replaced the original ones. We had to go to our friendly local makerspace, the Truckee Roundhouse, and use the Bridgeport there to flatten the knuckles for the heads of the screws. Cheif and I are both founders of the Roundhouse, and his old boss Dave Griswold (RIP Dave) donated his company's mill to us five years ago when we started up. It's a great resource.

    Photo May 30, 3 13 15 PM.jpg

    TBC in Disc Brake Upgrade post.
     
    Last edited: Jul 19, 2020
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  11. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Disc Brake Upgrade

    Due to the terror I recall feeling when driving this Jeep from 2008-2012, I decided to convert the front axle to disc brakes. There are excellent step-by-step resources out there, particularly Focker's thread.

    I was not that thrilled on the idea of having to remove so much of the knuckle material for floating caliper clearance, so we decided instead to mill down the calipers on the Bridgeport at the Roundhouse.

    Photo Jun 02, 8 33 54 AM.jpg
    Photo Jun 06, 4 36 47 PM.jpg
    Photo Jun 07, 5 58 39 PM.jpg
    Photo Jun 07, 6 26 34 PM (1).jpg
    This went really well with Chief teaching me how to use the mill on the easier passes, and taking over when things were getting towards the end and the housing was getting thinner.

    We ended up taking off just enough material so that even when the pads are worn down to the noise-maker, there still would be no way the caliper would hit the knuckle casting.
    IMG_3641.jpg

    IMG_2876.jpg
    I got some of metalshaper’s special knuckle lube, and filled up both knuckles with his blue stuff. I know it is expensive, but I wanted to give him some financial support for all the invaluable in all of his videos. The first one I was smart enough to do before we put the axle under the chassis, but the second one I had to tap one of the old fill-plugs with a zerk and hand-pumped that slippery blue gak in there a tube at a time. Definitely added to the "wouldn't make that mistake again the next time I do this" list.
     
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  12. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Warn Hubs

    These were in pretty bad shape externally, and in need of a refurb mechanically. The passenger side wouldn’t turn without way too much force from pliers.

    20190708_GK_SquawTQ-9.jpg

    20190708_GK_SquawTQ-16.jpg
    So I tore them apart and fixed them up as best as I could. Scuffed and sanded, but left a lot of deep dings in the aluminum as I didn't want them to be totally misshapen.
    20190713_GK_SquawTQ-6.jpg

    I called in a favor from a former neighbor who makes a lot of scale models to come over help me re-paint the outsides.
    20190714_GK_SquawTQ-5.jpg
    20190714_GK_SquawTQ-11.jpg

    20190714_GK_SquawTQ-9.jpg
    They came out pretty nice.
    IMG_7356.jpg
    IMG_3642.jpg
     
  13. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Steering

    When I was driving her, the steering was loose as a goose, and I was more or less always terrified whenever I was going over 30 mph on pavement. Hoping that the new knuckles and straight replacement axle tube will help that, but I decided to also give some attention to the Ross steering box.

    The Ross box was dry and wouldn’t keep any lube. So I tore it all completely apart, and addressed it's issues one by one. Since it is too big for our 1953 Logan lathe at the Roundhouse, I had a machine shop in Reno polish the bearing cup on the cam tube (and they told me it wasn't 100% straight....oh well). This is as good as they could get it:
    20190729_GK_untitled shoot.jpg
    20190730_GK_untitled shoot-3.jpg
    I know that's not acceptable to some - but at the time I didn't want to spend the $ to get a new tube as they were well over $300 and quite hard to find.

    Beyond that, got it cleaned it up, installed new seals and bearings, and got new bushings and reamed them to size. Old bearings were in nylon cages; new ones were larger and "free."
    20190730_GK_untitled shoot-21.jpg
    Note the height differences in the new bearing cups versus the OEM:
    20190730_GK_untitled shoot-5.jpg
    20190730_GK_untitled shoot-19.jpg 20190730_GK_untitled shoot.jpg
    20190730_GK_untitled shoot-11.jpg
    Made my own gasket on the laser cutter at Roundhouse - prototype on regular printed office paper shown here before I CADed it.
    20190730_GK_untitled shoot-14.jpg
    I neglected to pay close enough attention during this process to the most-important steps to ensure years of leak-free service - I didn't address the base of the horn wire tube. So I had to tear it all back apart again and start from scratch and Tig-braze the horn wire tube shut. Doesn't leak now!
    IMG_3055.jpg
    Painted it up and it’s as good as new.
    IMG_3644.jpg
    There’s a little more play in the straight-ahead position than I’d like but I didn’t want to spend $300 on a new worm tube, and I’m not interested in adding power steering or a Saginaw conversion at this time.
     
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  14. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Transmission and Transfer Case Part 1

    These were in pretty good shape, with typical leaks and external grime.
    Photo Dec 01, 3 38 20 PM.jpg
    Got as much of it cleaned off as I could:
    Photo Dec 31, 11 06 41 AM.jpg
    And got them apart.
    61428589040__425459F4-E129-4185-B0B8-FD63CDD4BE72.jpg
    Mechanically everything was pretty sound inside, with no chipped out teeth or damage. The T86AA case had had it’s original spiral cut gears replaced with the straight-cut gears from a T90, and the control tower was from a T90.

    IMG_2939.jpg
    The synchroniser rings were borderline as to whether they needed to be replaced, I decided to run them and finish wearing them out.


    IMG_2966.jpg
    Overall the internal workings of the Dana 18 case looked good.


    IMG_2989.jpg
    IMG_2991.jpg
    One bummer was the two broken off tower-bolt holes in the top of the Transmission case.
    Photo Nov 30, 7 46 49 AM.jpg

    Chief and I thought we could Muggyweld up these holes and re-tap them, but that would mean pulling everything out of the case. Or I could replace with a new one. So I looked around for a new case, found a few on here that members were nice enough to offer for sale, and JW had one for $100, but I decided to save the $ and hassle and do a fix myself that I thought about from fixing ski bindings back in the day with heli-coil inserts.

    I installed EZ-Lok threaded inserts that I “glued” in with Red Locktite, and replaced these two mount bolts with 1” x 10-32 hex head bolts that go into the EZ-loks (shown here with temporary washers).
    IMG_3647.jpg
    IMG_3648.jpg
    Hoping that these will hold and give the tower sufficient strength.

    TBC in part 2
     
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  15. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    I cleaned these up inside and out, and replaced bearings and races but elected not to do a full small-parts rebuild. New gaskets went on, new grade 8 bolts went in to seal it all back up, and the outsides got cleaned up and painted.

    The emergency brake was long gone from the rear output bearing of the case., and I had a Dana 18 E-brake kit from Herm that had been languishing on the garage shelves for 8 years. This build finally got it put back on so I don't have to always look for a wegde-shaped rock to wedge under my tire when I stop in the woods.

    IMG_2943.jpg
    Decided not to replace the bearings or shafts as they looked pretty good.

    So I just blasted the linkage parts:
    IMG_2993.jpg
    Got the new Herm-supplied rear-output bearing case with E-brake clevis post installed and checked the preload with a NOS shim pack (love the smell of that old cosmoline!)
    IMG_3013.jpg

    Got the shift linkage rebuilt:
    IMG_3646.jpg

    Painted it all up, E-brake drum on:
    IMG_3645.jpg
    Ended up re-using the original Yoke:
    IMG_3056.jpg
    Was able to keep the half-sealed front output bearing in place on the T96/90: IMG_3091.jpg
    Got to do some more tig-brazing to fix the missing piece of one of the PTO cover ears:
    IMG_3065.jpg
    Under washers is a great place to hide beginner brazing!
    IMG_3072.jpg
    Almost ready for the engine to come back:
    IMG_3109.jpg
     
    Last edited: Jul 19, 2020
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  16. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

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    Dashboard

    Other than the body, this was in probably the worst shape of anything on the Jeep.
    Dashboard with tape measure.jpg

    For starters who thought it was a good idea to cover it in naugahyde?

    Dashboard Back.png
    Not to mention there’s all the extra holes and cutouts and galvanized and bondo = yuck!

    I thought about trying to fix it, but it’s beyond my skillset at welding. I then thought about trying to make a replacement with the CNC plasma table we have at Roundhouse, and go as far as designing a CAD file and pricing sheet metal, but then I wised up and decided to have one made by Dan Dillner at Double D fabrication in PA. His are affordable at $250, and he already has a template ready to go for a 1966/1967 V6 that is pretty close to correct (thanks Maurywhurt!). I'm working with Dan to add the exact holes we think are OEM for a 1966 V6 with electric wipers. So it will be nice to get that professionally made.

    When I got this Jeep, it had the original speedometer, but nothing worked on it - not the speed, the lights were dead, tjhe needle paint was faded, and the gauges were burned out. While I was driving it I ran an Omix replacement, which always bothered me that everything looked so different.
    IMG_3142.jpg

    I was going to get my original speedometer rebuilt, but I got some estimates that were way more $ than I wanted to spend ($2,400!!!!), so I looked around and eventually found a NOS speedometer on Ebay with dirty glass and chipped paint on the bezel.

    IMG_3402.jpg
    I carefully took the bezel off, and bead blasted my original speedo bezel, and painted it up and swapped it into the NOS one and it looks brand new.

    IMG_3473.jpg
    Can’t wait to wire this up and get it on the dash when it comes.
     
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  17. Jul 19, 2020
    GillaFunk

    GillaFunk I'm the Dude, so thats what you call me. 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Graeagle Calif...
    Joined:
    Sep 26, 2019
    Messages:
    278
    For some things you aren’t comfortable doing, you may consider giving Jimmy Strauss in Placerville a call. He did a full engine rebuild for me in about 3 weeks. Another fella, Dan, who does work for Jimmy rebuilt my transmission t/c. I added an OD, a Clifford header, and once she is back from the exhaust shop I’ll be installing a Weber carb.

    I’m just up the road from you in Blairsden/Graeagle. If you need a hand with anything let me know. Jeeps are new to me, but I’d be glad to lend a hand or help.
     
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  18. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

    truckee4x4 Grant Kaye 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Truckee CA
    Joined:
    May 30, 2008
    Messages:
    1,322
    Suspension & Steering

    Things in this department on the Jeep were in need of some attention. The rear spring pivot perches were elongated and had bent the frame under them. As noted above, out they came so we could bend the frame back, and they were replaced.

    20190630_GK_untitled shoot.jpg
    20190703_GK_SquawTQ-29.jpg
    IMG_3650.jpg
    Interestingly, the OEM spring shackles were missing, and had been replaced by the PO with what look like homemade 6.5” long ones (5.5" hole to hole - if anyone wants these PM me).
    IMG_3651.jpg
    I installed new US made Warrior Products 0.5” lift shackles at front and rear with the goal of a 3” total suspension lift (combined with new 2.5" springs...).
    IMG_3652.jpg
    I replaced the worn and flat original springs with Rough Country 2.5” lifted springs and shocks and new U-bolts. I put on Warrior Products spring plates front and back. I got these because I liked the built in skid plate, and the engineering behind the replaceable shock post, but I’m not sure I like how these splay the shocks outboard. I suspect I may have to go back to the stock plates in the front as this looks a little tight to me when the steering is turned all the way one way or another - love to hear some other opinions.

    IMG_3283.jpg IMG_3286.jpg

    Oh if you're wondering about the shocks - I took the old Rancho RS5000 shocks that I put on it in 2008 and cleaned them up and rattle canned them “Patriotic Blue” just for the fun of it. I have the Rough Country N3 shocks waiting in the wings, the fronts don’t extend far enough to fit without any weight on the frame so they are languishing on a shelf.

    As far as the steering, I refurbished the 7/8" shaft bellcrank with sleeve and re-greased it and tightened it back to spec, and replaced the stock tie rods and ends with new ones.

    From:
    Photo Dec 18, 5 06 48 PM.jpg
    to:

    IMG_3654.jpg
    Will see how things line up when I get the engine weight in.
     

    Attached Files:

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  19. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

    truckee4x4 Grant Kaye 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Truckee CA
    Joined:
    May 30, 2008
    Messages:
    1,322
    Oil Bath Air Cleaner

    I actually started a thread about this asking a bunch of questions about how to proceed, and as usual got lots of great info and advice.

    The PO had a FLAPS special paper filter up on top of the carb, and the valve covers were reversed (right?) and the LH one was just connected to a hose to the open air:

    Photo Jun 17, 2 33 18 PM.jpg
    So I bought a cheap beat up 1967 Buick Jeep oil bath air cleaner on Ebay that needed some work, and fixed it up.
    IMG_3261.jpg
    It had a lot of small holes inside and a big one on the outside, that I Tig brazed shut with silicon bronze rod at Roundhouse.

    IMG_3281.jpg
    (note where I almost cut the top of my finger off chopping green onions at lunch earlier in this week)
    [​IMG]

    IMG_3258.jpg

    IMG_3453.jpg

    We filled probably 12 or so pinholes in the inside "tray."

    The big hole on the outside filled up nicely, but not after I of course made it larger at first with too much heat! I had our welding teacher helping me out, so he was showing me some great techniques for hole-filling and he did some of it himself on the tougher ones where things got away from me.

    My attempt at the larger outside hole was not the prettiest braze, but solid.

    IMG_3455.jpg
    Grinded the braze plug down
    IMG_3495.jpg
    And then filled with JB weld and sanded (no pics).

    There were also a lot of dents on the outside.
    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]

    I was going to try and stud-weld these dents and pull them out, but given how thin the metal was when we were brazing it, I was worried about making more holes so I went with the tried-and-true method of filling the dents with JB Weld.

    Filled and sanded, and filled and sanded, and...you get the idea. I applied a coat of Duplicolor's rust-fix clear to address the bad pitting rust on the top. Then a couple coats of self-etching primer. They are drying today, and almost ready to re-paint this guy and get it back together and back on the shelf waiting to go on the carb (or will it go instead onto a Holly Sniper EFI??)
    IMG_3632.jpg

    Hope to get the top coat of VHT gloss black on there tomorrow, will post it here.
     
    Fireball likes this.
  20. Jul 19, 2020
    truckee4x4

    truckee4x4 Grant Kaye 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Truckee CA
    Joined:
    May 30, 2008
    Messages:
    1,322
    That's a pretty decent summary of what's been done to her in the last two years. Here is my future "To-Do" (excluding of course stuff I may have to re-do like fix the front suspension spring plates.

    Engine

    I originally was going to try to tackle this myself, as I really want to learn how to rebuild an engine. Chief was going to mentor me through it, but in the end I decided to sublet the work out to a local engine shop in Sparks - Superior Machine. Augie Steinert and his son Dustin do top notch machine work and as long as you are willing to wait and have it done on their timeline. When I dropped it off (in December 2018) they had three other 1960s Jeep Dauntlesses in the queue, he’s probably rebuilt hundreds of them. Their to do list is:

    • Hot tank and magnaflux
    • Bore and hone cylinders to +0.030
    • Recondition rods
    • R&R pistons, cam bearings and freeze plugs
    • Valve job, machine valve guides
    • Surface / clean heads (they were done previously)
    • Sealed power pistons, hastings moly rings, clevite main rod-cam bearings,
    • Rebuild Melling oil pump
    • Engine Pro double-row timing set
    • Comp Cams 63-246-4 camshaft
    • Joe Gibbs break in oil

    Hoping to get this back from them later this summer. Here's some pics of it before it went in to the rebuilder.
    Photo Jun 17, 2 21 13 PM.jpg

    IMG_1980.jpg IMG_1985.jpg IMG_1987.jpg IMG_2027.jpg IMG_1989.jpg IMG_2059.jpg IMG_2052.jpg

    When we get it back, I’m looking forward to painting it OEM Buick green, and then planning on installing a Holly Sniper EFI, new HEI distributor, new wires, new water pump, new alternator, coil, and new fuel pump.
     
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