CJ3B Beastie

Then I got the steering column positioned in the floor so it is above the chassis frame with a direct path to the steering box out front.

But to do the rest of the steering wheel setup the seats needed to be positioned, so propped them up and sat in it a few times lifting foot up to pedal to see if the height was OK, and decided that the seat could do with a bit more rearward direction.



These seats are the best I have found so far for my purposes, they have a relatively narrow distance behind the lumbar region so you can get your bum as far back in the seat as possible.

Didn't need to notch the CJ5 but the 3B is a bit more compact.

Decided to do the notching of the guard to get the seat back the 2 inches or so I wanted.

 

After the cut.
It had the legroom I wanted.


Then with the infill plates installed and welded.

 

After the seats got set in position I was able to go ahead and finalise the steering column.


And, this is what it looks like from the side.
Seems about right based on pics I see of other 3B's.

 

I do have a request if any other 3B owners could help me out.

I don't have easy access to anyone else down here with a 3B, and will need to get an idea of the hood length shortly so I can position the grille.

So if possible, could anyone run a tape over the hood and give me a hood length from front to rear?

Thanks

 

The one night I'm doing desk work and not down at the shop.... If nobody beats me to it, I can get it in the morning.

Are those seats aftermarket? Or out of something? They look nice.

 

They're out of a Subaru Liberty, 97 model.
Not sure if you have them over there or it might be called something else.

They have "leather" upper sections supposedly.

Thanks in advance for the measurement.

 

I had to run the dog out before bed and ran down and checked.

The whole top section is 33 1/4" including the bent area. The bottom edge measures 33 1/2" from corner to corner, both sides identical. I'm not sure if the extra 1/4" is gained in the front or rear.

This got me curious, so I measured the hood on the 3A. That one is all over the place from 33 1/8" to 33 7/16" with no consistency.

 

Thanks for that, it's a big help.

I will be able to get the grille mounted in the right spot so the proportions will be correct now.
Somehow with such loose tolerances jeeps still manage to look cool.

 

Holy crike. How did i miss your thread. Awesome work.

 

there is the + or - 1/2 inch tolerance....

 

Awesome as usual.

You have a vacuum pump for your power brakes? Did you have trouble mounting your pedals? I bet the extra height of your cowl over that of my 2A would be an advantage.

 

Yep, there is a vacuum pump as part of the alternator assembly that gives the suction to the booster.

All of the cabin seat, steering wheel and pedal layout is roughly the same as the CJ5.
I have taken the measurements from it to help get everything in the right spots so the 3B should be just as comfortable to drive as the 5.

Pedals were able to mount at the same height from the floor as the CJ5 but I would not have been able to do that in the lower models.
Had to cut off and make new flange to suit the booster bolts at the front of the pedal mount and it also had to shorten at the dash by around 2 inches.

The 3B's extra height makes all of that possible without having to shorten the length of the pedal arms.

The engine would have just squeezed under a 2A hood height but the extra room has made life a bit less of a worry.

 

The vacuum pump on the back of the alternator has been historically anemic. Might want to leave room for an additional vacuum reservoir. Most diesel conversions use the hydro boost system.

 

Will keep an eye on it's performance and see how it goes.

I can push the pedal down very easily without the engine running so hopefully it will be alright.

 

More progress on the pedal linkages and steering.

Got the Daihatsu Rocky clutch cable installed by using a new clevis to attach to the Jeep pedals.
Had to make a bracket to bolt on to the bell housing and a recess in the front of the firewall for the cable to enter the cab in the correct orientation.

 

Then I moved on to the final part of the steering assembly puzzle, the shaft from the steering column to the box.

Had to make and weld a new shaft to the uni's to get the length right but it turned out nice.


The shaft clears the shocky mount and is aligned over the top of the chassis rail so it wont interfere with the mudguard when I get around to making those.
All up, a good day.
Luckily I have not had to do any reworking yet (touch wood).

Today was also a small milestone.
With the clutch connected and the steering operational I started the engine to test the power steering was working OK.
Then I had a little play, and moved the beastie forward and back using the gears.
No brakes connected yet so all very low speed but it worked and that's the exciting part.

 

Haven't got any real work for a few days so time for Jeep building.

Next stage is to tidy up and connect the brake lines and get them operating, then I will be able to test drive in the back paddock.

Other major jobs on the list;
Make the mounts for the seats. I am thinking of going a similar route to the CJ5 system of using a cross bar to support the front of the seats.
Make the under seat fuel tank and work out a fuel switching method from main to the reserve tank.
Set up the seat belt mounts.
Still need to get back to designing and making the handbrake lever and the tunnel cover.
Set the grille in position and sort out the radiator mounting / cowling and the electric cooling fan.
Make the lids for the rear storage bins and set up a glove box in the dash.
Redesign the dash for the instrumentation I want to run. Got the normal speedo, oil and volt gauge, but also want to run a boost gauge for the turbo.

Later, the big items will be the mudguards, hood, and tailgate from aluminium.
I have reconsidered that the windscreen frame will be made from steel.

 

Seats installed.

Used a 40 x 40 x 3mm SHS for the cross bar, with 5mm thick plates on the ends that bolt through the tool holder recess on each side.


Temporary bolts holding it all together at the moment.
Also rebated the tunnel rear top corner so the bar is a straight run across, the bar will tie in to the tunnel sheet metal so it will all be rock solid.

The seats in position.



And the captive nut under neath that holds the seat rear mounts down.
They should keep the engineer happy.

 

More updates.

Got the handbrake sorted out.
Had to adjust the plan a little bit as the original pivot point I planned to use would not be practical with the seat support bar now being in the way.

So, made a link going from the caliper lever that sticks up through what will be the tunnel cover, and made a handbrake assembly that mounts on the seat bar.







The handbrake also works great.
Very secure at rest and locks the rear wheels instantly while moving.

 

Moved on to the grille cleanup and repairs, and preparing to sort out the radiator mounting method.

The grille before repair.
You can make out the rust holes and damage from previous owners work.

The existing blinker and park light holes will go.


After repair and modification.

The new blinkers will be LED types from a modern jeep
The park lights will be mounted in the bullbar alongside another set of blinkers.
Left side bottom corner has been notched to clear the steering knuckle.