CJ3B Beastie

So here's the windscreen frame so far.

The arms on the pivot point, and the first joints.




With the cross bars installed.

Gotta lower the one above the cowl more yet, or decide if it need to be removed altogether once the skin goes on.


Folded down it does match the guard corners.


Tomorrow I will get the rear panel / bar on the bottom section and maybe get the front panel attached as well.

I am going to get a piece of glass so I can trace the shape and cut out the opening after the welding is done.

 

Got side tracked today so didn't get anywhere near what I planned done.

But, did curve and install the lowest bar where the seal attaches.
Bar being pulled down on the seal to replicate the latch pressure.
This way I can set the windscreen angle.


Then fully welded it all.

 

Baby steps doing this part.

Stuck doing real work most of the day so only got the lower corner infills done.


Used the chequer plate from the rear floor and side steps for the inside panel, should look "different"

Took a bit of time shaping the piece that will be hidden between the front and rear panel but eventually got it holding the rubber down nicely.


Welded and de horned.


Clamped down with the rubber in place.

 

While sitting down talking to the bride on the phone I thought, that's a nice view.

 

Sure is!

I really like this 3b.

 

Happy people are enjoying the madness.

Continuing with the windscreen frame.
There's a surprising amount of fiddly work to get this done.

Made some latch points and welded them to the lower bar of the frame.

I am using an off the shelf over centre latch to replace the missing original style.

Then the skinning process began.
Did a piece of sheet for the bottom and matched it to the frame profile.
As you can see I have made the frame a bit weirder than the factory version, specifically the 45* sloping part of the arm is too long and high relative to the frame upright.
But I was following the natural direction that the rubber indicated, (not knowing any better and not checking photos properly before hand) so the skin ends up with a bend where it would normally be straight up and down.



The pic above shows the top piece being set up ready for tacking to the frame.
I did the skin in 2 pieces for 2 reasons, less material wastage, I had some strips left over from a job, and when you weld in a full sheet sometimes it distorts and once the centre gets cut out it may still have a wobbly edge.

 

So after all the cleanup it turned out to be a clearly custom effort.



Skin is tacked to frame every 3 to 4 inches with a small weld around 3/8" long to minimise heat input.
All the edges will be sealed with an auto sealant before painting to keep moisture out of the overlapping pieces.



The glass opening is undersized because I don't have the glass yet to trace the exact shape and I won't rely on the dimensions they say it is until it gets here to be checked.

 

Keeping with the spirit of being custom made I have set up the frame 1" shorter than the standard height.

ITLKSEZ measured his one and got 22" high but when I made it that high and sat in the seat I had heaps of headroom even if the canvas was to be level.

So I dropped it another inch and still have good headroom, plus I plan to have a rollbar that will be higher than the frame top so the canvas slopes up to it which is extra headroom as well.



I think it helps contribute to the more aggressive look that I am trying for.


Got a canopy strip bar to attach after the glass gets finalised, that will be a bolted on alloy item.
Now to find some wiper mechanisms or make something myself.

 

Started to look at instrument locations and after any constructive criticism.

The original speedo location is the same place as it was for you guys, not ideal if your'e driving on the right hand side.

I also want to run 5 separate 2" gauges plus the light and wipers switches, but the thought of doing back breaking yoga poses to wire all those items behind the dash makes me ache just contemplating it.
So I am thinking of doing something radical.

If you havn't guessed by now I like storage spaces, so what if I cut out a big glove box opening where the speedo hole is and box under the dash almost half way across from the left side.
Then made a removable sloping dash section that holds the gauges etc.

First pic
The chalk outline of the glove box opening.

It's hard to see but the opening would be from the old speedo hole across to the left hand latch.
Then the new dash set up.


This would put the speedo more on the centre line like CJ5.

The panel would attach to the dash with screws and hinge down to be able to do the wiring easier.

The big concern is maintaining the structural integrity of the dash panel so the cowl is not weakened.

 

Totally agree on dropping the height if you have room. I've played around with the short 3b windshield on the 3A. I love the look, but I just can't swing it. I'd be looking out over the top.

Keep it up man, it looks great.

 

For me, the windshield is a problem. I was always either looking over the top of it or craning my neck to see through it at stop lights and similar. To remedy that issue I got rid of the underseat gas tank to sink the seat down. Not the only reason, just a contributing one to the rear mount tank. The 2a windshield is clearly different than the 3b or cj5. I didnt realize that the speedo for your 3b had the hole cut to the left. Fix it!

 

I have a suspicion that my seat height is a touch lower than standard, so that has helped me to be able to lower the screen frame height while maintaining good headroom.

I'm 6'2" and it doesn't feel cramped so far, plus I find that vision at traffic lights is already a compromise even in the CJ5 so I think it's a decent trade off.


I was worrying about the dash being weakened if I cut out a big opening for both the glove box opening and the instruments, then remembered that the glove box base and side sections will act like a big gusset so I reckon it will be sweet to do a removable kicker panel for the gauges.

 

Today was an excellent day.
Got the glove box done.


The opening will have a rubber seal around it to finish it off neatly.
It's a little wonky but I only wanted to cut the minimal amount of material to make the opening.




May be the biggest glove box in jeep history? Finishes just shy of the vehicle centre line.

Then I moved across to the dash mount.



Made the kicker panel and then cut the opening in the dash.
Removed the lower dog leg segment of the dash where the hand brake used to live, that was redundant since day 1 here in Australia.
Replaced with a straight piece of steel.

Used a stainless steel piano hinge to attach the bottom edge to the dash, then 3x M4 set screws to secure to the top of panel to just below the cowl corner.



Marked out and cut the openings for the instruments.


From the drivers position.
A few of the gauges are obscured by the steering wheel but that can't be helped.



Interesting trivia, the speedo cable from the Daihatsu transfer case is a slip on fit to the Jeep speedo.



Sits on there reasonably secure, there is a little clip either side that grips the threads of the speedo, so between that and the firewall grommet it holds it in place nicely.
A short test drive confirms it works, but no idea if it's accurate yet.
I am not holding my breath that it is.

Only a check with a sat nav to compare will tell for sure.

 

This is becoming one of my favorite build threads. I bow to your skills. However, you slipped up and we now know your secret to success

Just funnin you. Seriously I look forward to your updates.

 

I think he has a full set of hammers...and knows how to use them....

 

Hammers can make anything fit.

 

I need help from the brains trust.


I can't get the temp gauge on the speedo unit to work no matter what I try.

The fuel gauge works fine but when the power is applied to the fuel gauge post the temp gauge marker swings back up and left away from the gauge face and disappears behind the main speedo plate.

Normal position.


When power put in.


At first I thought it was a dud gauge, even though it is a brand new unit it is only a cheapy.

So I got a replacement set, and get the same reaction.

To cover all the possible theories;
The earth / grounding is perfect for both the speedo body and the fuel sender
The temp sender unit is brand new and working, with resistance that drops as the engine eats up.
Even earthing the sender post on the gauge to simulate hot temp /low resistance has no reaction to the marker dial, it stays hidden up to the left.

Any idea's?

 

Your jiggering at the wrong parameter. Your baud rate needs to heap at around 27mhz and maybe adjust your homoligator a few degrees clockwise. And yes I stayed at a Holiday Inn last night.

Seriously I have no idea, none.

 

I have no clue either. You may want to ask it in a new thread. I think some of the most tech-knowledgeable folks on here don't follow all the build threads, but they might see it if it's in a new thread.